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It’s almost time for the Wizards to head home, but they’ll have a great opportunity to finish their road trip 2-1 before returning to D.C. After a tough outing in San Antonio, Washington (21-28) closes its three-game road stretch Tuesday in Cleveland against a Cavaliers (10-41) team that’s only won two of its last 20 games. The matchup is the first half of another back-to-back for the Wizards that will culminate in a home meeting with the Pacers Wednesday night back at Capital One Arena.
Game Info
Quicken Loans Arena | 7:00 P.M. | NBC Sports Washington | 1500 AM
Probable Starters
Wizards: G – Tomas Satoransky, G – Bradley Beal, F – Trevor Ariza, F – Jeff Green, C – Thomas Bryant
Cavs: G – Collin Sexton, G – Alec Burks, F – Cedi Osman, F – Rodney Hood, C – Ante Zizic
Injury Report
Wizards: Dwight Howard (aggravated gluteal soreness – out), John Wall (left heel – out), Markieff Morris (transient cervical neuropraxia – out), Ian Mahinmi (thumb sprain – questionable), Sam Dekker (back soreness – questionable)
Cavs: John Henson (left wrist surgery – out), Kevin Love (left foot surgery – out), David Nwaba (left ankle sprain – out), JR Smith (personal – not with team), Tristan Thompson (left foot soreness – out)
Storylines
Lessons learned
The Wizards won’t forget their last trip to Cleveland, during which the Cavs went on a 31-4 run, led by as many as 29 points, and hit 15 3-pointers to cruise to a 116-101 victory. If there’s one way for Cleveland to hurt the Wizards again in Tuesday's game, it’s by getting hot from deep again. 3-point percentage is about the only area the Cavs don’t rank in the bottom five in the NBA, and the absence of Tristan Thompson will limit them in their other area of strength: offensive rebounding. Still, Washington will need to come out with the requisite energy and focus to lead out of the gate and put away a struggling Cavs team.
Keys to rebounding
Scott Brooks and Bradley Beal were both disappointed in the way the Wizards rebounded in San Antonio, and while a lack of size and depth on the night contributed to the deficit, a renewed effort is necessary in Cleveland. Washington may again be without much of its size down low, but Beal noted postgame in San Antonio that energy on the boards alone can help an undersized team compete for rebounds and limit the chances to fall far behind. The Wizards were severely out-rebounded on their last trip to Cleveland (49-33), so it will certainly be a focus on Tuesday. Collecting misses along with capitalizing on Cleveland turnovers (they’re the fifth-best team in the NBA at only 13.6 miscues per game) will be critical for the Wizards to push the pace.
Dictating the tempo
The Cavaliers play at the second-slowest pace in the NBA, while the Wizards play at the eighth-fastest. Washington’s ability to pick up the tempo and pile up runs early in the game on a largely inexperienced Cavs team could be the difference between a blowout and another stressful visit to Cleveland. The Wizards’ scoring arsenal of Tomas Satoransky, Bradley Beal, Trevor Ariza, Otto Porter Jr., and more should be able to overwhelm Cleveland by bringing energy from the outset and being aggressive on the offensive end for 48 minutes.