Phoenix @ Cleveland
Current Records: Phoenix 46-18; Cleveland 21-43
The Cleveland Cavaliers' homestand continues as they prepare to take on the Phoenix Suns at 7 p.m. ET May 4 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Phoenix will be strutting in after a victory while the Cavaliers will be stumbling in from a loss.
Cleveland ended up a good deal behind the Miami Heat when they played this past Saturday, losing 124-107. Cleveland's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of point guard Collin Sexton, who had 25 points and eight assists, and power forward Kevin Love, who shot 7-for-10 from downtown and finished with 25 points and six rebounds.
Meanwhile, things were close when Phoenix and the Oklahoma City Thunder clashed on Sunday, but Phoenix ultimately edged out the opposition 123-120. The Suns' success was spearheaded by the efforts of shooting guard Devin Booker, who had 32 points and six assists, and small forward Torrey Craig, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and ten boards.
The Cavaliers are the clear underdogs, so they're hoping it's the size of the fight that determines this one. They have failed bettors playing the spread in their past six games, so buyers beware.
Cleveland is now 21-43 while Phoenix sits at 46-18. A pair of offensive numbers to keep in mind before tip-off: Cleveland is stumbling into the game with the fewest points per game in the league, having accrued only 103.9 on average. The Suns' offense has more to brag about, as they they rank second in the league when it comes to field goal percentage, with 48.90% on the season. So the cards are definitely stacked in their favor.
The Suns are a big 12.5-point favorite against the Cavaliers, according to the latest NBA odds.
The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Suns as a 13-point favorite.
Over/Under: -112
See NBA picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine's advanced computer model. Get picks now.
Cleveland have won seven out of their last nine games against Phoenix.
