NBA Matchups: March 1

Cleveland Cavaliers at Detroit Pistons

Team Totals: Cavs 115.3, Pistons 106.3

Injury Report: Donovan Mitchell (Q, knee)

Cavs projected starters: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen

Pistons projected starters: Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Ausar Thompson, Isaiah Stewart, Jalen Duren

Bickerstaff quotes: Said free throws really hurt them, said the road B2B was tough but no excuses, said the Bulls punished them on the glass, said they have to give Donovan more space.

Monty quotes: Said the guys handled the week really well with Stewart’s suspension and the bad call against the Knicks, said they liked Tecc in the second unit, said they have to get the ball to Ivey in transition, said he liked Stewart and Ausar handling the top two offensive guys.

Stats and Notes: 

*The Cavs continue to just cruise on the defensive end with only a few hiccups in the last month. They have generally really clamped down on the bad teams, and they have kept the Pistons down in two of the three games so far this season. Teams can’t really beat them on the glass and they still possess some of the best on-ball D in the league. It’s not great for Detroit on offense. On the other side, the Pistons are coming off one of their best defensive games in a long time, and it’s not a coincidence that Isaiah Stewart was back for that one. Still, they get killed by lead handlers and are still a subpar interior D even when Beef Stew is out there.

*Of course, the Donovan Mitchell Q tag looms large here and we’ll be talking about it on the Injury Show. We’ll be on the lookout for #LetEmKnow.

*Donovan Mitchell has been a little cold after the break with two sub-20 scoring games. The Wizards doubled him and the Bulls sent plenty of help to him to keep him to just 19 points in 44 minutes. Not great. Bickerstaff mentioned he needs to do a better job of getting him space, so they might start to set some higher screen points to give him a longer runway. The matchup is quite good with Ausar Thompson set to guard him, and Monty Williams made it sound like they won’t bring too many doubles. With a 33/5/6 average in the previous two games against the Pistons, this should be a smash for Donovan to #LetEmKnow he’s back to his All-Star ways.

*Darius Garland should be in a huge spot, as well. Garland did out-touch Donovan on Wednesday and even had 21 drives. His matchup should be quite good, as it will likely be Jaden Ivey on him. Garland doesn’t have any restrictions on him and the 44-minute game on Wednesday shouldn’t have any adverse effects on him. Mitchell has a way higher upside, but there’s a decent chance Garland turns in a more impactful fantasy performance at a cheaper price.

*It’s not the best spot for Evan Mobley. Isaiah Stewart is a pretty solid post defender, and he’s only averaged 11/8/3 in his previous three games. While the Pistons are terrible on defense, they’re not giving up too many offensive rebounds. It’s not an ideal spot for him or Jarrett Allen. The Pistons also don’t give up C&S stuff, so this isn’t a 

*It’s pretty much a pass on most of the Detroit guys. Cade Cunningham is off to a fantastic start after the break with a 29/6/6 average over four games. He’s even run into three tougher matchups (CHI, NYK, and ORL), so maybe he’s playing well enough to beat this No. 2 defense here.

Great matchups:

Good matchups: 

Bad matchups:

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Charlotte Hornets (back end) at Philadelphia 76ers