Wizards vs. Cavaliers Prediction, Pick, Odds: Can the Wizards Remain Undefeated?
Wizards vs. Cavaliers Prediction, Pick, Odds: Can the Wizards Remain Undefeated?
The Cleveland Cavaliers, who lost Darius Garland to an eye injury, are 1-1 through their first two games of this NBA season. Their newest addition of Donovan Mitchell has been great early this season, though.
Their opponent for their third game is the 2-0 Washington Wizards, who have been a well-rounded team as they continue to push through the early stages of the season. Let’s take a look at the matchup between the two teams.
Wizards vs. Cavaliers Start Time, Where to Watch, and Odds
- Date: October 23, 2022
- Game Time: 7:00 pm ET
- Where to Watch: NBA TV
Click Here for Wizards vs. Cavaliers Odds
Wizards vs. Cavaliers Prediction
With the Cavaliers starting point guard out with an eye injury, this matchup becomes slightly more even. The offense of the Cavaliers will have to come through Donovan Mitchell, who is still an incredible guard to have lead the offense. Through the Cavs first two games, Mitchell is averaging 31 points per game and 9 assists per game, filling into the lead guard role just fine. The blockbuster trade has seemed to work out for the Cavs so far.
With Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley in the frontcourt, the defense is set to get stops and helps eliminate the Wizards from getting into the lane for easy buckets. In the Cavs' first two games, they’ve averaged 105 points per game, so they’re going to need to lock up on the defensive side of the ball to limit a big game coming from the Wizards, who average 108 points per game but have proven in the past to play incredibly fast and run up the score.
On offense, the Cavs are of course led by Mitchell, but with Garland out, Caris LeVert is going to have to assert himself on offense and make an impact. He’s going to be their third-best shot creator on the season, and he’s going to have to play like it if the offense is going to produce like they need to.
So they’ve got the tools to play an excellent game on both sides of the ball, but the Cavs are best suited for a strong defensive game against the Wizards.
Bradley Beal returned to the Wizards on a long and expensive contract, and he wouldn’t have done that if he thought the team was going to be bad. They’re 2-0 on the season against one rebuilding and one solid team. Nonetheless, they’re winning games so far. Beal hasn’t even had to be the team’s leading scorer or absolutely carry the offense yet. Kyle Kuzma has done the work on the offensive end as he’s averaging 24 points per game through their first two games, and he also adds 9.5 boards per game thus far.
They’ve got a solid trio of Beal, Kuzma, and Kristaps Porzinigs. Porzingis has only averaged 14.5 points per game in just over 30 minutes per game, but when he gets a slight minutes boost, he’ll be better suited for the trio and should show more production.
The Cavs are still the better team of the two, even with the absence of Garland. They’ve got the potential to slow down the Wizards, but they’re coming off the second night of a back-to-back, so it might not be at the same margin as when they defeated the Chicago Bulls. But, I’m still a believer in the defense in a potential low-scoring game.
Wizards vs. Cavaliers Pick
- Cavaliers -3.5 (-110) (Bet $100 to collect $190)