New Look Cleveland Cavaliers Prepare for Sacramento Kings After Trade Shakeups

Cleveland’s western conference stretch of games continues Saturday night as the Cavaliers prepare to take on the Sacramento Kings, looking to win their third game in a row.

The Cavaliers have won seven of their last eight, including a 123-118 win over the Kings on Jan. 23, but the team has made plenty of changes since then. The Cavs stayed busy at the trade deadline, including a deal with the Kings.

Harden to make debut

Reports say that James Harden, who the Cavs acquired at the trade deadline in a deal that sent Darius Garland to the Clippers, will officially be making his debut for the team against the Kings.

It’ll be the first time Cleveland is able to Harden and Donovan Mitchell together, seeing what the team looks like with two ball dominant, scoring heavy guards.

Harden had been averaging 25 points and eight assists per game for the Clippers, and will hope to have the same level of production in his Cleveland debut facing off against a pair of veteran guards in Zach Lavine and Russell Westbrook.

Opportunity for Allen

With Evan Mobley still out for the Cavs in the front court, it’ll be on Jarrett Allen and Dean Wade to control the paint. The Kings best big, Domantas Sabonis, is currently listed as a game-time decision. If he’s inactive, Allen should have a heavy advantage in a matchup against Maxime Raynaud.

Allen just recently had his best performance in Cleveland, dropping 40, and could be in for another big game if he finds chemistry with Harden early.

Even if Sabonis plays, Allen could have a serious advantage in the paint. As the only two true bigs on the court, Allen should be able to control the paint on offense, while rotating defensively to limit what Sabonis can do.

Revenge game

Cleveland’s trade with the Kings involved sending De’Andre Hunter away in exchange for a pair of guards with Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis. All three players will be looking to make a major impact in a revenge game.

Hunter will be the only one starting, having a season where he is averaging just under 15 a game. His matchup will be the man who replaced him in the starting lineup this season, Jaylon Tyson.

That’ll be a key matchup to watch. It’ll be too guys trying to prove they were the better option, which is always a treat for NBA fans to watch.

As for Schroder and Ellis, they will be key contributors off the bench as they try to find their new roles in Cleveland. Ellis has been an elite defender throughout his career, while Schroder has consistently been a solid scorer with any second unit.

They’ll be competing against Sam Merrill and Craig Porter Jr. for minutes, as all four guys played between 18-24 minutes in their first game together, without Harden being in the lineup.

Cleveland will look to win the second to last game of their road trip, before taking on the Denver Nuggets Monday and finally returning home soon after.