Several Things to Watch for in Brooklyn Nets vs. Cavaliers

The Brooklyn Nets will face off against the Cleveland Cavaliers for the final time this season. Brooklyn has dropped its first two games to Cleveland.

The Nets have dropped seven straight games, with their latest coming to the Boston Celtics in a 148-111 blowout loss.

Brooklyn will be without Egor Dëmin due to left plantar fascia injury management. Nic Claxton is questionable with a right thumb sprain.

Cleveland will be without Donovan Mitchell (groin) and could be without James Harden due to a thumb injury.

If Claxton sits, Day'Ron Sharpe will almost certainly draw the start and see extended run in this one, as he's proven he can deliver solid performances no matter how many minutes he's out there on the floor.

Michael Porter Jr. hasn't been scoring the ball as well in recent games, especially from 3-point range, but he'll nonetheless be tasked with carrying a heavy scoring load against one of the top scoring teams in the league.

Nolan Traoré will also likely be given all of the opportunities to work on his playmaking and driving skills with the ball figuring to be in his hands a majority of the time.

Brooklyn's defense has been struggling in recent games, which could be attributed to a lack of experience and many players still trying to figure out playing with one another, but the effort could be better at times, too.

The Nets could've remained competitive against the Celtics after a close first half. While Boston is certainly tough to stop once it gets hot and is prone to exploiting the other team's weaknesses, giving up 82 points in a half goes well beyond a few innocent mistakes and lack of experience.

Cleveland will likely look to run a majority of its offense through Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley in this one, with Dennis Schröder figuring to be a key part of the offensive attack inside.

The Nets have struggled to protect the paint all season, which the Cavs could look to exploit, though Cleveland tends to run a big part of its offense from behind the arc.

For the Nets to pull off this win, their defenders will have to stay attached to their man, not get lost on switches, and account for any backdoor cuts that could lead to easy points at the rim.

Brooklyn can at least make this competitive if MPJ breaks out of his slump and the Nets' defense stands tall.