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Thursday, May 23, 2013
 
Cleveland Cavaliers

Pregame: Kings (10-19) at Cavs (7-25)

By Jason Lloyd Published: January 2, 2013
Cousins, DeMarcus
Kings volatile center DeMarcus Cousins is fifth among NBA centers in scoring and ninth in rebounding. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)
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Time: 7 p.m.; Place: The Q; TV/Radio: FS Ohio/WTAM, WLEC, WAKR

Injury report: Cavs: Anderson Varejao (knee) out, Daniel Gibson (concussion) out; Kings: Tyreke Evans (knee) out; Marcus Thornton (ankle) doubtful.

Officials: Scott Foster, Nick Buchert, Gary Zielinski

 

Cavs probables

Name Ht, Wt Pts Rebs Asts
PG Kyrie Irving 6-3, 191 22.7 3.9 5.5
SG Dion Waiters 6-4, 221 14.2 2.5 3.5
SF Alonzo Gee 6-6, 219 11.5 4.0 2.0
PF Tristan Thompson 6-9, 227 9.2 8.5 1.0
C Tyler Zeller 7-0, 250 8.0 5.4 0.9

 

 

Kings probables

Name Ht, Wt Pts Rebs Asts
PG Isaiah Thomas 5-9, 185 10.7 1.7 2.4
SG Francisco Garcia 6-7, 195 6.0 1.3 1.0
SF John Salmons 6-6, 207 9.2 3.0 3.4
PF Jason Thompson 6-11, 250 11.4 7.8 1.3
C DeMarcus Cousins 6-11, 270 16.5 9.7 2.5
 

 

Notebook

* Anderson Varejao and Daniel Gibson are out again tonight for the Cavs. Varejao still has not had contact or participated in 5 on 5 drills, while Gibson remains in the NBA's concussion program. Everyone else is healthy and ready to go.

* The Kings have lost seven straight on the road and are 1-13 on the road this season. Of course, the Detroit Pistons carried a similar 1-10 road mark into the Q last month and picked up their second road win of the season. 

* Compounding the Kings' problems, former Rookie of the Year Tyreke Evans did not make this East Coast trip because he is getting a second opinion on his ailing left knee. Marcus Thornton sprained his ankle in a home win against Boston on Dec. 30  and did not play in last night's loss at Detroit. Evans (15.1 points) and Thornton (13.3) are the Kings' second- and third-leading scorers behind DeMarcus Cousins.

* As a starter the last three games, Isaiah Thomas is averaging 16.7 points, 3.7 assists and is shooting 44 percent on 3-pointers. He has scored in double figures in his last seven games and nine of his last 10.

* The Cavs have won 10 of the last 11 games in the series and five of the last six at the Q.

* This is the second stop on a four-game swing for the Kings.  

* The volatile Cousins is back in the lineup after a suspension for clashing with head coach Keith Smart. The messy Cousins saga has been playing out for years, but GM Geoff Petrie told NBA.com's David Aldridge the other day that Cousins is not on the market and will not be traded. It was a fairly bold statement from the typically tight-lipped Petrie. Most of those public denials aren't worth very much, but this time I'd tend to believe it.

* Cavs coach Byron Scott said defending the Kings' 3-point shooters will be key tonight. The Kings are 10th in the league in 3-point percentage, but they also give up a ton of points. They're allowing 101.8 points per game, fourth-most in the league.

* Every time the Cavs play the Kings, the heavily protected first-round pick the Cavs can obtain inevitably comes up. So here's a refresher on the pick the Cavs obtained, along with Omri Casspi, in exchange for J.J. Hickson. The pick is top 13 protected for this summer's draft, top 12 protected in 2014 and top 10 protected in 2015, 2016 and 2017. The Kings are presently tied with the Toronto Raptors for the eighth-worst record, so that pick likely isn't coming this summer.

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