The Cleveland Cavaliers, sitting at 46-28, are making a genuine push for home-court advantage in the playoffs. They're coming off a rough 120-118 loss to the Nuggets, but before that, they'd won four straight, including a solid 108-103 victory over the Celtics. Donovan Mitchell, even against his old team, has been playing some of his best basketball recently, dropping 31 points against Denver.
On the other side, the Utah Jazz are just playing out the string. Their 21-54 record tells you everything you need to know. They’ve lost nine straight and 13 of their last 14 games. Guys like Collin Sexton, who had 29 points against the Rockets last week, are still showing flashes, but it’s not enough to overcome the talent disparity.
Look, the key matchup here is really the Cavaliers' motivation against the Jazz's general indifference. Cleveland needs this win. The Jazz don't. Expect the Cavaliers to handle business comfortably.
Cleveland takes it, 115-98.
Predictions are for entertainment purposes only. Not gambling advice.