Cleveland Cavaliers can match the second most regular seasons in franchise history on Wednesday when they welcome the visiting New York Knicks.
With Sunday’s victory 127-122 over the Los Angeles Clippers, Cleveland (60-15) reached 60 wins for just the third time since debuted in the NBA 1970. Cavaliers can surpass the organization’s victory with a season of 66, sat 2008-09, if they win.
“It’s the first time without Lebron (James That) Cleveland has got 60 wins. It’s something special for the city, it’s something special for us,” said Jarrett Allen.
“It’s been a good year,” Donovan Mitchell, Cavalier’s leading goal scorer at 24 points per match. “Everyone has continued to take a step.”
Cleveland has a lead with four games of reigning NBA champion Boston for the Home Court’s advantage during the Eastern Conference playoffs. Cavaliers are three matches behind NBA-leading Oklahoma City for the overall record and home plan in a potential NBA final series.
Strengthening first place in the east will not be easy for Cleveland, who plays two of the conference’s four best teams four times in the last seven games with regular season. Wednesday’s matchup with New York is the first of two between Cavaliers and third place Knicks along the route.
Cleveland also sees fourth place Indiana twice in the coming weeks.
Cavaliers took the first two matches against Knicks this season, 110-104 on the road on 28 and 142-105 on February 21 in Cleveland. Mitchell scored 27 points, Evan Mobley added 21 and for Jerome went for 19 from the bench during the last meeting.
Jerome stood on a seven-match score in double digits before suffering a knee injury that sided him in the last three games. He will not play on Wednesday, but Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson expects the reserve guard back before the playoffs.
“He definitely wants to get three or four matches in,” Atkinson said. “We want him to get his rhythm before that.”
New York (48-27) has a similar situation with its 26.3-point per gamescores Jalen Brunson. He played no later than March 6 due to an ankle injury, even though he was cleared at the beginning of this week.
Brunson told reporters on Monday that he “hopes to play before the playoffs.”
Knicks improved to 8-5 since Brunson’s injury and extended its winning line to three matches on Tuesday with a defeat of 105-91 by Fluilling Philadelphia.
OG Anunoby’s 27 points led the short-handed New York, which also played without Karl-Anthony cities because of the tenderness of the knee.
Mitchell Robinson made his second start of the season at the location of the cities. Robinson collected 14 points and 14 returns with two blocked shots against 76ers.
“We will deal with tomorrow, tomorrow,” said Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau about the accessibility of cities against Cavaliers.
Thibodeau bands, while Pat Riley, with the fourth most victories for a head coach in Knicks-Franchise History, the 223rd victory in his service in New York.
“All that, it’s a by -product of having fantastic players,” Thibodeau said. “You share it with your team.”
-Field level media
