OCTOBER 12, 2025 | CAVALIERS VS CELTICS | NBA PRESEASON | INTENSE LIVE FULL GAME MATCHUP | NBA 2K26
Welcome everybody to another presentation of the NBA live on 2K Sports. I’m Kevin Harland with Greg Anthony and Richard Jefferson. And in just a moment, we’ll hear from our sideline reporter Ally Leforce. Here’s the starting group for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The big man on the floor for him, Moy and Allen. Mitchell and Struce share wing duty. And it’s Garland in at the one spot. And for the Celtics, the wing pairing, it’s white and brown. Down on the block, it’s Tatum with Kada and it’s Simons in at the point. Possessions can’t end until somebody grabs a rebound. Greg, two of the best on the boards are facing off tonight. They prioritize rebounding and getting those extra possessions can really break a team’s will. When excellent rebounding teams play, everyone has to work a little harder to secure the ball. Now, here’s Garland. No good from 18. and he’s very confident from that range. He can’t make them all. Pass to Simons from deep and it’s Drews with the rebound. And you could tell he thought that triple was going to fall. Back to Mitchell. Garland against White. Garland kicks to Strus. That drops and it comes off an assist from Garland. Spruce has got the opening basket of the game for the Cavs outside. Tatum back to White. Celtics passing it around. Pass to Simon. Gets the three-pointer to fall. And shooters shoot. And Simons sure has a feel with that quick trigger. Garland. The pass to Allen. Here’s Mitchell. [Music] Just five to shoot. Launches it. That one. No good. And not allowing the shooter even an inch of breathing room on that one. I’m sure they’ll think twice about shooting against him next time. Now here’s Simons. White finds Simons. White setting the pick for Simons. [Applause] Garland with the block to the inside. Here is Moley and Moley throws it down. So, it’s just too easy for Moley. This man, he’s quick off the floor. He’s got a 74 wingspan, but this man finishes the way he was built. Here’s Tatum. Sweet little floater. The floater is so tough to defend against. Nothing defenders can really do but shake their heads. When it comes to Garland, RJ, what do you like best about his game? I love that he’s a multi-skilled player at the offensive end. He’s fast off the bounce and can pull up or kick it out. He creates all sorts of headaches for the D. Garwin no good and so White will bring it up for the Celtics inside. Simons two free throws coming up and they call the shooting foul. Garland picks one up. RJ, last season, as we know, the Cavs got hit with the injury bug at the worst possible time right in the playoffs. Yeah, the worst time possible. Their key players all had injury concerns as the season wore on, but sometimes you just got to play through it in the playoffs. And he makes the first. And Greg with the absence of Jason Tatum for the time being. Perhaps a hiatus for the Celtics as a title favorite. Well, not to mention some of the salary cap casualties. It’s not the same team that won it all in 24, but in great position once Tatum returns. He doesn’t get the second one on the court. Simons is like a lightning bolt of energy. He hustles hard and just puts in the sweat to outwork the other team and they get it back. Allen outside fast to Garland. Moy a screen on Simon. The offensive rebound. Now that one from Moy Good thing Moley was right there ready to get involved and save the play. Austin is gone one and two from long range in the first quarter. Simons. The pass to White. [Music] Back to Simons for the three. Busted. No good that time either. Or Cleveland. They’ve gotten just three of their first nine shots to go down in this game. Stolen by Tatum. Outside White. Back to Tatum. It’s up a three. It’s rebounded by Cleveland. And sometimes on defense, you can just get lucky. Pass to Stuse. Back to Mitchell. Now in the scoring column with that bucket. One for two this game. Whatever he lacks in size, Mitchell makes up with craftiness. It allows him to be effective inside. Tatum passes to Simons. Here’s Brown. Boston again missing. Well, I that’s what you get when you go for style points with a fadeaway. And look, he paid the price. Here’s back to Garland. And there it is for him. When you give Garland these looks, oh, he’s going to find ways to capitalize. But I love his aggressiveness. Guys are looking for a spark here. Yeah, a cold stretch offensively for sure. Here’s Kada defended by Allen. And Kada gets it to go. Give a good player a good look and you know what the outcome will be. Cleveland’s gone 0 of4 from three-point landing to start out. Looking cold from outside and timeout called by Kenny Atkinson. Coach is going to talk some things over with the team. Might be seeing something to adjust. [Applause] Let’s give them another round of applause. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] Celtics making a switch here. Richards checked in. A switch here also for Cleveland. Hunter checked in for Mitchell. [Applause] outside. Garland. Pass to Allen. Hunter on the wing. Cleveland moving it around. Hunter sets a screen for Garland. Just three to shoot. Yes, that goes in. That is absolutely a shot that Garland has in his back pocket just for moments like this. Brown outside unloads from 13. That’s good on the jump shot. And we talk about the importance of versatility. He’s really got it all on the offensive end. Spruce kicks to Garland. Hunter on the wing. Garland feeling it out a little bit and Cleveland again with the bucket. Pretty savvy move there by Garland making space with that pick and roll. Celtics trail by four down low. Moy with the block and he gets it back. They get it back. Kada the pass to Tatum and at last they get one to fall. He’s good enough where it takes a lot to bother him at the rim like that. Garland kicks to Moy. Pass to Hunter. Allen left side. It’s Drew on the wing and here is Garland. Screen by Allen. Fires for three and again it’s Darius Garland. Garland’s got nine. Oh, when that range is being stretched, Garland showing he’s up for that challenge. Pass to pressure [Music] on to White. [Applause] Pulls up on the wing. Rebounded by Allen. Allen’s got four rebounds now tonight. And now let’s send it over to our courtside reporter Ally Leforce. I was able to talk to Joe Missoula for a minute. We discussed Evan Mobley and how he wanted to defend him coming into this matchup. He said, quote, “To make him settle for jumpers, we don’t want him getting easy buckets or deep inside positioning. That’s when you get into trouble. We’ll see how good the resilience is against him tonight.” Back to you guys. All right, Ally. Thank you. And so the timeout by Joe Mazoula here. He’s going to take a few moments here to check in with this team and regroup. [Music] [Applause] [Music] Heat. Heat. [Applause] [Applause] Heat. Heat. [Applause] Tim Howers checked in for Boston. Cleveland also making some changes. Mitchell comes in for Max Stre and ball subbed in for Garland. [Applause] and the Celtics with possession here. They trail by seven [Music] now. Pritchard still yet to score. [Music] Down to five on the shot clock. Fires away from way outside. Rebounded by Allen. Allen’s got his fifth rebound right now in the game. [Music] on the Wayne Mitchell. Hunter with a screen on drop to the middle and it’s Hunter with the game. And boy, when Hunter’s aggressive, good things seem to happen for him and his team. So, Richard, let’s give him some credit. Jared Allen has turned himself into a more complete player, wouldn’t you say? Yeah, he’s not just a force spacer, but he does everything else at an elite level. Very efficient. Doesn’t make a ton of mistakes that will beat you. and they don’t want to get in a habit of giving him open looks from three. First quarter steal, but not who you want to leave open. Now here’s Mitchell on Ben Mitchell with the dump. I see you, Mr. Mitchell. Now look, for a 6-1 guard, this man can absolutely fly. Brown with it. Pass to Hower. Now Pritchard. He’s covered by Ball. to the paint and the dunk to finish it off. A beauty. And what a find by Brown demonstrating a willingness to create for teammates. Outside ball. Now here’s Allen. Back to ball to Mitchell. Takes a three. Rebound Boston. Tatum’s got four rebounds in this game. Here’s Bridger. He’s covered by Ball. [Applause] Ball against Pritchard. Tatum deciding where to go with it. A three-pointer off the mark. Cleveland leading by six. Mitchell outside ball. Pass to Hunter. It’s good. The assist that time from Ball. Hunter’s got his second bucket tonight. With a number of moves and shots to choose from, Hunter was scary. Nice bucket there. Tatum against Mobley. There’s the screen from downtown. Tatum shot is off. And the great shooters know when they’ve got enough opening to go for the three. I didn’t think it was a bad choice on that possession. Mitchell shot is good. I I like their focus coming in. Terrific execution so far. Couldn’t come up with a much better start than this. They just have to keep it going. Here’s Kada. pass to Hower. [Applause] Here’s Pritchard [Applause] and it’s sent back by Allen. That reach from Allen, let’s just say it’s tremendous. Brown against Mitchell. Now Allen [Applause] Nash to Hunter. Here’s Mitchell. And again, it’s Cleveland. Their play on both ends has been superb. We We’ll see if they can maintain the momentum. They came out and bumr rushed them. Huge difference in activity level from both teams tonight. Here’s Tatum. And that shot was up in time, but doesn’t go in. And so it’s Cleveland up by a dozen here at the end of the quarter. Their defense has been active and effective. We’ll get you back to the action after this break. [Applause] And so far through one quarter, it’s been a lopsided game. We’ll see if that changes here in the second. And for the Cavaliers, this has been the game they wanted to have. You got to credit their defense communicating, rotating, making plays on the ball. It’s been a group effort and that’s what it takes to play the kind of defense that they’ve played. Great showing from them. Pritchard in white or they’re gone. Sam Hower is out there with Chris Bush and it’s Garza in at the center locking down the middle. That’s the Boston five. Now here’s Mitchell. Deflects the pass. It’s stolen by Pritchard. [Applause] White looking around. down low. [Music] Pritchard against Mitchell. Pritchard passes to Buchane. No good on the triple. Yeah, but the defenders draped all over him. He just could not shake loose. Paul with a wideopen look. Misses the three. Hard to figure out how he doesn’t knock that one down. No defender in sight. Pritchard passes to White. Three-pointer. Hunter grabs the miss. And even without that three ball dropping for him. The defense should have done more on that last play. Pass to Mitchell. And here’s Nance. And here is Hunter. He’s covered by Pritchard. and then slams it in. And nice time from Hunter there. An unselfish player who knows how to look for his teammates. Ball against Richard. Here’s Garza. And the foul on Larry Nance Jr. That’s his first foul. Making a switch here. Simons has checked in. Now into the lineup for the selfich number four Simons. [Applause] Here’s Bush. Nothing on the board. Here’s Pritchard. Five on the clock. Out to White. Lets the three fly. It’s hauled in by the Cavaliers. The Celtics have been a title contender for years now. So RJ, what do you attribute that to? Well, their talent level has been off the charts, but something else you can point to is their defense. The Celtics have been an elite defensive team for over a decade. Now Mitchell after the miss three from Derek White. And that one’s good, Mitchell. And they’ve repeatedly probed inside in the first half, guys. And it’s paid off. [Music] It’s White on the wing. Covered by Hunter. Ball against Pritchard. Back to White. All sorts of time. Here’s Buché now in the scoring column with that bucket. One for two this game. Second chance points always hurt. Just not enough effort to block out. Yeah, I’m going to go out on Lyn here and say they need to emphasize rebounding going forward. And timeout call by Kenny Atkinson. Coach is going to take a few minutes to regroup and go over the strategy. [Applause] [Applause] Heat. Heat. [Applause] [Music] Heat. [Applause] Heat. Brown has checked in for Bridget. Darwin has checked in for the Cavaliers. [Applause] ball surveying the defense. Hunter with a screen on White and here’s Gartland for three. Rebounded by Hower. Sonics trail by 11. And now let’s swing it over to Ally Leforce on the sideline. Thanks, guys. The Celtics trying to keep that laser focus. Coach Joe Missoula said, quote, “The closer you are to winning, the easier it is to become distracted by things that you can’t control, things that don’t matter. Mindset, discipline, and mental toughness are what separate you.” Back to you. Staying dialed in. Hey Ally, thank you very much for the report. Look at Garland drawing the defense’s attention just to give it away. They’ve been looking out of sync offensively. Yeah, that their offense has ground to a standstill. [Music] Here’s Boucher. Pucket is good. Buchet’s got four this quarter. Gage Garland with the ball for Cleveland. 11-point game. Nance sets a screen for Garland. looking for Nans and he gets it there up high to the alleyoop. Getting better at recognizing when his teammates are open. Garland great time right there. Simons kicks to Buché and the foul on Larry Nance Jr. That’ll be his second foul of the game. And the Cavaliers with some changes. Jared Allens checked in for Nance and Evan Mobley subbed in for Wade. Evan Moley. Brown deciding where to go with it. Wide. A screen on Hunter. Here’s Brown outside. White. Six to shoot. [Applause] in this one. [Music] Well, Richard, it’s definitely become a shooters league, the ability to knock down threes now becoming pivotal. Oh, I think it’s fascinating to see the skills involved in the game changer later in his career, I feel a little bit left out. And he gets the whistle. Two free throws coming up. And I like the fact that the defense is looking to protect the rim at all costs. and a chance to catch up on some numbers here. The scoring breakdown for Cleveland. I’ve really been impressed with how aggressive they’ve been inside. Looking to capitalize from the paint whenever they can. And another key for them tonight, attacking the basket, taking it right to the hoop. Never a bad idea. And that one falls for Buché. Jason Tatum. He’s checked in for Boston. [Applause] [Music] And he makes both free throws. The Cavaliers leading by 11. And here is Ball still without a basket. [Applause] And the shot is good. And I love how ball accepts the contact on his way up, not allowing it to alter his shot. And so the timeout by Joe Mazoula here, he’s going to make some adjustments to the game plan. [Music] I don’t ever slow up. No, I don’t take I got no love for the fake. If you want to play tough and want to hate this, I’ll always show up and make a statement. I don’t never slow up. No, I don’t take I got no love for the fake. If you want to play tough and want to hate this, I’ll always show up and make a statement. Everything I do so instinctive and so passionate. Every word I move so descriptive like an adjective. I got to get better against people who being negative when you should be getting after it. I got backs over facts over tracks and that’s getting slow speaking fast roast like a gas think I’m okay last but I don’t know if that can erase all the past and the pettiness a reflection of the emptiness hilarious you think you’re worth my time you’re delirious mysterious because you are behind a big exterior inferior you know I’ll always be a bit superior get off of me this ain’t no humble brag I want you to hear words you can say them back I want you to feel free from the chains that lasted to believe in what you got it was built to Last year I never got any. [Applause] [Applause] Celtics trail by 13 outside Simons. Tatum that’s for two. It’s rebounded by Cleveland. Got to find easier shots when you’re already struggling. That’s not going to get it. And GA, you think about high skill level offensive players. Darius Garland near the very top of that list. Well, the son of an NBA point guard in Winston Garland. Darius has been preparing for this level his entire life and this offensive package is as polished as anyone. Now here’s Hunter. This is the most they’ve led by 13 points outside Garland. White with the defensive effort. Look, the defense was locked in on him there. They know how dangerous he can be and they guarded him perfectly. Tatum down low. Moy’s there. Shot clock at six inside [Applause] down low. Covered by Hunter. Count that one. And the Cleveland lead has been cut to just 11 on the basket from Brown. It’s Garland with the ball for the Cavaliers. Ball a screen on White. Here’s Garland. Misses off the left iron. Austin’s gotten into trouble with the three ball in the second quarter. Only hitting one of the teams. And a lot of contact on that one. So, he’ll shoot two here. That’s on DeAndre Hunter. And Brown is a talented scorer who also excels at drawing fouls. And Richard, I’ll say this. Jaylen Brown’s often at the heart of a debate about what his true value is. I think it’s immense. Oh, I don’t know what the debate is. I I don’t know the difference between mega star, superstar, but he is a proven allstar, an allNBA player, and a finals MVP. Free throw good from Brown. When it comes to Jaylen Brown, Greg, what qualities does he add to a team? Well, I love how active and physical he is. He poses such a difficult challenge on both sides of the ball. With a Finals MVP award to his credit, you know, he’s as mentally tough as anyone in our league. Cleveland leading by nine. Outside Garland. [Applause] rebounded by the Celtics. Tatum’s got rebound number five here tonight. Mitchell against Simon. Bush the screen shoots the three and it’s Simons missing and he continues to cast away but the results just haven’t been there tonight. Spruce passes to Garland [Applause] Moley is three on Simon looking to get back on track here and Garland with the layin. Garland’s got 13 points. Shaping up to be a nice night from Garland and his offensive energy right now. The team should be pretty excited. And so the timeout by Joe Mazula here. This now will give him a chance to discuss some potential changes. [Applause] Get ready. [Applause] Somebody [Applause] on the next screen. Heat [Music] up here. [Music] some changes for Boston has checked in and Sam Hower subbed in for the Celtics Luca Gaza. Sam Hower [Applause] [Music] stolen by Mitchell. Now Cleveland moving it up on up the court. Spruce’s shot is good. You got to love his hustle. Leaving the defense no time to react. And all of a sudden that man was just on the other end. Wow. Outside Tatum. Brown wide open. He fires. And another miss by Boston. Good job by the D to stay with him and make that a tough three. And it’s Allen with the jam. When you combine his length and leaping ability, Allen is a ridiculous lobster. Tatum against Moley. Garza. Good. And it’s Tatum picking up the assist. Used the pick to perfection and got all the way to the rim. It’s Garland with the ball for the Cavaliers. Pass to Mitchell. Back to Garland. Moly. A screen on Simon. Garland. The pass to Moley. Just five on the clock. [Applause] He trains it as the shot clock ticks down. Mobly’s got six. This is Moley’s zone. He’s got all the size he needs to dominate this paint. Back to Tatum. Pass to Garza offline with his three. The Cavaliers leading by 15. Mitchell outside. Oh, good with the triple. The Selic shooting 31% in the second. Some poor shot selection for them in this quarter. Obly sets the pick for Mitchell. Now here’s Allen covered by Simons. And Garland has it in the corner. Here’s Allen. And then Allen slams it in. He is an elite elite offensive rebounder. Allen is especially good at getting ideal positioning on that glass. Tatum against Moley. Tatum gets it inside. Got it in close. And unless it’s an open three, that’s the key to efficient offense. Pass to Struce. 116 left in the second quarter. Mobly a screen on Simons to the inside. Stolen by Tatum. Simons against Truce. Now here’s Tatum. Here’s Garza. Good. And it’s Tatum picking up the assist. Garza has got his second bucket. When he has enough space, he’s more than comfortable letting it fly from outside. There’s 42 seconds left in the first half of the game. And it’s Mitchell missing. So trail by 12. It’s Brown on the wing. Covered by Mitchell. Brown. The pass to Hower. Tatum against Moley. Six on the shot clock. Here’s Garza and a miss there with a chance to cut the lead to single digits to the middle. Here’s Mitchell and oh boy, a lot of contact there, but he gets the call and will shoot two. It goes on Jason Tatum. We talked about the guys who play bigger than their listed size and Donovan Mitchell is at the top of that list. This is his first free throw of the game. Had about an 82% clip a season ago. So, I’m sure he’ll take those numbers. [Applause] And he knocks down the first one. [Applause] He’s perfect from the line this time. Austin with the ball. They trail by 14. Now here’s Simons over Garland and another basket for Boston. And so it’s Cleveland up by a dozen here at the end of the quarter. Their strategy has been clear tonight. Work the ball inside, get shots in the paint, and now they are scoring with ease. Back right after this. Arena entertainment. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] And there wasn’t too much drama in the first half, but maybe things will tighten up here in the second. You look at Darius Garland, guys. What a contribution. And the way that he has helped out with the ball movement has been a difference maker early on. And it’s a role we don’t always see him in, but he’s done a great job tonight getting the rest of his team involved. [Applause] And here’s Brown. He’ll bring it up for the Celtics. A 12-point game. And so in the game for the Cavaliers, the highly skilled guard pair of Garland and Mitchell, the big man on the floor for him, Moley and Allen. And it’s Drew in at the three, the small forward. Now here’s Tatum. Fires from deep and it’s Max Duce with the three. Spruce has got seven points in the game. And what kind of defense was that? You can’t give up wide open threes like that. What are you doing? Pass to Kada outside. Tatum from the arc and it’s Drews with the rebound. Cleveland leading by 15. Mitchell outside. Cartland against White. Back to Garland. A three. That shot off the mark. Oh man, for a lot of reasons he can’t get it going from three and he’s pretty good from there. Here’s Brown. Sweet touch inside from Brown. Wanting it more. Jaylen Brown. This man competes and teammates, they take notice of things like that. [Music] Simons against Garland. shoots over Simons and Cleveland again with the bucket. Yeah, it’s easy to see why they go to him so often because they know they can depend on him to come through for him. Tatum with it. He’s picked up by Moley. Three-pointer. Simons. Mobley with the rebound. Moley’s got his eighth rebound here tonight. When you think about what makes Evan Mobley such a special talent, Richard, what comes to mind for you? Well, his defense is already outstanding for a player his age. I can see him being a defensive player of the year candidate for many years to come. He is the anchor on this team. Brown attacking laid in with a nice touch off the glass. Brown’s got four points in the quarter. Speed on display there from Brown. This man can turn on the Jets. He has another gear. Let’s go to the sideline and see what Ally Leforce has dug up for us. Ally, take it away. Hey guys, going back a few years, Donovan Mitchell dealt with a lot of trade speculation. He said you don’t realize how stressful it was until you’re out of it. Now he says it’s great to finally have that sense of peace. I love being in Cleveland, but there’s more to be done. Guys, back to you. On a mission for sure. All right, Ally, we appreciate the report. And Kada gets it to go. Oh, he’s been doing all he can to keep this competitive, but he needs some support. They get it back. It’s blocked. Simons against Garland. No good there. And that would have cut it to single digits. Cleveland leading by 11. Lets it go from deep. And Boston with the rebound. White’s got five rebounds tonight. Pass to Tatum. From past the arc. They get it again. Kada. Excellent there from Allen. Had enough room to finish and that’s one he’ll usually make. Strus against Simon outside. Garland. Shot clock at five. Mobley outside. A three ball. Rebound. Boston. Tatum’s got eight rebounds in this game. Outside Simons. Here’s Kada. He’s got six. Pass to Tatum. Lets it go with a three and the three ball is good. Tatum’s got it back down to a single digit deficit for Boston. Moy outside. Back to Garland trying to get something going. Trains it from beyond the arc. Garland’s got five points now in the quarter. Getting them right back. Garland fires off the three-point answer. And so the timeout by Joe Mazula here, he’s going to have a discussion on the sideline. [Applause] There they are. Make some noise for Celtic entertainment. [Music] [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Applause] Hunters checked in for Donovan Mitchell. You’re something entertainment. [Applause] Hunter against Brown. [Applause] Right side. Tatum. Back to Simons. Block at six. Outside Tatum and the three off target. And here’s Hunter. He’ll bring it up for the Cleveland Cavaliers. 17 points was their biggest margin. Pass to Stru. And here’s Cartland for three. Rebounded by the Celtics. And he didn’t punish them for the weak coverage there, but they can’t count on him to continue missing. Simons. The pass to White. [Applause] Back to Simons. Here’s the three again. The miss by the Celtics. Cleveland leading by 11. Pass to Mobley. And here is Allen. Back to Mobley. Here’s Strus. Hands it from downtown. Stress has got two now from beyond the arc in the third for the Cams outside. White. Simons with the screen for White. Pass to Tatum. Jacks up a three. The three is drilled by Tatum. This is what great scorers do. Tatum rises to the three-point challenge. Allen outside and here’s Cruz for three. White with the defensive effort. Selix trail by 11. outside. Tatum [Applause] [Music] off the mark. Had a chance to trim it to single digits. The Cavaliers leading by 11. Now Hunter pass to Allen. kicks it out to Garland. The basket good off the assist from Allen. Garland’s got 21. And Garland can get going from deep, which is why you can’t give him very much space. Now here’s Brown and he can’t answer back. The three-pointer off lot. Loads it up there for Moley. [Music] Allen inside. Tatum on him. Allen shot is off. Celtics trail by 14. And White kicks to Tatum. Celtics passing it around. Pope loose. And so it looks like the Celtics will retain possession here. Boston making a switch here. Richards checked in. Cleveland also making some changes. Donovan Mitchells checked in for Hunter and ball subbed in for Garland. [Applause] Tatum on the wing. Covered by Mobley. Stress passes to Mitchell. It’s stolen by White trying to break that ice cold streak and it’s sent back by Allen. remains Boston. You got to love strong defense, especially when it comes in the form of harsh rejections. Wow. Yeah, quick thinking pays off big. What a block. Cavaliers making a switch here. Hunters check in. [Applause] Here’s Brown. 10 points for him. Pass to Pritchard. And here is Brown. There’s the three. Mobley with the rebound. Moley’s got the glass covered here tonight. 11 boards for him. Solid in transition. Hunter’s eyes light up when he gets a chance to finish one of those off. Brown outside. Releases down through the hoop it goes. That’s his fifth make on nine shots from the floor. Well, I guess we can give him credit for not getting discouraged. They’re still playing hard. He’s doing his job out there. Ball kicks to Mitchell beyond the arc. They grab their own missy. A screen on Pritchard. Pass to Mitchell. Six on the shot clock. Puts up a deep three. It’s hauled in by Brown. Brown’s got four rebounds in this game. And Greg, what stands out most about Donovan Mitchell’s game? I think it’s his consistency. He He’s a fearsome score. Pretty much since he set foot in the lead and with his pull up game, he can get his shot off against anyone. No second thoughts from Tatum. Just look, he’s ready. And timeout call by Kenny Atkinson. He’s going to take a minute here to get things straightened out. [Applause] Get fans on the court. Is your pipe strong? Let’s see which section can be the loudest for a free teacher. [Applause] Heat. Heat. [Applause] Heat. Heat. [Applause] [Applause] Chris Bush’s checked in for the Celtics. Sam Hower comes in for Jaylen Brown. Larry Nance has checked in for Cleveland. Wade comes in for Evan Mobley. Here is Nance. He’s got six to the inside. The slam dunk by Wade. Man, this sort of awesome dunk is one of the reasons this team is in charge of this game. Well, there’s a swagger out there. You can see it on the court that they possess and are not afraid to show it either. Celtics trail by 13. Richard with the ball. Scoreless thus far. Outside White Bush sets a screen for White. Pocket four and another basket for Boston. Pick works well there. Not much resistance from the deep. Yeah, that just comes down to a lack of effort. The defender has to do a better job fighting through the screen. Now here’s Hunter. A quick put back. He hangs in there and cashes in on the second chance points. That is really good work there on the offensive glass. Pritchard against ball and a rebound goes to the Cavaliers. Hunter’s got four rebounds in this game. Pass to Mitchell. [Applause] Back to Hunter. Nans dishes to Hunter. Cleveland moving the ball around for three. Mitchell gets that one to fall. That’s his sixth field goal. He has shot the ball 12 times. Hitting that shot helps loosen the driving lanes a little. And we know Mitchell only needs a crack of daylight. Here’s Tatum. Pass the pressure. It’s stolen by N. And the Cavaliers pushing it up now. Mitchell against White. Mitchell kicks the ball. Nans a screen on White for three. Mitchell. Bush with the rebound. Bush’s got his fourth rebound in this one. White finds Tatum over Hunter. tried to bank it in, but he misses. How did he break that one? He smoked it. Everything was set up for that to be an easy basket. Mitchell passes to Hunter. Ball from long range and it’s Derek White with the rebound. Celtics trail by 16. 35 seconds left in the third. to the wing right side. Pritchard passes to Hower. His three-pointer’s off the mark. And here’s Hunter. He’ll bring it up for the Cavaliers. [Applause] 12 seconds left in the third. Mitchell feeling it out a bit. Pass to Hunter. Stolen by Tatum. No good. Darius Garland has been leading the charge for the Cleveland Cavaliers. It’s been an excellent game for him offensively. He’s got 21 points and counting. We’ll return shortly. And a quick look now at the State Farm assist of the game. And how about the floor general ship right here? I mean, showing us why they’re always in good hands when he’s the man in charge. He does do a great job steering the ship for them out there and keeping the offense clicking. And there may not be a lot of drama down the stretch as we head into the fourth quarter, but stranger things have happened out on the wings for him. It’ll be Simons and Brown. Sam Hower is out there with Chris Bush and it’s Pritchard in at the point. That’s the Boston five. Hunter, no good. And the defense was right on him there. Nice contest. Pass to pressure. Go. Right here. Right here. Back to Brown over Hunter. And it’s Wade with the rebound. and he felt like he needed a little bit more space with the fade to get off his shot, but that might have been what threw him off and made him miss. Nance sends a screen for Hunter. Pass to Mitchell over Pritchard. Rebound by the Celtics. Just over a minute played here in the fourth. Outside Simons. There’s the triple. Doesn’t get it to drop for him. The Cavaliers leading by 16. Pass to Mitchell. two drop shot and contact on the shot. So, he’ll be shooting free throws here. Hard to put into words, RJ, the impact Donovan Mitchell had on last year’s 64 win Cleveland Cavaliers team. Yeah, that’s the best Cavs team we’ve seen in almost a decade. Spider led this team and it looks like they’re not going anywhere anytime soon. [Applause] Free throw drops for Mitchell. [Applause] and good on the second. So, he makes them both. Final quarter here and we’re just over a minute and a half through it. They need a bucket in a big way here to regain some confidence. Brown outside. Bush with a screen on Hunter. Brown inside the line. The kick out to Simons. Three-pointer. Pritchard hits it from three-point range. Pritchard’s got himself on the board with three there. And it seems as if someone got their signals crossed if he can wind up that open from three-point range. I’m sure that was not a part of the game plan. Now here’s Nance. Pass to Mitchell from outside the arc. made that one. It’s his seventh of the contest. Seven for 15 from the floor. Wanting the ball there. Mitchell getting those three points back. Pritchard against ball. There’s the lob to Brown. Stolen by Mitchell. Now here’s Hunter. He’s covered by Pritchard and Nance kicks to Mitchell. This one for three. Another three for Cleveland. And what’s your take, guys, in the hustle stats for Cleveland? They’ve been defending with excellent anticipation all game long. Just look at how many times they’ve managed to get their hands on the ball. And I’ll tell you the energy they’ve shown in the open score. Boy, it has been terrific. Doing a phenomenal job converting in those situations. Musling that one in. JB is a strong individual. And Kenny Atkinson calls timeout here. He’s not taking any chances and wants to huddle him up right away. Here we go, fam. Time to make some noise for Boston. [Applause] Heat. Heat. [Applause] [Applause] Heat. [Applause] [Music] Heat. [Applause] And the Sel’s making a change here. Kate has checked in. Cleveland also making some changes. Tomlin’s checked in. And it’s Garland in for Mitchell. Here’s Ball. A bit under three and a half minutes have passed here in the fourth. Hunter with a screen on Pritchard with the step back. Here’s Ball. The Cavaliers again can’t hit. Celtics trail by 19. [Music] Left side. Brown hits the layup after the sweet pump fake to freeze the D. Brown’s got 10 points here in the second half. And so Garland will bring it up for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Their biggest lead of the game was 21. Nance dishes to Hunter. Nance sends a screen for Hunter over Brown. The Cavaliers again can’t hit. for Boston. They’ve gone three of six in the field so far in the fourth quarter. Right side, Simon. And there are the Celtics with another basket. Oh, I love that possession for them. Ending with an assisted bucket. Garland the pass to dance [Applause] first personal second team shooting for Cleveland Jr. taking two shots. Take a break. Take a break. Two shots. [Applause] No good on the free throw. And some changes here for the Celtics. Jason Tatum comes in for Jaylen Brown. And Derek White subbed in for Pritchard. Jared Allen’s checked in for Cleveland. Oh boy. Comes in for Hunter. [Applause] Good on the second free throw. [Music] And here is Tatum. Outside Simons. Tatum passes to White. It’s hauled in by the Cavaliers. Moley’s got rebound number 12 here already in the game. A drive by Garland. Moley. A screen. Five to shoot. Here’s Ball. Rebounded by Tatum. Tatum’s got double digit rebounds now in the game. fires the three, sinks the three-pointer. Tatum’s got 12 points here in the second half. That was a beautiful screen set there. And look, Tatum, he’ll take care of the rest. Mobley outside. Tatum against N. Pass to Allen. Cleveland moving it around. ball from long range and a great assist by Allen as that one goes in. How about dueling from long range just going at each other. Take that, he says. I see your three and I’ll raise you another three. Now here’s Simons. Now Hower outside White for three. Evan Mobley with the rebound. The Cavaliers leading by 16 and it’s ball in the corner down low. Pick off in midair outside. White pass to Hower. Now Simons [Applause] driving in. Banked in off the glass. Simons has got four this quarter. Speed kills and Simons has plenty of it. Outside ball. Here’s Moble over to the wing. [Applause] Pass to Nance. Outside Ball off target from three-point range. Selix trail by 14. Out pass to Simons. Stolen by ball. And now the fast break. Kurland with the ball and slam dunk by Allen. And this is why you feed the big fella Allen on the inside. With his size, he is a major threat anywhere around that hoop. Outside White [Music] back to Tatum. The three-pointer no good. The Cavaliers leading by 16. Here’s Ball. The rebound by Simons. The Celtics have gone six of 12 from the field here in the fourth and even 50%. Back to White Tatum on the wing. They set the pick. Out to White. Just four to shoot. The floater. Good. Cleveland has gone three of four from downtown here in the fourth. Nance outside pass to Mobley. [Applause] Allen with the screen for Moley. Off target with his three and close to making the defense pay for the lack coverage that time. Mobley with the block. Hard to protect your shot from Mobly’s lane. Look, he just bats that ball away. Garland the pass the ball. Now here’s Allen. Here’s Mobley. A basket good off the assist from Allen. Allen’s got his third assist on the night. He’s just stretching them out. The defense has got to do a better job of staying attached to him. And the lack of defensive pressure on shots like that is a big reason they’re down by double digits. Here’s Kada. Three-pointer. Simons trains the three-pointer. Simons has got seven now in this quarter. And without hesitation there, Simons hungry to let that one fly. Outside ball [Applause] does not go. Nothing seems to be going his way this quarter. Yeah. Straight up guys like he’s ice cold like freezing. What’s colder than cold? But you don’t have to shoot it. My guy. It’s okay to pass the ball. And how about the explosiveness of Simons. Can he get up and finish with power? The Cavaliers leading by 12. And Kenny Atkinson calls timeout here. And that timeout by coach was carefully measured wanting to make sure that everybody is on the same page here. Ladies and gentlemen, [Music] [Music] Yeah. Stop doing it. Don’t stop doing it. Do we get to do again? [Music] We got to do it. Brownies checked in for Sam Hower. Cleveland also making some changes. Max Struce comes in for Larry Nance and Donovan the Mitchell subbed in for ball. Right now, let’s take a second to catch up with Ally Leforce on the sidelines. Well, over the break, I did listen in on Kenny Atinson’s huddle. He loves what the D has been able to accomplish, saying to his team, “Every turnover is a big success for us. Keep forcing those errors. Don’t let them feel comfortable out there. So, expect them to keep trying to be disruptive. And as always, Ally, great job. Thank you. That one goes. Count it. This is a huge night for Mitchell, and all he really does is score. Simons against Garland. Here’s Simons. [Applause] Here’s Kada defended by Allen. Simons with the block and they’ll keep possession. Spruce against Brown. Allen outside. [Music] It’s Garland. [Applause] Now Strus outside. Garland takes the three. Rebounded by Braum. Celtics trail by 14. Now Simons. There’s 117 left in the fourth quarter. Steps back. [Applause] Shoots it. Jumper is off. And so Garland will bring it up for the Cavaliers. Their biggest lead of the game was 21. No question as to which team gave the better effort tonight. A dominant performance and an outstanding win for the Cavaliers. They enjoyed a big boost from the strong play of their bench. The the subs came in and did their job. Those points off the bench were key to their victory. Hey, you know guys, what a nice performance it was for Darius Garland. Okay, I’m going to explain what he did here. It’s called playmaking. Being someone that seeks out their teammates, making the extra pass. Mitchell is double. Moy. Oh, what a finish. They just blocked out the noise, kept on grinding, and this is their reward. All road wins. They’re just so sweet. They’re just so sweet. Do you know why? Because they are so hard to come by. Just one second between the shot clock and game clock. Tatum fires. And so it’s Cleveland taking care of business and this this one was over well before the final buzzer. The fans were waiting for something to get excited about, Greg, but they never got it. They sure didn’t. I mean, they just rolled to this win. They made it look really easy. What an efficient performance at both ends. And that about wraps it up with Richard Jefferson and Greg Anthony and along with Alli Leforce on the sideline. I’m Kevin Harland. Thank you for watching tonight’s NBA coverage. But first, let’s reveal our player of the game, Evan Mobley.
OCTOBER 12, 2025 | CAVALIERS VS CELTICS | NBA PRESEASON | INTENSE LIVE FULL GAME MATCHUP | NBA 2K26
Get ready for an electric showdown as two Eastern Conference powerhouses clash in this LIVE FULL GAME NBA 2K26 simulation! The Cleveland Cavaliers travel to face the Boston Celtics in a highly-anticipated preseason game on October 12, 2025. This rivalry, known for its postseason intensity, is back to give us a taste of the coming NBA season.
The Matchup:
⚔️ CLEVELAND CAVALIERS: The Cavs, led by All-Stars Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, alongside defensive anchors Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, are aiming for Eastern Conference supremacy. With sky-high expectations for the 2025-2026 season, watch as Cleveland tests their revamped attack and formidable defense against a top rival.
🍀 BOSTON CELTICS: The Celtics, featuring superstar Jayson Tatum and his running mate, Jaylen Brown, are always a championship contender. Even with a newer-look roster featuring players like Anfernee Simons and new additions, their star power and depth keep them a consistent threat. They’ll be looking to make a statement, even in the preseason.
🔥 WHY THIS GAME IS INTENSE:
Star Power Battle: It’s an epic clash between Donovan Mitchell and Jayson Tatum—two of the league’s elite scorers—setting the tone for their season-long rivalry.
Defensive Showdown: Will Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen’s interior defense be enough to slow down Boston’s high-powered wings?
Roster Test: This is a crucial test for both teams’ new rotations and player integrations using the realistic engine of NBA 2K26.
Don’t miss a single minute of this full, high-intensity CPU vs. CPU simulation!
DISCLAIMER: This video is a fan-made, CPU vs. CPU simulation created using NBA 2K26 gameplay and optimized custom sliders for realism. It is for entertainment and prediction purposes only and is not an official NBA broadcast.
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