CLEVELAND, Ohio — There is no clean way to make sense of the Cavs (31-21) arriving in Sacramento Saturday without acknowledging how disorienting the last few days have been.
Cleveland traded De’Andre Hunter earlier this week, then boarded a plane to face him just a few days later, a basketball oddity that has become increasingly common in the modern NBA yet never quite feels normal when it arrives.
Hunter was supposed to be the Cavs’ solution at the small forward spot. Instead, his tenure ended quickly, without ceremony, and now he will likely have his named called on the opposite side of the scorer’s table in the Kings’ starting unit at Golden 1 Center, wearing different colors, preparing for a game that still belongs to both teams.
That awkwardness has layers.
Sacramento will welcome Dennis Schröder and Keon Ellis, as part of Cleveland’s rotation.
At the same time, the Cavs could have James Harden available for the first time, the player they acquired in the Darius Garland deal, as they continue their aggressive push toward a championship window that no longer feels theoretical.
And yet, once the ball goes up, none of that is supposed to matter. Not the timelines, not the contracts, not the awkward pregame greetings or the what-ifs that linger in the background. For 48 minutes, it becomes smaller and simpler than the week that led into it. Five on five. Read and react. Make shots. Get stops. Business pauses, emotions flatten and the game takes over the way it always does.
Tipoff is set for 10 p.m. Eastern at Golden 1 Center.
How to watch the Cavs: See how to watch the Cavs games with this handy game-by-game TV schedule.
Here’s what to know about the matchup:
Who: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Sacramento Kings
Series: Final matchup in the regular season.
Where: Golden 1 Center
When: 10 p.m. ET.
The point spread: Cavs minus-12.5; O/U 234.5
TV: FanDuel Sports Network – Ohio
Injury report
Cavs
Out:
Questionable:
James Harden (trade pending)Dean Wade (left ankle; sprain)
Out:
Evan Mobley (left calf; strain)Max Strus (left foot; Jones fracture surgery)Emanuel Miller (G League – Two-Way)