The Cleveland Cavaliers haven't lived up to expectations thus far, but only one of their defeats has come against a fellow Eastern Conference team. The Washington Wizards will try to change that when LeBron James and the Cavaliers visit the nation's capital on Friday. While Cleveland has struggled to a .500 record through 10 games, Washington sits atop the Southeast Division and has the third-best record in the East.
Despite a second straight loss and a season-low 15 points from James, the Cavaliers made strides in a 92-90 home defeat against San Antonio on Monday. "We've got to continue to play, continue to watch film, continue to go over situations, continue to be in situations and learn from it," James told reporters. "I think we learned from the game Monday and we came with a defensive mindset that we haven't had this year against a great team." The Wizards suffered their first home loss Monday, falling 105-102 to Dallas to drop to 4-1 at Verizon Center, where Cleveland has won in its last four trips.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, ESPN, FSN Ohio (Cleveland), CSN Mid-Atlantic (Washington)
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (5-5): Cleveland looked like an offensive juggernaut during its four-game winning streak but has failed to reach triple digits the past two contests. That's bad news for a team that hasn't yet jelled defensively and ranks near the bottom of the league in defensive efficiency. The Cavaliers also need more production from their reserves, as James (38.6), Kyrie Irving (38.3) and Kevin Love (36.8) rank third, fourth and eighth in the NBA in minutes per game.
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (7-3): Despite the loss to Dallas, Washington was happy to have Bradley Beal back, and the third-year shooting guard scored 21 points in 26 minutes in his first action following left wrist surgery. Beal's return adds to a group of four players averaging double-digit scoring with point guard John Wall (18.6 points, 9.3 assists) leading the way. It also means the return of Washington's best outside shooter, which should free up some space inside for big men Marcin Gortat (13.7 points, 8.8 rebounds) and Nene (11.7 points, five rebounds) to work.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. James is averaging 33 points in Cleveland's wins and 19 in its losses.
2. Wall has posted double-doubles in all five of Washington's home games and leads all NBA guards with seven double-doubles.
3. Irving has scored 20 or more points in five straight games to tie his career high and needs 34 points to reach 4,000 in his career.