Suns at Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers didn't look so powerful during a six-game road swing and attempt to turn things around when they begin a stretch in which five of six are at home, beginning with Thursday's contest against the Phoenix Suns. Cleveland lost three of the final four games on its excursion and was drubbed 126-91 by the Golden State Warriors in Monday's finale.
The Cavaliers also lost to the Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz on the trip and figure to find wins easier to come by at home, where their 18-3 mark is the second-best in the NBA. Cleveland power forward Kevin Love (back) will be a game-day decision after being injured during the loss to the Warriors and he was limited in Wednesday's workout. Phoenix also has dropped three of its last four games, including a 106-101 loss to the Jazz on Monday despite standout point guard Eric Bledsoe excelling with 31 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. "I've been reiterating all year, he's underrated," shooting guard Devin Booker said of Bledsoe. "He competes against every top point guard in this league and puts up wild numbers against them."
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN Arizona (Phoenix), FSN Ohio (Cleveland)
ABOUT THE SUNS (13-28): Booker scored 25 points in the loss to Utah for his sixth straight 20-point outing, the longest stretch of his career. The second-year pro is averaging 30 points during the span while playing an average of 39.3 minutes, including a career-most 46 against the Jazz. "It's more of just who he's going to be in our league," Suns coach Earl Watson told reporters. "He's a player who needs to play most of the game. He's young. He can recover quickly and he's playing great, so he needs to be on the court more."
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (29-11): Recently acquired swingman Kyle Korver displayed signs of fitting in with his teammates by averaging 14.5 points and making 7-of-14 3-point attempts in the past two games after struggling in his first two contests. Cleveland is just 1-3 in the games that Korver has played and he isn't concerned based on what he is seeing through observation of his teammates. "No one around here is panicking," Korver told reporters. "Obviously, we have a lot to get better at but no one seems overly worried so I'm not going to be either. Just kind of follow their example and their lead, keep on trying to assimilate and get better."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Cavaliers won the past four meetings, including a 120-116 victory in Phoenix on Jan. 8.
2. Cleveland PG Kyrie Irving is just 25-of-75 shooting over the past four games.
3. Suns backup PG Brandon Knight (wrist) could miss his third straight game, while starting C Tyson Chandler (gastroenteritis) is expected back after a one-game absence.