March 9, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden (1) brings the ball up the court in the second half against the Philadelphia 76ers at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images The Cleveland Cavaliers and Dallas Mavericks are scheduled to play the first half of a home-and-home set in Texas on Friday night, and the opponents have different prospects for the final month of the regular season.
The second part of the set takes place Sunday afternoon in Cleveland.
The Cavaliers have dropped four of their last seven games, including a 128-122 loss at the Orlando Magic on Wednesday. James Harden scored 30 points, his highest score since moving to Cleveland from the Los Angeles Clippers last month, and had eight assists.
The Cavaliers remain firmly in control of the fourth and final home-court advantage in the Eastern Conference, but wasted an opportunity to get closer to the third-place New York Knicks.
“Of course Orlando is a really good team, but this is a game we have to win. This is a game we have to win.” Harden said: “If we want to win games, we have to get stops and rely on our defense.”
Donovan Mitchell, the other half of Cleveland’s superstar backcourt, scored 25 points and hit a late 3-pointer along with Harden to keep the Cavaliers close. Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley added 18 points and 13 rebounds.
But a mental error on an inbounds play with 18 seconds left allowed Desmond Bane to hit an uncontested 3-pointer, sealing the win for Orlando.
“We scored enough points,” Harden said. “Offensively, we can score with the best of them. Nights like this are very difficult.”
Cleveland is 23-10 since Dec. 29, but has shown a disturbing trend over the past three weeks. After winning seven games in a row from February 1 to 20, they continued their winning streak once.
Starting center Jarrett Allen has not played since injuring his right knee March 3 against Detroit. Coach Kenny Atkinson continues to downplay the severity of the injury, but Allen has already been ruled out of Dallas.
The Mavericks, who are racing toward a draft lottery pick, returned to the win column Thursday for the first time since Feb. 24 thanks to a vintage performance from 34-year-old Kris Middleton.
Middleton scored 22 of his season-high 35 points in the fourth quarter in a 120-112 win at the Memphis Grizzlies. He played just 25 minutes and made 8 of 10 3-point attempts during Dallas’ eight-game losing streak.
“It was fun playing with him,” Mavericks sharpshooter Klay Thompson said of Middleton. “He’s very efficient in everything he does. He’s a great ballhandler and a cerebral player. We’re lucky to have him.”
Rookie of the Year candidate Cooper Flagg had 13 points, six rebounds and seven assists for Memphis. Center Daniel Gafford dominated the paint with 22 points and 14 rebounds.
Thompson rested overnight but is scheduled to play against the Cavaliers. Dallas has the seventh-worst record in the league, having lost 18 of its last 21 games.
With former All-Star guard Kyrie Irving (left knee surgery) and center Derek Lively II (right foot surgery) ruled out for the season long ago, the Mavericks are metaphorically running out of time.
“It’s a tough situation because we’re missing Kyrie and some great players on D-Live,” Thompson said. “We weren’t perfect.”
–Field level media
