The Utah Jazz and Cleveland Cavaliers meet Monday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, with multiple injury concerns shaping both lineups.
Utah is expected to be the same without Walker Kessler (left shoulder) and Georges Niang (left foot stress response), while Ace Bailey is listed as questionable due to a left hip flexor strain. Jusuf Nurkic is likely coming off a left 1st MTP sprain, leaving the Jazz to rely heavily on Lauri Markkanen, who is averaging 27.9 points and 7.0 rebounds per game.
The Jazz have struggled on the road this season. They entered Monday’s game with an overall score of 13-25, coming off a 95-150 loss to the Hornets. Keyonte George will need to continue his scoring at 23.6 points per game to compensate for Utah’s limited depth.
Cleveland will be without Max Strus (left foot surgery), Dean Wade (left knee contusion) and G-League two-way players Chris Livingston and Luke Travers. The Cavaliers are expected to lean on Donovan Mitchell, who is averaging 29.8 points, 5.6 assists and 4.7 rebounds per game.
Evan Mobley will also play a crucial role for the Cavs, with 18.0 points, 8.6 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game while anchoring the defense. Darius Garland, with 17.7 points and 6.9 assists per game, is asked to create offense and stabilize the ball movement for the home team.
Cleveland won its last game against Minnesota 146-134 and bounced back from a 122-131 loss to the same team, giving them momentum heading into Monday’s game.
The Jazz and Cavaliers have not yet met this season, making this the first matchup of 2025-2026 between the two teams. The match starts at 7:00 PM ET.
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