The Cavaliers and Hawks have a preliminary matchup before their NBA Cup game on Friday.

WHO: Cleveland Cavaliers (17-1) vs. Atlanta Hawks (7-11)

Where: Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse – Cleveland Ohio

When: 7 p.m., Wednesday, November 27th

TV: Fanduel Sports Network Ohio (formerly Bally Sports), NBA League Pass

line: Cavs – 11.5

Predicted starting lineup for the Cavs: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Isaac Okoro, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen.

Cavs injury report: Max Strus – OUT (ankle), Emoni Bates – OUT (knee), Dean Wade – OUT (ankle), Caris LeVert – OUT (ankle), Luke Travers – OUT (G League)

Hawks expected starting lineup: Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, Zaccharie Risacher, Clint Capela

Hawks injury report: Trae Young – QUESTIONABLE (Achilles tendon), Cody Zeller – OUT (personal), Seth Lundry – OUT (ankle), Dominick Barlow – OUT (G League), Mouhamed Gueye – OUT (G League), Keaton Wallace – OUT (G League ). )

What you should pay attention to

Can the Hawks string together enough defensive stops?

Opponents can score in droves against this version of the Hawks. They rank last in the NBA in opponent effective field goal percentage, with opponents shooting an incredible 57.1 EFG%. The Hawks are 1-4 in their last five games and their opponents have found holes in their defense as they have given up 120 plus points in three of those four losses.

Dyson Daniels on defense was their only real disruptive factor. He is currently the leader in steals per game with 3.2. Daniels also leads the league in total deflections with 108, which is 41 more than the runner-up. He has been a real threat this season and gives the Hawks a true wing defender. The Cavaliers can expect a lot of situations where Daniels faces Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland. If Daniels can be a presence in Wednesday’s contest, the Cavaliers’ supporting cast may have to take on more playmaking duties.

Ty Jerome is officially award-winning

When Ty Jerome was named MVP of the month for September before training camp, memes kept popping up, but Jerome quickly showed there was some truth behind the claim. He has simply been a revelation for the Cavaliers this season. Jerome is averaging 12.6 points, 3.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game. His 54.4% from the perimeter is also an all-time leader of three league leaders.

Jerome also proved that he is not a one-note player. He was a nuisance for scorers on the ball and showed an instinct for when to outwit opposing players. Jerome wasn’t known for this in the past. Head coach Kenny Atkinson has strengthened and raised his and Garland’s defensive boundaries. The guards both play aggressively to penetrate passing lanes and pressure players on the ball to force turnovers. With Jerome excelling on both ends, it’s no wonder HoopsHype lists Jerome as Sixth Man of the Year according to Global Ratings.

Preview Friday’s NBA Cup matchup

As the Cavaliers (1-1) and Hawks (2-1) face off again in their NBA Cup match on Friday, one wonders how hard the two teams will try in this match.

Both teams have to win to win the group. The Hawks earned a 117-116 win over the Celtics and a 129-117 win over the Wizards before losing a game to the Bulls. A win would mean winning the group, as they are in a tiebreaker against Boston.

The Cavaliers suffered their only loss of the season against the Celtics in the group stage. No team made it to the knockout tournament last season with more than one loss. A loss for any of these teams is the death knell for any goal of winning the league’s newest prize.

Update: There will be no playback stream for today’s game.