National Basketball Association

Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Dallas Mavericks season preview

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Mar 16, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) reacts against the Dallas Mavericks at Quicken Loans Arena. Cleveland won 99-98. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Cavaliers swept the Dallas Mavericks last season, but the Mavs have had plenty of roster turnover. What does the matchup look like this season?

The Cleveland Cavaliers racked up plenty of wins last season on their way to winning a NBA title, and it’s no different against the Dallas Mavericks, who they swept last season.

The difference between the two games is that one was coached by David Blatt and the other by Tyronn Lue.

In the first meeting, the Cavs had to use overtime in Dallas to escape with a 110-107 win. LeBron James led the Cavs with 27 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Kyrie Irving scored 22 points and Cleveland had three players off the bench score in double figures, with Timofey Mozgov leading the way with 11 points.

Dallas was led by Chandler Parsons, who scored 22 points in the loss. While Parsons led the scoring charge, there was no shortage of it from the Mavs’ starters, each finished in double figures.

Cleveland won the second meeting in a 99-98 thriller. LeBron sat out of this contest, which allowed Irving to lead the scoring charge with 33 points. Kevin Love had a big game with 23 points and 18 rebounds and the recently acquired Channing Frye scored 14 points off the bench.

The Mavericks had Dirk Nowitzki and David Lee give the Cavs fits by scoring 20 points each. The X-Factor in this game was J.J. Barea, who scored 17 points.

The Cavaliers and Mavericks will meet twice more this season. There were plenty of changes to the Dallas roster. Let’s take a look at them.

Feb 3, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks power forward Dirk Nowitzki (41) shoots over Cleveland Cavaliers small forward Luol Deng (9) during the first half at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Dallas Mavericks Roster Turnover

Key Additions: Andrew Bogut, Harrison Barnes, Seth Curry
Key Losses: Chandler Parsons, Zaza Pachulia, JaVale McGee

Dallas has had plenty of turnover from last season, but the Mavs replaced their losses with some key additions. In fact, they are close to running out a mock-Golden State Warriors lineup after acquiring Andrew Bogut and signing Harrison Barnes and Seth Curry.

Bogut, 31, is going to be key for the Mavericks. He is a rim protector and can score if he’s in the right position down low. The biggest factor to his season is going to be staying healthy. However, it may not be a problem because over the last three years he has played at least 67 games. He could be a potential stopper like Tyson Chandler was on their last Finals team.

Barnes, 24, catches a lot of heat for his performance with the Warriors in the NBA Finals, but he’s been solid over the past two years. In his last two seasons he has a shooting line of .474/.39.4/.739 and is averaging 10.8 points per game over that span. Now, he will have a bigger opportunity as a scoring option as either the third or fourth guy.

Curry, 26, could be the wild card. In 44 games last season with the Sacramento Kings, he knocked down 45.0 percent of his three’s and averaged 6.8 points in 15.7 minutes per game. As a floor spacer and getting more minutes, he could have a breakout season.

As for the returning players, Nowitzki is going to be a key piece for the Mavs again as they attempt to reach the NBA Finals before he retires. Wesley Matthews will need to step up after having the worst season of his career.

Matthews, 29, had career-lows in field goal and three-point percentage with a slash line of .388/.360/.863. He only averaged 12.5 points per game, which was the worst since his rookie season. He will need to be better as one of the lead scoring options this season.

Deron Williams is still a key contributor as a veteran point guard. He averaged 14.1 points per game last season and was one of the most clutch shooters. He finished 13th in clutch shooting, according to NBA Miner, with 132 points. However, he shot 50.6 percent from the field and 51.5 percent from three-point range.

Dallas looks tough this season, regardless of losing Chandler Parsons, they have re-tooled with plenty of firepower.

Jun 16, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) celebrates with Cleveland Cavaliers guard Iman Shumpert (4) during the second quarter in game six of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

The Season Series

Game 1: In Cleveland, Friday, Nov. 25, 7:30 p.m., Fox Sports Ohio
Game 2: In Dallas, Monday, Jan. 30, 8:30 p.m., Fox Sports Ohio

The Cavs and Mavs will play twice this season.

With everyone healthy, it’s going to be a tough season series due to the added rim protection with Bogut in the paint. Pairing him with Nowitzki is going to give the Cavs fits if they can’t penetrate the lane, they won’t be able to kick out to open shooters.

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While that appears to be the Cavs preferred choice of offense, they will also run more sets under Lue. His ability to gameplan has been evident, and it should help the Cavs in situations like these where they face teams with big frontcourts.

Cleveland is much more versatile this season with a deeper bench. Adding a sharpshooter that can play three positions in Mike Dunleavy, a quick and explosive point guard in Kay Felder and an interrior presence such as Chris Andersen will help the Cavs immensely. It also gives the Cavs plenty of different lineup options, whether it’s going small or running Felder and Irving together or other pairings.

All things being equal, the Cavs should sweep the season series from the Mavs, once again. However, the dynamic has changed with the Mavericks adding to their interior. The X-Factor may be the play of Wes Matthews and Harrison Barnes with Matthews needing to step up and Barnes entering a larger role.

What are your thoughts on what the Cavs should do when they take on the Mavericks this season? Let us know in the comments section or on Twitter @KJG_NBA.

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