The Cleveland Cavaliers have been through a lot in the first half of the season, accruing nearly as many losses as it did throughout the entirety of last year.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are at home for their first game of 2026. They’ll host the Denver Nuggets as they look for their third win in a row. Sorry, Cavs fans. If you bought tickets to see Nikola Jokic play on Friday night, then you’ll be disappointed. Jokic went down with a knee injury earlier this week and is already ruled OUT for this matchup.

Minnesota won’t make this easy for the Cavs. Rudy Gobert, Julius Randle and Naz Reid are a hefty frontcourt that don’t shy away from physicality. Not to mention wing defenders like Jaden McDaniels and Anthony Edwards, who shrink the margin for error and take away advantages.