Spencer Dinwiddie on Nets facing Cavs: ‘We look forward to dunking on Jarrett Allen’

By David Akerman
Updated: March 21, 2023

The Cleveland Cavaliers and Brooklyn Nets will play each other two times this week, and Spencer Dinwiddie recently said that his team is looking forward to dunking on Cavs center Jarrett Allen.

“We look forward to dunking on Jarrett Allen,” says Spencer Dinwiddie of his former teammate whom he expects to play tonight when Nets host Cleveland. pic.twitter.com/3mbkd9rd4X

— Barbara Barker (@meanbarb) March 21, 2023

Allen and Dinwiddie spent plenty of seasons together as teammates on the Nets before being dealt in separate blockbuster trades. The big man was traded to the Cavaliers as part of the deal that sent James Harden to Brooklyn. Dinwiddie was shipped to the Washington Wizards as part of the trade that sent Russell Westbrook to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Dinwiddie ultimately found his way back to the Nets. Allen, meanwhile, seems to have found a long-term home with the Cavs, and he’s in the second year of a five-year deal he signed with the team back in 2021.

The Nets are currently in sixth place in the East. With Brooklyn this season, Dinwiddie is recording 17.5 points, 3.9 rebounds and 8.0 assists per contest. He has appeared in 16 games for the team.

The Cavaliers sit in fourth place in the East and seem like they’re going to have that seed for the playoffs. Getting the fourth seed would guarantee home-court advantage for at least the first round of the playoffs.

Depending on how the rest of the 2022-23 regular season goes, the Cavs and Nets might end up facing off against each other in the playoffs. Apparently, some within the Cavs organization are privately hoping to face the Nets.

The Nets don’t lack playoff experience, but they aren’t the most star-studded team. The Cavs definitely have more top-tier talent, but they are lacking in playoff experience. Key players like Evan Mobley and Darius Garland have yet to see a minute of playoff ball.

Perhaps those within the Cavs organization want to face the Nets because they believe it would be a favorable matchup for them. However, Brooklyn shouldn’t be underestimated, as the team still has lots of talent across the board.

Forward Mikal Bridges is breaking out as a leader, as he’s averaging 25.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists per contest in 16 games with Brooklyn on 43.9 percent shooting from deep.

The games between Brooklyn and Cleveland on Tuesday and Thursday might just end up being playoff previews.