Live Stream – Cleveland Cavaliers vs Milwaukee Bucks

Tue, Oct 9 7:00 PM EDT  

Tonight, the Milwaukee Bucks play their first of eight preseason games against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The live stream can be watched here : Sportable.tv

The Cavs are coming off a 91-85 win in their opener against Montepaschi Siena last night. The game will be available locally on WSSP 1250 with Ted Davis handling the play-by-play duties; however, none of the Bucks' preseason games will be carried on local TV. Four games will be televised by their opponents, leaving open the possibility of seeing them via satellite or other means.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have a new frontman with Kyrie Irving, but how long will it be until they rock again? In this episode of "Basketball by Association," NBA assistant editors Ethan Norof and Joel C. Cordes break down all the key roster losses and additions, discuss the biggest storylines to watch and set realistic expectations for the Cavs.

Cleveland raised eyebrows by drafting Dion Waiters and acquiring Tyler Zeller on NBA draft day. Will either player be immediate contributors and live up to the high expectations? In the end, everything depends on Kyrie Irving. What are the next steps he can take to achieve superstardom and propel the Cavaliers back to prominence? How does the small forward position shake out now that Alonzo Gee, C.J. Miles and Omri Casspi are all options. Where do Anderson Varejao, Tristan Thompson, Samardo Samuels and Zellers fit into a front line that can rebound and play defense, but can't score enough points? Byron Scott may be the perfect man for this rebuilding job, but how long will it take?  

Cleveland had three top four picks the last couple years and out of that we are sure that Kyrie Irving is the real deal. But if you are following the Thunder model, you still need to get your Russell Westbrook and James Harden picks, and nobody is sold yet that the Cavaliers have those. Thompson was nice as a rookie, 8.3 points and 6.5 rebounds a game, decent touch around the rim but needs some range. The question is what kind of leap can he make this season. Waiters was unimpressive and not in NBA condition at Summer League, can he show he deserved to be the No. 4 pick? It's easy to look at the guys taken behind Thompson (Klay Thompson, Kawhi Leonard) and Waiters (Harrison Barnes, Andre Drummond, Thomas Robinson) but the Cavaliers players deserve the chance to prove they were the right calls. They deserve three years each to show that they can develop. But that development is key to the Cavaliers' future.

Prediction: 34-48, finishing around the 10 seed in the East and out of the playoffs. But there will be signs of progress. It's a slow process sometimes, but the Cavaliers are on the right path.