The Cleveland Cavaliers weren't guaranteed to roll with their veteran center Jarrett Allen on Thursday night against the Philadelphia 76ers. The Cavs downgraded the center to questionable for the meeting in South Philly, as he is dealing with a knee injury.
Reporters in attendance noted that Allen was present for the Cavaliers' morning shootaround in Philadelphia, and there was confirmation that he was a participant. According to Cavaliers insider Chris Fedor, Allen told reporters that he "expects" to play against the Sixers.
Joel Embiid can continue building
Joel Embiid and the 76ers' new-look squad started the season off with a bang. They went into Madison Square Garden to face the New York Knicks on the same night that the team raised the banner and issued rings to the team.
Since the Knicks didn't see any major roster turnover during the offseason, their strong chemistry was certainly an advantage over the Sixers. While the 76ers didn't play a perfect outing, they did enough to squeeze out a 106-100 win over New York. Offensively, the performance was shaky, due to the 76ers' shooting struggles.
Defensively, it was a different story. The Sixers locked down and held the Knicks to just 37% from the field and 33% from three. The defensive performance was anchored by Joel Embiid, who silenced his doubters and made it clear that he wanted to re-enter the All-Defensive conversation once again.
He took care of business against Karl-Anthony Towns and Andre Drummond. Now, Embiid gets a prime opportunity to continue building on his confidence against Jarrett Allen.
Jarrett Allen vs Joel Embiid
The two centers have 16 meetings between them. From 2018 up until January 7, 2021, Allen faced the Sixers as a member of the Brooklyn Nets. Since joining the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2021, Allen faced the Embiid-led 76ers seven times. Historically, he doesn't match up well against Philly's big man.
Throughout his career, Allen has averaged 12.0 points on the offensive end versus Embiid. He typically produces under his career average when he's facing the All-Star. Even during Embiid's weaker points on defense in recent years, he has forced Allen into a passive role, limiting him to just six field goal attempts over two games during the 2025-2026 season.
Unlike the Knicks, the Cavaliers might not rely on their big as much. A team supplied with high-volume three-point shooters like James Harden and Donovan Mitchell will test the guards and wings more than anybody. However, Allen can have his days. A playoff-caliber team like the Cavs would certainly test Embiid's defense if they thought they could exploit it. The former MVP would certainly welcome the challenge.
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