The 2025-26 NBA regular season is barely a month old, and we’ve already seen enough exciting games and jaw-dropping performances to last an entire season. One of the more intriguing matchups on Friday’s NBA Cup group stage slate features the Indiana Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers in a battle between two Eastern Conference teams that just faced off in the postseason, but are now trending in completely different directions. 

With tip-off set at 7 p.m. ET, let’s get into the odds and betting trends, plus my predictions for this contest.

Cleveland is a heavy 13.5-point favourite on the NBA odds, with the total set at 239.5.

Pacers vs. Cavaliers NBA Betting Odds

These teams are operating at very different levels in terms of power rating at the moment. Cleveland assumes its position as one of the best teams in basketball, while the Pacers have been a mess without Tyrese Halliburton. The odds for this game reflect that, as the Cavaliers are a 13.5-point favourite at home – while oddsmakers expect plenty of scoring with a posted total of 239.5.

The Pacers were an against-the-spread darling last year, but things are a lot different this season, as Indiana is just 6-9 against the number this season. On the other side, the Cavaliers are just 5-11 against the spread, even though they are 10-6 in the win/loss column thus far.

Indiana Pacers

The Pacers entered the season in a difficult spot, as Indiana’s roster looked like it was simply too good to tank for one of the coveted top-three picks in the upcoming NBA draft. However, the Pacers really miss Haliburton as the engine that makes this offence go, and it doesn’t help matters that Indiana has also suffered a rash of injuries in the early part of the season. With that in mind, it’s not a surprise that Indiana now holds one of the worst records in basketball (2-13). 

The NBA Cup has a tendency to level the playing field a bit in games that appear to be mismatches on paper. In fact, we’ve seen some of the better teams in the Association stumble a bit in spots like these, especially ones like Cleveland – a team that is likely to be singularly focused on making a run at the NBA Finals instead of worrying about an in-season tournament result. However, it’s hard to trust a team like the Pacers given that just about everything that can go wrong has gone wrong for Indiana this season.

Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cavaliers have not exactly picked up right where it left off this season, as Cleveland is 13th in offensive rating, 10th in defensive rating and 14th in effective field goal percentage through 16 games. Cleveland is just 3-3 over its last six games, and defence has been a major issue in some of its recent losses.

Darius Garland is still not back from injury, so it’s tough to forecast the Cavaliers as the Eastern Conference favourite that they were tabbed to be in the offseason as presently construction. With that said, this is a much easier matchup than what they’ve seen recently, and we can expect a more convincing result on Friday.

NBA Prediction: Who Will Win Pacers vs. Cavaliers?

These teams are pretty far apart at the moment, and even though Cleveland has disappointed against the number thus far, it’s the Cavaliers that are a team worth backing in this spot. Look for Cleveland to start off strong and coast to a blowout victory on Friday. The Cavaliers win 130-109.

PACERS

Away

109

CAVALIERS

Home

130

Score
Predictions

Matchup