The Cleveland Cavaliers struggled to get anything going for much of their last game against the Celtics on Friday night, but on Saturday against the Atlanta Hawks, it was a completely different story.
The Cavs (5-3) made their first 11 three-point attempts of the night, including nine in the first quarter (the first team in history to make their first nine threes, according to the Elias Sports Bureau), and used the hot hands of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving to dispatch the Hawks (5-4) for their fourth straight win of the season. James had 32 points, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists on the night, while Irving contributed 20 points, 5 assists, and three steals.
After a rough start to the season, it seems like the team and its stars are starting to gel more and more, which is bad news for the rest of the NBA. The 33-point win over Atlanta on Saturday should help bring momentum for the next seven games, six of which are at home.
Three Things
1. LeBron is back to being LeBron
It was only a matter of time, right? LeBron James has been playing at his other-worldly level for the past couple of games, and the Cavaliers are taking advantage of it. In his past three games, James has averaged no less than 30 points each contest and no less than 7 assists. After opening the season extremely passive, it seems James has had enough and has gone full MVP mode. He's narrowly missed a triple-double a few times this year already and is already back to dunking and sending Kent Bazemore shots away with authority.
2. First complete game by the Cavaliers
The offense can be the best in the league, but if David Blatt's squad doesn't defend anyone, they most likely won't be the team holding up the hardware at the end of the season. Saturday, the Cavs turned in their first complete game of the season, lighting up the scoreboard but also shutting down the Hawks' offense for much of the night, holding Atlanta to 94 points en route to a 33-point victory. With much of the criticism coming at Cleveland for their lackadaisical defense, it was nice to see that it is, in fact, possible for this team to turn it up defensively.
3. Smokin' Joe better than advertised.
Could Joe Harris be the steal of the 2014 NBA Draft? The rookie shooting guard has performed exceptionally well (dare I say...Delly-esque?) in his filling in for the injured Matthew Dellavedova, and has even been playing over Dion Waiters in crunch time. Harris was at his best on Saturday, putting up 12 points (4-5 from three-point range) and 4 rebounds, along with 4 assists.
Statline of the night: LeBron James. 32 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 block.
Could it have been anyone else? LeBron played great once again and deserves the honors, though point guard Kyrie Irving helped dismantle the Hawks as well (hi Jeff Teague).
What's next: Nov. 17, at home against the Denver Nuggets, 7 p.m.
No comments:
Post a Comment