LeBron, Kyrie Shine in Impressive Win Over the Clippers, 126-121

Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

"I guess I got my swagga back" - Jay-Z.

A day after they ended their six game losing streak, the Cleveland Cavaliers got by far their best win of the season by defeating the Los Angeles Clippers, 126-121.

With no Kevin Love tonight, it was up to the other two members of their "Big 3" to show up, and that they did. Kyrie Irving scored 37 points on 12-of-18 shooting and LeBron James, despite nine turnovers, had one of his classical performances, putting up 32 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, while also taking heavy defensive duties, something he has been criticized all year.

However, it was the play of the guy who started in place of Love that made the most impact: Tristan Thompson. On a night where DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin controlled the glass, Thompson was able to hold his own and grab 12 rebounds to go along with his season-high 24 points. His lay-up with 46 seconds left sealed the game for Cleveland.

For the first time in nearly a month, it felt like a game worth watching, as the offense played at the level we expected and got All-Star performances from All-Star players tonight. LeBron had an extra gear going tonight, and even showed signs of agreeing with head coach David Blatt, who called the inbounds play that led to Thompson's lay-up and leading to LeBron giving Blatt credit for the call.

That wasn't the only decision that Blatt made that was big, as he made one in the third quarter that virtually swung the game in favor of the Cavaliers. With the Clippers running wild on offense, Blatt decided he had seen enough of the uptempo offense and decided the only way to stop it was to foul Jordan (40.2 percent free throw shooter) and force him to hit free throws. It worked out perfectly, as Jordan would only hit 5-of-11 of his attempts and forced Clippers coach Doc Rivers to take him out for the rest of the game. From that point with 5:32 left in the third quarter until the final, the Cavaliers out-scored the Clippers 52-39.

With a sweep of Los Angeles, the Cavaliers were able to finish their West Coast road trip at 2-5 and head home at 21-20. Most importantly, the Cavaliers were able to reclaim the swagger they had been missing.

Three Things:

1. The Cavaliers are fun again!

Points! Alley-oops! Players and coaches agreeing! Two players playing well at the same time! I don't know about you, but this was the first game in AWHILE that the Cavaliers have been enjoyable to watch. This is the team we expected to see, and we have finally been able to witness it after a seemingly terrible last two weeks. More importantly, LeBron looked to be having fun, showing more animation tonight than he has all season. I can't say if this will continue, but I gotta say, it was nice to have fun watching the Cavaliers 

2. It looks like the Cavaliers got good J.R. Smith.

I don't know if it's playing with a new team and escaping the dark abyss that are the New York Knicks, or playing alongside a superstar who has no problem with setting up his teammates, Smith is playing like the Sixth Man award winner from two years ago. He may be putting up some questionable shots, but more times than not the ball is going in and helping to bail out the offense when needed. He's also been able to provide some defensive effort, something the Cavaliers have needed all season. Basically, he's going everything that former Cavalier Dion Waiters was unable, and that's a great sign. Consider the fact he was thrown in the back-end of the deal for Iman Shumpert, this is shaping up to be a win for David Griffin and the Cavaliers.

3. I hate "Hack-a-DeAndre".

As a fan who enjoys watching basketball, there's nothing worse than a player getting fouled over and over and over (and over) again, in order to send him to the free throw line and hope he misses both free throws. It completely kills the flow of the game and takes every sort of excitement out of it. Is it effective? Kind of, but people don't watch basketball for the slow pace and constant stops (hello baseball). Seriously, can we please stop this madness?

Statline of the Night:

Tristan Thompson: 24 points, 12 rebounds, 2 blocks, 10-of-12 shooting.

LeBron played great, Kyrie played great, but Tristan played out of his mind. Days after it was reported that Thompson turned down a hefty contract extension, he proved tonight why he it wasn't wrong for him to bet against himself.

What's Next:

Jan. 19, at home against the Chicago Bulls, 7:30 p.m.