Love, Waiters shine against LeBron's former team

(Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)

Despite playing without their All-Star point guard, who sat after rolling his ankle in practice this week, the Cavs did not miss a beat. Led by Kevin Love and Dion Waiters, the Cavs were able to defeat the Miami Heat, 122-119 in overtime.

The big storyline coming into this game was LeBron against his former team. As big as the build up was, it didn't live up to the hype during the game. LeBron didn't play his best (or even look interested in playing), Dwyane Wade only played 24 minutes and Chris Bosh played well (19 points, 8 rebounds), but it didn't mean anything towards the outcome of the game.

The two big games belonged to Love and Waiters. Love scored 25 points, grabbed seven rebounds and was 4-5 on three-pointers, including three makes from the corner. Although there was none of his patented outlet passes, it did not deter his game on the offensive end.

With his backcourt mate sitting out this game, Dion Waiters showed just how good he can be on offense. The third-year guard out of Syracuse would finish the game with 16
points on 7-12 shooting, including a couple of nice finishes around the rim. He also impressed with his decision-making skills, showing the ability to pass it off when needed, instead of forcing up a bad jumper.

As a team, the Cavaliers shot 50.6 percent from the field, including 42.9 percent on three-pointers. This came without Kyrie playing and a subpar shooting performance from LeBron (2-8 FG). This is a good sign for the Cavs, showing they have plenty of options on the offensive end. Cavs also out-rebounded the Heat 44-40, again showing their ability on the glass.

Three Things:

1. Offensive options. As noted above, the Cavs were playing without Kyrie Irving, one of their top offensive players as well as one of the top offensive players in the league. Without him, the Cavs didn't skip a beat on the offensive end. Six players scored in double figures, which did not include LeBron James. Love, Waiters and Varejao combined for 55 points, and, while I do not think Varejao will score at that rate, it shows how many weapons this offense has. If one player has an off night (like LeBron tonight), the Cavs have three other options to choose from to score points.

2. Ball movement. We talked about how important ball movement is in this offense and it was on display today. Almost every shot for the Cavs was an open one, which was in part to the extra pass. Cavs also shot just north of 50 percent from the field, showing the importance of ball movement tonight. LeBron led the charge with eight asssists, but others played stepped up their passing games as well. Waiters especially, who showed improvement from last season on his playmaking decisions, passed it when needed and did force too many bad shots. Look for the Cavs to assist on a majority of shots this season.

3. It's great to have LeBron back. After four years without their hometown king, any chance LeBron has to play in a Cavs uniform is a sight to see. He didn't show anything special today, but just seeing him play basketball in a Cavs uniform is something all Cavs fans will cherish. He has matured from the last time he donned a Cleveland uniform and has taken on mentoring younger players on the team. His impact off the court will be just as pivotal as it is on the court.

Statline of the game: Anderson Varejao. 14 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 7-10 FG.

We easily could have given this either Waiters or Love, but why not give it to the big man playing in his home country? He got the start, scored the first points of the game and finished with 14 on the game. Nice to see him play well in his country.

What's next: Oct. 14, home against the Milwaukee Bucks.

Yes, Kevin Love is better for LeBron than Chris Bosh

Love is in the air. Especially in Cleveland.

When news of the Kevin Love trade become official, people began drawing comparisons to another All-Star forward who teamed up with LeBron James to pursue a title: Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh.

From ability to circumstances, the comparisons between Bosh and Love were there. The most glaring comparison is that of their numbers.

Let us take a look at the numbers of both Bosh and Love in their final seasons before playing with LeBron:

Bosh: 24.0 PPG, 10.6 RPG, 2.1 APG, 25.0 PER

Love: 26.1 PPG, 12.4 RPG, 4.4 APG, 26.9 PER

As you can see, VERY similar numbers for both Bosh and Love. Although Love is slightly better by the numbers, Bosh at the time was considered the best power forward in the league, the same title that Love has been given by experts.

Despite the similarities, there are some people that say Love will not be as good at adapting to playing with LeBron than Bosh was able to. There is very little evidence to back that up, but there is evidence on why Love will be a better fit for LeBron than Bosh was.

3-Point Shooting

When talking about the top shooting big men in the league, Love is normally one of the first guys that come up. Last year, he has shot 37 percent on three-pointers last year while also averaging 3.5 three-point attempts per game. He's even got a Three-Point Championship to his name, which he won during the 2012 All-Star festivities.

Bosh, on the other hand, has shot only 31 percent on three-pointers in his career, six points lower than Love. He's also averaged less than one three-point attempt per game, meaning he is not the threat that Love from deep.

The perfect companion to LeBron is a big who can shoot. What Bosh lacked for in his three-point ability, he made up for in his mid-range jumper, where he shot 47 percent from 16 to 21 feet from the floor, a very high rate. However, that shot is still considered a two. That extra point that Love can create from his high efficiency on three-pointers will have a bigger impact than what Bosh could produce.

Passing

If there is one thing that Love can do better than other player in the league is throw an outlet passes. He looks like Peyton Manning threading a ball into one of his receivers in coverage. Nobody creates more fast break opportunities off defensive rebounds than Love.

Love is also a very good passer in the half court, where he averaged 4.4 assists per game last season, which was fifth among forwards (first among power forwards).

Bosh has never been known as a great passer, averaging no more than 2 assist per game in his four seasons playing with LeBron. Even in Toronto, Bosh was never able to average more than 2.5 assists per game.

In my opinion, Love's ability to pass will be the biggest reason why he will succeed. LeBron has never played with three guys with very good passing ability. This will take pressure off LeBron on offense, giving him the ability to be one of the deadliest players off the ball.


The biggest adjustment that Bosh needed to make was being third in line behind LeBron and Dwyane Wade after being the go-to guy in Toronto. Love will be asked to make the same adjustment, this time with LeBron and guard Kyrie Irving.

And if history repeats himself, then I think LeBron will "love" his current front-court mate than the one he previously played with in Miami.