Cavaliers Overcome Knicks in Final Minutes On the Back of Kyrie Irving

(photo. James Herbert, YouTube)

Madison Square Garden is often referred to as "the Mecca of Basketball" and that title was certainly deserved tonight.


A day after Nike introduced Kyrie Irving as their next signature athlete, Irving proved his worth to Nike and the Cavs, propelling Cleveland to the 90-87 win over the New York Knicks.

The Knicks held the lead for much of the second quarter and half of the third, but the Cavaliers were never out of the game.  The Cleveland offense was paced all night by Kyrie Irving, who finished with 37 points on 12-18 shooting from the field and 10-11 from the free throw line.  Seventeen of Irving's points came in the second quarter.

The Knicks held the lead for all of the fourth quarter, until the final minutes.  With the Cavs trailing 83-85 with 3:54 left in the game, LeBron James hit a three-pointer to put Cleveland ahead for good.  James finished the game with only 19 points on 7-17 shooting, but seven of those points came in the final quarter.  James also had 12 assists, playing the point guard role for much of the night and giving Irving the scoring duties.

Irving and James also led the way for the Cavs on the defensive end of the floor as well.  New York point guards had eight combined points and, perhaps even more impressive than that, Carmelo Anthony was held to only nine points.  James played lock-down D all night, something that hasn't always been the case this season, and held Anthony to 4-19 shooting.  With Anthony essentially a non-factor, the Knicks had trouble coming up with other options that would have won them this game. 

Even with the Anthony's struggles though, this one came down to the final seconds.  With the Cavs up by only one with 10 seconds left, Irving hit a 3-foot jumper that put the nail in the Knicks' coffin.

Three Things:

1. Kyrie Doesn't Need to be a "Traditional Point Guard"

Kyrie Irving had two assists tonight...and that shouldn't matter.  At all.  On a night where his shooting is on fire, the lack of assists don't even need to be brought up.  With LeBron James on this team, the Cavs have the luxury of another playmaker on the floor who can make the offense tick.  And let's be honest, Irving has always been a better scorer than pure point guard, and that's OK.  The Cavs' offense is by far their biggest strenght, in part because they have players that can play multiple roles, and Irving has been wonderful at this.  On a night when none of the other Cleveland players were having trouble getting into a groove, this team needed Irving to score to keep them in that game.

2. The Offense Looks Good, But Other Areas Still Need Work

Another game, another night of the Cleveland bench being clearly outplayed.  The Knicks reserves outscored the Cavs subs 42-10.  Dion Waiter, once thought to be the spark that would lead Cleveland's second unit, had six points.  Yes, the Knicks do have the talented offensive player J.R. Smith leading their bench players, but a 32 point difference is not going to cut it.  In addition to the bench play, the Cavs were out rebounded 47-33.  Seventeen of the Knicks' rebounds were off the offensive glass.  On a team that has Kevin Love, Anderson Varejao and Tristan Thompson, allowing a team to have that many second chances is a major problem.  Against teams better than the Knicks, these factors probably would have led to a loss.

3. Continuity is Still Missing

When a team brings in a lot of new players, there is always an adjustment period.  And while the season is still somewhat young, we're at a point where trends can start being spotted.  After a stretch of amazing games for Kevin Love, the big man was almost invisible for much of this game.  Love finished with 11 points, only five of which came after the first quarter.  Mike Miller is apparently in the rotation now, but didn't score in 12 minutes.  Joe Harris, once thought to be in the running for a starting spot, played four minutes.  Irving was hot tonight, and LeBron found himself in the fourth quarter, but the rotation is unpredictable and finding continuity soon should be a point of emphasis. There's still a lot of time for this to be improved, but the sooner the Cavs can find balance, the better. 

Statline of the Night:

Kyrie Irving - 37 points, 12-18 FG, 10-11 FT

Irving carried the offensive load tonigh, there is no question about that.  He didn't accumulate much else in terms of stats but you can't knock him for that on a night where the Cavs just needed someone to put the ball in the hoop.

What's Next:

Dec. 5, on the road against the Toronto Raptors, 7:30 p.m.

Cavs Leave Fans Happy

(AP Photo/Mark Duncan)

The Cleveland Cavaliers picked up their first home win of the season, beating the New Orleans Pelicans 118-111, marking the team’s first win streak of the season.

The key matchup of this game featured the NBA’s best player in Lebron James versus the player who many see as the next best player in the league, Anthony Davis. While both these all-stars put up their typical all-star numbers, it was the teammates of these two that made the most noise in the Quicken Loans Arena.

The first half belonged to Ryan Anderson. Coming off the bench, he came in the game shooting lights out knocking down five three-pointers. The Pelicans entered halftime up 56-51 in large due to Anderson’s 23 first half points.

Second half, it was all about the Cavaliers Big Three. While Lebron went on to mess around and get a triple double, it was Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love who seemed to make all the shots that got fans up out their seat Monday evening.

For the game, Irving and Love combined to go 10-for-16 from deep and connected on seven treys in the second half. Coupled with Lebron’s 17 free throw attempts for the game, the Cavs were just too much for the Pelicans at home.

Three Things

1. Lebron lead and Kyrie Irving followed suite

Lebron was in attack mode the entire night, evident by his 17 free throw attempts. By attacking the basket, he got his teammates involved and made the game easier for others. Also in attack mode was Kyrie Irving. Criticized against Utah for his lack of passing, Irving played with poise, getting his teammates involved and while taking shots within the rhythm of the game, finishing the game shooting over 50 percent from the field.

2. In David Blatt we trust?

While it’s early and the Cavs are still trying to figure things out, keep an eye out on how many minutes the Big Three play down the road. Lebron James and Kyrie Irving are leading the league in minutes played per game, with Kevin Love rounding out the top five in that statistic. Not an encouraging sign after many media members pointed out last year Lebron looked gassed for the first time in his life. And while Irving and Love both have youth on their side, neither have played into the months of May and June, so all the mileage could eventually play a factor. Blatt and Cavs fans must remember the season is a marathon and not a sprint.

3. Cavs must address bench play

So far this Cavs bench stinks, no other way to put it. Coming into the game they ranked 29^th in the league in bench points scored and on average get outscored by 13.8 points per game. Against the Pelicans, the Cavs bench was outscored 44-16. Now while a team with Love, Irving, and James shouldn’t have to rely on its bench to outscore teams, it can use a boost, particularly on the nights one or two the stars are struggling. Hopefully Dion Waiters and Matthew Dellavedova can provide that spark once back healthy, and the bench as a whole can cut down into some of the minutes the Big Three are playing.

Statline of the night: Lebron James. 32 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists, 9-for-17 from the field and 13-for-17 from the free throw line.

While other players may have made bigger noise Monday night, make no mistake that James was still the best player on the floor. Lebron looked at ease on the court, letting the game come to him all while posting a monster statline relatively quietly.

What is next: November 14, on the road against the Boston Celtics, 7:30 p.m. EST.

Cavaliers still going through growing pains

(Photo by Craig Mitchelldyer-USA TODAY Sports)

Following the theme of ruined homecoming, Kevin Love returned to the city he grew up in Tuesday with his new team, only to suffer a 101-82 defeat at the hands of the Portland Trail Blazers.

Unlike Lebron James who played poorly in his homecoming, Love shined for the Cavs connecting on five shots from deep and getting his accustomed double-double, ending the game with 22 points and 10 rebounds.

While Love continued to be a bright spot and the most consistent Cavalier of the season so far, that was about the only positive thing to take away from this game.

Starting the game 10-for-10 from the field, the Cavaliers’ offense was a thing of beauty early on, but then the rest of the game happened.

After the sizzling start, the Cavaliers would connect on only 21 of its next 75 shots, finishing the game with a lowly 36.5 percent from the field. As for the Cavs defense, they didn’t do too much better allowing the Blazers to shoot nearly 50 percent from the field.

One thing is clear: For the Cavaliers to enter the conversation of elite, this team still has much work to do on both ends of the floor.

Three Things:

1. Lebron must lead

Let’s be clear about one thing, this team will only meet its potential and go as far as Lebron leads them. Now in Cleveland as a two-time champion, Lebron is the clear leader of the team. While it’s encouraging to see Kevin Love play well, Kevin Love will not lead the Cavs deep come spring, he’s already had that chance several times and failed. Lebron James ended the game with only 11 points but more disheartening was the second half he had, where he failed to score and only took four shots.

2. The backcourt must step up

Dion Waiters said in the offseason that he thought himself and Kyrie Irving posed the best young backcourt in the league, but so far they aren’t proving that statement to be correct. Against Portland, they combined to go 6-for-28 from the field and through three games are a combined 27-for- 79 from the field. That’s 34 percent and quite frankly will not cut it.

3. Rebounds equal wins?

Through three games, the Cavs have lost each game that they were outrebounded in. With rebounding forces such as Love, Anderson Varejao, and Tristan Thompson, this team should not be losing the battles of the boards often but it is interesting to know that they have been beaten twice already this young season. Keep an eye out on this statistic as the season goes on.

Statline of the night: Damian Lillard. 27 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists.

Three seasons in, Damian Lillard has already established himself as a big-time playmaker. Coming into the game averaging 13.7 points on 26 percent shooting, Lillard shaped back into form and was a problem for the Cavs on the defensive end all night. Quite ironic that the player cut from Team USA Basketball this summer was the best player on the floor, beating out Team USA members Lebron, Kyrie, and Love.

What is next: Nov. 5, on the road in Utah against the Jazz, 9:00 p.m. EST.