Cleveland Cavs, Fox Sports 1, Grantland and more – WFNY Podcast #457
February 10, 2016American Crime Story, O.J., and Sabotage: While We’re Waiting…
February 11, 2016Los Angeles Lakers (11-43) 111
Cleveland Cavaliers (37-14) 120
Box Score
Oh, won’t you stay
Just a little bit longer
Please let me hear
You say that you will
Say you will
It isn’t Kobe Bryant that the headline and Maurice Williams song are referring to. It’s the whole Los Angeles Lakers team. Can’t they stay in Cleveland a little longer? Does the NBA really need to have its All-Star break this weekend? Can’t the Cavs play the Lakers another six or eight times? Their record should have told me as much, but man are they bad. They played as well as that record indicated Wednesday night, and the Cavs were happy to take their third straight victory.
Kyrie Irving opened the game with an 18-foot jumper, and from there the Cavs trailed for exactly zero seconds. They built an 11-4 lead early and bumped it up to 27-12 late in the first quarter. They carried a 17-point lead into halftime and a 19-pointer into the fourth quarter. The Lakers made something of a rally to keep the final respectable, and the Cavs went on to win, 120-111. All non-LeBron Cavaliers now have a week off for the All-Star break. Their next game is next Thursday against the Bulls.
Head coach Tyronn Lue is not yet wholly satisfied with his team’s play — surely they should have beaten the Lakers by more than nine — but this whole Cavs-Lakers game felt like an exhibition. The Lakers are not the most industrious bunch in basketball, and there wasn’t much urgency shown by either team. The Cavs took what they wanted on offense early and were happy to coast from there. It was a fun game for LeBron-watching. He played with an easy air about him, controlling the action and not overexerting himself. Such is life against the Lakers.
All in all it was a celebratory evening. Kobe Bryant checked out in the game’s final minute, and received one final ovation from the crowd at the Q.
For the final time at the Q, @kobebryant checks out of a basketball game to a rousing ovation. #CavsLakers https://t.co/fTOZLe5jrl
— FOX Sports Ohio (@FOXSportsOH) February 11, 2016
One bit of housekeeping that needs to be addressed: Kevin Love left the game in the second quarter with a left shoulder injury. He was working in the post against Kobe Bryant, and Bryant’s left shoulder hit Love’s left shoulder, apparently jamming it. Love left the court with his left arm dangling and did not return. That’s the same shoulder, you’ll recall, that Boston’s Kelly Olynyk rearranged last year without prior consent. General manager David Griffin hustled into the locker room to check on his power forward. Things looked dark.
Rest easy, folks: Official word from the Cavs is that Love suffered a shoulder contusion. Love described it as a stinger, akin to hitting your funny bone. No break, no tear, no separation. He should be fine. Even during the game the Cavs said that they were being overly cautious. No official timetable has been given for Love’s return, but the team expects him to be available against the Bulls in a week. Crisis averted, it seems.
Now then, let us move on to the numbers…
31 — Kobe Bryant made 31 percent of his 16 shots en route to 17 points in his final game in Quicken Loans Arena. It’s been a rough season for Kobe and the Lakers. He’s shooting 35 percent on the season, and has yet to clear the 40 percent mark in any calendar month. He came into the Cavs game averaging 27 points per game in February, but he’s chucked over 24 shots per game to get there. He has made at least half of his shots in just 5 of 44 games this season.
That didn’t stop the crowd at the Q from giving him a nice ovation. There were some KO-BE chants during the game, big cheers on the occasions when he made a play, and a generally warm reception throughout. He got a hometown introduction from MC Ahmaad Crump and a video package to match. Farewell, Mamba.
Respect. Congratulations, @KobeBryant.#KB20 #CavsLakershttps://t.co/3uYJyva3eP — Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) February 11, 2016
(Then again, the Cavs play the Lakers in L.A. in a month. We’ll see him again. Daniel Bryan’s retirement is way more compelling.)
15 — LeBron James finished with 29 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists, moving past Paul Pierce into 15th place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list in the process. James has now scored 26,159 regular-season points, and another 5,020 in the playoffs — he sits at No. 6 all-time in postseason scoring, trailing only Kobe and Tim Duncan among active players.
Potentially encouraging is that LeBron hit 3-of-6 threes against the Lakers. After going six games without hitting once from deep, he has now connected on 6 of his last 13. I believe both statistical savants and Costco customers would refer to that as a small sample, but it’s something to keep an eye on. (Please oh please LeBron just make 35 percent of your threes.)
.543/.370/.950 — Those are Kyrie Irving’s shooting splits in February. He scored 35 points in 36 minutes Wednesday night. He shot 15-of-24 (including 3-of-6 threes), adding 7 assists, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals against just 1 turnover. After scuffling when he came back in December and even through much of January, Irving has been superb in February; the aforementioned bit about samples still applies. He is averaging 26.2 points and 6.6 assists in six February games, though they have been against relatively weak competition.
Irving had total control over his midrange game against the Lakers. His touch is so delicate when he’s on. The ball bounces off the rim as though Tom Brady had inflated it,1 and then it falls through the hoop like it’s jumping on a hotel bed. That shooter’s touch a special part of Irving’s game. Of course, so is crossing dudes over and spinning ridiculous layups off the glass.
https://vine.co/v/inalWpqEExn
4 — Tristan Thompson had four assists. It ain’t much, but it’s an easy way to say that he played a fantastic all-around game. It was the ideal Tristan game, really. He grabbed 13 rebounds, 7 of them offensive. He made all six of his shots and all three of his free throws for a total of 15 points. He officially blocked just one shot, but he played terrific interior defense. Julius Randle went at him several times, coming away with bubkes. No one is expecting him to turn into Magic Thompson, but if Tristan can throw a couple smart, incisive passes, the Cavs offense could reach another level.
1 — D’Angelo Russell took one LeBron James fastball right in the pills. James threw what was meant to be a bounce pass to Iman Shumpert in the left corner. Russell read the play and did well to get in the passing lane. He kept his hands high, however, and the ball went low. It caught him right in the buckeyes, as cleveland.com’s Joe Vardon put it. Russell came back in the game and seemed to be fine, but with this coming on the heels of Manu Ginobili getting surgery on his own bolas, some concern is warranted. May there be little D’Angelos running around one day.
“Not cool, LeBron.” -D’Angelo Russellhttps://t.co/oNWihvVxXc
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 11, 2016
- God what a cheap joke I’m so sorry. [↩]
2 Comments
Me watching the Vine:
Come playoff time, that might be an effective way to slow down stephen curry.