The Triple Double King Leads the Cavs to Victory
After an absolutely insane last couple days for the Cavs off the court, it was great to see them back in action. The Cavs had their best performance of the year amid rumors of Kevin Love leaving the Cavs after only 5 games. The Cavs put together a great team effort tonight to get their first home win in front of a sold-out crowd at the Q!
LeBron led the way with his first triple double since returning home. LeBron ended the game with 32 points, 10 assists, and 12 boards. He also led the team back from a first half deficit with 17 points in the 3rd. LeBron capitalized during a 16-1 run by hammering home a dunk in the closing moments of the 3rd quarter that brought down the Q. Kyrie made huge contributions in the 3rd as well by scoring 9 straight points. He finished the game with 32 points and 9 assists. Kevin Love made his presence felt by hitting back to back 3s in the beginning of the 4th. Love ended the game with 22 points while shooting 6 of 9 from 3. The Cavs also got key contributions off the bench from Tristan Thompson and Joe Harris. The Cavs did a great job moving the ball around to all the weapons on the floor and finished the game with 31 assists. Overall this was by far the best offensive game for the Cavs. This was just a preview of how the Cavs offense will perform.
While the offense was great to close the game out, the defense still struggled for much of the game. The defense had stretches of brilliance during the 16-1 run in the 3rd quarter, but overall they failed to cover 3 point shooters. The Pelicans finished the game shooting 44% from 3. The Cavs also only forced 5 turnovers. The Pelicans offense did an excellent job of moving the ball around the perimeter, and the Cavs seemed to always be one rotation too late. The Cavs did out rebound Anthony Davis and company 45-40. Defense will continue be this team’s Achilles heel all year.
The Cavs did an incredible job of leaving all of the off the court drama off the court. They put aside all of the ridiculous rumors and simply played basketball. Rumors of Love leaving will not be going away any time soon. The Cavs will have the national media covering them like this all year long, and will need to be able to put aside all the craziness like they did tonight.
This is the first time we saw LeBron, Kyrie, and Love have good offensive games on the same night. And to be honest it was scary. There is no defense out there that can stop this team at its best. LeBron and Kyrie did an excellent job of sharing the ball while still being aggressive and getting to the line. They also did a great job of finding Kevin Love open 3s late in the game. It was great to see LeBron explode and drive to the basket like he did tonight. LeBron quieted all the rumors that he lost his ability to finish at the rim tonight. There is no team in the NBA that can beat the Cavs when they play team offense like this.
Enjoy this win Cleveland. This is just a preview of what’s to come. Maybe next time the King tells us to relax we will.
