What We Learned: Cavs vs Nets

The Cavs bounced back to beat the Nets 95-91 on Friday night. The Cavs (mainly the Big 3) didn’t have their best game, but it was good enough to get the W. Here are some things we can take away from the game:

Congratulations to LeBron for passing Charles Barkley up for 23^rd on the all-time scoring list. It’s great to see LeBron keep making his way up the scoring list. It’s very impressive considering he’s only 29. 1 down, 22 to go.

LeBron can close out games, even when he’s having a rough night. LeBron had 8 of his 22 points in the 4^th quarter to help secure the victory for the Cavs, including one big free throw in the final seconds of the game to secure the victory. There was a stretch in the 4^th quarter where LeBron scored 7 straight points for the Cavs. That’s exactly what LeBron needs to do, close games out! He did just that Friday night.

Kevin Love can influence the game, even when he makes only one basket. Love had an off shooting night and ended the game with only 6 points. That didn’t stop him from getting rebounds though. He ended the game with 14 rebounds including 5 on the offensive end. His rebounds were a big reason why the Cavs were able to come away with this one. You always appreciate a player who can have a bad shooting night and still find other ways to contribute.

The Cavs were able to win even though they shot 40%. The Cavs offense looked dismal at times. They were, however, able to overcome their terrible shooting night by getting to the line and out rebounding the Nets. The Cavs showed us, once again, they are able to win games against solid competition, even when they struggle.

Kevin Garnet may not be the guy you want taking the game tying 3 with less than 10 seconds left. It’s not 2004 anymore KG.

Tristan Thompson had a good night that will likely go unnoticed. Thompson finished the game with 9 points and 10 rebounds. He’s becoming a double-double machine off the bench (yes I know it wasn’t a double-double, but it was close enough). The spark he provides off the bench has become vital to this team’s success. He is continuing to show us why he deserves the money he is asking for.

Kyrie still hasn’t broken out of his slump. He ended the game with 16 points on 6-18 shooting. Irving has been struggling the last 8 games. More on Kyrie’s struggle here.

Shawn Marion might be more effective coming off the bench. One game doesn’t prove that Marion would be better coming off the bench, but he was certainly better in that role Friday night. He finished the game with 8 points on 4-6 shooting in only 17 minutes of action. He seems like he is more comfortable in this role. He also led the team in plus/minus at+15, when he was on the floor.

Mike Miller deserves a shot to be a starter. Miller saved the day for the Cavs Friday night. He finished the game 7/8 from the floor (all threes) and 21 points. This was the first time he started this year, and he was great. You can’t expect him to put numbers like this up on a consistent basis, but it’s great to see him have a night like he did tonight. He provides the spacing that opens up all sorts of possibilities for the other Cavaliers on the floor, especially penetration to the hoop for LBJ and Kyrie. I’m guessing Miller will be given a few more opportunities to start, if he can play anything close to how he played Friday night, the starting nod will officially be his to lose.

@CST_JacksonF

Cavs/Nets: Full Game Highlights