Category Archives: Cavs

Collin Sexton to miss rest of season

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The Cleveland Cavaliers guard underwent surgery on his left meniscus tear.

There was some hope that Collin Sexton could come back at some point this season, but now that is not an option. Sexton had season-ending surgery on torn meniscus in his left knee.

This is unfortunate for Collin Sexton as he had the opportunity to show the Cavs (or other teams) that he is worth a big money deal. With just an 11 game sample size with numbers down from his career averages, it is not an enviable situation for Sexton.

Meanwhile the Cavs are trying to find someone, anyone to take his spot in the lineup and with the current roster construction there really is not a good solution at this time.

Cavaliers fall flat in 4th in loss to Warriors

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The Cleveland Cavaliers were outscored by 28 points in the 4th quarter during their 104-89 loss to the Golden State Warriors.

It was a 13-point lead for the Cleveland Cavaliers as the 4th quarter began, but as everyone knows it is not safe when facing the Golden State Warriors. Golden State proceeded to outscore Cleveland 36-8 as the Cavs dropped their second straight game when shorthanded.

While the Cavaliers were in position to come away with a surprise win, making only two field goals is not going to get it done. The ability to close out games usually separates the contenders from pretenders and the Cavs are certainly not a contender.

Even though Cleveland did not win, it was a valiant effort from Darius Garland. Garland, the Cavaliers only starter playing in the contest, finishing with 25 points, five assists, two steals, and one rebound.

Dean Wade started again, scoring 17 points on 7-13 from the field including 3-6 from deep. Wade also had nine rebounds and five assists.

Kevin Love scored 17 points in 22 minutes off the bench. Love made four three-pointers in addition to grabbing seven rebounds.

The Cavaliers are now 9-8 on the year after lost three straight games. Cleveland will host the Nets Monday as they look to get back on track. 

 

Cavaliers to be shorthanded again vs Warriors

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The Cleveland Cavaliers will be without some key players when they take on the Golden State Warriors at home Thursday.

Wednesday night saw a shorthanded Cleveland Cavaliers squad fall to the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center. Now the Cavs return home to face the Golden State Warriors and again they will be down a few players.

Jarrett Allen, Lauri Markkanen, Evan Mobley, and Collin Sexton will again not be in the starting lineup for Cleveland. Lamar Stevens will also miss Thursday’s contest against Golden State.

Even at full strength the Cavaliers would have a tough time against a resurgent Warriors squad. Now that they are missing several important players it will only make things that much more difficult to be competitive, much less win.

Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 P.M. at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

Cavaliers unable to keep with Nets in 109-99 loss

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The shorthanded Cleveland Cavaliers were not able to keep up with the Brooklyn Nets in their 109-99 loss Wednesday night.

Entering Wednesday’s game, the Cleveland Cavaliers were up against it as they were without four members of their starting lineup. Due to injuries, Darius Garland was the only regular Cavs starter that played in the contest in Brooklyn. In addition to Garland, Cleveland featured Ricky Rubio, Dean Wade, Isaac Okoro, and Ed Davis as their starters while Kevin Love and Cedi Osman were their main bench options. Considering the state of their roster, only losing by 10 in a game that they were once down 23 in is a slightly less worse result.

Rubio was the Cavaliers leading scorer with 25 points while making eight of his 17 shots from the field (3-10 3PT) and all six free throws. Garland was also productive, finishing with 24 points, six assists, five rebounds, and three steals. Garland’s shooting night was not great, making just 10 of 26 from the field including going 3-13 from three-point range. With the lack of offensive options, taking the volume of shots that Garland did is acceptable.

Love made his return to the Cavs lineup, finishing with 11 points and nine rounds in 21 minutes off the bench. This is about the production that Cleveland should expect from Love while he is in this role. Osman was the only other bench player of note as he had 11 points in the contest.

The Cavaliers are now 9-7 on the year as they continue their tough stretch of games including Thursday’s game against Golden State. 

Injuries piling up for the Cavaliers

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Even though the Cleveland Cavaliers are exceeding expectations early on in the year, a growing injury list could derail their success.

At 9-6 the Cleveland Cavaliers have far exceed anyone’s realistic expectations for this team. A team that has struggled to find an identity over the past few seasons combined with a roster that does not appear to be constructed properly has outperformed the wildest dreams of even the most optimistic fan thus far. Unfortunately the Cavs are seeing more players end up on the injury report and that could result in a change in fortune.

The Cavaliers will be without Evan Mobley, Collin Sexton, Lauri Markkanen, Lamar Stevens, and Jarrett Allen Wednesday night in Brooklyn. Kevin Love is provable to return, but that is not guaranteed.

The biggest loss for the Cavs is obviously Mobley. Mobley is the clear Rookie of the Year frontrunner and losing such a dynamic unique player is huge, even without missing everyone else.

Cleveland has mostly won this season due to a sum of their parts and not necessarily one player in particular. As more players are removed from the equation in addition to a schedule which has them facing Brooklyn twice, Golden State, and Phoenix in the next seven days, things could change really quick for the Cavaliers if players do not start returning sooner rather than later.

Cavaliers fall short against Wizards

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The Cleveland Cavaliers had a chance to defeat the Washington Wizards, but were not able to come away with a win.

Done one with just over four seconds left in the game, Darius Garland attempted what would have been a game-winning three-point attempt. Unfortunately the shot did not go and the Cleveland Cavaliers found themselves on the losing end of a 97-94 final score.

Despite  at one point leading by 10 points in the game, it was the fact that the Cavs were outscored by nine in the 4th quarter that made a difference. In close games teams cannot afford to be outscored late and that is what has happened to the Cavaliers. The fact of the matter is that Cleveland is still a young inexperienced team that is is learning how to win. Sure, the 7-4 record coming into the game, (now 7-5), has outperformed expectations, but everyone is mostly sure of where they will end up when the season is over. It is still a developmental year for this team and flipping the outcome is something they should learn how to do as the season progresses.

Game notes

Even though he was not able to make the final shot, Darius Garland was an impactful player in the game. Garland scored 19 points on 8-16 shooting (3-10 3PT) and also had four assists. If the Cavaliers are going to continue being completive they will need more outings like this from their best starting guard.

It was another impressive outing from Evan Mobley. The Cavaliers rookie finished with 19 point and seven rebounds in addition to two assists and one block. Cleveland’s combination of Garland and Mobley will be exciting to watch as the season continues.

Another game, another double-double for Jarrett Allen. Allen’s 13 points and 10 rebounds made it the fifth straight for the Cavs big man. This was the first game during this stretch which Cleveland did not come out the winner.

Ricky Rubio continues to be a key force off the bench for the Cavs. Rubio finished with a team0high 20 points and five assists. The veteran point guard has proven that he is a key piece for their team off the bench and is capable of making a tremendous impact in every game.

The Cavaliers will regroup Wednesday before returning to action Friday as they host the Detroit Pistons. 

Jarrett Allen named Eastern Conference POTW

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The Cleveland Cavaliers center  has been named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week.

Jarrett Allen had himself quite a week. The Cavs big man had four double-doubles in four games, averaging 20.5 points, 16.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 steals, 1.3 blocks in 36.9 minutes per game.

These performances from Jarrett Allen were a big reason why the Cavaliers have won their last four games, including Sunday’s win over the Knicks.

Collin Sexton tears meniscus, will miss extended time

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The Cleveland Cavaliers guard suffered a torn meniscus in Sunday’s win over the New York Knicks.

It is going to be awhile before Collin Sexton returns to the court for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs guard suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee during Sunday’s win over the Knicks. Sexton is expected to miss an extended amount of time with this injury.

At 16 point per game, Collin Sexton has been the leading scorer for the Cavs this season, but that is not saying all that much. A lot of the Cavs success this season has been through a collective effort and not relying on one specific player. Cleveland can certainly weather the storm without Sexton, but will need others to step up in his absence.

Ricky Rubio scores career-high in Cavs win

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It was a career night for the veteran point guard in the Cleveland Cavaliers win over the New York Knicks.

It was a night to remember for Cleveland Cavaliers guard Ricky Rubio. Rubio came off the bench and scored a career-high 37 points in 31 minutes in Cleveland’s win over the Knicks. It was not just about the scoring as Rubio finished with 10 assists and three rebounds in the contest. This effort off the bench went a long way for the Cavs as they managed to win their fourth straight game.

Not only was this an impressive effort from Ricky Rubio, it was a historical one. Rubio is the first player in NBA history to finish with 35 or more points, 10 or more assists, and at least eight made three-pointers.

While Ricky Rubio is a big reason why the Cavs won, he did not do it alone. Evan Mobley finished with 26 points, nine rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one block in 36 minutes. Jarrett Allen had his fourth straight double-double with 18 points and 17 rebounds.

The Cavs are idle for two days before returning home to take on the Washington Wizards to begin their four-game home stand. 

 

 

Cavaliers come away with narrow win in Toronto

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A couple of late free throws were enough to give the Cleveland Cavaliers the win over the Toronto Raptors.

Down five points with 1:43 left in the game, the Cleveland Cavaliers were staring a loss right in the face. A couple of shots from Jarrett Allen brought the Cavs within one. With 4.8 seconds remaining the game Darius Garland was fouled by OG Anunoby, sending him to the line with the opportunity to take the lead. Garland made both free throws  giving Cleveland the lead and the Cavs were able to hold on for 102-101 victory.

While the clutch free throws from Garland get the shine, the fact of the matter is that he was spectacular all game. Garland finished with  21 points and eight assists, leading the Cavaliers in both categories. Evan Mobley continued his impressive rookie season, scoring 18 points on 7-14 from the field and making all four free throws. Jarrett Allen also made significant contributions with 16 points and 15 rebounds, his third straight double-double and fifth of the season.

For the fourth straight game Cedi Osman was productive contributor for the Cavaliers with 17 points on 5-10 from three-point range. Osman has made 19 of his last 34 attempts from deep, 20% higher than his career average (55.8%-35.4%), while impressive a correction is coming in this area sooner than later.

The Cavaliers are 6-4 on the year and will travel to New York to take on the Knicks Sunday at 6:00 P.M. after an off day Saturday.