Tag Archives: NBA

Cavaliers look to snap losing streak vs. Hawks

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The Cleveland Cavaliers are looking to end their two game losing streak against the Atlanta Hawks.

A lopsided loss to the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday has the Cleveland Cavaliers on a two-game losing streak and looking to get back on the right track. Their next chance will be Saturday as they travel to Atlanta to take on the Hawks.

When talking about the Atlanta Hawks it comes back to one person, Trae Young. Young is a dynamic scorer capable of taking over a game at any point. The Cavaliers will have to do their best to slow him down as stopping him is not an option. Young is Atlanta’s leading scorer and is the reason why the Hawks are winning games.

The Cavs will need to lean on their three most important available players, Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, and Andre Drummond. Sexton and Garland bounced back from a disappointing performance against the Knicks last time out and combined to 49 points, nearly half of Cleveland’s total for the game (99). Drummond will be looking for his sixth straight double-double to start the season. The Cavaliers center is averaging 14.8 points and 11 rebounds per game so far this season, pretty impressive numbers as per usual for Drummond.

What Cleveland will have to do against Atlanta is start fast. The common theme in their two straight losses as been slow starts which have led to leads they could never overcome. Both the Knicks and Pacers started strong while the Cavaliers couldn’t buy a bucket. Start out strong and there’s a chance. Another slow start against a potent Hawks team could doom them to a third straight loss.

Cavaliers lose second straight game

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The Cleveland Cavaliers were on the wrong side of a 119-99 final score as they lost to the Indiana Pacers.

It was a rough go from the start for the Cleveland Cavaliers as the Indiana Pacers won by a comfortable 20-point margin. The difference in the game really came in the 1st and 3rd quarters. Indiana outscored Cleveland 63-38 in those two quarters and that is what propelled the Pacers to victory.

Coming into the game the Cavs were shorthanded as they were without Kevin Love, Isaac Okoro, Matthew Dellavedova, and Kevin Porter Jr. Having those players definitely would have made a difference as their absences led to players seeing the court more than they should have. The lack of depth for the Cavaliers was clearly a factor and made an impact in the game.

SexLand bounced back in a big way

The only reason the Cavs were able to cut the deficit a few times was due to the performances of Collin Sexton and Darius Garland. Sexton finished with 28 points on 12-19 shooting (2-2 3PT) and Garland added 21 points while making 8 of his 14 field goal attempts (5-7 3PT). Garland also assisted on 5 baskets while Sexton did 4 times.

Another double-double for Andre Drummond

Cavaliers center Andre Drummond registered his fifth consecutive double-double to start the season as he finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds. The Cleveland big man also added 4 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block.

Larry Nance Jr. made an all around impact

If there is one thing everyone should know by know is that Larry Nance Jr. is able to contribute consistency in a variety of ways. Nance made 4 of 9 shots for 10 points and added 7 assist, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 block. He is truly the jack of all trades that the Cavaliers really need.

Cedi Osman with another clunker

The time may have come to talk about the playing time of Cedi Osman. Osman turned in another lackluster performance and it is a theme that is becoming concerning. In 21 minutes Osman made just 1 of 8 shots, missed both free throw attempts and had 3 points. Once other wing players return it could have a major impact on Osman’s minutes and that is not necessarily a bad thing.

Cavaliers look to bounce back vs. Pacers

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The Cleveland Cavaliers will look to rebound from their loss on Tuesday as they head out on the road to take on the Indiana Pacers.

It was not the best performance for the Cleveland Cavaliers as they struggled in their loss to the New York Knicks at home. The Cavs will be looking to change their fortunes as they will face Indiana Pacers on the road. It will be a battle of 3-1 Central Division teams as they jockey for the early season division lead.

Cleveland will be looking for bounce back performances from their two starting guards Collin Sexton and Darius Garland. The duo known as SexLand did not have the best shooting performance against the Knicks and in order for the Cavaliers to come away with a win they will need that to change. Sexton is Cleveland’s leading scorer with 25.3 points per game while Garland is their assist leader with 7.8 per game. Andre Drummond is averaging 15.3 rebounds per game and is looking for his fifth straight double-double to begin the season.

The Cavaliers will be without Isaac Okoro, Kevin Love, Matthew Dellavedova, and Kevin Porter Jr. Cleveland has shown they can win without these, but it won’t be easy. Okoro, Love, and Porter Jr. are key players while Delly is a role player.

The Pacers leading scorer is Victor Oladipo who averages 22.7 points per game. Damontas Sabonis leads Indiana in rebounds (11) and assists (7.3) per game. Indiana is not a pushover and it will be a tough contest for the Cavaliers as the Pacers also look to get back into the win column after their first loss of the season.

Isaac Okoro out Thursday vs. Pacers

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The Cleveland Cavaliers will be without their rookie small forward when they take on the Indiana Pacers.

When the Cleveland Cavaliers travel to Indiana to face the Pacers they will be without the services of rookie Isaac Okoro. This will be the third consecutive game missed by Okoro.

In his first two games Issac Okoro is averaging 5.5 points, 3 rebounds, and 2.5 assists on 44.4% shooting from the field. Okoro’s contributions may not jump off the page, but he is contributing just enough while his teammates have been the primary scoring options. Luckily for Okoro, he doesn’t need to be an instant impact player. All Cleveland needs from Okoro is for him to be a complimentary player to Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, Kevin Love (when active), and Andre Drummond.

Cavaliers struggle in loss to Knicks

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The Cleveland Cavaliers struggled from the start and suffered their first loss of the season to the New York Knicks by a score of 95-86.

Everyone knew the Cleveland Cavaliers were not going to go 82-0 and their first loss was going to come eventually. That ended up being Tuesday night as the Cavs lost to the listing New York Knicks 95-86.

Cleveland struggled from the start and were unable to dig themselves out of the early hole. The Cavs did manage to make it close a few times, but were unable to take the lead from the Knicks. At the end of the day their 14-point deficit in the 1st quarter was their undoing.

It was not a great shooting night for the Cavaliers as they only made 36.4% of their field goal attempts (32-88) and 21.9% of their shots from deep (7-32). There were a few categories that Cleveland did have the advantage in, considering this has been a theme though the first four games it seems to be the rule and not the exception. Cleveland had more steals (9), blocks (10), fast break points (16), and points in the paint (46). The frustrating aspect in Tuesday night’s loss is the fact that Cleveland committed only 13 turnovers to New York’s 27 and were outscored in the points off turnovers category (27-11).

Struggles in SexLand

Collin Sexton and Darius Garland did combine to score 37 points, but it was not a good shooting night for either. Sexton was 6-17 from the field, 1-4 from three-point range, and 7-8 from the free throw line. Garland made 6 of 18 field goal attempts, 3 of 8 shots from deep, and both shots from the free throw line. The duo did combine for 10 assists, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals. Both players will look to get back on the right track in their next contest.

Cedi Osman was ice cold

Due to injuries to Isaac Okoro and Kevin Love there were minutes to be dispersed in the starting lineup and Cedi Osman was thrust into the role. Osman played a season-high 29 minutes and struggled from the field, making 2 of 12 field goals and missing all 5 three-point attempts. What his performance Tuesday did confirm is that Osman is much better off the bench and not as a starter.

Andre Drummond was Cleveland’s best performer

Andre Drummond logged his fourth consecutive double-double to start the season with 18 points and 17 rebounds. Drummond also finished with 6 blocks, 3 steals, and 2 assists, but did commit 5 fouls. The 27-year old big man went 7-13 from the field and made 4 of 10 free throw attempts. Drummond has been a consistent contributor for the Cavaliers this season and is a big reason they are 3-1 to start the year.

JaVale McGee keeps on going

How good has the acquisition of JaVale McGee been, seriously? McGee is having a huge impact off the bench for the Cavaliers and has been a surprising nightly contributor. McGee had 11 points, 9 rebounds (5 offensive), 1 steal and 1 block. Another surprising aspect of McGee is that he has tied his career-high with his third three-pointer of the season in just four games. It seems like he will set a new career-high sooner rather than later.

The Cavaliers will look to get back into the win column Thursday when they face the Pacers in Indiana.

Kevin Love strains calf, re-evaluation in 3-4 weeks

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The Cleveland Cavaliers forward strained his calf in the win over Philadelphia Sunday.

Kevin Love will not be on the floor with the Cleveland Cavaliers any time soon. The 32-year old power forward strained his right calf in the Cavs win over the 76ers Sunday and will be out for the foreseeable future. Love will be reevaluated in 3-4 weeks when there will be a better idea of a return timeframe.

The Cavs have already won without Kevin Love twice this season. Cleveland won their first game of the season with Love being absent and the 9 minutes they got out of him in Sunday’s game hardly played a factor. It is going to be about flexibility and versatility moving forward for the Cavaliers and so far they have shown that they can make it work.

Cavaliers to face Knicks hoping to extend win streak

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The Cleveland Cavaliers will play host to the visiting New York Knicks Tuesday night as they look to win their fourth consecutive game.

The Cleveland Cavalierss are 3-0 for the first time since the 2016-17 when they won their first six games. The current incarnation could get one step closer to that mark when they take on the New York Knicks Tuesday. New York is 1-2 on the year coming off a 130-110 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks while Cleveland enjoyed a fairly comfortable 118-94 win over the Philadelphia 76ers Sunday.

If the Cavs are going to extend their winning streak they will have do so without a few key players. Matthew Dellavedova, Kevin Love, Isaac Okoro, Kevin Porter Jr., and Dylan Windler will all miss Tuesday’s game.

Luckily the Cavaliers did play well without these players in their previous win so there is hope that they can channel that again on Tuesday.

Players to watch

The Cavaliers will be looking for their dynamic backcourt duo of Collin Sexton and Darius Garland to continue their impressive start to the season. Sexton leads the team in scoring with 27 points per game while Garland leads in assists with 8.3 per game. Sexton ranks ninth in scoring and Garland is tied for eight in assists among the NBA leaders.

The Cavs leading rebounder is Andre Drummond who grabs 14.7 boards per game, an impressive 3.7 of them coming on the offense side of the court. Drummond ranks second behind Utah’s Rudy Gobert in rebounding who averages 17 per game.

There is one player who leads the Knicks in all categories, Julius Randle. Randle averages 23.7 points, 10 rebounds (2.3 offensive), and 6.3 assists per game. Alec Burks ranks second in scoring (20.7), and R.J. Barrett is second in rebounds (7.3) and assists (4.3). Barrett is also third in scoring for the Knicks with 17.7 points per game.

In order to come out on top at home against the Knicks the Cavaliers need to keep doing what they have been doing so far. Good ball movement with decisive passes and make their open shots. The Cavs have been able to find open shooters and are third in field goal percentage (51.3) and first in three-point percentage (43.4). If they can accomplish that a fourth consecutive win could be in the cards for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Cavaliers win third straight, defeat 76ers 118-94

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The Cleveland Cavaliers took on the shorthanded Philadelphia 76ers and were able to come away with a comfortable victory.

Defeating the Philadelphia 76ers was going to be a tough task with or without Joel Embiid. This was due to the Cleveland Cavaliers playing a double overtime game against the Detroit Pistons the night before. Everything fell into place for the Cavs as they were able to come away with a win that did not really seem in doubt midway through the 2nd quarter. Cleveland found themselves up double digits and kept building on their lead as it once grew to as much as 32.

The Cavs had the advantage when it came to field goal percentage (52.7), assists (31), steals (13), blocks (6), and points in the paint (68). Cleveland was clearly the superior team Sunday night, although if Philadelphia had Embiid things may have been different. Embiid is a game changing player and playing without him made an impact.

Cleveland’s backcourt duo does it again

Collin Sexton and Darius Garland seem to be what makes the Cavs offense go. The duo combined for 36 points, 10 assists, and 3 steals. If the Cavaliers are going to take a step forward this season it will be due to the development of Sexton and Garland. So far, so good.

Osman productive off the bench

Cedi Osman always felt like someone who should be coming off the bench. Osman’s skill set just seemed to be catered for a bench role and now that he is not in the starting lineup he is playing well. Osman went 5-8 from the field (2-4 3PT) and finished with 14 points along with 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block.

McGee continues his hot start

Can anyone honestly say they saw this coming from JaVale McGee? McGee just seems to be the perfect big man off the bench and is bringing the energy their second unit needs. McGee ended with 7 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocks and is an integral role player for this team. Considering the Cavaliers did not trade much to acquire McGee it appears that the trade was a win for Cleveland.

Love leaves with injury

Kevin Love only played 9 nine minutes before having to leave the game due a calf injury. Love is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday when more will be known about the severity of the injury.

The Cavaliers have a day off Monday before returning to play Tuesday at home against the Knicks.

Cavaliers pick up options on four players

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The Cleveland Cavaliers have picked up the options on four players.

It appears that the Cleveland Cavaliers want to keep some of their young players and continue to build their roster. The Cavs picked up the options on Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, Kevin Porter Jr., and Dylan Windler prior to their opening night victory over the Charlotte Hornets.

It is the fourth year option for Sexton and third-year options for Porter Jr., Garland, and Windler. The decisions to pick up options for Sexton and Garland were an absolute no-brainer. This duo is their staring guard combo and even carried the team to victory in their opener with 49 points and 11 assists between the two.

Porter Jr. showed a ton or promise as a rookie, but his off the court concerns could have given the team some pause over the decision. The second-year guard did not participate in the first game due to personal reasons.

Windler’s option is the intriguing one as he did not make his NBA debut until Wednesday night. Windler only made 1 of 5 shots (1-4 3PT) and finished with 2 steals. It is apparent that the Cavs believe that Windler can be a contributor for the long haul.

Cavaliers top Hornets in opener

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The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Charlotte Hornets 121-114 in their season opener.

Cleveland was without the services of four players Wednesday night, but that did stop the Cavaliers from starting the season out 1-0. The Cavs were able to sprint out to a 21-point lead at the end of the first half and able to hang on just enough to defeat the Hornets 121-114.

All five starters finished with double-digit scoring efforts and at one point led by 24 points. Cleveland led in rebounds (50), assists (34), steals (12), and points in the paint (62). The Cavs did commit 21 turnovers and 22 fouls, but were able to overcome those shortcomings.

Overall the Cavs looked liked a cohesive unit. Was the team a bit sloppy at times? Sure, but that is to be expected in their first regular season game in nine months. Cleveland was excelling in the ball movement department and were not only just passing the ball, but passing the ball decisively.

Welcome to SexLand

This was a phrase that originated prior to last season and maybe it was a bit premature. The combination of Collin Sexton and Darius Garland seem primed to take that next step in year two. Sexton led the Cavaliers in scoring with 27 and Garland was second with 22. One particular area for both players that was in need of improvement was the assist department. Sexton finished with 5 assists and Garland with 6, which is a good sign of progression for both players.

Larry Nance Jr.’s near triple-double

Larry Nance Jr. almost had an opening night triple-double. Nance started in place for Kevin Love and finished with 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists. The 27-year old power forward also added 3 steals and 2 blocks to his final line. What was seen from Nance is that he is more than capable of being in the starting lineup and can produce when called upon.

Oh-Oh-Okoro

Isaac Okoro made his NBA debut Wednesday and played well. Okoro made four of five field goal attempts an finished with a fairly impressive line for a team with four other starters who played well. The Cavaliers rookie finished with 11 points, 5 assists, and 3 rebounds and should be able to build upon this performance moving forward.

JaVale Mcgee could be an impact player

When it comes to role players off the bench they need one trait in particular, energy. It is safe to say that JaVale McGee has a ton of that. Watching McGee in his Cavaliers debut was a bit eye-opening and he may be more important part of the team than initially thought. McGee just has that bounce you like to see out of a backup big man and he was making plays all over the court. It seems like after his 13 point, 7 rebound performance that McGee could be an impact role player for the Cavs.