Tag Archives: Taurean Prince

Cavs acquire Ricky Rubio from Minnesota

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The Cleveland Cavaliers have acquired the veteran point guard from the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have clearly identified some areas of need prior to the NBA Draft and that led to a trade beforehand with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Cleveland acquired veteran guard Ricky Rubio in exchange for Taurean Prince, and cash.

The Cavs apparently plan to keep Ricky Rubio for the upcoming season.

A veteran presence in the backcourt has been a glaring need for the Cavs and landing Rubio can help solve that problem. While the plan is to keep Rubio next season, considering the competitive level that the team is currently at, flipping him during the season seems to be inevitable. For the time being having Rubio mentor some of the younger guards on the roster is a plus, but his stay in The Land seems to have a definite end date.

Cavaliers take down Hornets in Charlotte 103-90

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The return of some key players allowed the Cleveland Cavaliers to come out on top in Charlotte against the Hornets 103-90.

In what was sort of a surprising final score the Cleveland Cavaliers ended their losing streak and came away with a win against the Charlotte Hornets. The Cavs outscored Charlotte in every quarter with the closest differential being just 1 in the 3rd. Cleveland saw the returns of some key players and that helped the team come away with a win that many predicted.

Tauren Prince led the way in the scoring department as he scored 25 points in 29 minutes off the bench. Prince made 9 of 13 shots including going 6-8 from the three-point line. Prince’s contributions certainly played a factor in the final result for Cleveland.

Jarrett Allen made his return to the starting lineup, finishing with 15. points and 8 rebounds in 30 minutes of play. Allen was not the only big man to make an impact as Kevin Love had 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists for the Cavaliers.

With Collin Sexton out, it was Darius Garland as the primary guard for Cleveland and he played incredibly well. Garland made 7 of 13 field goal attempts and had 17 points and 7 assists when it was all said and done. The Cavaliers seem to be a more cohesive unit when Garland is able to be the primary ballahandler.

Cleveland comes home for the second half of a back-to-back against the Golden State Warriors at 8:00 P.M.

Shorthanded Cavaliers lose to Pelicans 116-109

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The Cleveland Cavaliers were without several key players and still were competitive in a 115-106 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.

This game was always going to be an uphill battle for the Cleveland Cavaliers even if they were 100% healthy. The problem is that they weren’t and ultimately that played a factor in their loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. Cleveland was without Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Larry Nance Jr. The lineup that was put together looked more like a surrender lineup than a competitive one. But credit where credit is due, the Cavaliers put up a much bigger fight than anyone could have expected.

Cleveland came out firing with a starting lineup featuring Mathew Dellavedova, Isaac Okoro, Dean Wade, Kevin Love, and Isaiah Hartenstein. The fact the Cavaliers scored 39 points with this starting five is sort of amazing. Cleveland even held a first half lead and played well in the 3rd quarter, holding a 94-90 lead heading into the 4th. The problem is that at some point they were going to run out of gas and that was during the final quarter. Cleveland was outscored 26-15 in the 4th and that lead to what seemed inevitable from the beginning, a Cavs loss.

Game notes

The Cavaliers surprisingly made more three-pointers than the Pelicans (13-7). The fact Cleveland attempted 40 shots from deep is sort of perplexing considering their usual low volume and low 3PT% on the year.

Dean Wade led the Cavaliers in scoring with 21 points, a new career-high. Wade did most of his damage from deep as he made five three-pointers.

Isaac Okoro had himself a nice night offensively, finishing with 19 points on a 6-10 shooting effort including 2-4 from three. Okoro also made all five free throw attempts on the night.

Apparently Kevin Love was on a mission to essentially shoot three-pointers as he went 5-14 in that regard and 1-3 from two. Love was tied with Okoro for the second-highest Cavaliers scoring effort.

Matthew Dellavedova was supposed to be on a minutes restriction, but was on the court the most of any starter (34 minutes). Delly finished 10 assists and 7 points on the night on a pretty ugly shooting effort (3-11).

It was a rare efficient shooting night from Cedi Osman as he went 7-11 and scored 15 points. Osman also had 7 assists, 3 rebounds, 1 block, and 1 steal on the night.

Like many others, Taurean Prince was not a consistent shooter for the Cavaliers. Prince went 4-11 (0-4 3PT) and ended up with 11 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 block.

The Cavaliers have a few days off before returning to action April 14th in Charlotte.

Cavaliers roll Thunder in Oklahoma City

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The Cleveland Cavaliers managed to win their second straight game as they took down the Oklahoma City Thunder by a score of 129-102.

The 3rd quarter is usually a complete letdown for the Cavaliers, but this time it went Cleveland’s way. Cleveland surprisingly outscored Oklahoma City 28-14 in the 3rd en route to their 27-point win over the Thunder. It wasn’t just the 3rd quarter that they held an advantage in, is what the 4th quarter as well. The Cavaliers dropped 36 points in the final quarter to solidify their win on the road. It was an all around good performance for Cleveland as their lowest point total in any quarter was 27 in the 2nd quarter.

Perhaps in what may be the outlier of all outliers, Cleveland drained 13 three-pointers on 37 attempts in the contest. The Cavaliers average 9.4-28.1 per game from deep, both which rank dead last in the NBA. This upturn is actually a sign of improvement and maybe a light at the end of the tunnel.

SexLand leads the way

As is the case for the Cavaliers in their wins this season, Collin Sexton Darius Garland led the charge. This performance was just a bit different as SexLand’s shooting was improved (9-17, 8-15) while they also cut down on turnovers, all 3 of which belong to Garland. There have been questions about how viable this combo could be multiple times this season, but a night like this provides optimism.

Love, Okoro, Wade all step up

It wasn’t just SexLand who carried the team, all five of the Cavaliers starters scored in double-digits. Kevin Love had 18 points and 11 rebounds on 6-12 shooting (3-8 3PT, 3-4 FT). Isaac Okoro added 15 points on a 6 for 13 from the field, making 2 of 6 three-point attempts. Even Dean Wade scored 12 points, half of which came off his two three-point makes.

Prince off the bench

Taurean Prince had himself a night off the bench yet again, scoring 22 points in 28 minutes. Prince went 3-5 from deep (9-15 overall) and finished with 6 assists, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal. The veteran forward is proving to be a valuable contributor off the bench for the Cavs as of late.

Cleveland returns to action when they host the Raptors Saturday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse at 7:30 P.M.

Darius Garland leads Cavs to 125-101 victory

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Second year guard Darius Garland scored a career-high 37 points en route to a 125-101 Cleveland Cavaliers victory over San Antonio.

If the Cleveland Cavaliers were going to snap their five-game losing streak and get back on the right track in San Antonio they were going to need from someone not named Collin Sexton. The good news is that someone did, Darius Garland. Garland scored a career-high 37 points against the Spurs and help the Cavs defeat San Antonio by 24-points.

Darius Garland made 14 of 22 shots including 5 of 10 from deep along with making all 4 free throw attempts. Garland also dished a game-high 7 assists to add to his game-high scoring effort. This was an excellent performance for Darius Garland and on the higher end of possible outcomes for the second year guard. Garland is more of a complimentary scorer than leading scorer, but is capable of the occasional scoring breakout like Monday night.

It was not a lone effort for Darius Garland as the other half of SexLand, Collin Sexton, provided some help in the scoring department. Sexton finished with 22 points on 7-17 from the field and 7 of 8 free throws. Sexton also had 5 assists and 3 rebounds in the contest. The key stat for both Collin Sexton and Darius Garland is that they only had 1 turnover between the two of them, a massive improvement in this area.

Okoro, Hartenstein and Prince

Rookie Isaac Okoro also had decent night, making 4 of 6 field goal attempts including all three shots from deep totaling 11 points. Okoro seems to be settling in a bit offensively and has been a little more efficient over the last three games.

Newcomer Isaiah Hartenstein was a surprising contributor off the bench with 16 points and 12 rebounds in 27 minutes of play. Hartenstein went 7-8 and made 2-3 shots from the free throw line. Veteran Taurean Prince was the second-highest bench scorer with 14 points and grabbed 7 boards in 26 minutes.

The Cavs have two off days before returning to action in Oklahoma City Thursday night to take on the Thunder.

Cavaliers lose 20th straight game in Miami

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It was a 115-101 loss for the Cavaliers down in Miami as Cleveland lost their 20th consecutive game at American Airlines Arena.

Trips down to Miami have not been great for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The last time Cleveland came away with a win at American Airlines Arena was during the first LeBron James era and that did not change Saturday. The Heat handed the Cavs a 14-point loss in what was their 20th straight loss in Miami.

There was only one quarter that Cavaliers were not outscored in and surprisingly it was the 3rd. Cleveland held a 19-17 advantage during that quarter, but the differences in the other three quarters all favored Miami. The Heat outscored Cleveland 98-82 outside the 3rd, scoring 31 or more points in each quarter.

As per usual for the Cavaliers this season, Cleveland made less three-pointers than their opponent. Miami went 15-38 while Cleveland went 10-31, the 15 points just in three-pointers has an interesting look when compared to the final score differential.

SexLand excels in two different areas

For the second straight game Colin Sexton scored 20+ points and did not require 10+ misses to do so. Sexton went 11-17 from the field and made all 4 free throws en route to a 26-point performance. It was the scoring aspect that Sexton played well in while making a lesser impact in the assist department with only 3 on the game with 5 turnovers.

Darius Garland was the member of SexLand to excel in the assists. Garland finished with 8 assists, a team-high, with only 3 turnovers. It was a so-so scoring effort from Garland as he finished with 12 points on 4-8 from the floor (2-4 3PT) and 2-2 from the line.

Oh, Oh, Okoro

It was a surprising scoring performance from rookie Isaac Okoro. Okoro made 5 of 7 field goal attempts, including both shots from deep, along with 5-7 from the free throw line as he finished with 17 points in 36 minutes. Okoro’s scoring total was the third-highest for the Cavaliers and second-highest total in their starting lineup.

Prince off the bench

Cleveland did get a boost off the bench in the form of Taurean Prince. Prince played 32 minutes and finished 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists. It was a 7-13 shooting performance for Prince as he made 2 of 4 three-pointers on the nights. Additionally, Prince made all three free throw attempts.

The Cavaliers will look to snap their current five-game losing streak at home against the San Antonio Spurs Monday at 7:00 P.M.

Love, Dellavedova, and Prince out for Cavaliers

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The Cleveland Cavaliers are going to be without three players when they take on the Chicago Bulls.

Kevin Love, Matthew Dellavedova, and Taurean Prince will not be available for the Cleveland Cavaliers when they take on the Chicago Bulls Wednesday.

Dellavedova is yet to appear in a game this season for the Cavaliers. Love has only appeared in four games this season, the last being on March 14th. Cleveland has played the last five games without Love and went 2-3 over that stretch. Prince has missed 13 of the last 15 games for the Cavs due to injury or not dressing/playing.

Darius Garland probable, Taurean Prince out for Cavs

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The Cavs may have one key player available to them Sunday, but will be without another in Atlanta Sunday.

Darius Garland and Taurean Prince were not available for the Cavs last time out in their loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, but there could one change Sunday against the Hawks. Garland is listed as probable while Prince will miss another game.

Cleveland really missed both players in Friday, but the absence of Darius Garland hurt more. Garland is able to make the Cavs starters work together even though they are not the best fits with one another. As the Cavs assist leader, Garland is able to get everyone involved when on the floor. While Collin Setoxn has improved in this area, he is not at the level of Garland.

Taurean Prince was also missed, but not to the level of Darius Garland. Garland is a starter while Prince comes off the bench. While being a quality bench player is valuable, it is just not the same as a night-in night-out starter.

Taurean Prince out vs. Pelicans

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The Cleveland Cavaliers will be without the small forward as they return to action in New Orleans.

Taurean Prince has only appeared in two of the last eight games for the Cleveland Cavaliers and that will be come two of nine Friday. The Cleveland Cavaliers will be without the veteran small forward when they take on the Pelicans.

Taurean Prince has appeared in 17 games (6 starts) since being acquired from Brooklyn earlier this season. Prince has been a somewhat productive veteran for an injury-riddled Cavs team. The 26-year old forward is averaging 8.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.5 assists on 36.6% from the field and 40.6% from deep. Prince has increased his three-point attempts by more than half an attempt since coming over from the Nets (3.1-3.8).

The Cavs are also expected to see the return of Larry Nance Jr. Friday while Kevin Love and Darius Garland remain questionable.

Cavaliers could move Osman, Prince, McGee

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The Cleveland Cavaliers could make some moves to reshape their roster before the trade deadline.

There are certain players on the Cleveland Cavaliers roster that have been identified as their core players. Those players do not include Cedi Osman, Taurean Prince, and JaVale McGee. Shams Charania of The Athletic noted that the Cavs could move any or all of these three players. Adding to his report about Andre Drummond, Charania had this to say.

Cleveland has also been open to discussing forwards Cedi Osman and Taurean Prince and center JaVale McGee in the right deal, sources said.

Shams Charania on Osman, Prince, and McGee

The fact that these players have come up is hardly surprising. The initial acquisition of McGee had midseason flip written all over it. When the Cavs landed Prince there was a similar sentiment, although retaining him as part of the supporting cast was a possibility. As far as Osman goes, Cleveland has given him every chance to prove himself and he has failed to do so. While the role he has played for the most part has not been a great fit, it is clear to everyone that he shouldn’t play big minutes for any team. A role in spurts off the bench would be perfect, but that has not manifested consistently in Cleveland.