The Cleveland Cavaliers will be looking to reassure themselves that they are still in strong form when they host the red hot Los Angeles Clippers at the Quicken Loans Arena, minus Blake Griffin. Love and LeBron James led the Cavaliers with 17 points each in the Cavs 91-78 victory over the Nets. They know this loss was a big one and they’re going to have to work harder than ever to improve as a team.
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“It’s about the drive and how insane you are about wanting to be great, ” James said. But he would fit with the Cavs or any other team the way he played Wednesday, controlling the defensive backboards – all of his rebounds were on that end – while shooting 5 for 10 from the field. He chalked it up to a bad night and said the Cavs simply needed to get better.
Kevin Love was the key man, and indeed, the man of the match from that game with 17 points and a ridiculous 18 rebounds giving him a huge double-double.
Draymond Green added 16 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds for the Warriors, who rested their starters in the fourth.
More important for the Cavs, it was a welcome performance after they were crushed 132-98 on Monday in the NBA Finals rematch.
After being beaten by the Golden State Warriors by 34, it was key to bounce back against the Nets which they did with a 13 point win, still it wasn’t as convincing as they would have liked. I told my guys, ‘That starts with me.’ If they’re not mentally ready to play, I take responsibility for that.
“I don’t know, I’ve never been to an office”, he said. “We have to concentrate on how to play against them and try to play to the best of our ability”. Cleveland gradually increased the lead, taking a 51-38 edge at halftime and a 73-55 cushion through three quarters.
It really did not seem to matter that the Cavaliers were coming off an embarrassing defeat against those Warriors. That placed the Nets seventh in the league. Instead, Joe finished with three points on 1-of-7 shooting. Smith who is known for letting his emotions get the best of him launched his body at Harrison Barnes who was attempting to set a screen.
Forward LeBron James did not reach 20 points for the third straight game but didn’t need to. “That was someone else’s decision and nonetheless, we did talk about it, yes”.
“The only thing thought I was amusing was just how my words were taken out of context”, Love said. And I think we did that tonight.
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Chicago closed within 4-1/2 games of Cleveland for the Central Division lead by winning at Detroit, while Dirk Nowitzki led Dallas to an overtime victory against Boston.
