The rapper has been dedicated to supporting the Toronto Raptors in their National Basketball Association playoffs run, and after their back-to-back wins against the Cleveland Cavaliers, he felt confident enough to do a little trash talking – and Kyrie Irving was his first victim!
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NBA Eastern Conference Finals: Catch Wednesday’s Game 5 between the Toronto Raptors and Cleveland Cavaliers live on Sportsnet and SN Now.
Heading into Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals, with his Toronto Raptors trailing 2-1, DeMar DeRozan knew the Cleveland Cavaliers would likely stick LeBron James on him for the rest of the series.
That was the magic that the Cavs found early in the fourth quarter of their 105-99 loss in Game 4 on Monday night, with James playing centre (or point guard, or both) in an offensive set that the Raptors were helpless against.
Irving made two 3-pointers in the third minute to trim the lead to 10, and J.R Smith’s 3-pointer cut the margin to seven with just under nine minutes left in the quarter. The lesser players tried to stand up when it mattered, but it was to no avail.
The series, now a best of three, resumes in Cleveland on Wednesday.
Biyombo operates his best at home posting 12 points, 38 rebounds, and blocks in Games 3 and 4 of this series. Cleveland had been one of the hottest teams of the postseason from deep, but started just 3-21 from beyond the arc in Game 4 even though numerous looks were open.
After facing widespread criticism following an 8-for-28 start to the series, Lowry followed up a strong Game 3 with a masterful performance in Game 4.
It worked. Although, Frye was the only Cavaliers player with a positive +/-, but Biyombo still thrived. How?
James insisted prior to Game 4 he had devised his own game plan for himself, but his style of play didn’t look drastically different than it did in any other game of this series. Lowry restored the tie on a 3-point play, then the teams traded baskets to 96-all. In fact, the Raptors have lost their last four road games and were outscored by a combined 50 points in the first two games in Cleveland. “It’s a match”, said Lowry. James led a comeback on Monday night in which the Cavs took a fourth-quarter lead, but the team ran out of gas, having made their first 11 shots of the quarter as James played but all of two minutes in the game. Love looks more like his doppelganger from the State Farm commercials, then his play from the first 10 games of these playoffs.
“It wasn’t enough because we got off to a terrible first half once again in this building and you’re playing catch up the whole game”, James said.
But his shot did not make it over the border into Canada. The Cavs have to get makes, not just takes. James made both free throws, and the first half ended with Toronto leading 57-41.
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“It wasn’t enough because we got off to a awful first half once again in this building and you’re playing catch-up again”, James told reporters of his team’s 57-41 deficit after two quarters.
