The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Atlanta Hawks by 25 points in Game 2 of their NBA Playoffs series on Wednesday night.
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J.R Smith set the tone with 6 early three-pointers as the Cavs took a convincing 38 point lead in the first 24 minutes, which sealed the fate of the game 2. Smith hit seven 3-pointers in the…
In a night for the ages, Cleveland made 22 3-pointers in the first 2½ quarters and 25 in all while completely dismantling the Atlanta Hawks 123-98 Wednesday night in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinals.
“That’s something that the players felt like it was within their grasp, they wanted to go for it”, Lue said. Later, it became symbolic.
Two weeks ago, if someone had told you that one of the best teams in the NBA would break an all-time 3-point shooting record, captained by an All-Star who just happens to be a former NBA Champion, NBA MVP and NBA Finals MVP – you’d think they were talking about Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors.
Hawks guard Kent Bazemore added: “That was overwhelming”.
When the steady rainbow of threes stopped falling through the net (25-for-45, 55.6%), the Cavs were headed for their easiest victory of the postseason. TNT’s Charles Barkley even suggested the Hawks’ players must physically harm a Cavs player in retaliation.
“J.R.is the only guy on the team that has the ultimate green light”, James said.
“It’s just special”, Irving said. “I think we all know we have more to give coming back for Game 3 in Atlanta”.
There was little that Atlanta defenders could do against the Cavs, who stood behind the line, took aim and dropped shot after shot after shot. And while the sheer number of 3s the Cavs is historic, the onslaught might not be that surprising given the way the league has changed as well as Cleveland’s numerous offensive weapons. The Cavs really couldn’t be more pleased with that outcome because it really sent a strong message to the Hawks that they just weren’t good enough to hang with them.
James, though, doesn’t consider them outside oriented.
“We’re not a 3-point shooting team”.
However, it’s hard not to tag the Cavs as rocket launchers these days.
I was having a meeting with some buddies last night and I looked up at the Cavaliers and Hawks game. The Cavs held the third best home record in the National Basketball Association this season and have a lot more playoff experience than the Hawks.
When you’ve got guys that’s making shots, it’s a conscious effort for me to not fall into it. When my shooters got it going, I have to be the one to say, ‘Ok, well, you need to get to the rim.
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For a player like Smith, who’s never seen a shot he didn’t like, the game wasn’t sizing up to be any different than any other.
