But those were the same things that Irving and Lue both said the point guard needed to do following Game 1 and he just didn’t do them.
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It’s not a stretch to say that Game 3 could be a referendum on Irving and this incarnation of the Cavaliers. Are we all good now?
Cleveland played without Kevin Love, who was held out under the concussion protocol.
LeBron James had 32 for the Cavaliers. “Swish?” – and the other two looked at him like, “Welp, that’s all you now”.
Too often Irving is taking his time, searching for an opening and then trying to make a shot on his own without even attempting a pass. Those occurred when Irving made a decision to attack the rim. He’s also tasked with guarding two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Stephen Curry.
At first glance, some may agree when looking back to the 2015 NBA Finals. Instead of Thompson guarding Andrew Bogut, he would guard Draymond Green and could give him trouble. It did happen, though. It might have been a shot of confidence, but the Cavs need to make sure it was not a shot of overconfidence. In the games they won in 2015 against the Warriors he scored 17 and 6 points respectively. It will be important for the Cavs to anticipate the adjustments the Warriors might make. The question everyone’s asking is: should he see playing time following the Cavs’ utter failures endured early in the series?
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Facing that blur of bodies, Irving had only one assist in Game 2 and four in Game 1.
