Cavs go 2-1 on the week, with the lone loss nearly turned into a very late win vs the Celtics. Alas, a loss is a loss however.
Game 1, vs The Toronto Raptors: It’s about time the Cavs took one from a very underachieving Raptors team. It almost seemed as if the Raptors were the Cavs kryptonite for a while. The Cavaliers seemed like they simply couldn’t deal with the physicality of the Raptors in the early season. This game however, changed perspectives. A healthy cavs team, fighting for better playoff seeding? No match for Toronto, and took home the win by a score of 118-93. Donovan Mitchell was, per usual, the high man for the Cavs with 35. Garland continued his dominance in terms of passing, dishing out out 11 assists and Jarrett Allen absolutely cooked Pascal Siakam for 23 points and 11 boards. A great game overall, with great defense and great ball movement. The cavs play like this every game and they are a serious problem. Siakam scored 25 for Toronto, but no other Raptors player scored above 25. Good game, Cavaliers.
Game 2, @ The Boston Celtics: This game turned into a nightmare early…almost. The Cavs fell down BIG, but if you’ve watched any Cavs game this season; it typically isn’t a reason to worry too much with this time. They almost always battle back. And battle back they did, against one of the best teams in the NBA. A team that they’ve beaten twice already. Was it enough? Unfortunately not. Was it an impressive show of heart? Absolutely. Shows of heart, shows of grit do not win playoff games however. The Cavs battled all the way back, down to the wire but lost by a score of 117-113 in Boston. Tatum and Mitchell had one of the most fun duels of recent memory. Mitchell dropped 44, Tatum 41. Garland scored 29 points and dished out 9 assists as usual. A great game by both teams but the x factor for Boston here was Al Horford, who didn’t miss a single shot and hit a plethora of 3s and scored 23 points. Good game Boston, good game Cleveland. This has been a fun in season match-up.
Game 3, vs The Detroit Pistons: Well… This game went how you’d expect. The Cavs went up big, never let off the gas, and won big. They asserted their dominance against a bottom tier team like they’re supposed to. Cavs win 114-90. Mitchell left a game early with a finger injury, yet that didn’t matter. The Cavs abundance of talent was just too much for such a young Detroit team. Darius Garland scored 21 with 7 assists before being pulled, while Mobley achieved another double-double. No surprise there. The high man for Detroit was Marvin Bagley III with 20. Detroit has talent, but they’re simply too young to be able to hang with a playoff team like the Cavaliers.
All stats provided courtesy of NBA.com
John Zimmerman