Recap: Cavs 111, Knicks 104 (Or, Leads Are For Blowing)

We all know what a lead is. It’s the result of playing better than another team for a prolonged period of time and showing some form of dominance. The Cavs do that often. Tonight was no different. Although they started the night out slowly giving up points in transition, missing open 3s, and allowing the Knicks to block four shots, they ended up ahead by 27 with 2:35 left to go in the third.

The remainder of the game turned out to be a lesson in what leads are for, as the Knicks somehow managed to get within five points with just one minute to go. If you know the final result of the game, or simply read the lead, you know what leads are for with this Wine & Gold team: They’re for blowing. They are also for fans to get their hopes up that their aging super star, the King, may play less than 37.5 minutes. This lead did not deliver on that hope.

LeBron James played 39 minutes on his way to 32 points on just 20 shots. He went 4-8 from 3-land, had five rebounds, and ten assists. Much of the reason he had to play so many minutes was New York’s Brandon Jennings. Jennings scored 23 points and had ten assists. However, 17 of his points came in the last two minutes of the third and first two minutes of the fourth as he went 6-6 from the floor (5-5 from 3).

Kevin Love contributed 23 points and 16 boards, which easily countered Carmelo Anthony‘s 17 points and six boards. The Cavs are not in a rush to trade Love for Melo if they are thinking rationally.

First Quarter

The Cavs started DeAndre Liggins, Iman Shumpert, Tristan Thompson, James, and Love. Liggins started the night out fouling Kristaps Porzingis to give the Knicks a point. The Cavs responded with a Love corner 3-pointer courtesy of a LeBron laser pass (one of his six assists in the quarter). The Knicks then grinded for a bit to get some momentum. Joakim Noah had two tip-ins in a row, and they ran the ball in transition after every time they got a block. They also scored some transition points after the King argued a no call layup, and when no one got back after Love missed a 3-pointer and Jennings rocketed the ball down court to Kyle O’Quinn for a dunk.

Fortunately for Cleveland, LeBron was on. He hit two 3s. Love was also helpful putting up 10 points. The Knicks held a lead much of the quarter, but they were outscored 12-5 the final four minutes. They couldn’t deter any penetration as Kristaps was on the bench with his second foul. Kay Felder was really effective during this run. He seemed to get into the paint at will and dished out two dimes for 3s. The Cavs finished the quarter up 34-25 and nine of their 13 buckets were assisted on.

Second Quarter

Carmelo started the quarter out burning Richard Jefferson in the post with a spin move that resulted in a 3-point play. Felder wasn’t scared though and came off a rub off screen with the King to drain a mid-range jumper. The next offensive possession, the King drove in semi-transition, did a spin, and found Kyle Korver in the corner. Korver then tossed the ball to Channing Frye who canned a 3-ball.

Crazy vision from LeBron pic.twitter.com/cAZaDAc90Z

— The Crossover (@TheCrossover) February 5, 2017

Felder added to the momentum a few plays later when he stole an inbounds pass and got a layup.

The King played calculated. He had 11 points on 3-3 shooting  and hit his only 3-pointer, but more importantly, when Kristaps checked back into the game, he made sure to target him. The very first possession the Knicks switched the Zinger onto James, the King drove it hard to draw a foul. That 3rd foul sent Porzingis to the bench with 7:50 left in the quarter. For some reason the Knicks then kept letting Courtney Lee cover him. The King rose up over him for a three, pulled for a mid-range jumper when he gave him six feet of space, and spun for a dunk when he got deep post position on him.

Love had the play of the game towards the end of the second. With 2:50 to go, Willy Hernangomez ended up on Love. Love drove by him and missed a layup, which TT slammed home. A few possessions later Love drove by him again and made art, a white guy on white guy postering. He just put it on the floor, shoved free with his off-hand, and crammed it.

Stand up for the throwdown! pic.twitter.com/G0Ui2cCpQQ

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) February 5, 2017

The Cavs ended the quarter with a 19 point lead, as the Knicks couldn’t put anything together. Melo went 1-5 for just six points.

Third Quarter

LeBron started out the quarter taking two awful jumpers after the Knicks kept switching larger guys onto him after pick and rolls. The team also forgot to play defense and kept giving up open jumpers because of poor rotations. After Courtney Lee knocked down an open 3-pointer, Tyronn Lue finally called a time out with 10:17 to go.

Things didn’t improve instantly on the offensive end, but defensively the Cavs clicked allowing just seven points in the next nine minutes. Offensively, things built. Love and Liggins drew fouls. Then Love back cut the Zinger, missed, and TT got the put back slam. LBJ then pushed it in transition after a miss for a bucket. The pinnacle of the quarter came at the 5:11 mark. The Cavs had a possession where all five guys touched the ball before Shump finished with a 3-pointer from the corner. They then caused a 24-second violation the next play while ahead,81-57. 

The quarter didn’t end on a bright note; the Knicks went on an 11-0 run . The Jefferson, Felder, Frye, Love, Korver, Thompson lineup couldn’t hang. Felder was incapable of covering Jennings. With a minute left, Jennings made a 3-pointer and then stole the ball from Felder for a layup. Jennings finished the quarter breaking open for a quick 3 to bring the Knicks a tiny bit closer, 84-68.

Fourth Quarter

The Knicks outscored the Cavs 36-27 in the final frame. Jennings continued his onslaught hitting three 3-pointers and handing out an assist during a 13-7 run all while being covered by Felder. His final deep shot prompted Lue to call a timeout with 9:53 left and the Knicks down by just 11 to get the little liability off the floor.

Since the Cavs were unable to play defense, LeBron had to take over. He was 4-7 for nine points and gave out three assists, but every single play ran through him.

With the Cavs up nine and just 3:39 to go, the King had several chances to put the game completely out of reach. He settled for mid-range jumpers though, which didn’t fall. The Knicks then lucked into a 24 second violation (which was blatantly a wrong call), an 8 second violation, and a Carmelo steal and dunk, which brought the Knicks within five with a minute left.

Fortunately, the King was able to make a decisive move after Melo’s dunk. He came chugging up the floor and used a TT screen. Melo just switched and Hernangomez was left to face LeBron with eight feet of built up speed. The Zinger had to help and LeBron zoomed a pass to an open Love in the corner. Love drained the 3-pointer to put the game out of reach.

This LeBron pass to a wide-open K. Love to ice the game was just disgusting. pic.twitter.com/rr6x53WbGC

— Cavaliers Nation (@WeAreCavsNation) February 5, 2017

Now up eight, LeBron dunked it a play later just dribbling down the center of the floor to show that despite blowing a 27 point lead he wasn’t fazed at all during this win.

Gripes

1.Again, the Cavs struggled to stop a team in transition. In the first quarter, the Knicks scored on at least four possessions that came in semi-transition situations. It kept the Cavs from blowing the game open, considering they held the Knicks to 44% shooting while hitting six threes of their own. Cleveland needs to learn how to stop the ball anytime they head to the defensive end.

2.The defense towards the end of the third and during the fourth was awful. Cleveland was switching haphazardly, which led to a lot of drive and drop the ball off situations. The Knicks were 7-12 at the rim in the 4th.

3.And Felder, who actually looked decent in the first quarter getting  two assists and driving into the paint, was completely horrible. He gave up 17 points to Jennings in less than five minutes and was a Cavs worst -7.

4. Richard Jefferson was virtually useless this game. He got burned by Melo multiple times and had to foul him to stop him, and he even got a travel called on himself. He just looked slow all night.

5. TT was -7 in the plus-minus department tonight despite going 6-8 from the floor, and seemed like he struggled to cover Hernangomez, who put up 16 points on 7-10 shooting. Hernangomez is a crafty player, and he knows how to bang down low. He took it at TT and Love several times getting reasonable looks using his footwork. While I’m not sure he will ever be a ball handler like some people say, he could pair well with Porzingis as the Zinger learns to shoot more consistently from outside the paint.

6.The King won the Cavs this game and was wonderful; however, I have to bring up the fact that his method of attacking mismatches makes no sense. He keeps taking jumpers whenever a bigger guy switches onto him. He needs to just drive the ball. He wasted so many chances to tonight. The Knicks were switching nearly every pick and roll.

Hypes

1.Even though the Cavs had lapses on defense, they still held the Knicks to 44.8% shooting and limited them to 12 made 3s, five of which were from a red hot Brandon Jennings.

2.The Cavs went 16-40 from deep and were generating beautiful looks all night. This was because LeBron made it a priority to attack and dish the ball whenever possible. That’s how he got his ten assists. Channing Frye was the biggest beneficiary of this as he went 4-8 from deep, but all eight of shots were totally open. He had 14 points. 20 of Cleveland’s 41 makes were assisted on.

3. Kyle Korver looked really spry tonight. He dove on the floor several times and was working to get open. He only went 2-5 from deep, but he’s finding open shots now. And, he’s contributing on the defensive end by not losing his man.

4.Iman Shumpert didn’t stand out in the recap, but he was +13 and was competent when he was on the floor. He also grabbed nine boards.

5.Kevin Love was really aggressive getting his points tonight. He went at Melo and Hernangomez on his way to 23 points and was 4-7 from deep. He looked better than Melo, who got booed by his hometown fans. The most impressive part of his game was the fact that he got 16 boards.

6.This wasn’t the prettiest win, but the Cavs needed to experience this. At some point, LeBron and friends are going to figure out how to protect a lead. They are going to desire some nights where they get the fourth quarter off, so they aren’t as banged up. The Cavs are in Washington tomorrow night.