Cavs Vs Sixers: 3 Things We Learned
By Luke Sicari
In a rare Sunday afternoon game, the Cleveland Cavaliers destroyed the Philadelphia 76ers. A look inside the Cavs fifth straight win.
After seven long months, the Cleveland Cavaliers finally got their Big Three back together on the court and to put it simply, it was fun.
In an absolutely dominating display at the Quicken Loans Arena, the Cavaliers defeated the woeful Philadelphia 76ers 108-86 in a Sunday Afternoon affair.
The Cavs put this one away during an excellent second quarter, as they outscored the Sixers 34-13 in the quarter, holding Philly to just 19% shooting from the field. Cleveland complemented their incredible defensive performance with a running attack, as they constantly got out in transition, scoring 12 points on the fast break in the quarter.
The minutes of LeBron James has been a topic of constant conversation this season but there were no such issues on Sunday. In just 25 minutes of action, James scored a game-high 23 points on 10-of-17 shooting from the field to go along with five rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Matthew Dellavedova provided the Cavs with a spark plug on offense off the bench, going off late in the third quarter to put the game well and truly away. Dellavedova scored 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including 4-of-6 from three-point range. As always, Dellavedova provided his boisterous defensive intensity, finishing with a pair of steals and blocks in the ballgame.
In his return from injury, Kyrie Irving looked like his old self again. The stat line won’t jump off the page- 12 points on 5-of-12 from the field in 17 minutes of action. The way in which Irving was moving on the court though was a sight for sore eyes, as it hasn’t seemed like he has lost any of his mobility or agility on the floor. Irving’s quick step and dancing feet are definitely still there and once he finds his shooting rhythm again, look out.
For the Sixers, Nerlens Noel was their leading scorer with 15 points to go along with 12 rebounds in 31 minutes of action. Rookie Jahlil Okafor struggled, scoring only nine points on 3-of-11 shooting.
Here are three things we learned from the Cavs win:
Getting Defensive
The Cavs won this one on the back of a dominating defensive performance, as the 76ers could get absolutely nothing going throughout the entire game.
Cleveland held Philadelphia to just 34.9% from the field and 20.0% from three-point range. At the end of the third quarter, Philly were shooting an ugly 29.9% from the field, as their bench bumped up the final percentage during the fourth quarter.
Along with the field goal percentage the Cavaliers also forced 19 76ers turnovers, including nine in the aforementioned second quarter. Cleveland were active on the defensive end, as they were getting in the passing lanes, tipping the ball out of Philly’s hands and forcing the Sixers into throwing the ball all over the court.
On the night, the Cavaliers had 11 steals on the night, almost doubling their season average of 6.4 per game, which is 28th in the league. The Cavs also swatted six Philadelphia shots on the night, which again, almost doubles their season average of 3.8 blocks per game.
The Cavaliers are third in the league in opponent’s points per game, allowing just 95.6 points per game and that number will only improve after Sunday’s game. Philadelphia could only manage 86 points against the Cavs, including just 60 points after three quarters, as the defense played by Cleveland’s main rotation players was simply phenomenal.
During the second half of last season and in their playoff run, the Cavs were a shutdown defensive unit and that has carried into this season. The Cavaliers have embraced the defensive attitude that James is always preaching and it is showing in the results, as the 18-7 record is first in the Eastern Conference.
Everyone knows the talent this team possess on the offensive end but when the Cavs embrace defense and lock-down on that end, they become almost unstoppable.
Running Cavaliers
A result of the defensive effort from the Cavs is that it gave them a chance to get out and run on the break and it worked like a charm.
Cleveland averages 12.9 fast break points per night, a pedestrian number. With the number of athletes the Cavs have on their roster, one would think they have the ability to average more points on the break and run in transition a little more, just to open up the offense some more and make the team a more dangerous attacking unit.
Well against Philly, Cleveland showed they can get out and run when they want to.
The Cavs finished with 31 fast break points on the night, as they ran after every Sixers missed shot or turnover. With the likes of James and Irving steaming down the lane and then having shooters like Kevin Love and J.R. Smith running to the three-point line, the Cavs become a deadly team on the break.
Oh, and running also provides plays like this:
And this:
Cleveland is already an amazing offensive team but when they decide that they want to push the pace and run on the opposition, look out because there is simply no way to stop them.
He Is Back!
After suffering a major knee injury in Game One of the NBA Finals, Irving made his long awaited return against the Sixers.
He announced it with a fairly simple tweet just a day before the game:
It took Irving a little while to get going, as you would expect.
He missed his first five shots, as his timing was a little off and he was a bit hesitant on offense, which is unlike Irving. Although, with that being said, Irving was still a positive on the court, as he was moving the ball and his footwork on defense was pretty solid.
Irving’s mobility and fast movements were all still there. He was moving well all over the court and his leg seemed not to bother him at all, in terms of movement and making cuts.
At the beginning of the third quarter though, Cavs fans got a glimpse of the Irving they know and love. Irving scored a quick five points, finishing an athletic lay-up at the rim and then draining a three-pointer after some fancy dribbling.
"KYRIE IRVING"
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Cleveland have help up tremendously without Irving for the first 24 games of the season but now that he is back, the Cavaliers can finally get a real taste of what this team looks like and how special they can truly be.