Cleveland Cavaliers Flashback Friday: Delly shuts the lights out on the Bulls
By Dan Gilinsky
With the Cleveland Cavaliers having the Chicago Bulls in town tomorrow night, I decided to remind them of when Matthew Dellavedova ended their season in the 2015 playoffs.
The Cleveland Cavaliers and Bulls go way back, with both franchises giving each other their share of heartbreak through the years.
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There was “The Shot” with Michael Jordan over Craig Ehlo, which was one of the first iconic playoff moments of MJ’s storied career. That is in the distant past, however, as the Land has gotten Chicago back since the arrival of LeBron James. LBJ is perfect against the rival Bulls in his playoff career, with a 4-0 record. The last time around, he had some help from an unlikely source in Dellavedova to close out the Bulls in the 2015 Eastern Conference Semifinals.
With the series going back-and-forth, the Cavs went into Chicago for a heated Game 6 matchup, not wanting to have to deal with a vaunted Game 7. There was some uncertainty for the Cavs, as Kyrie Irving was ailing, only playing for 12 minutes of this one. With that being the case, it was time for Delly to take the “Bulls” by the horns.
He did just that, containing Derrick Rose for the majority of the contest, and knocking in big-time shots in the second half. Rose was held to 14 points on just 7-of-16 from the field, and had a brutal plus/minus of -20 in the closeout Game 6.
The ultimate glue guy for the Cavs, Delly, was feelin’ it. He ripped the heart out of the Bulls with 19 points, including three huge “Delly treys.” His plus/minus? A whopping +21 in what was essentially the difference in a 94-73 wine-and-gold triumph.
Unfortunately, the Cavs no longer have Delly on their bench, with him moving on to the Milwaukee Bucks this offseason. Nonetheless, we’ll always love you and your Hawaiian shirts, Delly. We’ll see ya February 27th at the Q, old sport. Thanks for everything.