King James Gospel
Fansided

Cleveland Cavaliers Beat “The Process” and the Philadelphia 76ers, LeBron James Does The Previously Unimaginable

By Quenton S. Albertie

Nov 5, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) and Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) fall to the floor after colliding during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Cleveland Cavaliers won 102-101. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 5, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) and Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) fall to the floor after colliding during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Cleveland Cavaliers won 102-101. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Cleveland Cavaliers just defeated the Philadelphia 76ers to give LeBron James the best start of his career.

While the Philadelphia 76ers presented problems for the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Cavs are 6-0 thanks to big scoring nights from LeBron James and Kevin Love on a night when Kyrie Irving struggled with his shot.

The contest started as expected. Love was able to get going early and James was having difficulty getting his shot off in the paint against the length of the 76ers, a problem Irving would soon experience.

In fact, it took James until halfway through the first quarter to get the two points he needed to pass Hakeem Olajuwon for 10th all-time on the NBA scoring list. He found two of his first three shot attempts blocked because of the length of his opponent.

That length would pose problems for the Cavs on both ends all game long. Embiid and Jahlil Okafor combined for 36 points. The Philadelphia 76ers had nine blocks as a team (three on James) and outscored the Cavs 40-32 in the paint.

More from Cavs News

In what proved to be a close contest for the majority of the game, the 76ers were able to get Embiid, Okafor and Ersan Ilyasova going with the help of veteran point guard Sergio Rodriguez.

Rodriguez gave Cavs fits as he operated as the 76ers primary facilitator and racked up 11 assists.

While Okafor dominated inside but is on a minutes restriction that lessened his potential impact, Ilyasova and Embiid made the Cavs pay from the outside. Embiid, a 7-foot-2 center who is also on a minutes restriction, went 4-4 from three-point range and displayed the type of shooting touch and athleticism that would allow him to star beside Okafor. His range will allow the 76ers to start first overall pick Ben Simmons at small forward when he returns.

Ilyasova, who was recently acquired in a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder for Jerami Grant, is a versatile combo forward. He showed that for the 76ers today. While showing off his versatile game, Ilyasova scored 21 points and was 4-6 from three-point range. For comparison, Love scored 20 points and was 2-5 from three-point range.

Where the Cavs literally ran away in the contest came in the fast break as James rushed down the court in transition and scored himself or found a teammate behind the line.

The 76ers, because of their length, started off the contest ranked 4th defensively in opponent three-point percentage. However, James had eight assists by halftime as he raced down the floor and consistently found shooters open on the left side.

With Irving struggling on a 3-17 shooting night including a 0-5 performance from three, the Cavs needed every open shot they could take. Luckily, the Cavs delivered the big time shots.

No shot was bigger than Channing Frye’s three-point attempt with 1:06 left in regulation. Once again, James drove and then kicked it out. This time to a shooter at the top of the key. Frye was ready.

What did Frye have to say about his go-ahead three-point? “They put me in the game for one reason”, he told Fox Sports Ohio.

Frye’s shot put the Cavs up 102-100 and after a couple of defensive stops from both teams, most notably a strip on Gerald Henderson on the final possession, the game was over.

At the end of the contest, the Cavs came away with another close victory and James became the only player in NBA history to be in both the top ten scorers of all-time and top twenty of assists.

If James continues at this pace he’ll be in the top 15 of assists by the end of the year. By the end of his career, he could be in the top 3 of both categories.

The Cleveland Cavaliers matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers proved to be an exciting one, if not just a little too close for comfort. Still, it’s nice to see the Cavs contend against a team that can wholly exploit its greatest weakness and win.

Related Story: What If The Cleveland Cavaliers Drafted Joel Embiid

What did you think of the Cleveland Cavaliers performance against the Philadelphia 76ers? Let us know in the comments section or Twitter @KJG_NBA.