WATCH: Larry Nance Jr. has Dunk of the Night against Denver Nuggets
Cleveland Cavaliers center Larry Nance Jr. got UP with this dunk over Denver Nuggets center Mason Plumlee.
With nearly eight minutes left in the second quarter, Cleveland Cavaliers center Larry Nance Jr. had a poster dunk on Denver Nuggets center Mason Plumlee that will definitely be one of his career highlights. The Cleveland Cavaliers lost to the Denver Nuggets 126-117.
Just look at the reaction from the Cavaliers on the bench.
To provide some context to the dunk and it’s significance, the Cavaliers had been down to the Nuggets all game (they still were after this dunk) and needed both energy and a momentum swing.
Before this dunk, Plumlee had converted a couple of alley-oops against Nance Jr. to start the quarter and Nance Jr. had already converted two field goals in the quarter himself.
All things considered, this was a play that seemed like it could turn things around for the Cleveland Cavaliers, if only briefly.
This is a play that brought the Cavaliers within two points of tying the game (45-43). However, right after this play, the Nuggets went on a 12-4 run.
The Cleveland Cavaliers would lose a hard-fought game to the Denver Nuggets, who were red-hot behind the arc and knocked down 19 out of 35 three-point attempts (54.3 percent). The Cleveland Cavaliers only knocked down 9 three-point shots for comparison and with the Nuggets assisting 35 out of their 47 field goals it’s easy to see how the Nuggets’ ball-movement had the Cavaliers out-of-whack.
The Cavaliers allowed Gary Harris and Will Barton to take 10 three-point shots each and the duo converted a total of 10 (out of the Nuggets’ 19) three-point attempts. A lot of those three-point attempts came from the left corner.
Nance Jr., who would finish the game with 14 points and 8 rebounds, completely outplayed center Tristan Thompson, who was the weak link of the team throughout the first half. Nance Jr. has outplayed Thompson since his arrival and on any other team he’d probably be the starter.
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However, Cavs head coach Tyronn Lue is known to be stubborn and has problems with making lineup decisions that allow the team to perform at an optimal level.
Nance Jr. left the game with 4:15 left in the fourth quarter after bumping knees with a Nuggets player. He was ready to return but Lue opted to stick with Thompson. The Cavaliers were down 115-110 before Thompson entered the game.
Yet, despite playing a better second half in terms of his offensive production, Thompson was still the obvious defensive liability on the floor for Cleveland.
The Cavs were outscored 12-7 in the final four minutes, with Thompson doing nothing to help the Cavaliers win; he didn’t get a single rebound, assist or point in the final four minutes but he did surrender two rebounds and his lack of agility has made his pick-and-roll and perimeter defense so porous that the defensive breakdowns leading to corner threes often started with his defense up top.
Thompson looked hobbled early in the game and was largely ineffective throughout the contest, so why would Lue opt to go with Thompson over Nance Jr. you may ask? For a team that needs everyone to be at their best, including the coaching staff, Lue continues to drop the ball. There is a very real reason that Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder and Kyrie Irving have lauded the coaching ability of Brad Stevens but not Lue.
I’ll leave it at that.
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