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Cleveland Cavaliers: What we learned from a 14-point loss to the Clips

By Jackson Flickinger

LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 09: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers reacts to a Cavaliers foul during the first half against the LA Clippers at Staples Center on March 9, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 09: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers reacts to a Cavaliers foul during the first half against the LA Clippers at Staples Center on March 9, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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CLEVELAND, OH – FEBRUARY 7: Jeff Green #32 of the Cleveland Cavaliers talks with another player during the first half against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Quicken Loans Arena on February 7, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH – FEBRUARY 7: Jeff Green #32 of the Cleveland Cavaliers talks with another player during the first half against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Quicken Loans Arena on February 7, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

The Cleveland Cavaliers couldn’t get their shots to fall as they were defeated by the Los Angeles Clippers 116-102.

The Cleveland Cavaliers came out of the gates poorly and paid the price. They were outscored 35-17 in the first quarter and had a difficult time recovering. However, Cleveland did have some chances and showed resiliency by fighting back, but they didn’t have enough in the tank to get the job done.

LeBron James continues to show why he’s a legitimate MVP candidate with his performance in the loss. He finished with 25 points, 10 boards, six assists, three blocks, and two steals.

Jordan Clarkson also had a solid game. He gave the Cavaliers a jolt of energy with his 21 bench points on six of 12 shooting.

Cleveland didn’t have an answer for the Clippers inside as they finished with 58 points in the paint. DeAndre Jordan had a lot to do with that as he ended the night with 23 points and 20 boards.

The Cavs were forced to play this game shorthanded as both Cedi Osman and Rodney Hood left the game with injuries.

Here’s what we learned from the loss.

Lesson No. 1: The Cavs are hurting for size.

The Clippers got anything and everything they wanted inside the paint. They finished with 58 points and grabbed 12 more rebounds in the win. They also were able to pull in five more offensive rebounds than the Cavs.

Larry Nance Jr. looked over-matched for most of the night. The box score doesn’t tell the whole story as he finished with 16 points on 70% shooting with 12 boards. However, Jordan and company were able to have their way with him in the paint.

The Cavs are asking a lot of Nance right now. Besides Ante Zizic who is still developing as a player, Nance is the only true healthy big. Nance has done a great job defending against bigs like Andre Drummond last week, but asking him to carry the biggest workload of his career without any help behind him is way too much to ask from him.

Fortunately not many teams have the size the Clippers have. But it’s easy to see how this will continue to a be a problem area for the Cavs until Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love return from injury.