King James Gospel
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Cleveland Cavaliers: Lessons from the Cavs first win over the Raptors

By Jackson Flickinger

Cleveland Cavaliers Kevin Love (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
Cleveland Cavaliers Kevin Love (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /
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CLEVELAND, OH – MARCH 21: DeMar DeRozan #10 of the Toronto Raptors tries to take a last second shot over LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers during the second half at Quicken Loans Arena on March 21, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers defeated the Raptors 132-129. 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 – MARCH 21: DeMar DeRozan #10 of the Toronto Raptors tries to take a last second shot over LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers during the second half at Quicken Loans Arena on March 21, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers defeated the Raptors 132-129. 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 fought back from a 15 point halftime deficit against the first place Toronto Raptors for a thrilling 132-129 win.

This was a game the Cleveland Cavaliers had absolutely no business winning. They played the game down five rotation players, two of which will be starters. As a result, they ran out a starting lineup that had never played a minute on the floor altogether. That’s on top of trying to integrate Kevin Love in with the new trade deadline acquisitions.

All of those factors don’t matter when LeBron James is on your team. He led the way once to victory once again for Cleveland in a historic performance. James became the first forward in NBA history to record 17 assists without a turnover. He finished the night with 35 points on 57.9% from the floor, seven boards, and a steal.

Kevin Love was phenomenal in his second game back. He hit a game-clinching three with under 30 seconds to play giving the Cavs a four-point lead. That three was also Love’s 1,000th triple of his career. He finished with 23 points on four of six shooting from deep, 12 rebounds, and four helpers.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BgnDVSKneBQ/?hl=en&taken-by=kevinlove

This is just one game. It’s easy to make too much of the game given the circumstances. What happens in May and June that matters. Not what happens in March. But this one was an exciting game nonetheless.

Here’s what we learned from the win.