Cavs’ last game against Nets is solid way to go into All-Star break

The Cleveland Cavaliers lost to the Brooklyn Nets last night in a game that went to three overtimes, and it was a solid way to go into the All-Star Weekend extended break.

The Cleveland Cavaliers’ intensity and effort has not really waived this season, despite them being one of the worst teams in the NBA in 2018-19. With all that’s transpired this year, that’s not nothing, and last night’s close loss against the Brooklyn Nets was an example of Cleveland not just packing it in, and it should provide the team with some momentum going into the All-Star break.

Cleveland would lose to Brooklyn in triple overtime, which is encouraging for the Cavs. Brooklyn is much-improved this year under a really good offensive mind in head coach Kenny Atkinson, and Cleveland should feel better about themselves going into the last part of the season.

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The Cavaliers did lead this game for a good portion, and controlled it in regulation, really, except for down the stretch closing out the first half and in the latter stages of the fourth quarter.

All in all, it was a really nice outcome for the Wine and Gold, as they had 35 assists, made 18 three-pointers and shot 42.9 percent from three, per ESPN.

The player that’s been at times the lone bright spot for the Cavs, Jordan Clarkson, had a career-high, as he finished with 42 points on 16-of-34 shooting, including seven-of-17 from deep.

In regulation and in the overtime periods, Clarkson was getting buckets, and his confidence right now has to be through the roof.

Had it not been for D’Angelo Russell dropping 24 points in the three overtimes, including 14 in the third OT (per ESPN), and DeMarre Carroll sinking a clutch three-point shot at the end of the second overtime, the Cavs probably would’ve come out on top.

There was a lot to build on, besides the production from Clarkson, though, as Cavs.com’s Joe Gabriele hit on.

Collin Sexton had 24 points, six rebounds and five assists, and in most instances, seemed to be making the right basketball plays, which is the most important thing for the rookie point guard in his development, anyhow, and he’s been on a tear as of late.

This game should create more forward momentum for him going into the last portion of 2018-19, and there’s plenty for Sexton to take from it as far as his good decision-making, for the most part.

Matthew Dellavedova‘s 13 assists and Larry Nance Jr.‘s 14 rebounds were a huge lift as well. Like Sexton, he’s been filling it up lately with a big workload, too, with Tristan Thompson still out with reported foot soreness, in particular.

In his last nine games, Nance has posted 10.0 points, while hitting 47.1 percent of his threes, along with 11.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game, per NBA.com.

His decision-making has been good most of the time in the middle against zone defenses (which the Cavs will continue to face), and his screen-setting continues to get better with more time on the floor, as was the case against the Nets.

Cedi Osman looked sharp against Brooklyn as well coming off missing four games with a reported ankle sprain, as he had 13 points on five-of-10 shooting, to go with five boards and three assists. It was a nice sendoff for him going into (if healthy) the upcoming Rising Stars Game this weekend, which even if he doesn’t end up playing in, is still nice recognition for the young Cavalier.

Lastly, Marquese Chriss‘ play deserves some praise since he’s come to Cleveland after the previously reported Alec Burks/Sacramento Kings/Houston Rockets trade last week.

Chriss continues to flash with more minutes-share than he received in Houston this year, and against the Nets yesterday, he had 23 points on nine-of-16 shooting, to go with seven rebounds and two steals, per ESPN.

Even though Chriss, as we’ve emphasized at KJG recently, is on an expiring contract, there’s no reason he shouldn’t be considered to be a part of Cleveland’s future if he keeps playing close to this well.

Will he get this sort of production every night, with Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love back healthier?

Definitely not, but the energy Chriss has provided and solid play on both ends of the floor, to go with this kind of athleticism should not go unnoticed in the last part of the season.

One shouldn’t be taking this past game as the Cavs turning a huge corner, but it does provide reason to be optimistic that in the coming months as Cleveland gets healthier, and in the summer, where they should be able to draft a great talent near the top of the lottery, that this team could be a lot better in 2019-20.

Going through games like last night against the Nets is crucial for a team that is learning how to win, and important for youngsters such as Sexton to be more comfortable in clutch situations in the near future, when individual games will likely matter more.

For a forgotten man like Chriss to come up in a huge way in crunch time was cool to see as well, and I hope he keeps getting more opportunities to show what he can do in a bigger role in a rebuilding scenario.