Lamar Stevens caught on with the Cavs as an undrafted free agent and signed an incredibly team-friendly deal. That has allowed him to hang around the roster and step by step prove his worth as a fearsome competitor and a player whose defensive spark often brings out the best in his teammates.
Still, it was quite a surprise when head coach J.B. Bickerstaff elevated him to the starting lineup on Nov 18 in place of Caris LeVert, but it’s hard to argue with the results. The Athletic’s Kelsey Russo breaks down the move and why Stevens has become such a beloved teammate and essential player for a good Cavs team.
More Cavs news
Tomorrow, Dec 15, over 70 players who signed new free agent deals this summer will become eligible to be traded. That includes three players on the Cavs roster: Ricky Rubio, Raul Neto and Robin Lopez. How likely are any of them to hear their name in trade rumors? Josh Cornelissen broke it down here at King James Gospel.
In the painful loss on Monday night to the San Antonio Spurs, Darius Garland was spotted shaking and flexing his hand, and it was iced after the game. Thankfully, Garland is not on the injury report for tonight’s game in Dallas and he is expected to be a go, as is the entire starting lineup.
NBA news
Just a few nights after rocking the East-leading Boston Celtics at home, the Golden State Warriors got rocked in Milwaukee by the Bucks. They couldn’t stop fouling, couldn’t stop complaining to the refs and had no answers at the rim, ultimately losing by 17 points.
The TNT night cap was much better. The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers renewed their epic rivalry with an overtime thriller, with Jayson Tatum scoring 44 points and hitting a number of key shots in the overtime period to put the Celtics on top. If the Lakers continue to get this level of production from LeBron James and Anthony Davis they might have a chance to claw their way up the standings.
Coming up: Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks have looked unstoppable at times, and at others completely folded against inferior teams. Can the Cavs shake off their road woes and take down the Mavs in Dallas?