3 Cavs that must have big Game 3s to wrest series control from Knicks

After an underwhelming performance in Game 1, the Cleveland Cavaliers played far better in Game 2 in their first round series against the New York Knicks.

Cleveland’s defense was on-point in the contest, thanks to them playing with attention to detail, being disruptive, and regularly making multiple effort plays. New York had a 16-to-17 assist-to-turnover ratio in Game 2. Plus, as opposed to Game 1, when Cleveland conceded 23 second chance points, the Cavaliers closed out possessions on the defensive board.

Offensively, Cleveland got off to a much better start, leading to a 59-39 halftime lead, and throughout the game, Donovan Mitchell’s steady hand as often a lead playmaker led to tons of quality looks. Mitchell had a career-best 13 assists on Tuesday night, and from the jump, it was apparent he was letting the game come to him, and he made some big shots and hustle plays defensively to give the Cavs a lift when they were needed.

Looking at what’s to come now for Cleveland, the series is shifting to New York for Games 3 and 4 on Friday night and Sunday afternoon. These games could figure to be tough ones in a hostile environment at Madison Square Garden, and with the Mitchell to Knicks rumors from last offseason, that’s just one of many storylines for these next two games.

For the Wine and Gold, though, there’s a few Cavs that need to rise to the occasion in Game 3, to give the Wine and Gold the leg up in this series, and take back home court.

Three Cavs come to mind that must have big games for Cleveland to wrest series control from the Knicks, which we’ll examine here.

We’ll begin with one of the Twin Towers.