Very rarely does the on-court action during an NBA playoff game feel secondary to other attractions in the building.
Monday night inside Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse the Cleveland Cavaliers started the game on an 8-2 run, thanks in part due to a couple of 3-pointers by Max Strus. There was 9:58 seconds left in the opening quarter of what otherwise was a rather routine start to a basketball game.
Then, a 6-foot-9 hulking figure emerged from the southwest tunnel of the arena. That hulking figure was, of course, LeBron James. The 19-time All-NBA player that has spent 11 of his 21 years with the Cavaliers.
Fans rose to their feet and erupted as James was noticed walking in, flanked by his wife Savannah and agent Rich Paul, who himself is one of the NBA’s most powerful men. During the next timeout, James was formally introduced on the scoreboard to all fans in attendance.
James, who can opt out of his contract and become a free agent this summer, showing up at a Cavaliers game will never be anything less than a big deal. Whether it’s just to watch a playoff basketball game, put pressure on his current team, the Los Angeles Lakers, to give him a max contract this offseason or publicly flirt with the possibility of a third stint on the Cavaliers, James being inside Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Monday night might not be everything, but it’s not nothing, either.
James’ night included a brief exchange with former teammate and current Cavaliers global ambassador Anderson Varejao in the underbelly of the arena. Throughout the night, fans could be heard pleading with James to make another return to the Cavaliers.
James returning to the Cavaliers for a third stint feels like a long shot. There are some salary cap gymnastics that would need to be done in order for it to happen, though it’s not impossible. With James and this franchise, it would be unwise to ever slam the door on any possibilities.
On the Floor
As for the actual basketball game, the Cavaliers were without All-NBA guard Donovan Mitchell, who missed his first game of the playoffs due to an injured left calf. That was always going to be a difficult thing to overcome, considering just how vital Mitchell has been on a nightly basis for the Cavs. He’s been the best player on the floor in the series when healthy, and winning against the Celtics was going to be a challenge no matter what.
While there aren’t participation trophies in the playoffs, the effort the Cavs put forth on Monday night was admirable. After struggling for much of the postseason, guard Darius Garland had his best game to date, scoring 30 points and dishing out seven assists. It was a welcome sight considering this year has been somewhat of a nightmare for Garland due to injuries that included a fractured jaw.
When a team is without its best player, winning requires that role players step up and create something that is greater than the sum of the parts. The Cavs weren’t perfect on Monday night and anything less than perfection wasn’t going to get the job done against a much better, and healthier, Celtics team. For the Cavs it’s not just that Mitchell was out, it’s that Caris LeVert is dealing with knee soreness, Dean Wade just returned from a knee injury that kept him out for two months, Evan Mobley has had to leave multiple games during the playoffs due to an ankle issue.
Is it likely the Cavs would beat Boston if fully healthy? No. But they would have a much better chance than the way they’re currently constructed. Sometimes, things don’t go your way in the postseason, and this is certainly one of those times in Cleveland.
The plan for the Cavs in this game was to launch from 3-point range and hope to connect on enough of them that it would push them over the top against the Celtics. Cleveland opened up making seven of its first 10 from the outside, but made just eight of its next 38 attempts. Realistically, the Cavs needed to hit roughly 20 3-pointers to win on Monday night. Anything less was always going to create a significant challenge.
In the first half, the Cavs were 11 of 25 from outside. Strus led the way with five makes, Garland had a pair, as did Sam Merrill. In the second half, the Cavs made only four 3-pointers, and Garland was the only player to connect on multiple attempts. For as many things as the Cavs did right, and as hard as they played, without a significant advantage from the outside, this game was always going to be an uphill battle.
The Whistle
It’s fair to say that the Cavaliers were not happy with the way that the game was officiated on Monday night as well. They finished the night with seven free throw attempts as a team, compared to 24 for Boston. Such a discrepancy is possible in games when a team attempts as many 3-pointers (48) as the Cavs did.
With that said, despite the significant difference in free throws, the Cavaliers were actually credited with more shot attempts in the paint than the Celtics were on Monday night. That’s partially due to the fact that if a shooter is fouled and does not make the shot, that attempt does not count. It didn’t sit right with the Cavs that they only earned five free throws (one free throw attempted was due to a technical foul, while another way from an away-from-the-play foul) during the course of game action.
"I'll be honest, I was disappointed with the way the whistle blew tonight,” Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff says. “I thought we deserved much better."
What’s Next
The Cavaliers now take on the Celtics in Game 5 on Wednesday night in Boston. A win would mean the team returns to Cleveland for Game 6 on Friday night. A loss would end Cleveland’s season.
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