Now qualified for the playoffs and firmly established in fourth place in the Eastern Conference, the Cavaliers can breathe in these last days of the regular season. Nevertheless, and for several reasons, this match against the Knicks was not without stakes.
Already to bounce back from the loss to the Hawks. Then to prepare for the first round because there is a good chance that the Cavaliers will face the Knicks there. A victory would have even almost ensured the advantage of the field in Cleveland. So it was time to make a move and make an impression.
But Donovan Mitchell and his teammates did not defend and fell on a gala Jalen Brunson, author of a 48-point match.
“It’s boring, it hurts, but we still have our destiny in our hands”, reassures the rear for the Plain Dealer. “If we let this defeat affect us, we will be in a bad position. We are not in the playoffs, there is not 1-0, we have not lost home advantage. We will learn from this situation, we can still progress even if the playoffs are fast approaching. We are affected and we must be ready for the next time. We’ll probably find them in two weeks. »
Young Cavaliers will have to learn to breathe in a playoff fight
Despite this setback, which offers the “tiebreaker” to the Knicks, the Cavaliers are still three wins ahead of New York, a sufficient mattress four games from the end, except huge slippage. But this defeat, especially the form with 130 points conceded, does not pass.
“We didn’t play at the level they displayed. We didn’t match their intensity, we didn’t make the necessary stops. It’s not frustrating, it’s just a good lesson to be learned,” explains Darius Garland. “It’s a lesson, a beautiful lesson”, confirms JB Bickerstaff. “We were not there in terms of intensity, effort. It’s that simple. We cannot sign a first quarter at 47 points and not have a big lead. We were not involved in defense. »
The Knicks were however deprived of Julius Randle, but the Cavaliers were surprised by the arbitration. There was like a taste of the playoffs in this meeting and at this altitude, the young inexperienced Cavaliers no longer breathe as well.
“I find that the referees whistled as if it were a playoff match”, believes a Mitchell experienced at this intensity, unlike some of his teammates . “Guys have to get used to it. You can be tougher with your opponents and you can’t learn that, it comes with experience. This opened the eyes of some to this physical dimension, to the level of each possession. »
| Shots | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | bp | Int | CT | party | Points |
| Donovan Mitchell | 65 | 35.6 | 47.6 | 38.0 | 87.1 | 1.0 | 3.2 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 2.6 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 2.4 | 27.6 |
| Darius Garland | 66 | 35.3 | 46.6 | 40.9 | 86.0 | 0.4 | 2.3 | 2.7 | 7.8 | 2.9 | 1.3 | 0.1 | 2.2 | 21.7 |
| Evan Mobley | 75 | 34.5 | 55.7 | 21.2 | 67.3 | 2.4 | 6.6 | 9.0 | 2.8 | 1.9 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 2.8 | 16.4 |
| Jarrett Allen | 65 | 33.0 | 64.5 | 11.1 | 74.0 | 3.3 | 6.7 | 9.9 | 1.7 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 2.3 | 14.4 |
| Caris Levert | 71 | 30.0 | 42.7 | 38.0 | 72.0 | 0.7 | 3.1 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 1.6 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 2.3 | 11.9 |
| Cedi Osman | 72 | 20.5 | 44.9 | 36.3 | 68.4 | 0.3 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 1.6 | 8.7 |
| Kevin Love | 41 | 20.0 | 38.9 | 35.4 | 88.9 | 1.0 | 5.8 | 6.8 | 1.9 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 1.6 | 8.5 |
| isaac okoro | 76 | 21.7 | 49.4 | 36.3 | 75.7 | 0.7 | 1.8 | 2.5 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 2.1 | 6.4 |
| Ricky Rubio | 28 | 17.3 | 36.7 | 26.8 | 78.8 | 0.3 | 1.9 | 2.2 | 3.4 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 1.5 | 5.5 |
| lamar stevens | 57 | 18.0 | 46.2 | 32.1 | 69.8 | 0.8 | 2.5 | 3.3 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 5.3 |
| Dean Wade | 39 | 19.9 | 40.8 | 34.9 | 65.2 | 0.4 | 2.9 | 3.3 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 2.1 | 4.5 |
| Raulzinho Neto | 45 | 10.0 | 53.2 | 32.4 | 88.9 | 0.2 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.4 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.9 | 3.0 |
| Danny Green | 6 | 7.4 | 50.0 | 50.0 | 100.0 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.7 | 3.0 |
| Robin Lopez | 34 | 7.5 | 65.0 | 66.7 | 75.0 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 1.0 | 2.7 |
| Mamadi Diakite | 20 | 6.8 | 40.5 | 29.4 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 1.8 |
| Dylan Windler | 3 | 3.5 | 66.7 | 50.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.7 |
| Isaiah Mobley | 10 | 3.3 | 50.0 | 33.3 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 1.1 |
| Sam Merrill | 3 | 3.6 | 25.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.7 | 0.7 |
