The Cavs Big Three in Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving, and LeBron James stepped up once again to carry the team over the Philadelphia 76ers
The Cleveland Cavaliers continued their high-scoring ways with a 112-108 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday. The win was far from easy, as the Cavs trailed for much of the game against the struggling young Philadelphia team.
The game was yet another reminder that Cleveland will always be a game other teams circle on their calendar. For a team like Philadelphia, this game was something like a playoff game in and of itself.
Luckily for Cavs fans, we have a few fellas with the last names Love, Irving, and James.
Let’s take a look at who carried the Cavaliers to their 13th win of the season, and who needs some extra practice. Don’t worry, we’re not looking at you, Allen Iverson.
LeBron James
Cleveland Cavaliers
What can you really say at this point in LeBron James‘ career? The man ages like fine wine.
Sure, James’ third triple-double of the season came against the lowly Philadelphia 76ers, but that doesn’t discredit how well the greatest player on Earth continues to play.
Sunday marks the sixth game of the season for James with 12 or more assists and his third straight game with double-digit dishes.
Things got a little chippy between Philadelphia’s young star Joel Embiid and James as the two exchanged words after a Richard Jefferson foul call. Embiid, or the self-proclaimed The Process, was limited to 25 minutes for the game but showed why he is one of the league’s rising stars.
LeBron continued to facilitate with clutch assists to Tristan Thompson and Kyrie Irving late in the game.
A day after enjoying “The Game” between Ohio State and Michigan in Columbus (and giving out some swag to newborns), James picked up right where he left off and continues to have an incredible season. Will it be another MVP campaign for The King? We shall see.
Kyrie Irving
Cleveland Cavaliers
Kyrie Irving was every bit the offensive weapon the Cavs needed and then some on Sunday.
Irving was a force to be reckoned with in the fourth quarter against the Sixers, scoring 19 in the final period and finishing the game with a season-high 39 points.
The All-Star point guard hasn’t slowed down since hitting the game-winning three-point shot in last year’s NBA Finals. It’s no wonder why is considered one of the best closers in the game.
Irving also continues to be a major catalyst in the Cavaliers’ historically-good three-point shooting season. The team is now 9-0 this season when Irving has three or more three-point field goals. Uncle Drew is hitting an impressive 43% of his shots from downtown this year.
Maybe the most impressive part of Irving’s performance on Sunday was his situational understanding. The Cavs weren’t playing particularly phenomenal defense and could have easily packed it in, attributed the loss to fatigue, and moved on to the next game. But Irving realized the team needed him and stepped up accordingly, hitting clutch shot after clutch shot.
It’s amazing the things hitting a legendary shot in the Finals will do for you.
Kevin Love
Cleveland Cavaliers
Kevin Love was once again an integral part of a Cavs victory on Sunday. Something appears to have clicked in Love’s game, as he’s put together his highest three-game point total since joining the team. Love is averaging over 30 points per contest in his last three games and he’s also averaging a healthy 22 points per game for the season.
Love suffered a nasty gash over his right eye in the first quarter, which resulted in five stitches. Despite the setback, Love finished the game with 25 points in only 28 minutes.
The star power forward added another four three-pointers, bringing his three-game total to 19
Sunday was the second consecutive game in which Love was held to 28 minutes. He was able to contribute 20-plus point double-doubles in both of those games.
There’s no doubt Love’s confidence and assertiveness are rising as the season progresses. Love is also simply making more shots.
This is the type of offensive production Cavs fans have been waiting for from Love. Will it last? Only time will tell, but he sure looks good.
Tristan Thompson
Cleveland Cavaliers
Tristan Thompson was also a huge factor down the stretch versus Philadelphia. His fourth-quarter dunks, rebounding, and defensive intensity were critical to the Cavs victory.
This is the Thompson we have come to know in Cleveland. He might not have the prettiest game on the floor, but he certainly earns his paycheck (not much talk of that these days, eh?)
Thompson finished the game with 12 points, 12 boards, and two blocks; pretty much a signature Tristan Thomson stat-line.
Double-T’s scoring is down for the season at 6.6 per game, but it’s likely an early-season aberration more than a reason to panic.
Plus, rumor has it there’s no longer a certain “celebrity” woman in Thompson’s life anymore, which should allow all Cavs fans a collective sigh of relief.
J.R. Smith
Cleveland Cavaliers
39 minutes. 0 points.
It was almost unimaginable that J.R. Smith could outdo his 1-for-11 performance against the Mavericks in the previous game. Lo and behold, J.R. put together possibly the worst game of his career on Sunday.
You have to wonder how a player could manage to be on the floor for a full 39 minutes and not manage a single point.
Was too much partying with Buckeyes fans in Columbus to blame? Who knows. All anyone really knows is J.R. will stay aggressive no matter how terrible of a stretch he’s on.
According to Basketball-Reference.com, it was the first game in Smith’s career in which he’s logged zero points in over 30 minutes of action.
So yeah. Not his best stuff. But like Hov said, it’s on to the next one.
After getting off to a fairly sluggish start, the Cavs were able to pull out the W with the help of their stars.
Much credit is due to the 76ers as well. The inexperienced team didn’t back down against big competition and they’ve got some hungry, young players to build a future around.
It’s starting to look more and more like Irving may finish the season as the leading scorer on the Cavaliers. Then again, we may see Irving’s minutes mysteriously cut near the end of the season. After all, James’ MVP case won’t look as good being the second-leading scorer on his team, right?
In all seriousness, the Cavaliers’ Big Three has been absolutely superb of late. Let’s see what happens when J.R. gets hot again.
Next up for the Cleveland Cavaliers is a trip up to Milwaukee to take on former teammate Matthew Dellavedova and the rest of the Bucks. We all still miss that chippy, Hollywood-bound Aussie.
What did you think of the Cleveland Cavaliers performance against the Philadelphia 76ers? Let us know in the comments section or Twitter @KJG_NBA.
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