CLEVELAND -- It wasn’t a perfect night for the Cavaliers, but it worked.
They needed a win, and they were clearly determined to get it, even if it meant working overtime. Actually, make that extra overtime -- since it actually took two of them before the Cavs dispatched of the Philadelphia 76ers, 127-125, at Quicken Loans Arena on Saturday.
Lots of notable stuff happened on this night, but none more notable than the happening of Kyrie Irving.
He had a chance to win it at the end of regulation. He did everything right, but missed.
He had a chance to win it at the end of the first OT. The result was the same.
So naturally, with the game on the line, Cavs coach Mike Brown gave Irving the ball again.
“We put it in his hands so he could have an opportunity to go get (the win),” Brown said. “He got it for us.”
Irving actually got a lot. He got a lot of points (39), a lot of assists (career-high 12) and a whole lotta minutes (48).
Then he got a lot of love after hitting his third attempt at a game-winner. This time his driving layup over defenders fell through.
But you’ve probably seen all the highlight shows and know all that by now. But man, it bears repeating after the Cavs lost to the Sixers the previous night, the Bucks a few days before that, and were aching for a victory.
Irving wasn’t alone in displaying this type of guts. Dion Waiters (24 points, six assists), Jarrett Jack (20 points, 7-of-14 shooting) and Tristan Thompson (19 points, 10 rebounds, 6-of-7 on free throws) all played with a winning edge. Same was true of Anderson Varejao (13 points, 10 boards), who again looked like the Varejao we’ve always known and loved.
Everyone had their moments, and in wins like this, you also have to give at least a little credit to Chris Grant. The Cavs’ general manager believes he’s built a deep, dynamic team, and while it’s still coming together, Saturday made it a little easier to thing that, by golly, the man may be right.
Obviously, Brown deserves credit, too -- if for no other reason than not throwing chairs and water bottles when the Cavs trailed 85-75 entering the fourth quarter.
If you know Brown, you know he doesn’t like surrendering 85 points in an entire game (both overtimes, perhaps, included).
Brown also altered the starting lineup, quietly inserting Alonzo Gee in the small forward spot previously occupied by Earl Clark. Clark, on the other hand, did not play at all in a game that timed 58 minutes.
In case that wasn’t wild and crazy enough, Brown decided to utilize rookie guard Matthew Dellavedova and young center Henry Sims early and fairly often. Or at least more often than usual.
The plan paid off, as Sims played with endless energy near the basket and Dellavedova kept the ball moving.
And on a night when Andrew Bynum rested, Sims’ grit was a welcome and needed addition.
“Henry Sims impacted the game,” was the blunt manner in which Brown put it.
Anyway, the Cavs (3-4) have won each of their home games and lost all on the road. They didn’t exactly display the defensive principles Brown is seeking, as they were a little too soft and a little too casual at times. Yet they won anyway. They found that playing hard, and in the words of Brown, trying to “play the right way,” can result in good things.
It doesn’t have to be perfect, it doesn’t have to be pretty. It can even take two overtimes and three attempts at a game-winner to get it right.
But believing in something, perhaps when it feels like all is lost, then pushing through … well, maybe that’s something the Cavs figured out after a win like this.
“We had each other’s back out there,” Waiters said. “That’s what it’s all about.”
Twitter: @SamAmicoFSO
