It was a bit of a wrestling match -- the NBA acknowledged it was not one-sided on Wednesday -- under the basket in Game Five of the Cleveland Cavaliers-Chicago Bulls series that led to Cavs guard Matthew Dellavedova landing face first in the paint and Bulls forward Taj Gibson eventually being ejected for what might or might not have been a kick to Dellavedova's back during the scrum.
Gibson said he didn't kick him, that he was trying to escape what he called "a leg lock" by Dellavedova. The NBA retroactively assessed a technical foul on Wednesday to Dellavedova, who said after the game that he and Gibson "just got tangled up. I don't really know (what happened)."
So, Dellavedova played it coy. But he can no longer play anonymously, especially not after Cavs star LeBron James defended Dellavedova when discussing the incident after the game and called the backup point guard "the toughest guy on our team."
That's a pretty good compliment from pretty good company. And now, Dellavedova goes from unlikely but steady contributor for the Cavs to a marked man by the Bulls -- and surely by Bulls fans during Thursday night's Game Six in Chicago.
As for what really went on with Gibson before Gibson's red shoe landed on Dellavedova's No. 8 Tuesday night, Dellavedova said, "I was just trying to get up."
Just playing the only way he knows how.
Dellavedova made the Cavs as an undrafted rookie before last season after leaving Saint Mary's as the school's all-time scoring and assist leader. He fought his way into the Cavs rotation -- last season under coach Mike Brown and this season under coach David Blatt -- by playing solid defense and providing relentless effort. His tangle with Gibson was not his first.
Wild guess alert. It probably won't be his last.
"Physical, but never cheap," Saint Mary's coach Randy Bennett said of Dellavedova. "He's been in some scraps before. He's gotten under some skin, but I never saw him do anything cheap.
"The leadership, basketball IQ and toughness are things he brought every single day for us for four years. He just wants to win. That's all he ever cared about. And he's very loyal. I know it's a different team than his first year but he's grateful the Cavs gave him an opportunity. Him knowing he's appreciated by LeBron and those guys, that's just going to drive him (further) to do whatever he can to help them win."
His is the cliche underdog story -- most NBA players are bigger, faster, stronger and more decorated -- and it's furthered by Dellavedova's path from his native Australia to Saint Mary's to making the Cavs via the NBA summer league and training camp. Now, he plays alongside two former No. 1 overall picks in James and Kyrie Irving in a role that requires the floor burns and hustle Dellavedova provides.
The occasional leg lock and boot to the back are simply occupational hazards.
"He fights his behind off on defense every day," is how Blatt answered a regular-season question asking if Dellavedova was playing too much.
Blatt and Cavs general manager David Griffin acknowledged in February they were exploring an upgrade at the backup point guard position but did not make a move to do so.
While averaging 4.8 points and 2.8 assists over 139 NBA games, Dellavedova has shown staying power. Since an early-season knee injury cost him 15 games, Dellavedova has played at least 10 minutes for the Cavs in 69 of 73 games -- and two of those were the first two games of the first-round series against the Boston Celtics, when he logged nine minutes in each game.
In the Bulls series he's averaging 6.2 points and 4.2 assists in just over 21 minutes. In Game Five he was back in the crunch time lineup, and it was his tip on a late miss that allowed Iman Shumpert to secure an offensive rebound as the Cavs retained possession, forcing the Bulls to foul and allowing the Cavs to put the game out of reach.
It was the kind of play that's kept Dellavedova in the rotation and allowed Blatt to keep him in the game after a late turnover. It was the kind of play that will keep giving Dellavedova chances to make more of them.
"I need to be careful but what I say, but him not getting drafted is just, to me, proof that this system is broken," Bennett said. "I shook my head. He's kind of my litmus test. If you're a good organization, you want this guy on your team.
"The Cavs drafted three guys (in 2013) but not him. A bunch of other point guards got drafted. He just kept working and made it. And I just know, knowing him the way I do, that he's never let up for one day. It's just fun to see him out there playing so hard, doing what he's doing. To me, he's not proving he can play at this level. I just think he's earned a role and every night out, he's doing everything he can to fulfill that role."
