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Key: Setting Suns
After dropping the Bulls in the trip finale and taking the first two games of a three-game homestand, the Wine & Gold – even without a quartet of key pieces – look like themselves again.
On Wednesday night, the Cavaliers made a statement against the Conference’s top squad, overcoming a 15-point halftime deficit to drop the Raptors for the ninth time in their last 10 visits to The Q. The victory solidified Cleveland’s hold on the 3rd-seed in the Eastern Conference Playoff picture with now just 11 games remaining in the regular season.
The 19-win Suns are headed in the opposite direction – tied with Memphis for the worst mark in the league, losers of 18 of their last 19 outings, including a lopsided defeat to the Cavaliers back on March 13 in Phoenix.
History is on the Cavs side in this one; the Wine & Gold have knocked off the Suns in six straight meetings – with four double-digit wins in the mix, outshooting them from the floor (.497-.437) and from long-range (.435-.318), averaging 24.3 assists while sinking 14.5 triples per contest over that six-game stretch.
Key: Extended Reign
In Cleveland’s 22-point win over the Suns back on March 13 at Talking Stick Resort Arena, LeBron James was already well into his prolific second-half surge, posting one of his career-best 16 triple-doubles on the season. In that victory, the four-time MVP went off for 28 points, 13 boards, 11 assists, three steals and a pair of blocks.
But even that performance doesn’t compare to the magnum opus he turned in on Wednesday night against the Raptors – making NBA history as he became the first player in NBA history to tally at least 35 points and 15 assists without committing a single turnover.
On the night, the King notched his team-leading 44th double-double of the season – netting 14 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter, going 11-for-19 from the floor and 12-of-14 from the stripe, adding seven rebounds and a steal.
As great as he’s been throughout his future Hall of Fame career, over his last 19 games, dating back to Cleveland’s thrilling overtime win over Minnesota back on February 7, the 14-time All-Star has been on a completely different plane – averaging 30.5 points, 10.4 boards and 10.5 assists, shooting 55 percent from the floor and 41 percent from long-range over that span.
Key: Young Suns
While certain teams are jockeying for Playoff positioning, the Suns are simply trying to reach the finish line. Neither Devin Booker nor T.J. Warren played in Tuesday night’s loss in Detroit and it’s unclear whether either will go on Friday at The Q.
The Cavaliers held Booker, one of most explosive young scorers in the league, to just 17 points on 6-for-15 shooting after he had posted six 30-point games in his previous seven outings. Warren, who’s improved throughout each of his four years in the league, doubled-up in that March 13 loss against the Wine & Gold – finishing with 19 points and a team-high 10 rebounds.
The Suns should still have the services of one of their prized young guns in rookie Josh Jackson – who overcame a slow start to finish with 19 points, three boards and a game-high four steals.
Since the start of the calendar year, the former Kansas standout is averaging 15.9 ppg and 5.7 boards and comes into tonight’s matchup having recorded his fourth double-double of the season on Tuesday in Detroit – 15 points and 11 boards – as well as a career-best 36-point outburst two games ago in a loss to the Golden State Warriors.
Key: Love Broker
Kevin Love’s return to the lineup this week could not have been more seamless. After missing 21 games with a fractured left hand, the five-time All-Star picked up where he left off before the injury.
In Monday’s win over Milwaukee, KLove finished with 18 points, seven boards, four helpers and a pair of blocked shots. He was even better on Wednesday night – notching his 28th double-double of the season with 23 points, a game-high 12 rebounds, four assists and a steal in 30 minutes of work against the Raptors, going 8-of-15 from the floor, including 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.
His triple with less than 30 seconds to play gave Cleveland a four-point lead and one of the biggest home wins of the season. It was also the 1,000th three-pointer of his 10-year career.
Dragan Bender got the start at center when these two teams faced off back in Phoenix, but Alex Len – the 5th overall pick of the 2013 Draft – has reclaimed his starting spot. And he’s coming off one of his best outings of the season – a 19-point, 12-rebound showing against Andre Drummond in Tuesday’s loss to the Pistons.
Key: Bench Trial
The Cavaliers came into the season as the oldest squad in the Association, but their bold deals at the Deadline have infused some much-needed youth into the lineup. Two of those promising youngsters – Jordan Clarkson and Ante Zizic have been outstanding over the past couple of weeks.
Clarkson has been the league’s second-best scoring reserve all season – averaging 14.1 ppg off the bench. Clarkson had averaged 18.3 ppg on an even 50 percent shooting before posting a quiet night against Toronto. And even with that four-point performance, Clarkson has still notched double-figures in all but four of his 17 appearances as a Cavalier.
Zizic has picked up the ball and ran with his opportunity, notching double-figure scoring in four of his last six outings while shooting 32-for-41 from the floor since he’s been inserted into the rotation back on March 5.
But it wasn’t just the young guns that have been good for Cleveland during their recent homestand. JR Smith had a rock-solid outing off the bench on Wednesday night – going 4-for-6 from the floor, including 2-of-3 from long-range, to finish with 10 points in the win.