Celtics-Cavaliers Preview

By JEFF MEZYDLO
Posted Jan 21 2013 4:39PM

With the Boston Celtics mired in another rough stretch, coach Doc Rivers wonders just how focused his team is on improving its play.

Coming off another questionable effort, the Celtics hope to avoid matching their season-high four-game skid by posting a fourth consecutive series victory overall and on the road against the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night.

Boston (20-20) has been inconsistent all season and rather streaky over the last 3 1/2 weeks. The Celtics averaged 84.8 points while allowing 104.5 during a four-game slide from Dec. 27-Jan 2, but followed by yielding 85.2 points per contest over a season-high six-game winning streak.

However, the Celtics have dropped three in a row since that run, beginning with a 90-78 loss to New Orleans on Wednesday. Boston showed life in a 100-99 overtime home defeat to Chicago on Friday, but never led in Sunday's 103-88 loss at Detroit.

"We are playing awful and I am clearly not doing my job for this team - and I am serious," Rivers said. "I am not trying to take a bullet for the team and I told them that. I said we have to find something where all 12 guys play the same way."

Rajon Rondo had 15 assists and nine rebounds Sunday but shot 4 of 16 and committed half of Boston's 18 turnovers. Paul Pierce had 10 points in 36 minutes as the Celtics shot 39.8 percent.

Rivers will consider just about every option in his search to solve Boston's problems.

"I do not know if we need changes," he said. "I am saying if we do not get it right then we may. The six-game winning streak was great. Three of those six we played tremendous basketball and the other three we won the game.

"I do not think the guys are honest with each other. I just do not think we are committed to being a good basketball team."

Pierce is 1 of 11 from 3-point range while scoring 11.7 per game - 7.3 below his average - in the last three. Rondo scored 30 points on 12-of-21 shooting against the Bulls, but sandwiched that contest by totaling 15 while going 7 of 24 from the field versus New Orleans and Detroit.

A visit to Cleveland (10-32) might help the Celtics get back on track for at least one night. Pierce scored 40 and Rondo added 20 as Boston shot a season-high 59.7 percent in a 103-91 home victory over the Cavaliers on Dec. 19.

The Celtics have shot 50.0 percent or better in five of their last six games against Cleveland.

The December meeting was the first game Anderson Varejao missed with a leg injury that eventually required surgery, but the Cavaliers found out Monday that a far more serious issue came up. Varejao developed a blood clot in his lung following the surgery and will miss the remainder of the season as he'll spend the next three months on blood thinners.

Boston has won the last two meetings at Quicken Loans Arena by three points each, and now visits a Cavaliers team that's just 4-12 at home and returning from a 1-4 road trip.

Rookie Dion Waiters scored 23 while Kyrie Irving added 18 with nine assists Saturday, but Cleveland allowed Utah to shoot 50.0 percent in a 109-98 loss.

"When our guys want to get it going, we just don't," said Irving, who was 7 of 20 from the field after going 13 of 24 for 31 points in Wednesday's 93-88 win at Portland. "We talk about it. Then teams make shots and we just don't respond."

Irving has averaged 22.5 points and shot 55.7 percent (34 of 61) in four career games versus Boston.

Irving leads Cavalers past Celtics, 95-90

Posted Jan 22 2013 11:15PM

CLEVELAND (AP) Count Boston's Doc Rivers as one coach who thinks Kyrie Irving should be on the Eastern Conference All-Star team.

It's easy to see why Rivers holds such an opinion after Irving scored scored 15 of his 40 points in the fourth quarter, including several key late baskets, to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 95-90 victory over the Celtics on Tuesday night.

"He has all the numbers to be an All-Star, for sure," Rivers said. "Whether he makes it or not is another story. ... He's a tough kid, which I don't think people give him enough credit for."

The reserves, who are picked by the respective coaches in each conference for the Feb. 17 game in Houston, will be announced Thursday. Irving, who made a strong final case to be on the team, has Rivers' vote despite the fact the Cavaliers have struggled all season.

"It's a hard one for me to pick a guy from a team with 11 wins, but he's just playing so well," Rivers said.

Cleveland coach Byron Scott also thinks Irving belongs in the game.

"If you look at the point guards in the Eastern Conference, name one that's having a better season," he said. "I'll wait."

Irving scored 11 points in the final 2:33 on four layups and three free throws to give Cleveland back-to-back wins at home for the first time this season and send Boston to its season-high fourth straight loss.

Irving shot 16 for 24 - setting a career high for field goals made - and fell one point short of his career-best scoring total, set at New York on Dec. 15.

Asked if he was making a statement to be included on the All-Star team, Irving said, "I was just trying to get a win. It was more of a statement game for the Cavaliers."

Rivers was hoping the Celtics would make a statement, but instead he watched another frustrating loss. The Celtics have dropped four in a row since winning six straight. Rivers blasted his team following Sunday's 103-88 loss in Detroit, a game which Boston never led. The latest loss dropped Boston to 20-21.

"I believe we should be better than that - and we're not - so it's hard," Rivers said before Tuesday's game.

Rivers still had a matter of fact attitude following the game.

"You've got to make your own breaks, and we've got to make ours," he said.

Rajon Rondo led Boston with 17 points while Kevin Garnett scored 16. Paul Pierce, who scored 40 points in a 103-91 win over the Cavaliers in Boston on Dec. 19, finished with 12 points on 3-for-15 shooting.

"We've just got to be better, period," Garnett said. "We've got to try to figure this thing out because it's not going to change itself. I want it so bad, but I've got to find a balance. I've got to do better for 48 minutes, man."

Irving's layup gave Cleveland an 84-83 lead with 2:33 remaining. He followed with another layup after Rondo's turnover to put the Cavs up three. Four free throws by Garnett sandwiched around a basket by Alonzo Gee left Cleveland with an 88-87 lead.

After Garnett missed a baseline jumper, Irving dribbled past midcourt and drove to the basket for a three-point lead with 52 seconds remaining.

Following another miss by the Celtics, the Cavaliers called time out. Irving dribbled into the lane and hit a twisting shot while being fouled by Jared Sullinger. He made the free throw to put Cleveland ahead 93-87 with 22.8 seconds left.

After Pierce shot an airball, Irving made two more free throws with 18.2 seconds left to put the game away.

Tristan Thompson added 21 points for the Cavaliers.

The Cavaliers acquired three players and a future first-round draft pick from Memphis earlier in the day. Cleveland picked up forward Marreese Speights and guards Wayne Ellington and Josh Selby in exchange for forward Jon Leuer. Speights will help replace Anderson Varejao, who will miss the remainder of the season after developing a blood clot in his right lung. Varejao had had surgery on Jan. 10 to repair a split leg muscle. He was expected to miss two months, but the blood clot was discovered last week and he has been placed on blood thinners.

Irving, who was 7 of 20 from the field in Saturday's loss to Utah, had a strong start against Boston with 19 points in the first quarter, hitting 8 of 10 from the field.

Cavaliers starting guard C.J. Miles didn't play because of an illness that has hit several players and a couple of assistant coaches.

Sullinger, who played at Ohio State, scored 12 points and had 10 rebounds for Boston.

The Cavaliers' new players were expected to arrive in Cleveland on Tuesday night. They must first pass physicals and Scott hopes they will be able to practice Thursday and possibly play Friday against Milwaukee.

NOTES: Bradley, who scored seven points, continues to play with sore ribs. "I feel for Avery because that's a hard injury to play through," Rivers said. "It hurts to breathe and it hurts every time you get hit anywhere near your ribs." Scott has traded text messages with Varejao, who remains hospitalized in the Cleveland Clinic. ... The Cavaliers waived G Jeremy Pargo and recalled C Kevin Jones from Canton of the Developmental League.

Notebook: Cavaliers 95, Celtics 90

Brian Dulik, for NBA.com
Posted Tue Jan 22, 2013 11:52 PM - Updated Tue Jan 22, 2013 11:52 PM

THE FACTS: Point guard Kyrie Irving scored 11 of his game-high 40 points in the final 2 1/2 minutes, rallying the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 95-90 victory over the Boston Celtics. Power forward Tristan Thompson added a season-high 21 points and nine rebounds for Cleveland, which won back-to-back home games for the first time since Feb. 19-21, 2012. Point guard Rajon Rondo led Boston across the board with 17 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists, while center Kevin Garnett had 16 points and five blocked shots. The Celtics suffered their season-worst fourth loss in a row.

QUOTABLE: "It's no secret who they're going to when the game gets tight -- it's Kyrie (Irving). There are a lot of great guards, but he's probably the best scoring point guard in the league. There is really no scorer like him at that position."
-- Celtics small forward Paul Pierce

THE STAT: Irving became the first Cavaliers player to score 40 points at Quicken Loans Arena since LeBron James on March 5, 2010 against Detroit. The reigning NBA Rookie of the Year had 19 points in the first quarter, four in the second, two in the third, and 15 in the fourth. "If you look at the point guards in the Eastern Conference, name one that's having a better season," Cleveland coach Byron Scott said. "I'll wait." Irving was 16-for-24 from the field, 1-for-3 on 3-pointers, and 7-for-7 at the foul line. His 16 field goals made were a career high.

TURNING POINT: The Celtics held an 83-82 advantage with 2:37 left in the fourth, but Irving stole the ball from Rondo on back-to-back possessions and put Cleveland ahead for good with two layups. Irving wound up scoring 11 of the Cavaliers' final 13 points as they built the largest lead of the game at 95-87 with 19 seconds left. "I was just trying to get a win because we desperately needed it," said Irving, who hopes to be named to the Eastern Conference All-Star team when it is announced Thursday. "It was more of a statement game for the Cavaliers than for me."

QUOTABLE II: "Absolutely, Kyrie (Irving) is an All-Star. It was hard for me to vote for a guy on a team with 11 wins, but he's just playing so well. He's got unbelievable handles and he's a tough kid, which I don't think people give him enough credit for."
-- Celtics coach Glenn "Doc" Rivers

HOT: Cavaliers power forward Luke Walton had seven points, three rebounds, and a season-high tying seven assists in 18 strong minutes off the bench. ... Thompson is averaging 14.1 points and 11.9 rebounds over his last 17 games. ... Irving's 19 first-quarter points were the most by a Cleveland player in one period this season. ... Irving, Thompson and Walton combined to shoot 19-for-27 from the field in the first half, scoring 46 of the Cavaliers' 54 points. ... Celtics power forward Jared Sullinger notched his fourth double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. The former Ohio State standout was the 21st overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.

NOT: Cavaliers center Tyler Zeller was 2-for-10 from the field with six points and six fouls. The rookie from North Carolina owns a team-high four disqualifications. ... Cleveland backup guards Daniel "Boobie" Gibson and Shaun Livingston missed all five of their shots in 33 combined minutes. ... Cavaliers shooting guard C.J. Miles was a late scratch because of the flu. His replacement in the starting lineup, Dion Waiters, bricked nine of his 12 field goal attempts. ... Celtics shooting guard Avery Bradley had no points and three fouls in 12 first-half minutes. ... Boston committed 18 turnovers, which Cleveland turned into 20 points.

QUOTABLE III: "We've just got to be better, period. We've got to try to figure this thing out because it's not going to change itself. I want it so bad, but I've got to find a balance. I've got to do better for 48 minutes, man."
-- Celtics power forward Garnett

GOOD MOVE: Earlier in the day, the Cavaliers acquired power forward Marreese Speights, shooting guard Wayne Ellington, point guard Josh Selby, and a future first-round pick from Memphis in exchange for seldom-used power forward Jon Leuer. "It was a good day for us," Scott said. "We got some very valuable assets." Cleveland general manager Chris Grant indicated that Speights is likely to play major minutes backing up Zeller and Thompson.

BAD MOVE: The Cavaliers released point guard Jeremy Pargo as part of their pregame roster shuffle, then chose to scrap approximately 10,000 game programs because he was on the cover. Instead of receiving the free, pamphlet-sized magazines when they entered the arena, fans received a photocopy of the front page of Cleveland's media notes. ... Rivers started and played Bradley 26 minutes despite his obvious pain from bruised ribs.

NOTABLE: Cavaliers center Anderson Varejao (right knee surgery, blood clots in lungs) was declared out for the season Monday. The mop-topped Brazilian was leading the NBA in rebounding when he suffered a split muscle near his right knee on Dec. 18 against Toronto. ... Rivers named his son, current New Orleans Hornets shooting guard Austin Rivers, after longtime Cleveland small forward Austin Carr. He became close to Carr when he attended his basketball camps as a youth. "I spent a lot of time around the Cavs when I was young because my uncle, (power forward) Jim Brewer, played here," Rivers said. "I loved Jim and I still do, but Austin was my favorite player and the guy I tried to be like on the court."

UP NEXT: For the Celtics, Thursday vs. New York, Friday @ Atlanta, Sunday vs. Miami. For the Cavaliers, Friday vs. Milwaukee, Saturday @ Toronto, Jan. 29 vs. Golden State.

• Celtics: Melo
• Cavaliers: Ellington, Selby, Speights, Varejao

• Celtics: --
• Cavaliers: --

• Lead Changes: 17
• Times Tied: 12

• Arena: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, OH
• Officials: #49 Tom Washington, #61 Courtney Kirkland, #79 Kevin Scott
• Attendance: 14192
• Duration: 2:15