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With Kevin Love excelling, the Cavs are winning, watchable and still in prime lottery position
Author: Kevin Kleps
Publication: Crain's Cleveland
A strange thing has happened in the latter stages of the Zion Williamson sweepstakes. Well, beyond Williamson's sneaker exploding just 36 seconds into Duke's showdown with North Carolina.
Two of the four teams in the race for the NBA's worst record have been quite competent, even a little good, of late.
One, the Chicago Bulls, have won six of their last 10 games and are now five wins ahead of the Phoenix Suns and New York Knicks. The other, your Cleveland Cavaliers, have won five of the seven games in which Kevin Love has played since the five-time All-Star returned from a foot injury on Feb. 8.
The Cavs lost the Feb. 8 contest, 119-106 at Washington. Love then sat out the team's 105-90 loss at Indiana the next night, played 16 minutes in a 107-104 win over the Knicks on Feb. 11 and rested during the Cavs' marathon of a 148-139 loss to Brooklyn on Feb. 13.
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What we learned from the Cavaliers this week: Feb. 25 - March 3
Author: Jackson Flickinger
Publication: Fear the Sword
This week was a microcosm of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ season as a whole. The team appeared lost and played awful against the Pistons without Kevin Love, but looked like a fun and competent team when he did play against the Trailblazers, Knicks, and Magic. Overall, the Cavs finished the week 2-2 and there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic. Here’s what we learned from this week.
Kevin Love transforms this entire team. Love’s importance to this team can’t be overstated at this point. The Cavs are now 5-2 in games that he’s played since returning from injury as Love is averaging 18 points per game with a 64.5 percent true shooting percentage in 22.2 minutes a game during that stretch.
Since Love’s return on Feb. 8 the Cavs are outscoring opponents by 14.7 points per 100 possessions with Love on the floor. Conversely the Cavs are being outscored by 12.8 points per 100 possessions during that same stretch when he’s off the floor. That’s a 27.5 point swing.
It should be noted that only two of those seven games came against teams with winning records. It’ll be interesting to see how much impact Love as the Cavs’ schedule will be getting tougher. The early returns have shown that this can be a competitive team with him on the floor.
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Despite recent success, Cleveland Cavaliers remain well positioned for lottery luck
Author: Ben Axelrod
Publication: WKYC
CLEVELAND -- Moments after the Cleveland Cavaliers' 107-93 victory over the Orlando Magic on Sunday night, Kevin Love joined Fox Sports Ohio's Angel Gray for a postgame interview.
As an upbeat Love dutifully provided answers to Gray's inquiries, the interview came to a brief halt. As he made his way off the floor and toward the team's locker room, second-year forward Cedi Osman excitedly leaped toward Love, wrapping his arms around the 5-time All-Star while exuding a noise that could best be described as "pure joy."
In any of the Cavs' previous four seasons, in which they averaged more than 52 wins, such scene would have been saved for the postseason -- if it even existed at all.
Rather, Osman's championship-caliber leap -- which took place on March 3 -- was saved for Cleveland's 16th win of the season.
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Amico: Cavaliers experiencing joy of Love and togetherness
Author: Sam Amico
Publication: Amico Hoops
In his last four appearances, Kevin Love is averaging 23.0 points and 11.4 rebounds.
In the last four games overall, Jordan Clarkson is at 17.5 points, Cedi Osman is averaging 18.0 points and shooting 55 percent, and Collin Sexton is at 16.5 points and hitting 86 percent on free throws.
Those are four very good reasons why the Cavaliers are 5-1 in their last six games with Love. It’s also why the Cavs no longer resemble their 16-48 record and why they suddenly aren’t wearing the look of a franchise that’s totally fixated on the draft lottery.
“We’re having fun playing together,” Love said. “We’re sharing the ball, moving the ball and playing for each other. I think we’re making steps and strides in the right direction. I think it relieves attention from losing and just not accepting the losses.”
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Nets hold off furious Charge rally to win 106-102
Author: Staff
Publication: Canton Repository
UNIONDALE, NEW YORK A furious fourth-quarter Charge rally came up just short Monday night as the host Long Island Nets held on for a 106-102 G-League victory over Canton.
The Charge trailed 95-84 entering the fourth quarter but put up 38 points in the period and pulled within a point at 99-98 on Deng Adel’s three-point play. The Nets’ Dzanan Musa came up big short after a Charge miss, draining his fifth 3-pointer to give Long Island it first win in three games this season against the Charge.
The loss spoiled Malik Newman’s 30-point performance off the Canton bench. Newman was 11 of 17 from the floor, including 4 of 7 on 3s, and was 4 for 4 at the line. Newman also added four assists and two rebounds in his 26:58 minutes of play. Both Adel and Jaron Blossomgame scored 17 points and grabbed nine rebounds for the Charge, who also received 10 points and eight rebounds from Scoochie Smith.
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