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JR Smith calls Marcus Smart a flopper, says he can't be tough guy doing that so much
Chris Fedor
Author: Chris Fedor
Publication: Cleveland.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- JR Smith and Marcus Smart nearly exchanged blows during Saturday night's preseason matchup.
Then they exchanged words -- through the media.
"For a guy who wants to be so tough in this situation, he leads the league in flops. Easily," Smith said following the Cavaliers' 113-102 win. "You can't flop as much as you do and then be tough. How does that even work? And then you start slinging your teammates. Like, you didn't come to play basketball today. You knew he didn't want to play. Your coach told you you gotta play and you was frustrated. Then you try to take it out on somebody else.
"At the end of the day, I'm not going to sit here and lose money over trying to fight Marcus Smart. I'm not going to lose money over my (Supreme) tattoo, so why would I lose it over him?"
- CLICK HERE to read full story.
Collin Sexton shines in first game at Quicken Loans Arena, leads Cavaliers to 113-102 win
Author: Chris Fedor
Publication: Cleveland.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Collin Sexton seems to like his new digs.
Not just the state-of-the-art renovated locker room that awed players as they walked through the glass double doors for the first time hours before tipoff on Saturday night.
In Sexton's first game at Quicken Loans Arena -- his new NBA home -- the 19-year-old rookie looked awfully comfortable, helping lead the Cavaliers to their second straight preseason win against the Boston Celtics, 113-102.
Head coach Tyronn Lue rested a handful of regulars, including starting point guard George Hill. That gave Sexton his first NBA start. No, the Celtics didn't play Kyrie Irving, which would've been quite a test for the Cavaliers' teenager, but a bulk of Sexton's minutes came against point guard Terry Rozier, who manned Boston's lead guard spot for all 19 games during the postseason. - CLICK HERE to read full story.
Cleveland Cavaliers adjust shot clock at practice to ensure faster pace
Author: Chris Fedor
Publication: Cleveland.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Just how serious are the Cleveland Cavaliers about playing at a faster pace this season?
Take a look at the shot clock during practices for certain drills. It's not set to 24, the number of seconds per initial possession in NBA arenas. In Cleveland, the timer is cut in half, an idea that Tyronn Lue borrowed from former coach Doug Collins.
"We've got a 12-second shot clock, which is tough," George Hill said Saturday. "(Lue) does it to get the pace up, to get the ball up the floor, not a lot of dribbling. You've got to use the pass instead of dribble so we are just working on trying to enhance our pace. But at the same time get good shots."
Pace is the buzzword around training camp. Each player has spoken about the importance of it, especially with concerns about generating quality offense consistently. Tristan Thompson went as far as to say playing fast will be a large part of the Cavaliers' identity this season.
One of the biggest changes in the preseason opener was the number of players who grabbed the ball off the rim and surged the other way. - CLICK HERE to read full story.
More Daily Press Links:
- (10/7) David Nwaba to miss Cavaliers' preseason game Saturday night because of a groin injury Cleveland.com
- (10/7) Cavaliers showing some promise in preseason action News-Herald
- (10/7) Cavaliers 113, Celtics 102: J.R. Smith’s preseason opens with scuffle as young Cavs cruise past disinterested Celtics to victory Akron Beacon Journal
- (10/7) With JR Smith and others, Cavaliers getting through potentially volatile situations unscathed The Athletic
- (10/7) New look Cavs continue to impress with 113-102 exhibition win over Celtics Lake County Sentinel
- (10/7) Cavs cutting practice clock to pick up pace Amico Hoops