LeBron's Solo Act Was Breathtaking . . . the Following 30 Minutes Were Not

The Cleveland Cavaliers have played the New York Knicks twice this season . . . and they've won them both . . . but they've been two of the Cavs' most superficial games of the season.

In both games, Cleveland has played solid first quarters, and both times, they were capped by  unconscious LeBron James shooting sprees. 

But in both games, the Cavs completely opened up for the final three quarters . . . rarely playing defense, rarely running plays on offense, and barely looking like they could hold on for the win.

In last night's game . . . like the first one in New York back in November . . . the Cavs didn't seem to respect the Knicks enough to bother wasting any energy on the defensive end.  Since the Knicks don't play defense either, that's OK, I guess . . . until you stop working on the offensive end.

The Knicks played some zone "defense" in the second half, which appeared effective . . . but in reality, the Cavs were tripping over themselves.  In the second half, the majority of the Cavs' possessions featured a static offense, with no ball movement, and a lot of careless turnovers.

Here's a look at just how similar these games were:

Back in November, the Cavs outscored the Knicks 40-21 in the first quarter.  In Saturday night's 113-106 win over the Knicks at home, the Cavs opened with a 44-24 opening quarter.

Back in November, the Cavs were outscored 37-51 in the second half.  In Saturday night's game, the Cavaliers were outscored 39-52 in the second half.

Back in November, LeBron had 19 points and five assists in the first quarter.  (He finished with 33 points and nine assists.)  On Saturday night, he had 23 points and five assists in the first quarter.  (He finished with 47 points and eight assists.)

(His 23 points tied his record at The Q for most points in a quarter, and it was one point shy of the franchise record of 24 points in a quarter.  LeBron also holds that record.  He also had 35 points at halftime, which broke the team record of 34 points in a half, which was set by Walt Wesley in 1971.)

Back in November, LeBron shot 8-of-9 from the field in the first . . . hitting jump shots throughout the quarter.  On Saturday, he strung things together a little more.

LeBron hit six consecutive shots to score the Cavs last 16 points in the first.  Four of the shots (including the last three) were 3-pointers, and the last two were from 30+ feet.  He was 8-of-11 in the quarter overall.

But it wasn't over.  LeBron came out for the beginning of the second and hit the Cavs' first two buckets.  He then missed a three, ending his streak at eight consecutive makes.  But then he hit the Cavs' next two  shots, before Jawad Williams finally ended the LeBron James show by nailing an open three.

It was jaw-dropping.  (LeBron's performance, that is, not Jawad's three.)  In all, LeBron scored 24 straight points for the Cavs. 

(Oh, and in both games, he closed out the first quarter dramatically . . . with a three-point bomb.)

At this point, you can choose your own adventure.

You can focus on the negative . . . and worry about how LeBron's "on fire" stretches can permanently break down the Cavaliers' offense, including James' own play . . . post-torching.  Or you can focus on the positive, which is the fact that LeBron is a beast and these superhuman moments are exciting enough to cover over a lackluster closing 30+ minutes.

I'm torn.

On one hand, I don't see any reason why, in times like these, LeBron shouldn't be cleared to shoot the freakin' lights out until he misses.  You can't hold him back.  Because as we just saw . . . sometimes he can hit eight straight ridiculous shots.  (None of those were bunnies, kids.)

But when it's over, it's over.  LeBron and Mike Brown need to put their heads together and design a plan of action for the next time this happens.  After the heat check(s) are finished, there needs to be a reset button . . . a back-to-basics timeout . . . to draw up some plays to bring the offense back down to Earth.  LeBron's teammates need to re-establish a feel for the ball.  Literally.

All too often, LeBron James puts on a otherworldly fireworks show . . . and his teammates get so used to standing around and watching that they forget to snap out of it after the big finale. 

Just because LeBron made the game worth the price of admission for everyone in the building . . . the NBA still requires that we play the full 48 minutes before someone is declared the winner.

You remember that Utah game last month . . . which, by the way, was the Cavs' last loss.  In that one, LeBron miraculously brought the Cavs from 12 points back with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter, to six points up with 0:30 left . . . only to have the Cavs miss some free throws and let the Jazz steal it back on that Sundiata Gaines three.

That was the worst instance of this phenomenon . . . and to this day, it's the only time I can recall LeBron successfully performing a miracle comeback like that, and the Cavs losing the game.  But post-LeBron depressions have happened over and over again, in varying degrees, over the years.

The Cavs need to find a way to down-shift from "LeBron Taking Over Mode" back to "Cavs Taking Care of Business Mode."

All that being said, though, it's hard to take this game seriously.  The Knicks made some stupid shots down the stretch on virtually no pressure from the Cavs.  It was just one of those games that just didn't have any intensity once LeBron's first half surge wrapped.

The Cavs were up by as many as 24 . . . and are probably 24 points-per-game better than the Knicks.  But they let it get as close as three points, 107-104, with three minutes left.  That's when LeBron went back to work, scoring the Cavs' last six points to close out the game, 113-106.

That's a dangerous position to put yourself in a game you should have won by at least 20, but at the same time, the Cavs have now won 11 straight . . . including nine straight without Mo Williams and eight straight without Mo and Delonte West.

You can't complain.  That's impressive no matter how you look at it.

So, I'll give this game a pass.  When you're relying on LeBron to be the point guard . . . but he has one of those games where his offense is blowing up . . . it's a lot to expect him to also shoulder the responsibility of restraining himself, to keep creating shots for his teammates.  And yet, he still came away with eight assists.

MVP.

 

The Wine and Gold Rush Awards:

[We'll be giving these out after each game.]

 

Most Valuable Player:  LeBron James.

Final line:  47 points on 17-of-31 shooting.  He was six of 12 from beyond the arc, and a perfect 7-of-7 from the line.  He also had eight rebounds and eight assists.  Plus, five steals!

Least Valuable Player:  Jamario Moon.

Jamario didn't have a particularly horrible game, but he finished with the lowest plus/minus on the team . . . an even 0.  So, when Jamario was on the court, the Knicks were neck-and-neck with the Cavs.  That's not good. 

In almost 18 minutes on the floor, Jamario had 3 points (on 1-of-2 shooting) with just one rebound.

"The Diff Award" (for the difference maker, even in defeat):  Daniel Gibson.

Daniel Gibson had a season-high seven assists, which was just off of his career high of eight, which he had in a game against Washington two years ago.  He also had three rebounds.

He only had six points . . . two 3-pointers, on 2-of-6 shooting overall . . . so his streak of seven-straight games with 10+ points has come to an end.  But he led the team in plus/minus with +8.  (Yes, Daniel's defense was weak in this one, but it wasn't any worse than anyone else's.)

Shaq had yet another solid game with 19 points (on 8-of-13 shooting) and three blocks (including two on one play).  But he only had one rebound, and five turnovers.

J.J. Hickson was the most exciting player on the court for the first half of the first quarter.  Then LeBron had his moment . . . and for whatever reason, we never saw J.J. featured again.  He finished with 10 points (on 5-of-7 shooting) with five rebounds.

And Jawad Williams had five points and five assists in under 18 minutes.

 

(Photo by David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images)

Comments

[Eric Pfefer]

I really couldnt believe that lebron james went off like that. Being a pistons fan, i watched that playoff game when he scored 25 in a row and pulled his team to a victory an a trip to the nba finals. Lebron James is a outstanding player and you never know what you will see next with this guy.