CLEVELAND — On paper, this was supposed to be an easy matchup to work Max Strus back into the lineup. Things didn’t work out that way as the Cleveland Cavaliers came out with no effort on the defensive end, which allowed the tanking Dallas Mavericks to run away with a 130-120 victory.
The Mavs aren’t a good offensive team. They came into this game ranked 27th in offensive rating, but you wouldn’t have known that if you just watched this game.
As has been a theme recently, the Cavs had no resistance at the point of attack. Dallas’s ball handlers were able to get two feet into the paint at will, and the help defense wasn’t there early enough to make a meaningful difference. And in the rare instance the help was there to prevent the look at the rim, the rotations weren’t crisp enough on the back end, which resulted in easy catch-and-shoot threes for the Mavs.
The Mavs established a good offensive rhythm early. They put up 35 points on 58.3% shooting from the floor and 50% from three.
Max Strus’s return helped the Cavs stay in it early on. The Cavs were down 10 when he entered the game midway through the first, and he promptly hit three triples to make it just a four-point deficit after one.
Support us and Let ‘Em Know with Homage!
Anything bought from the links helps support Fear the Sword. You can buy the Mark Price shirt HERE. You can also shop all of Homage’s Cavs gear HERE.
The Cavs pulled closer to make it a one-point deficit at the break, but then completely let go of the rope in the third quarter.
The Cavaliers were bad defensively all evening, but were at their worst in the third quarter. They continually allowed free runs to the hoop, which opened up the outside shot. The Mavs went 12-18 from the field (66.7%) and 6-8 (75%) from three in a 40-point third quarter.
Dallas opened the fourth quarter with a 14-point advantage and was mostly able to keep the Cavs at arm’s length from there. Cleveland never got the deficit below nine in the fourth quarter as the defense simply didn’t do enough to give the offense a chance to get back into the game.
The poor defense overshadowed a sensational game for Strus. He played one of his best performances in a Cavalier uniform as he seemingly couldn’t miss from three, going 6-7 from beyond the arc. Strus highlighted how well-rounded an offensive player he is as he was impactful on the offensive glass and as a second-side playmaker.
Strus finished the afternoon with 24 points on 7-9 shooting with eight rebounds.
James Harden played his worst game in a Cavalier uniform. He struggled to take care of the ball, coughing it up six times. He wasn’t able to make up for it with his scoring as he provided just 13 points on 4-12 shooting with seven assists.
Donovan Mitchell had a good game on the stat sheet. He supplied 26 points and 11 assists on 10-24 shooting, but it hardly ever felt like he was really impacting the game the way we’ve come to expect.
Evan Mobley had 18 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists on 8-14 shooting in the loss.
Cooper Flagg led the Mavs with 27 points and 10 assists on 10-16 shooting. It was an outstanding game from someone expected to win the Rookie of the Year.
Naji Marshall (25 points) and P.J. Washington (20 points) helped lead Dallas’s potent offense on Sunday afternoon.
The Cavs will look to pick up the pieces as they travel to Wisconsin to take on the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night. Tip-off is at 8 PM.
Read the full article here