1. The night started off with great vibes in the air, as Kevin Love made his return to action after missing more than a month of game action.
2. Love looked fresh, scoring eight points in the first quarter.
3. He went on to only score two more points the rest of the night and played 19 minutes total, as he was on a minutes restriction coming into the game.
4. The Cavs knew they wouldn’t be able to play Love late in the game because of that minutes restriction, but unexpected injuries surfaced again, just as they have throughout the entire season.
5. First, Iman Shumpert suffered a shoulder sprain late in the third quarter, shortly after he attempted a thunderous dunk on Rudy Gobert. Shumpert did not return to the game.
6. Next, Kyrie Irving had to exit the game due to left knee tightness.
7. Given the theme of Cleveland’s season, it was the last thing the Cavs needed, but LeBron James stepped up when he was called upon – dominating the fourth quarter with 17 points to close out the victory.
8. In the process of scoring a game-high 33 points, James passed Tim Duncan to move into 13th all-time in field goals made (10,285) in NBA history.
9. Fortunately, Shumpert and Irving appear to be OK. Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue told reporters that neither injury was serious.
10. He expects Irving to play Saturday on the road against the Los Angeles Clippers, and considers Shumpert “day-to-day.”
11. Irving told reporters he felt being kept out of the game was precautionary.
12. “I went to Bron and said ‘you got this? He said ‘yeah,’ and for precautionary reasons I just left the game,” Irving said after the game.
13. LeBron kept his word and knew based on the circumstances, it was going to have to be one of those nights where he took the game over.
14. “Kyrie looked at me at said he wouldn’t be able to finish the game,” James said. “I knew obviously with Kev’s minute restrictions and him coming back, plus I knew Shump was out, so obviously I was gonna have to step up with the scoring load a little bit, and be more aggressive. I was able to do that.
15. His 17 points in the quarter were the most he’s scored in the fourth this season.
16. Lost in the shuffle, J.R. Smith knocked down his first dagger of 2017, stretching the lead to six with 1:10 to go, sealing the victory. It was a sight for sore eyes after Smith’s long road back from suffering a broken thumb and if we know J.R., it’s likely the first of many more daggers to come.
17. Cleveland maintains a 2.5 game lead over the Boston Celtics for first place in the Eastern Conference. The Cavs hit the road for LA, where they’ll play back-to-back nights against the Clippers and Lakers, starting Saturday at 8:30 pm ET.
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