The Cleveland Cavaliers took down the Atlanta Hawks on Friday while being short handed, 123-107. Cleveland was without their new acquisitions that they traded for at the NBA Trade Deadline Thursday, that being Jordan Clarkson, Larry Nance Jr., George Hill, and Rodney Hood. Nonetheless, LeBron James was magnificent in true triple-double form en route to a victory. It almost felt like a turning of the lead on the 2017-18 season for Cleveland, even though they weren’t at their maximum strength.
After a big road victory, here’s three takeaways on the Cavs’ good night.
1. LeBron Goes Off For Another Triple-Double– 22 points, 12 rebounds, 17 assists was the final stat line for LeBron tonight in the victory. The seventeen assists ties a career-high for James, with a career-high 46 points scored off of his assists.
Though most will be concerned about his forty-one minutes logged on a meaningless February game, one will have to remember that the team was underhanded. A win like this can also turn the tide for a struggling team.
2. Cedi’s First Start Goes Well- Speaking of minutes logged, rookie Cedi Osman logged thirty-nine minutes in his first career start. Osman did pretty well, scoring sixteen points on 6-of-9 shooting while adding five assists and six rebounds. Osman had a nice second half after starting 0-for-3 to begin the game.
Osman earned minutes through simply hustling and providing energy, something the Cavs lacked desperately. The organization is craving Cedi Osman and he continues to make the team look smart for playing him more.
3. Korver And Green Shine- In almost a tip of the cap game, Kyle Korver and Jeff Green went off in honor of traded teammate and second-unit running mate, Dwyane Wade. With Wade playing a crucial part in Miami’s game at similar times, Korver and Green scored at will for Cleveland Friday.
Korver had 30 points and Green had 24 points in a game where they expected to see a lot of time. They stretched the floor and knocked down their shots in the first game post-IT era. Going forward, that’ll be super important.
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