CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cleveland Cavaliers have a new leader in the clubhouse for their worst loss of the season. And this one will be hard to top.
Despite playing without four of its usual starters at the end of a grueling road trip, Golden State lost to the Warriors B-Team 120-114 on Friday night. It is Cleveland’s third loss in the last four games and its first loss at home since December 26 against the Brooklyn Nets.
Humiliating. Shameful. pathetic. amazing. Ugly. Choose an adjective. They all fit.
The Cavs were unprepared, unmotivated and lifeless. It started at the vault as the Warriors exploded for 15 points in the first four minutes – and just kept rolling, even with their best players in street clothes.
“We didn’t respect the game. It’s that simple,” Cavs coach JB Bickerstaff said after the loss. “They have champions over there and we thought some of those guys were out so we wanted to take it easy and got what we deserved.”
After the Warriors’ overtime loss in Boston about 24 hours earlier, coach Steve Kerr placed superstar Stephen Curry along with Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins. Reserves Andre Iguodala and James Wiseman were also unavailable. Prior to the tip, Kerr said he’s playing the long game, trying to juggle his rotation and field a competitive lineup while still getting enough rest and recovery for his top-minute regulars.
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Curry recently returned after missing 11 games with a shoulder injury, registering 43 minutes in Thursday’s loss to Boston.
Those absences appeared to be a hiatus for the Cavs — although they didn’t have top-scorer Donovan Mitchell because of a groin injury, or Ricky Rubio, a veteran substitute who stayed on for maintenance because of his surgically repaired left knee.
Instead, Cleveland was attacked by the undermanned Warriors – a group of determined snipers who turned out the lights.
Building the lead to 20 points in the third quarter before fending off another signing, underplayed, late comeback attempt by the Cavs, Golden State poured out 23 triples — without almost all of them. It was just two away from hitting a season high. Just four away from the franchise record. The Warriors went from the Deep 23 of 43, many of them uncontested. The 14 brands in the first half was a season best.
“They are good basketball players and if you don’t respect them, they will make you pay for it,” Bickerstaff said. “We came out of the gate gently and disrespectfully, and they shot warm-up shots with no competition, no challenges, no one in their space, and they gave us what we deserved.”
Jordan Poole, the only available member of Thursday’s starting group in Boston, led the way. He finished the game with a game-high 32 points on 10 of 23 from the field and 5 of 12 from beyond the arc in 41 minutes. Ty Jerome added 22 points on 9-of-13 shots and 3-of-4 from deep, including a timely dagger to put Golden State back seven points in front after the Cavs narrowed the lead by the two-minute mark to just had shortened four. Donte DiVincenzo finished with 17.
In total, eight warriors made at least a threesome. Stephen who? Clay who? Golden State didn’t need the Splash Brothers to overwhelm Cleveland’s disinterested defense.
The Cavs finished with a 122.0 defensive rating, well short of their second-place mark of the season. The Warriors led for almost 43 minutes. There were only seven lead changes and two draws.
“I don’t think we missed them. They’re in the league for a reason,” Darius Garland said. “They did it in the first quarter. Going into the first game gives you confidence, that carries through the whole game and that’s it.”
Garland finished with 31 points and 10 assists. Caris LeVert contributed 22 points. Evan Mobley added 17 points and seven rebounds.
“I prepare for every game the same way,” said LeVert. “But I think obviously we didn’t play well. We didn’t play the way we wanted to play. There were a lot of defensive breakdowns, a lot of scouting report errors, things we don’t normally do. We just didn’t play well at all. They’re still champions and they’re spreading the place with the way they play. You move the ball and shoot a lot of 3’s. But we just didn’t really find out tonight.”
Ahead of the game, Bickerstaff said his team needed to be professional and play at the same level despite playing against an understaffed group.
There’s no way around it. The Cavs failed to meet that standard. pathetic. Awkward.
All Star Message
As the Cavaliers push for Garland to team up with Mitchell in backcourt at the 2023 NBA All-Star Game in Salt Lake City, Garland continues to lag behind in fan voting, meaning his All-Star fate is likely in the Will be in the hands of NBA coaches responsible for selecting reserves. So what is Bickerstaff’s message to his fellow coaches?
“It’s the same as last year: he influences the win,” Bickerstaff said. “What we value is winning. We want guys to represent the right things and Darius represents all the right things. He is selfless. He’s a great teammate. On top of that, he’s a damn good player, but he’s what we as coaches expect from players. He helps a team win at a level that I think should be recognised.”
Next
The Cavs host the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m
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