Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue challenged his team not to bite on pump fakes by Kyle Lowry or DeMar DeRozan in Cleveland's second-round series against the Raptors. The consequence of doing so would be $100 owed to Lue for each time it happened, according to Cleveland.com.
After three games, Lue was due nothing. But in Game 4, J.R. Smith bit on a DeRozan fake and his head coach collected his earnings after the 109-102 victory that closed out the series in Toronto.
"I knew it as soon as I did it," Smith told Cleveland.com.
Lue didn't send a bill in the mail to Smith like his tax guy, either. He collected his cash in the locker room after Game 4.
Smith might have taken DeRozan's pump-fake bait, but it doesn't overshadow his performance in the series. He has been one of the Cavaliers' most reliable defenders in the playoffs, keeping Paul George in check in Round 1 and drawing the tough assignment of DeRozan in Round 2.
DeRozan scored 37 points in Game 3, but he struggled to knock down shots at a consistent clip all series with Smith blanketing him. Smith held him to 8-of-18 shooting Sunday and proved his worth all series as a defensive stalwart and steady presence in the back court.
Maybe the $100 challenge will carry into the Eastern Conference finals for the Cavaliers, who await the winner of the Boston Celtics-Washington Wizards series.
