What we learned: Kevin Love leads Cavaliers to win, but Wizards are for real
A classic game finished with the Cavs on top, but Washington showed it can hang with the champs
By
Matt Moore
•
4 min read
Monday night's classic between Cleveland and Washington was the rare regular-season game that delivered in drama, quality of play, and meaningful takeaways for the season going forward. The Cavaliers found a way to win in overtime, 140-135, with Kyrie Irving shrugging off a bad game to go for 11 points in the extra frame. The Cavs would have come up short had it not been for an insane shot from LeBron James to tie off a full-court inbounds pass from Kevin Love.
But while the Cavaliers got the victory and ended the Wizards' home winning streak, there was a lot more to take away from this game.
1. The Wizards are ready to make some noise. You know what this game reminded me of? That Thunder-Warriors game from last year, where the Thunder had them dead to rights and the Warriors found a way to drag it to overtime and then Curry hit that insane near-half-court shot? The Thunder went oh-fer in the regular season vs. the Warriors, then took a 3-1 lead on Golden State before Klay Thompson triggered a nuclear reaction in Game 6 to spark the biggest comeback in NBA history... until he Finals.
The point is, the Thunder showed in those games that they could match up with the Warriors, that they had the firepower. The Wizards have done something similar. They can match up with the Cavaliers; they have the firepower. Bradley Beal is ready for primetime, putting up 41 points on 16-of-28 shooting. John Wall is a constant playmaking machine, finishing with 22 points and 12 assists. Otto Porter gives them a spot-up shooter who also defends at a high level; imagine Andre Roberson if he could shoot. Marcin Gortat is the defensive presence that you need.
Watch how the Wizards help the helper here. Their defensive communication and principles are just really sound:
The formula is there. They match up well with the Celtics, they've already shown this core can get past Toronto. No other teams in the East are scary. They play both ends of the floor, can hit big shots in crunch time, and bring physicality. The Wizards are the team that you should look out for in the East, as always, with emphasis, if they can stay healthy.
2. Kevin Love is the second-most important Cavalier. We'll talk about Kyrie Irving in a minute. But Love really does unlock something for Cleveland. He's playing the best basketball of his career, and on a night where a rumor LeBron wants to trade him ran rampant, Love delivered big time.
Love can exploit mismatches, and he's almost always in a mismatch. Smaller defenders can't handle him down low and he gobbles up rebounds and hits post shots. Bigger defenders can't chase him in transition where he sprints to the 3-point line. His defense this season has been legitimately good, and the Cavs' on-off numbers are best with him on the floor. Love is vital to what the Cavs do, and any ideas about trading him should be answered with game film of Monday night.
When the Cavaliers tried to put Otto Porter, who plays power forward often, on Love, Love put him in the post. When they went to Markieff Morris, Morris couldn't effectively track him off-ball. And Marcin Gortat, who was great defensively for most of the night, just can't recover effectively enough to contest 3-pointers:
3. Otto Porter is going to make so much money. The future restricted free agent poured in 25 points and hit a series of huge shots in the second half. Porter leads the league in 3-point percentage among active shooters with at least 100 attempts, and he did all this while being the primary defender on James and adding six boards, two steals and a block. He's a big-time player and his development is huge for the Wizards' future.
Wall has grown to trust Porter from all the time they've spent together, and with Porter becoming a 45-percent shooter from deep, he can trust Porter to track the ball on insane passes like this:
Plus, Porter's length and athleticism can just snuff plays on all his own:
4. Kyle Korver is getting comfortable. Korver knocked down four triples, most off James assists, and those plays are why he was brought on board. The Cavaliers outscored the Wizards from deep by 21 points. Without the deep ball, they don't make it to OT, and Korver's adjustment is starting to look very good.
5. Kyrie Irving, when you need him. Irving took over in overtime, right after James fouled out for the first time in a long time. This is indicative of who Irving is. When the Cavs need him most, that's when he delivers, and part of that is his ability to thrive in clutch time, when it's grind-it-out possession basketball. He nailed an ISO wing 3 identical to his Game 7 winner from the Finals.
Irving is one of the best close-it-out players in the game, and his delivery when James was out is another sign of his emerging, independent stardom.
Steph Curry finds this play familiar.
Nothing to feel bad about there if you're Bradley Beal. Played him right, just a tough shot maker making tough shots.
6. The Cavs still won. Cleveland is unbeaten vs. the Celtics, Raptors and Wizards. That matters. The Wizards might have shown they have the best ability to challenge Cleveland, but that doesn't mean they can topple them. Also remember that J.R. Smith remains out for Cleveland, and they lost Iman Shumpert to an ankle injury.
The Cavs have reason to respect the Wizards, and Washington has reason to believe they can compete. But the Cavs are the champs for a reason.
