Potential Takeaways from Celtics vs. The Cavaliers Redux!

In general, you shouldn't make any brash assumptions from regular season matchups, especially not pertaining to LeBron-led teams. You never know when the King and his Knights of the Drive-and-Dish are gonna hit the nitro (or a roadblock) in the postseason. However, this is no ordinary pre-All Star Break scrimmage. The Cavs front office went absolutely wild just hours before the deadline, and managed to acquire four pivotal core players for six of their own. Namely, they got slippery scoring guards Jordan Clarkson and Rodney Hood, heralded bouncy role player Larry Nance Jr., and dependable 3-and-D combo guard George Hill for combinations of Iman Shumpert, Jae Crowder, Isaiah Thomas, Channing Frye, and Derrick Rose. Despite locking up their cap situation with Clarkson and Hill's deals, along with Hood's future deal, the Cavs seemed to do the impossible; turn a menagerie of aging players with little motivation and chemistry into a feasible future, all while keeping their prized Brooklyn pick (which sits at the 6th selection in the 2018 draft!)

Sunday, these additions got their first go in a Cavs uniform versus none other than the resident Eastern Conference favorites, the Boston Celtics. Boston looked to be as good a test as any; their suffocating defense and palpable team intelligence has vaulted them to 40 wins, and presents qualities that these pre-trade Cavs severely lacked. Yet when NBA fans went home and checked box scores, the Cavaliers absolutely demolished this formidable opponent, 121 to 99. Most (including myself) at least expected a close game, if the Cavs were to win at all. So what happened? Have the Cavs wholeheartedly thrown themselves off the NBA scrap heap? Should we expect this re-tooled roster to continue annihilating even the best competition? I'll try my best to answer that. 

The first quarter adhered to my expectations. The Celtics took smart shots off of concrete plays, and the Cavs jogged out the gates, with all things running through LeBron. George Hill has never been one to push the pace, but he looked tepid early in the first, tossing it to James whenever he could. That being said, LeBron and company found some points by abusing Boston's overly tenacious defense, getting to the line. Yet the Celtics continued to score from the midrange area, with Kyrie rattling off 6 quick points in the first 4 minutes. LeBron also gets going just a bit off of good switches, but not nearly as hot as he will. The rest of the first is in-game foreshadowing; the Celtics (especially Jaylen Brown) force the issue and fail to hit good shots, while the Cavs additions inject solid off-the-bench energy. Namely, Nance Jr. racks up two quick assists for dynamic Hood and Clarkson buckets. Classic Nance! He also got embarrassed by Horford on the other end, but that happens. Did Horford get more athletic this season? At age 31? 

Things fell out of favor for Boston in the second. Right out the gates, the Clarkson-Hood-Nance combination generated a smooth jumper for Hood, and Clarkson drove in for another bucket shortly after. Hood and Clarkson both generate off-the-dribble verve that the Cavs desperately need. Right around the 8-minute mark in the second, LeBron officially took over the game. Checking in after a tweaking his knee, he knocked down a classic triple-threat jumper, and basically willed the ball in for the next 5 minutes. The Celtics bench started making serious defensive lapses, leaving Hood wide open for yet another jumper on this play. Kyrie checked back in and did some damage offensively, halting Cav momentum for a short bit, but his team continued to stagnate, as Brown and others bricked a senseless number of threes. Osman and Clarkson created havoc on both sides, flying around for steals and rebounds, even if Osman got Shaqtin'd near the end. 

IMPORTANT HALFTIME STATS

LeBron James: 13 second quarter points

JR Smith: Hasn't missed 

The Celtics: Have missed (20 threes) 

The third quarter was the only one left worth covering. Once LeBron got some heat-checking out of the way, the Cavs resident X-Factors started doing their jobs. Namely, Tristan Thompson put up a big putback, Hill sneakily scored 5 points, and JR hit yet another tre-ball all within the first 4 minutes. After Marcus Morris hit one at 11:34, Boston missed their next seven 3-point attempts. Playing Steven's offense takes focus, and Boston's youth had none of it that night. Plus, when they allow so many middling shooters to bomb it regularly (Rozier, Smart, Brown, etc.) they're bound to have a few off games. Plus, Cleveland has some streaky players on this roster, and managed to add even more at the deadline, so when several are engaged, they look awfully scary. That being said, the four additions looked seamless on Sunday, and closed the third with this beautiful play for a Clarkson three. Notice the off-ball movement from the young guns!

TAKEAWAYS

1. Cleveland's new youth push the pace, handle the ball, and fit with LeBron. All good things.
2. The Celtics, by design, will have some off nights shooting.
3. Cleveland has many X-Factor type players, who collectively steamroll once in a blue moon.
4. Kyrie is still one of the more consistent, disruptive offensive players in the league. 
5. A Cavs adjective for this game was "energetic", one of the best things they could hear at this point. 

Their next games, barring injuries, will be a lot closer. That being said, the Cavs are heading into the All-Star Break looking juiced. Youth that can shoot will do that for a team. Koby Altman, who's to say what future years will return, but you did what every contending squad with an all-time great should do; surround him with fitting talent now and hope for the best.