Cleveland Cavaliers Blog – Page 60 – NBA Blog

Cavs stop slide against Bulls with 101-98 victory

Dion Waiters scored on jumpers, turnarounds and an assortment of moves in the lane. Shaun Livingston made a couple of a big plays in a rare start, and Wayne Ellington provided some scoring punch when the reserves were in the game.

Even without Kyrie Irving, the improving Cleveland Cavaliers had too much talent for the banged-up Chicago Bulls.

Waiters scored 25 points, Livingston added 15 in the same state where he starred in high school and the Cavs held on for a 101-98 victory on Tuesday night that snapped an 11-game losing streak against the Bulls.

”Without Kyrie, we knew it was going to be tough, period,” Cleveland coach Byron Scott said. ”But I thought guys stepped up big time.”

While Irving rested a sore right knee in street clothes on the sideline, Waiters converted a fadeaway jumper and a layup before Tyler Zeller drove along the baseline for a layup that helped Cleveland open an 87-78 lead with 7:33 left in the game…

Ellington finished with 13 points as Cleveland held on for its third win in the last four games, bouncing back from a difficult 109-105 loss at Miami on Sunday…

Carlos Boozer scored 27 points and Deng had 26 for Chicago, which has dropped five of seven. Kirk Hinrich returned to the lineup after missing three consecutive games with a lingering right elbow issue and finished with 11 points, 11 assists and six rebounds.

— Reported by Jay Cohen of the Associated Press

Heat beat Cavs 109-105 for 11th straight win

LeBron James scored 28 points, Dwyane Wade scored 11 of his 24 in the final five minutes, and the Miami Heat extended the NBA’s longest current winning streak to 11 games, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 109-105 in a back-and-forth matchup Sunday night.

Mario Chalmers scored 16 points, Shane Battier added 14 and Ray Allen had 11 for the Heat, who took a 22-point lead early in the second half, then prevailed despite being outscored by a whopping 30 points over a 17-minute stretch.

Miami was down eight with 5:16 remaining, and still won.

Dion Waiters scored 26 points, C.J. Miles added 19 and Kyrie Irving scored 17 for Cleveland. The Cavaliers are now 1-8 against the Heat since James signed with Miami in July 2010.

Cleveland erased a 22-point deficit in the third quarter to take the lead, and led by 97-89 with 5:16 remaining – before the Heat found a way to come back.

More specifically, before Wade found a way to come back.

Wade started what turned into a 16-4 run with a fadeaway with just under 5 minutes to go, then added a three-point play on the next Miami possession to cut the Cavs’ lead to 97-94…

Miami’s two wins over Cleveland this season, both at home, have come by a combined six points. … Heat F Mike Miller (ear infection) was back with the team Sunday, though did not play. ”He can’t hear anything we’re saying,” Spoelstra quipped before the game. … The Heat held a moment of silence pregame for Los Angeles Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss, the moment ending with warm applause from the crowd. Heat President Pat Riley coached for Buss, and Cavaliers coach Byron Scott once played for the Lakers.

— Reported by Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press

Kyrie Irving scores 35, Cavs beat Hornets

Bright lights bring out the best in Kyrie Irving.

Coming off an impressive showing during All-Star weekend in Houston, Irving carried the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 105-100 win over the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday night.

Irving scored 20 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter, including 11 in a row and 18 of 20, to help the Cavaliers break away from an 83-all tie in the final 4:23.

”In the fourth quarter especially when it’s winning time, obviously I want to win and my teammates want to win,” he said. ”Luckily, some shots went in.” …

The game featured two former No. 1 overall draft picks: Irving and Hornets center Anthony Davis. Irving made 13 of 22 shots and all seven of his free throws while having seven assists. Davis had 12 points and four rebounds…

Dion Waiters scored 16 points for the Cavaliers while C.J. Miles added 11.

Rookie Brian Roberts led New Orleans with 17 points, tying a season high. Robin Lopez scored 15 points before fouling out, while Greivis Vasquez added 13…

Hornets guard Eric Gordon didn’t play for precautionary reasons as he continues to recover from knee surgery. He has yet to play on back-to-back nights on orders of the team’s medical staff. Gordon, who is averaging 16.6 points, missed the final game before the All-Star break with a sprained right hand, but scored 20 points Tuesday in a 96-87 loss to Chicago.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Cavs want another first-round draft pick

As the NBA nears Thursday’s 3 p.m. trade deadline, the Cavaliers remain in pursuit of another first-round pick to add to their bulging war chest of draft picks. With time running out, there is at least a decent chance they don’t get it.

There was little chatter regarding the Cavs during the All-Star break in Houston, and for all the conjecture over Mo Speights’ future, multiple sources said over the weekend and again on Tuesday his name has yet to really gain traction in any trade talk.

Speights would seem a likely candidate to move because he has a player option for next season. Neither Speights nor his agent, Andy Miller, has given any indication if he will pick up the $4.5 million option for next season or opt instead for free agency. But about half of the league’s teams could have cap space next summer, making it likely Speights could get a long-term deal making at least the $4.5 million he will earn next season on his current deal.

“I ain’t looking forward to free agency yet,” Speights said Tuesday.

— Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

Marreese Speights not worried as trade deadline approaches

In Marreese Speights’ five years in the NBA, the 6-foot-10 forward/center has been on three teams. He has played for four coaches and has been traded twice.

So, whatever happens Thursday at 3 p.m., the NBA’s trade deadline, Speights is ready.

“It’s out of my control,” he said Tuesday. “I’ve heard a lot of things in my career. It’s up to the front office. Whatever they do Thursday, we’ll see what happens.”

The Cavaliers acquired Speights this season to help fill the void created when they lost Anderson Varejao to a quad injury. Speights has been a solid addition from the moment he set foot in Cleveland, averaging 13 points and 6.4 rebounds in 10 games. He’s come off the bench throughout that span, though he’s been solid enough that Byron Scott has had to fend off questions about whether he’ll be moved into the starting lineup in place of up-and-down rookie Tyler Zeller.

— Reported by Jodie Valade of the Cleveland Plain Dealer

Could LeBron James someday return to Cleveland Cavaliers?

Considering the way James left Cleveland in 2010, the idea of him returning less than five years later once seemed preposterous. But while James has shot down every question regarding his future, he has never ruled out a return to Cleveland. In fact, James began attempting to smooth things over with Cleveland last year.

“It would be fun to play in front of these fans again,” James said in February of 2012 before a road game at Cleveland. “I had a lot fun times in my seven years here. … I’m here as a Miami Heat player, and I’m happy where I am now, but I don’t rule that out in no sense.

“And if I decide to come back, hopefully the fans will accept me.”

The Heat will be major contenders to keep James in the summer of 2014 when he can first opt out of his contract, but All-Star Weekend added yet another chapter to the ongoing narrative that James loves the young Cleveland guard’s game.

— Reported by Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald

Kawhi Leonard 3-pointer helps Spurs edge Cavs 96-95

Kawhi Leonard made a 3-pointer with 2.9 seconds remaining to give the San Antonio Spurs a 96-95 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night.

Leonard’s clutch basket came after Dion Waiters’ jump shot with 9.5 seconds remaining put Cleveland ahead 95-93.

The Spurs, who have won 14 of 15, had stars Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili on the floor together for the first time since Jan. 13.

Kyrie Irving, who was held to a season-low six points, missed a desperation runner from the top of the key as time expired.

Tony Parker led the Spurs with 24 points while Gary Neal scored 15.

Waiters scored 20 points to lead Cleveland, which has dropped three straight after winning a season-high three in a row…

Irving, who rolled his left ankle Monday against Minnesota, was 2 of 15 from the field with seven assists.

Tyler Zeller, who was scoreless in 25 minutes Monday, had 16 points, including 12 in the first half, for Cleveland.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Kyrie Irving ignoring 3-point shootout advice from Byron Scott

Irving continues to dismiss any advice Scott could offer him on the contest, poking fun at his coach’s third-place finish in 1988. But Irving did get advice from former Cavs sharpshooter Mark Price, who won the event in 1993 and ’94.

“I’m not taking any advice from Coach Scott,” Irving said. “I know I’m a better shooter than Coach Scott. I believe it, he believes it.”

Scott scoffed at Irving when he told him he wanted advice from Price.

“That’s good. Mark Price won a 3-point contest and I have three championship rings,” Scott told him. “So I got the last laugh in that one. He shook his head, he didn’t say nothing after that. So that was the end of that conversation.”

— Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

Lousy loss cancels shootout, creates lengthy film session for Cavs

Cavaliers practice on Tuesday was easy on the legs, but hard on the eyes. Instead of a rigorous workout, coach Byron Scott turned the day’s practice into a film session that lasted more than two hours.

There was plenty not to like following Monday’s dismal loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Cavs apparently went through it all frame by frame. After it was over, Scott told his players to forget about it and get ready for the San Antonio Spurs, who will carry the league’s best record into Quicken Loans Arena tonight.

“We’re going to throw this game away and focus on tomorrow,” Scott said. “I said my piece as far as some things guys needed to hear. I also said enough of this talk. You’ve got to start doing what you’re supposed to do every single night. It can’t be three or four games where we come out and play hard, then two or three games where we don’t. If you really are serious about winning and getting better as a team, you’ve got to compete every single night. Pretty simple.”

— Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

Ridnour, Timberwolves end road skid, beat Cavs

All the losses and injuries had been piling up for weeks on the Timberwolves. They were shaken, unsure, almost helpless to stop them.

They were desperate for a break. And finally, they got one.

Luke Ridnour scored 21 points, Ricky Rubio added 13 and 10 assists and Minnesota snapped an eight-game road losing streak, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 100-92 on Monday night.

”We needed that bad, man,” Ridnour said.

He made a critical 3-pointer with 1:43 left and scored 13 points in the fourth quarter for the banged-up Timberwolves, who hadn’t won on the road since Jan. 3 – star center Kevin Love’s last game before he was lost indefinitely with a broken hand.

Nikola Pekovic added 16 points and 10 rebounds as Minnesota ended a four-game losing streak and improved to just 4-16 since losing Love…

Kyrie Irving scored 20 points and Tristan Thompson had 16 for the Cavs, who were within 82-81 in the fourth before Ridnour sparked a 10-2 run by the Timberwolves. Minnesota shot 75 percent (12 of 16) in the fourth quarter, leaving Cleveland swingman C.J. Miles to call out his teammates…

Derrick Williams had 13 points and Mickael Gelabale and Alexey Shved added 11 apiece for the Timberwolves…

Wolves G J.J. Barea played 15 minutes after missing Sunday’s game with a sprained left foot. Minnesota was also without Andrei Kirilenko (strained quad), F Chase Budinger (knee surgery), G Brandon Roy (knee) and G Malcolm Lee (knee, hip surgery).

— Reported by Tom Withers of the Associated Press