Never change J.R. (via @TheCauldron) https://t.co/WALVUmKTin
— The Crossover (@TheCrossover) November 30, 2016
1. On a night the Cavs gave up 68 points in the paint and Tyronn Lue yanked all of his starters off the floor with 3:49 left in the third, on a night LeBron James committed a season-high seven turnovers and the Cavs were blown out by the last-place team in the Central Division … none of that was the strangest part of the night.
2. No, no. The strangest play of the night goes to J.R. Smith, who temporarily forgot he was in the game late in the second quarter, then chose to deny remembering he was in the game after the game. Follow along…
3. When the Bucks were setting up for an inbounds play with 2:57 left in the second quarter, Smith saw Jason Terry on the Bucks’ bench and went over to hug him and say hello. During the game. Tony Snell, the man he was supposed to be guarding, seemed as surprised as anyone. He clapped for the ball immediately, Matthew Dellavedova zipped the pass to him and the Bucks got an easy dunk while Iman Shumpert and Tristan Thompson stood on the court staring at Smith in disbelief.
4. Now, there are plenty of ways for Smith to handle this temporary lapse in judgment. He could’ve said he blew it, he didn’t know they were inbounding the ball so quickly and that it wouldn’t happen again. Or he could put on a ski mask and deny knowing he was in the game. J.R. being J.R., he chose B.
Ladies and gentlemen, J.R. Smith pic.twitter.com/SXFjZv8z6A
— Jason Lloyd (@JasonLloydABJ) November 30, 2016
5. Smith obviously knew he screwed up and didn’t want to talk about it. Fine. But he somehow managed to bring even more attention to an already attention-worthy gaffe. The video is better than anything I can write about it.
6. Why was he wearing a ski mask? Good question.
J.R. Smith's "alter ego" likes ski masks pic.twitter.com/qt3uQiUk1g
— Jason Lloyd (@JasonLloydABJ) November 30, 2016
7. J.R. Smith folks, a national treasure.
8. Tyronn Lue hadn’t seen the play yet, but didn’t seem nearly as amused by it. It’s the type of play and reaction Smith would get crushed for on a losing team, but since the Cavs are winning, it’s dismissed as J.R. being J.R.
9. But that on-court sequence was a perfect illustration to a night when the Cavs just didn’t have it. The Bucks attacked the center of their defense all night with little resistance. As Lue pointed out, they scored 118 points on just seven 3-pointers. Giannis Antetokounmpo matched his career-high with 34 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to go with five steals and five assists.
10. The Cavs have struggled at times defensively this season, but they’ve been able to outshoot the mistakes. Not this time. The Bucks had 13 dunks, many of them complete with running starts and full windups. Antetokounmpo accounted for five of the dunks, while Jabari Parker had four.
11. Lue finally yanked the starters late in the third quarter because he didn’t like the lack of physicality, which was easy to see. Fourteen of their first 16 points in the second quarter came in the paint, turning what was a 14-point first-quarter lead into a 46-39 lead that grew throughout the rest of the night.
12. “We just didn’t match their physicality,” Lue said. “They ran some stuff that we showed they were going to run, but I just thought they were more physical. I just thought we didn’t match their intensity.”
13. James dismissed this as one of those nights in the league. The Cavs were embarrassed by the Bucks on the same night the Magic won at San Antonio and the Nets beat the Clippers in double overtime. So sure, these things happen.
14. But the lack of effort was alarming. This isn’t a team that should be tired. Lue canceled Monday’s practice in Philadelphia because he played the starters extended minutes Sunday to get the win. They have played four games in the last seven days, hardly taxing by NBA standards, and in fact it’s really four games in 11 days. Still, James wasn’t concerned, mimicking crumpling up a piece of paper and throwing it away to describe the night.
15. “Move on,” he said. “You just crumple it up and move on to the next.”
16. Matthew Dellavedova made a late appearance in the Cavs locker room after the Bucks victory to say hello to some old faces. Dellavedova has new clothes after signing that $38 million deal and James and Smith let him know they noticed.
17. The Cavs had the opportunity to lock Dellavedova into a long-term deal prior to last season, but elected instead to leave him with the qualifying offer. That is what led to the monster offer from the Bucks when the cap exploded and left the Cavs with a hole they still haven’t filled.
18. Of course, it’s the only hole on a team poised for a third consecutive trip to the Finals, and Dellavedova fell off so badly at the end of last season that Lue turned back to Mo Williams during the Finals.
19. James will serve as the backup point guard to Kyrie Irving – provided he gets a handle on these turnovers. James has committed 16 turnovers now in his last three games and called four of Tuesday’s unforced.
20. Now the Cavs begin a difficult stretch. They host the Clippers on Thursday, then begin a three-game road swing through Chicago, Toronto and New York. The combined record of the next three opponents is 35-17. Even the Knicks are playing a bit better of late. Talk to you Thursday from the Q.