NEW YORK: Twelve thoughts for 12 turnovers in Wednesday’s 126-94 win over the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden…
1. If the five days off last month disrupted the Cavs’ rhythm, Sunday’s film session and practice in Toronto seems to have realigned them. For the second time in as many games, the defensive effort was dramatically better than it was during the three-game losing streak.
2. The season-high 22 3-pointers will grab the attention, but this team is always capable of making a flurry of 3s. The Cavs limiting the Knicks to 28 points in the paint, just as they held the Raptors to 32 on Monday, is a more telling number. That’s a vast improvement from the 51 points teams were scoring on them in the lane in the previous five games.
3. “We’ve just been flying around and communicating the last couple games in Toronto and here tonight,” LeBron James said. “Just trying to make plays and guys cover for one another whenever we break down.”
4. Carmelo Anthony played only 24 minutes and left early in the fourth quarter of the blowout, but scored just eight points on 4-of-9 shooting. It was the first time since January of last season he failed to score at least 10 points in a game and only the second time this season he failed to take 10 shots.
5. Anthony seemed to be a focal point of the Cavs’ defensive attack. They doubled him, blitzed him in pick-and-rolls and forced the ball out of his hands. With Derrick Rose out for the night with a back injury, the Knicks had nowhere else to turn.
6. "I thought we did a great job of flying around, sticking to the game plan, doing it the right way,” Lue said. “We made a few mistakes, but that’s going to happen in a basketball game of 48 minutes.”
7. Tristan Thompson outrebounded the Knicks’ starting five by himself, 20-19. He also blocked a shot and was credited with a pair of steals, giving the Cavs exactly what they need from him.
8. The starters took most of the fourth quarter off, but that didn’t prevent them from competing on the bench. The regulars entertained themselves near the end of the game with the water bottle flip game. Leave it to a millennial like Kyrie Irving to nail it while James struggled.
\9. “It’s just a social media craze, man,” Irving joked. “The water bottle, if you land it, you’re just like a legend.”
10. The Knicks are certainly improved and they’re likely a playoff team in the East, but they’re not ready to compete with the elite. They’ve now lost eight straight in this series against the Cavs, including the last six at the Garden.
11. Irving, meanwhile, matched his career scoring average at the Garden with 28 points. His 28.3-point average in six games here is his highest for any NBA arena.
12. The Cavs finally return home after a week on the road. They host the Heat on Friday. Talk to you then from the Q.