CLEVELAND -- Because of a back injury, Cleveland Cavaliers point guard George Hill was out of the lineup for three full games against the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the 2018 NBA Playoffs, and it took him a while to get his game where he wanted it upon his return.
But when the Cavaliers needed him against the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, Hill was there to do whatever was necessary to help finish off a sweep of the No. 1 team in the East at Quicken Loans Arena Monday night.
“It’s playoff basketball,” Hill said.
“You don’t have time to have self-pity and think too much. You’ve just got to play, play to win. That’s the only thing that we’ve got to focus on: just win the game. Don’t worry about matchups. Don’t worry about who’s guarding who. Just worry about making plays for your teammates and have fun doing it.”
PHOTOS: George Hill has made impact since return to Cleveland Cavaliers
In the close-out game, Hill converted five of his eight attempts at the hoop and went two for two at the free-throw line on the way to 12 points to go along with three rebounds, five assists and just one turnover in 29 minutes of action.
Hill got going early when he twice threw down dunks after going coast to coast.
George Hill coast to coast x 2! 💥#WhateverItTakes
“I was just trying to be aggressive and play,” Hill said.
“I knew, watching a couple films, how they were going under, and I was stopping, trying to create, and talking to ‘Bron and them, ‘just make it a foot-race, turn the corner and you can get downhill.’ Just things like that. Just trying to be aggressive in transition early to set the tempo.
“We set the tempo early. We were pushing, and I don’t remember, but I think LeBron probably only had a couple points in the whole first couple minutes of the game, so it kind of gave him a break. It took the team from laying their body on him, where he was able to get to his spots and come give us a spark later in the game.”
And it was not only offensive aggression that Hill had in the 128-93 Game 4 victory over the Raptors.
Hill and the Cavaliers held Toronto’s dynamic backcourt, Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, to just 18 points combined on seven-of-18 shooting from the floor in the elimination game.
“Just being aggressive, try to take the ball out their hands, trapping DeMar, making other people make plays, being physical on Kyle Lowry’s screens, kind of jamming him, me trying to deny him, take it out of his hands as much as possible, and just letting our defense work for each other,” Hill said.
With the Cavaliers back in the Eastern Conference Finals and in need of only four more victories to set up another chance at the Larry O’Brien Trophy, Hill is focused on bringing that aggressiveness against the Boston Celtics, who closed out the Philadelphia 76ers at TD Garden Wednesday night.
“It’s too late in the playoffs to continue learning,” Hill said. “You’ve just got to play. The first series, I was thinking a lot. Even in the beginning of the year when I got here, it was just thinking a lot, trying to be perfect, trying to make the right play rather than just being aggressive, so I’m continuing to watch film, working out with the coaches and finding myself again slowly.”