The Cleveland Cavaliers suffered their first loss of the postseason on Saturday night, but even after a 99-84 setback to the Toronto Raptors, the team has a chance to seize a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals in Game 4 at the Air Canada Centre tonight.
Here are five things the Cavaliers will need to have in order to get a win and set up a potential closeout game against the Raptors in Cleveland on Wednesday night.
BETTER PRODUCTION FROM KYRIE IRVING, KEVIN LOVE
The Cavaliers have relied heavily on the efforts of point guard Kyrie Irving and power forward Kevin Love during their run through the 2016 NBA Playoffs, but in their first loss of the postseason, two-thirds of “The Big Three” struggled mightily against the Raptors Saturday night.
In addition to Irving’s three-for-19 effort and one-for-seven mark from three-point range, Love made only one of his nine attempts from the field and one of his four tries from long distance.
Although it was Love’s worst single-game showing in the postseason, it was his seventh game in 11 outings where his shooting percentage was less than .420, and he remained on the bench for the entire fourth quarter of the Game 3 loss.
“It's been a huge part of our success,” Cavaliers small forward LeBron James said. “We're not going to go away from it just because of one game. It happens. The ball doesn't go in sometimes, but we can't lose confidence in those guys. They helped us get to this point.
“We understand that in order for us to win every, single night, we have to have our guys play well. It doesn't mean the ball is going to go in all the time, but we can't go away from them just because it's not going in.”
LIVE UP TO TALENT LEVEL
The Cavaliers have lost just one game in 11 outings in the postseason, and as a response to that Game 3 setback against the Raptors, the players did their best to learn from their mistakes.
And tonight, the Cavaliers will get an opportunity to test those adjustments in Game 4 at the Air Canada Centre, as they look to get back on the winning track.
“If you want to get to where we want to get to, you don't chalk anything up to just missed shots,” Cavaliers small forward Richard Jefferson said. “You have to have the ability to win games when you're not shooting the ball well. If we followed our game plan to the T and they beat us, then you might want to chalk it up to that.
“We feel, like I said, that there were some mistakes that we made -- and they made mistakes, too, it wasn't one-sided -- but we look at it from a perspective of we have to get better. These are the things that we want to accomplish and these are the things that we need to do to improve going into Game 4.”
DIMINISH BIYOMBO’S IMPACT
Since the middle of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Raptors have been playing without the services of starting center Jonas Valanciunas because of a sprained ankle, but at times, they have found production out of reserve big man Bismack Biyombo.
Although the Raptors get less offense out of the center position without Valanciunas, Biyombo’s impact is measured by his hustle, which led to a 26-rebound effort in a 99-84 win over the Cavaliers in Game 3.
“His numbers have to be staggering from home and away,” Cavaliers Coach Tyronn Lue said. “The crowd gets behind him. He's blocking shots, he's dunking the basketball and he energizes the team and energizes the crowd, and they're behind him a lot. He plays a lot better at home. We've just got to try to do some things to take him out of the game.
“When you shoot 35 percent, there are a lot of rebounds available. With Biyombo being the biggest guy on the floor, he's going to get those rebounds on the defensive end, but the main thing is him having eight offensive rebounds is big for them.”
TAKE ON LUE’S PERSONALITY
Just like any form of competition, high-level basketball is intense, but despite being a rookie coach with 41 regular-season games to his credit before the playoffs, Lue has remained composed through the first three rounds of the postseason.
In working to get ready for Game 4, Jefferson, a veteran of many playoff runs in his 15-year NBA career, has been appreciative of the calm, calculated approach of head coach Tyronn Lue.
“At times, we can get frantic,” Jefferson said. “I think LeBron is emotional. Kevin (Love) is emotional. Kyrie is emotional. We have a lot of emotional guys that want to win, so to have a coach that's kind of that counterbalance of, ‘Hey, everything is going to be all right, we're fine.’
“At the same point in time, he's intense. That's not taking away from his intensity, but he's not someone that gets rattled or someone that comes in and panics at halftime. That's not him. I think it's a good counterbalance for our team.”
KEEP COMPOSURE DESPITE PHYSICALITY
James has been the frequent target of hard fouls through the playoffs, and that trend continued in Saturday night’s loss to the Raptors.
On a late fourth-quarter drive to the hoop, Biyombo wrapped up James with his left arm, and then, pulled him forward and down to the court. Biyombo’s play drew James’ ire, and the veteran small forward exchanged words with several Raptors, as well as officials before burying the ensuing free throws. However, James stopped short of responding physically, and that is a lesson he learned, albeit the hard way, many years ago.
“At the end of the day, I'm important to this team,” James said. “I can't afford to react in any kind of way that will get me thrown out of a game, but I will protect myself. I will protect myself. When I was in high school, I got low-bridged playing in an AAU tournament as a junior. A kid just low-bridged me and I fell and broke my wrist.
“That kind of thought always plays in my mind either when I'm getting thrown to the ground or if it's a borderline dirty play. I always think back to the Jay Z phrase and a line he had: ‘If I shoot you, then I'm brainless. If you shoot me, you're famous. What am I to do?’ That always plays in my head. Every time I feel like I want to react, I've got to keep my brain.”
