Sharp Spurs shred Cavaliers
SAN ANTONIO — The Cleveland Cavaliers acknowledged having heavy legs, but there is something far weightier on the minds of the defending NBA champions.
The Cavs are in the midst of one of their worst stretches of the season and there is little time to fix it.
Kawhi Leonard scored 25 points to help the San Antonio Spurs dismantle the ailing Cavs 103-74 on Monday night in a showdown that turned into a major letdown for the NBA’s reigning titleholder.
“The way we’ve been struggling, (the Spurs are) the last team that you want to play,” said LeBron James, who was fine after taking an elbow to the neck.
“They’re a well-oiled machine. They exploit everything that you’re not doing well ... and right now we’re not playing well at all.”
James, who finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in 29 minutes, said he will play on Thursday at Chicago.
Cleveland (47-26) dropped its second in a row, set a season low for points and fell a half-game behind Boston (48-26) for the top seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
The Cavaliers have nine games remaining, all against teams in the East, including a showdown with the Celtics in Boston on April 5.
James said the standings “always matter, but playing more consistently is far more important”.
He refused to blame injuries or an arduous schedule for the team’s troubles.
“It matters more that we’re playing better basketball than where we’re at,” he said. “If that results in us having the No 1 seed, the No 2 seed, No 3 or whatever the hell it is, we need to play better basketball. That’s what it comes down to.”
What Cleveland is seeking, the Spurs have already found.
San Antonio (57-16) is two games behind Golden State (59-14) for the league’s best record entering a home showdown against the Warriors on Wednesday.
The Spurs have won five straight and eight of 10 after sweeping their season series against the Cavs.
“It was a big game, but in the end, it’s just one game, and one win,” said San Antonio guard Tony Parker.
“We’re trying to be consistent. We’re trying to play the same way every game. It was definitely surprising. Coming off a loss, I thought they would play with a lot more energy, but it can happen.
“It’s a long season. It’s just one game and I’m sure they’re going to bounce back and use this game as motivation.”
LaMarcus Aldridge and Pau Gasol added 14 points apiece for the Spurs, who won their fifth straight.
San Antonio led by as many as 33 to the delight of the soldout crowd.
“We did a good job coming out early and then keeping our foot on the pedal,” said Leonard.
The Spurs bench outscored Cleveland’s, 49-24.
Already missing Iman Shumpert, the Cavs received more bad news on Monday when they learned Kyle Korver will miss at least two more games with a sore left foot.
“You lose Korver and Shumpert off your bench and things tend to change,” Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue said.
“With those two guys out, we tried some different things and it didn’t work. It was not on the bench; it was on me.”
Cleveland opted to play its stars rather than sit them for rest, but the trio of James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love sat out the fourth quarter of its second rout in the past two weeks.
Lue said he has considered resting his stars over the team’s final nine games, which James opposes.
“Coach is going to have his logic of things, but we need to play,” James said.
James exited with 25 seconds remaining in the third after taking an elbow to his neck from David Lee on a rebound.
James continually rubbed the area before collapsing after he crossed midcourt. He remained on the floor for about a minute before walking unassisted to the bench.
James left for the locker room early in the fourth quarter during a timeout, but said afterward he was fine.