Cavaliers ride on James coattails

For the Cavaliers, the hope is that Love’s impending return will give them the second go-to option they require in the crunch. The points-by-platoon style has been a mixed bag at best and subject to breakdowns under pressure. In the meantime, they have no choice but to ride on James’ coattails, crossing their fingers that his brilliance will keep them afloat until they become whole again.

It seemed cruel to pounce on the Pistons, losers in the last two, in five of the last six, and in eight of the last 10 matches, but that’s exactly what the Cavaliers had to do to get out of a funk themselves. Prior to yesterday’s set-to, they were a poor one and three in their extended homestand over the past week, with their lone victory coming against the lowly Nets in a tight affair that could easily have gone the other way. And so they resolved to do better, if for nothing else than to salvage a measure of pride before loyal fans.

Not that the Cavaliers didn’t face danger. As poorly as their competition seemed to play of late, they were handicapped by the absence of such notables as Tristan Thompson and Jeff Green. And with the continued sidelining of All- Star Kevin Love, they felt compelled to recall G- League project Ante Zizic to shore up their frontline, where the Pistons had a decided advantage. The objective was to lessen the damage slated to be caused by Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond.

In retrospect, the Cavaliers did just fine, opting to fight size with speed by tapping relatively undersized Larry Nance, Jr. to start alongside LeBron James and the three-guard combine of George Hill, J. R. Smith, and Rodney Hood. The result was a wash for them through two quarters, no mean feat given the quality of the Pistons’ paint presence. And in the third, their All-World leader stamped his class and turned a potential humdinger into a laugher. By the time the perennial Most Valuable Player candidate left the court with 1:39 left in the period (and, as things would turn out, for good), the lead was a comfortable 16.

True, one game does not a turnaround make, especially with the Cavaliers about to embark on a six-game road trip that would require them to travel 5,500 miles over the next two weeks. That said, they’ll take progress where they can find it. And for as long as James remains engaged, as he has been since the D-Day trade went down, they’ll get decidedly better with time.

For the Cavaliers, the hope is that Love’s impending return will give them the second go-to option they require in the crunch. The points-by-platoon style has been a mixed bag at best and subject to breakdowns under pressure. In the meantime, they have no choice but to ride on James’ coattails, crossing their fingers that his brilliance will keep them afloat until they become whole again.