The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Cavs hammer Celtics
LeBron James led the new-look Cavaliers to a blowout in Boston with an individual performance reminiscent of the rivalry’s heyday.
And this time, Paul Pierce was sitting courtside in street clothes, unable to do anything about it.
With the former Celtics great waiting to see his No. 34 raised to the Boston Garden rafters, James shook off a first-quarter leg injury to score 24 points with 10 assists and eight rebounds to give Cleveland a 121-99 victory on Feb. 11.
In their first appearances since being acquired at the trade deadline, Jordan Clarkson scored 17 points, Rodney Hood had 15, George Hill had 12 and Larry Nance Jr. scored five. The foursome practiced with the Cavs for the first time on Feb. 10.
“I know the guys that are here are very excited about this opportunity,” James said. “It’s my job to as the leader of this team to make sure that I acclimate the new four guys to be around a culture that’s built around winning.”
James scored 13 in the second quarter — eight of them during a 13-2 run that turned a one-point deficit into a double-digit lead. The Celtics made it 64-55 on the first basket of the third quarter but never got within 10 again.
As the Cavaliers opened a 27-point lead midway through the fourth, the crowd began chanting “We want Paul Pierce!” But he remained in his baseline seat, awaiting the postgame ceremony that would raise his No. 34 to the TD Garden rafters — the 23rd person in the history of the NBA’s most-decorated franchise to be so honored.
“It definitely gave me chills, especially with LeBron out there,” Pierce told reporters afterward. “I wanted to be out there.”
The current Celtics, who have spent much of the season in first place in the East, could have used him.
“Yeah, we stunk,” coach Brad Stevens said. “But they were really good. They had a lot to do with that.”