The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Hood breakout a silver lining on rough night
He had played in the NBA Finals barely more than Steve from Vermilion or Brian from Middlefield coming into Game 3 on June 6. But Rodney Hood delivered a boost and showed his scoring identity for the Cavaliers.
Unfortunately for the hosts, though, after being unable to get a hand in the face on Stephen Curry or Kevin Durant on backbreaking 3s — or contesting Draymond Green baseline for a dagger of a dunk to open a 108-102 lead with 25 seconds left — Hood and the Cavs may have as much basketball to play as Steve or Brian pretty soon.
The Cavs face a 3-0 hole in the Finals after a 110102 loss at Quicken Loans Arena.
“That’s why they’re the best shooters in the league,” Hood said. “That’s why they’ve won championships. They know how to get out of ruts at the right time. We played physical. We played great defense the whole game — just one or two plays killed us. Give credit to them. They were able to get some tough shots in the fourth. They exploited some of the things we were doing.
“It’s tough. They really push the ball up the court. You’ve always got to have your head on a swivel with their shooters. If you’re not, being on helpside, making sure you communicate. So it’s a tough thing to do. We’ve done it for three games. We put ourselves in a position to win. It’s tough to come up short three times.”
Hood was one of four Cavs in double figures with 15 points and ontributed six rebounds and two blocks. He tried to do his part with more minutes.
“I’d be a lot more satisfied if we won,” Hood said. “I’d feel pretty good if we won. We’re one game away from elimination. It feels good to play well, but at the same time, we need to get the one two days from now.”
For someone who officially played two seconds in Game 1 and 4:09 in Game 2, Hood played a key role that would have pleased Steve and Brian.
“I just came into the game not even thinking about offense,” Hood said. “I was just coming in and I picked up the ball and I was pressuring full-court. That got me going. And offensively, it just took off from there. I was just focusing on defense than offense.”
Hood came in with 3:12 left in the third quarter, hit a nice pull-up jumper from the left side off a LeBron James assist 30 seconds later and added a free throw 90 seconds after that as the Cavs hung around during one of the Warriors’ third-quarter surges.
He also converted on a drive into the lane 24 seconds into the fourth and had a floater to pull the Cavs within 87-86 with 9:33 left.
“I’m very happy for Rodney. Played a good game,” Coach Tyronn Lue said. “He was aggressive. Attacking the basket, and he gives you a guy who can shoot the basketball from 3 and also put the ball on the floor. I thought he did a good job attacking tonight. Gave us a lot of momentum throughout the course of the game.
“Rodney’s very talented. We know that. Just from watching the five-on-five games those guys play every day, and just seeing him get his work in and playing those games and being aggressive, getting his offensive scoring and stuff back, he’s been great in those games. Just thought we’d give him a shot, and he made the most of it, and just happy for him.”
With 4:24 remaining, Hood fed Tristan Thompson in the paint, who drew a foul and connected on two free throws for a 95-94 advantage.
He was key enough to the charge that he was trending worldwide briefly on Twitter. Clippers forward Tobias Harris jokingly tweeted, “Rodney Hood being freed is up there with Meek Mill’s.”
Much to the Cavs’ lament, though, there’s a board in their locker room at The Q with standings on it for the Finals, typically where the Eastern standings would go.
A ‘3’ was added to that list June 6, a hole seemingly insurmountable at this point as Game 4 looms June 8.
“The season is on the line,” Hood said. “We’ve got to leave it all on the court. Regardless of what happens, we’ve got to come out and compete and try to get a win.
“The series is not over. These guys have been in this position before. Some of the younger guys, the new guys, have just got to follow their lead.”