Game Thread | Game #7 | Celtics @ Cavs | Nov. 2, 2022

[KilgoreTrout]

I thought this would be more of a defensive game than last week. The Cavs would have killed them with just a little 3-point shooting from the bench. As someone pointed out, Wade/Love/Cedi were 0-for-11 on 3's. That may not happen again this year and we still won.

Garland, LeVert, and Mitchell all played 42-46 minutes. Yep, a playoff game. We want the tiebreaker if we end up tied with Boston.

Garland was incredible with a 29/12/5 line and 3 steals, but he did miss a free throw at the end of regulation so all the Celts needed was a 2-pointer to get to OT. He also missed the open 6-footer with 3 seconds left in OT.

I'm getting frustrated with Allen's inability to finish when he's right at the rim with a smaller man on him. Somehow he either gets stripped, blocked, or misses the shot with no foul called. You think he has an easy bucket and the next thing you know the opponent has the ball and Allen is looking at the ref asked where's the foul.

LeVert was 0-for-6 on 2's. Man, this guy cannot buy a bucket inside the 3-point stripe. He also missed two free throws.

But overall the Cavs got the win despite a pretty bad shooting night. They did a nice job on Tatum (8-for-21 with 6 turnovers) and Brown (10-for-26). Brogden had a good game off the bench with a line of 15/4/3 in 24 minutes. I thought he kept them in it.

Ageless Al Horford (actually he's 36) played 40 minutes with 12 points, 12 boards, and a team high +11. I hope he's worn down by the end of the season because he's still very effective.

The Celts were as cold as us. Slightly more so, actually. We shot 42%, they shot 41%. We shot 28% from 3, they shot 27% from 3. Celts don’t miss FTs, tho.

 

[jjvors]

,Game highlights. Enjoy!

 

[InBoobieWeTrust]

Mobley is coming on like a freight train as he gets more comfortable on the ankle and within the offense. If it was a situation with just him and one of the guards we wouldn’t be as good but he’d easily be 20/10/4 or something like that. 7/8 15/7 in just 32 of a possible 53 minutes. Just dominant defensively.

Garland coming back with a performance like tonight shows just how special he is and it cements just how special our backcourt is. I’d take them over Paul and Booker. That’s how good these two guys are. Best backcourt in the NBA. Best defensive front court. LeVert becoming a surprisingly stable glue guy in between.

We have something special brewing. Cherish this shit. I know we all see the roster and contract situation and ages and think we are just at the beginning, and we are, but in this league the time to appreciate a group of talent like this is NOW. Because you never know what may happen.

 

[KilgoreTrout]

ESPN refuses to believe that the Celtics lost:



Guess scoring more points doesn’t mean you won, anymore…

Tatum’s big dunk fuels Celtics win!

 

[J_J]

One more thing to highlight is that winning close games like this is very huge. Big confidence booster.

 

[jjvors]

Post-game interview with Donovan Mitchell.

 

[Hurl Bruce]

Ageless Al Horford (actually he's 36) played 40 minutes with 12 points, 12 boards, and a team high +11. I hope he's worn down by the end of the season because he's still very effective.

I think Cavs got Horford's best game of the year so far tonight. He's been hitting the under for his rebounds all year so far until tonight.

 

[KilgoreTrout]

More biased reporting from the ESPN article:

—
“Tatum forced this overtime with two sensational plays in the final 6.7 seconds.

First, he drove the lane for an emphatic dunk — and may have been fouled by Jarrett Allen— to tie it 107-all. Then, on Cleveland's final trip of regulation, he blocked Mitchell's step-back 3-pointer as the horn sounded.

Garland had been out since the season opener on Oct. 19, when he was accidentally swiped across the eye by Toronto’s Gary Trent Jr. A nasty cut under his eyelid and excessive swelling kept Garland on the bench in sunglasses.”
—

Saying that Allen may have fouled Tatum, but NOT saying that Tatum may have fouled Mitchell.

And Gary Trent Jr.’s “swipe across the eye” was as RECKLESS as it was “accidental”. And it was more than a “swipe” - his finger got under Garland’s friggin’ eyelid! And it was so accidental that it “accidentally” happened in the next game, too.

 

[I'mWithDan]

All I see is the Tatum highlight everywhere.

Someone needs to make the gif of him dunking the “L”.

 

[jjvors]

Darius Garland highlights! Welcome back!

 

[red.]

 

[jjvors]

NBA Game time response to the Cavs victory:

 

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[red.]

This is the closest I’ve ever seen a Cavs team.