Thursday NBA Roundup: Don't Sleep on Kevin Love's Value to Cavs Big 3
Remember, the Cleveland Cavaliers' Big Three is comprised of three stars: LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love.
Though it's easy to remember the first two as they rack up highlights and post gaudy box-score figures, Love can often fly under the radar. But every once in a while, he explodes, as he did while helping spark a 124-118 victory over the resilient Boston Celtics.
Irving will inevitably get a lot of love in the coming days for his performance against Avery Bradley's pestilent defense and Isaiah Thomas's attempts at defense. He finished with 32 points, five rebounds and 12 assists on 12-of-17 shooting. He also produced the highlight below and came up with a number of clutch buckets after Boston clawed its way back from a 20-point deficit.
James, as always, will get attention. Even though he struggled with his jumper and dealt with turnover issues throughout the night, he recorded 23 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists.
But let's not overlook Love.
All season, the power forward has played like the star Cleveland envisioned when it originally traded Andrew Wiggins to the Minnesota Timberwolves. He's been engaged on the glass. He's scored both on the blocks and from beyond the arc. His outlet passing has sparked fast breaks, and lining up next to an improved Tristan Thompson has allowed him to play better defense in a role with less leverage.
That was all on display Thursday, as Love went for 30 points, 15 rebounds, two assists and two steals while shooting 10-of-22 from the field, 6-of-16 from downtown and 4-of-4 from the charity stripe. His triples extended the team's lead early in the second half, and his energy on the boards was relentless, even after knee-to-knee contact with DeAndre Liggins left him hobbling for a brief spell.
Love will never be the leading star for Cleveland, but he's quickly becoming one of the NBA's most reliable safety valves. That much was clear in the first quarter when he posted 15 points, adding to his league-best opening-period scoring average:
As seen below, he made the C's pay for their decision to ICE a pick-and-roll between him and Irving:
Boston had to guard Cleveland's dynamic point guard in single coverage as soon as it realized Love was thriving as a spot-up shooter, and the trouble was compounded by his willingness to swing the ball around the horn and find other open shooters.
He's actually been doing this all season, as Synergy Sports pointed out:
That's the primary reason Love has been so valuable to the Cavaliers: Even when he's knocking down post-up attempts and rebounding with aplomb, it's his ability to produce spacing for Irving's ball-handling and James' assaults on the rim that's most key. For more, let's turn to SportingNews.com's Scott Rafferty:
"While it would be nice if he was the defender [Chris] Bosh is, having a stretch four who scores over 40 percent of his points from the 3-point line at an elite rate is a tremendous weapon to put alongside two of the NBA’s best penetrators. With Love’s confidence soaring to levels we haven’t seen from him since he was in Minnesota, he’s helping the Cavaliers reach new heights this season.
"
Entering the victory over Boston, Cleveland was outscoring opponents by a sensational 11.7 points per 100 possessions with Love on the floor. And, believe it or not, his on/off discrepancy is actually larger than the one produced by another member of the leading triumvirate:
| Kyrie Irving | 7.2 | 4.4 | 2.8 |
| LeBron James | 12.5 | Minus-7.8 | 20.3 |
| Kevin Love | 11.7 | Minus-1.8 | 13.5 |
Is Love better than Irving?
Probably not, but it's debatable. NBA Math's total points added has the power forward as Cleveland's No. 2 contributor (63.54 TPA), slightly ahead of Irving (60.14) and well behind James (178.03).
But how they stack up is ultimately irrelevant, seeing as they work together to win games. What's more important is that Cleveland is realizing just how valuable Love can be and acting accordingly, maximizing his skill set by using him as a floor-spacing threat with energy to contribute in other areas.
"He's the Kevin Love of old and this is everything we expected out of him," James recently told Cleveland.com's Chris Fedor. "That's what we want out of him. But there's no added pressure for him. He's going out and just playing his game right now. He's at a point where he's just comfortable with everything and it's great to have him."
Boston might disagree.
Nicolas Batum Picks Up the Slack
By the time the final buzzer marked the end of the Charlotte Hornets' 91-82 victory over the Miami Heat, Kemba Walker had put together a solid outing. He took over down the stretch, splitting double-teams to earn easy layups and knocking down perimeter jumpers en route to 22 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
But at one point, Walker was mired in the midst of a miserable night. He made just three of his nine field-goal attempts during the first half, smothered by a Miami defense that seemed intent on stopping him at all costs.
Enter Nicolas Batum.
The versatile swingman finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists, three steals and a block—a line no player has matched since Jimmy Butler destroyed the Detroit Pistons in early April. Even those numbers may sell his versatility short, since he contributed in nearly every way imaginable (his three-point jumper serving as the lone exception).
This isn't anything new.
Though Walker continues to draw Hornets headlines and should be a lock to make the Eastern Conference All-Star roster for the first time in his career, Batum has been on fire during his last few outings:
| Dec. 20 vs. LAL | 23 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 0 |
| Dec. 23 vs. CHI | 20 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 1 |
| Dec. 26 @ BRK | 24 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 0 |
| Dec. 28 @ ORL | 20 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 |
| Dec. 29 vs. MIA | 16 | 13 | 8 | 3 | 1 |
| Average | 20.6 | 8.6 | 8.2 | 1.8 | 0.4 |
The Hornets are now 19-14, pulling even with the Celtics for the East's No. 3 spot.
They're also much more than a one-man show.
Westbrook Giveth, and Westbrook Taketh
It's tough to win when the man who bears so much responsibility has an off-night.
Such was the case Thursday night for the Oklahoma City Thunder, who couldn't do anything against the Memphis Grizzlies while Russell Westbrook was struggling. By the time he received his second technical for arguing a foul (seen below)—and the ensuing ejection with 6:41 remaining in the third quarter—they were down 61-45.
It didn't get much better, and the Thunder's misery finally ended when they were mercifully allowed to leave the court with a 114-80 defeat, having been outscored 53-35 after the point guard's departure.
Westbrook has been masterful in 2016-17, to the point he should be considered MVP frontrunner. He's meant everything to the Thunder on offense, possessing the rock nearly every possession and carrying his troops to victory with an endless barrage of scoring and assists. Entering the night, OKC had earned a 5.7 net rating with him on the floor, and a minus-10.1 without him.
But flaws reared their ugly heads against Memphis.
At the time of his ejection, he'd recorded 21 points, five rebounds and two steals. That sounds fine, until you realize he also had six turnovers with zero assists and shot just 6-of-19 from the field.
Don't read too much into this. It was merely a one-off performance from a superhuman point guard who's bound to struggle every once in a while. If we've learned anything, we can probably assume he'll go for triple-doubles in each of his next 473 outings.
But all the same, the Thunder's inability to provide the necessary support for their struggling star should underscore just how vital he is to their chances.
Even the Best Offenses Have Off-Nights
The Toronto Raptors are an offensive juggernaut in 2016-17.
DeMar DeRozan has been putting together one mid-range assault after another, while Kyle Lowry is thriving in so many different ways. Terrence Ross, Norman Powell, Patrick Patterson, Jonas Valanciunas etc. are contributing, to the point that Toronto entered its showdown with the Phoenix Suns as the proud owners of the league's top offensive rating.
Surely, they'd destroy Phoenix, which ranked No. 25 on the preventing end, right?
But anything can happen in the NBA, and the Raptors went ice cold during the first three quarters, connecting on only two of their 19 three-point attempts. Even with better shooting in the final period, they could only muster up 91 points total—just the sixth time this year they've failed to hit triple digits.
Put us in the same category as CBS Sports' Matt Moore:
"Count me among “not worried about Toronto at all”
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) December 30, 2016"
Bad nights happen. It may be even weirder that the Raptors struggled on the same night as Westbrook's worst outing of the year, but strange coincidences are still just coincidences.
Kudos to the Suns for their efforts Thursday night, but don't expect this to be the beginning of a sustainable trend for either outfit.
Welcome Back, George Hill
The Utah Jazz point guard finally returned from the sprained toe that sidelined him for each of the last 12 games, and the results were palpable.
Though Jahlil Okafor kept the Philadelphia 76ers alive with a strong offensive performance in the first two quarters, it was George Hill and Rodney Hood who propelled the home team to a monstrous second half and a 100-83 victory. During the final two periods, Hood, who seems fully recovered from the stomach bug that plagued him over the holidays, caught fire and went for 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting. But he still ceded center stage to Hill.
The floor general just couldn't miss:
Throughout those final 24 minutes, Hill recorded 16 points, six rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block while shooting 6-of-7 from the field and making both of his three-point attempts. He was in complete control of the offense and pestered Philadelphia's overmatched guards, ceaselessly reminding the world just how much better he has made this team.
According to NBA Math's FATS model, it's a lot better:
The Jazz are finally starting to get healthy after spending the first third of the season dealing with more injuries than anyone else. The fact they're still 20-13 after this win should strike fear into the hearts of the other second-tier teams in the Western Conference.
Dunk of the Night: Jordan Clarkson
The Los Angeles Lakers don't have much to be thrilled about following their 101-89 loss to the Dallas Mavericks. After a solid first half, everything fell apart in the third quarter, with Nick Young's shooting serving as the lone exception.
But if they want to feel good, they can just watch this on repeat:
Major props, Jordan Clarkson.
Shaqtin' a Fool Candidate of the Night: Kemba Walker
Just watch:
"Oh Kemba Walker will be seeing this on highlights for all the wrong reasons for a long time to come. pic.twitter.com/kbjp94FUFO
— Will Manso (@WillManso) December 30, 2016"
Thursday's Final Scores
- Charlotte Hornets 91, Miami Heat 82
- Memphis Grizzlies 114, Oklahoma City Thunder 80
- Cleveland Cavaliers 124, Boston Celtics 118
- Phoenix Suns 99, Toronto Raptors 91
- Utah Jazz 100, Philadelphia 76ers 83
- Dallas Mavericks 101, Los Angeles Lakers 89
Adam Fromal covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @fromal09.
Unless otherwise indicated, all stats from Basketball-Reference.com, NBA.com or NBA Math and accurate heading into games on Dec. 29.
.jpg?w=600 "Cards Had Wrong Love Number 😅")
.jpg?w=600 "Best Players Left After Round 1 🔢")
.jpg?w=600 "Rams' Post-Draft Presser 😐")