Kristaps Porzingis, Tim Hardaway Jr. Lead Knicks to Win vs. LeBron James, Cavs
The Cleveland Cavaliers will be eager to put the month of October behind them as they fell 114-95 to the New York Knicks on Sunday.
The Knicks, who entered the game 28th in the NBA in scoring (96.8 points per game), shot 47.2 percent from the field and made 13 of their 28 three-point attempts. Tim Hardaway Jr. led all scorers with 34 points, while Kristaps Porzingis was right behind him with 32 points of his own.
LeBron James attempted just 15 shots, scoring 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds to finish with the double-double.
The regular season is a little over a week old, but The Athletic's Jason Lloyd noted how Cleveland's 3-4 start is generally an outlier since James returned to the team:
The Cavaliers' problems are twofold.
They're getting a number of new players integrated into the team, which is bound to create some issues early in the season. Cleveland isn't isolated in this regard, with the retooled Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder both sporting 3-3 records.
More worrying for the Cavs is that they're relying on the likes of Derrick Rose and Jeff Green to play key supporting roles. Rose started Sunday night and played 31 minutes, while Green came off the bench to play 14 minutes.
Green, Rose, Jose Calderon and Dwyane Wade are all earning the veteran minimum, which is good in terms of keeping costs down. The financial value they provide ceases to be an advantage when they step on the court, though.
Perhaps any panic about the Cavaliers will look foolish by the playoffs should they once again win the Eastern Conference title. The addition of Isaiah Thomas could be a difference-maker for Cleveland as well.
Still, Cavs fans have good reason to be a little anxious after the team was blown out by the Knicks a night after losing by 22 points to the New Orleans Pelicans.
