Weary, shorthanded Knicks fall to LeBron’s Cavs
LeBron James said all the talk surrounding his decision coming in 2010 is not a distraction to him or the Cleveland Cavaliers. Maybe for the Knicks, but not for the Cavs. Why?
“We’re good,” he said.
They’re also a world apart from the rebuilding Knicks, who were undermanned and overwhelmed yet again by an elite team in a 118-82 loss to LeBron and the Cavaliers last night at Quicken Loans Arena.
“We ran into a good team without any gas in the tank and it showed,” Mike D’Antoni said of the Knicks (8-10), who were clearly worn down in the second game of a back-to-back. They have lost three straight and seven of their last nine since a 6-3 start.
Meanwhile, the Cavs (15-3) improved their mark at the Q to a franchise-record 10-0 and have won six straight and 14 of their last 15 games.
Al Harrington took down James on a layup attempt with 10:36 left in the third quarter and was whistled for a flagrant foul. James felt the hard foul, which resulted in two free throws to make it a 65-35 Cavaliers’ lead, could have been avoided but held no grudge. Crisis averted.
Cavaliers, Celtics looking better every day
The Cleveland Cavaliers keep rolling at home while the Boston Celtics have been unbeatable almost anywhere. The Eastern Conference’s two best teams look better every day. LeBron James scored 21 points then grabbed an early seat on the bench as the Cavaliers improved to 10-0 on their own floor for the first time in their history and won their 14th in 15 games, 118-82 over the New York Knicks on Wednesday night.
The Cavs, who have won six straight overall, improved their best ever start to 15-3. Cleveland opened 9-0 at home in both the 1976-77 and 1991-92 seasons.
“We’re going to stay humble, and play every game like its our last,” James said.
Cleveland would be dangerous with home-court advantage in the playoffs, but the Celtics seem intent on keeping that for themselves.