Despite mounting a furious second half comeback Wednesday night in Utah, the Cleveland Cavaliers suffered their third loss in four games.
The Cavs tied a dubious franchise mark with just six assists against the Jazz, and their offense is clearly not in synch yet.
Head coach David Blatt reportedly wants LeBron James and Kevin Love to take the bulk of the shots, but point guard Kyrie Irving may have other ideas at the moment.
Per the Akron Beacon Journal:
David Blatt tried to establish the Cavs’ food chain during Wednesday’s film session and team meeting. According to a source with knowledge of the meeting, Blatt essentially told the players that LeBron James and Kevin Love eat first and that it’s Kyrie Irving’s job as point guard to feed them. Irving can then find his own rhythm after the first two guys get going.
Yet when Wednesday’s game ended, Irving had 34 points, 0 assists and led the team in shots (23). Love, meanwhile, was 2-for-10. He didn’t have a basket after the first quarter and he only took five shots in the second half (missed them all). He did, however, go 9-for-11 from the free-throw line.
Here was Irving’s response when asked if only six assists is a concern: “No, no, no. We have great players on this team. Sometimes things happen in the game and you have to take it – me and Bron saw that at the end of the game. We gave guys ample opportunities, guys just weren’t hitting. Especially when we were going swing-swing action.” […] And here’s James: “There’s no way you can win a basketball game like that, just having six assists. We just can’t win like that. We have to figure out a way to help each other and not make it so tough.”
