The Cavaliers were blown out by the Spurs on Monday night, losing 103-74. Kyrie Irving shot 4-13 in that game and finished with 8 points, which ties his lowest scoring output of the season and only the second time in 65 games he hasn’t scored at least 11 points this season.
The Cavs have dropped four of their last six games and now trail the Celtics by half a game for the first seed in the East. After winning only seven of their 15 games in January, they’re 6-9 in March and have lost by 12 or more points five times this month.
Irving’s averaging nearly 28 a game in March, on 49% shooting. Yet the 25-year-old said this morning that he’s holding himself accountable for Cleveland’s slippage. From ESPN:
“I had to face it, had to face the music,” Irving said Wednesday after the Cavaliers practiced in Chicago ahead of a game against the Bulls on Thursday. “I think we all had to do it. But me more importantly, I had to look in the mirror and just wasn’t doing enough. I need to demand more out of myself and do it at a high level.”
“I have to do my best as a point guard to integrate J.R. and K-Love and get our starting five back to having the continuity. It hasn’t been perfect, to say the least,” Irving said. “There’s definitely been some ups and downs and disagreements. But as adults and professionals we just have to figure it out. I think it just starts with our practice habits and what we demand out of each other. Just holding each other accountable.”
“We need it. It’s just a wakeup call so. Whatever you want to call it, we know what to expect from one another, we’ve done it at a high level. Now we gotta do it at an even different level.”
h/t ESPN
