Dribbles: Cavs, Per Usual, Make All The Right Moves At Winning Time To Fend Off Feisty Jazz

December 23, 2024

Random dribbles following the Cavaliers’ 124-113 hard-fought home win over the Utah Jazz on Christmas Eve Eve …

1. Believe it or not, that was incredibly tough. And the Cavs still won by double digits.

2. Utah’s size gave the Cavs fits all night, particularly when it came to rebounding that basketball. The Jazz feature a whole lot of tall timber near the hoop and won the battle of the boards by a 51-40 count.

3. Worse, the Cavs had about six shots go almost all the way down … then spin all the way back out. Wonder if that had anything to do with the basket needing to be replaced, delaying the start of the game.

4. I doubt it, but it’s sometimes fun to pretend.

5. Anyway, yes, this game was very close for most of the night, as old friends Collin Sexton, Lauri Markkanen and the Jazz refused to die. They may not be winning very much, but they’re clearly far from bad.

6. No matter, the Cavs (26-4) are used to being in these situations and they almost always deliver. Darius Garland. Donovan Mitchell. Georges Niang. Caris LeVert. All were among those making the right plays when it meant the most.

7. For instance, with the game in the balance and 52 seconds to go, Niang wisely cut to the hoop from the baseline after the defense collapsed on a driving Garland — who deftly found Niang with a bounce pass for a backdoor layup. Two points.

8. On the next possession, Niang picked off a Jazz pass, found LeVert running toward the hoop and it was slam jam with two hands. Ballgame.

9. That’s just been the story of this year’s Cavaliers. They may not play amazing but they’re always believing they can win. More often than not, they’re right on.

10. Garland finished with 23 points and a game-high eight assists. Mitchell and Evan Mobley scored 22 apiece. And the unsung hero may have been Sam Merrill, who buried 6-of-11 threes on his way to 20 points.

11. Merrill started in place of the injured Dean Wade and Isaac Okoro, and this might have been the night he needed to break out of his season-long slump. LeVert added 11 points; Niang had eight.

12. Mobley and Jarrett Allen (seven points, six rebounds) also deserve lots of credit for admirably tangling with Utah’s gigantic frontcourt of Markkanen, Walker Kessler and Mentor native Micah Potter. Again, the Jazz (7-21) have lots of size and talent. I suspect they won’t be this down for long.

13. That said, Mobley still managed to snare 10 rebounds and swat three shots.

14. This game, of course, had lots of connections. Mitchell and Niang once played for the Jazz. Sexton, Markkanen and Jordan Clarkson once played for the Cavs. Merrill starred in college at Utah State. Potter went to Mentor High. And I lived in a tiny apartment behind the state capitol building in Salt Lake City for six months in the 1990s.

15. Anyway, enough about that. Did you know that 31 years ago to the night (Dec. 23, 1993), then-Cavs guard Craig Ehlo buried a funky jumper at the buzzer to beat these very Jazz in Cleveland? Well, Richfield. That game also occurred on a Monday. For a while there, I thought this one may go down to the final shot, too.

16. Today’s Cavs sport the NBA’s best record and remain tied with the 2008-09 team for the best start in franchise history. One more win (Friday, at Denver) and these Cavs will hold the record outright.

17. Their 17-1 record at home is also the league’s best. They’re 9-1 in their last 10 and have won five straight by at least 10 points.

18. Whenever I write stuff like that I get a lot of “yeah but” responses about the past or the future. I don’t care about any of that. I pay attention to the here and now, and right now, these Cavs are cookin’. That’s not up for debate.

19. Markkanen led the Jazz with 26 points and Sexton scored 24. But neither shot the ball very well, and when you watch Utah, you realize that’s a glaring need. They need shooters. Wonder if they’ll try to use a couple of those millions of draft picks to go get available Nets forward Cam Johnson?

20. Back to the Cavaliers. Now, it’s about to get real — as they hit the road for their first extended trip of the season starting Friday. After Denver, they visit Golden State, the LA Lakers and defending West champion Dallas.

21. It’ll mark the first time all season the Cavaliers have gone further West than New Orleans. All four opponents have winning records. Three of them will have scores to settle (Nuggets, Warriors and Lakers) after losing badly in Cleveland. This won’t be easy.

22. Plus, the Cavs visit the Lakers on New Year’s Eve on the second night of a back-to-back. It will mark LeBron James‘ first game as a 40-year-old. You just know he’ll have something to prove.

23. That’s it for now. Merry Christmas and thanks as always for following along. Hoops Wire is having a year that’s beyond my wildest dreams, and you and you alone are the reason why. That’s a gift for me, so thank you.