You won't believe the Hawks lineup that routed the Cavs on their home court
The Atlanta Hawks were missing several starters Friday night in Cleveland, going up against a Cavaliers team that had just moved into the No. 1 spot in the East with a statement-sending win at Boston.
And as you might expect, it wasn't close. As you might not expect, it was the Hawks' B-team that routed the Cavs.
This is the lineup the Hawks started: Ersan Ilyasova, Tim Hardaway Jr., Kris Humphries, Jose Calderon and Taurean Prince.
This was the final score: 114-100, Hawks.
https://twitter.com/ATLHawks/status/850523923586453504
"The energy level was just real bad," LeBron James told reporters. "I don't know why."
https://twitter.com/RealSkipBayless/status/850524911269326848
https://twitter.com/RealSkipBayless/status/850524188615913472
Mike Dunleavy came off the bench to scorch his old Cavs team with 20 points in 19 minutes, while Hardaway scored 15 of his 22 in the fourth for the Hawks, who also were coming off a win over Boston the night before. Dwight Howard, Paul Millsap, Dennis Schroder, Kent Bazemore and Thabo Sefolosha never got off the bench at all, as Atlanta racked up a 55-21 edge in bench points, 39-23 in assists, and closed the game on a 29-13 run.
The Cavs, who'd won four straight, wasted an efficient night by James: 27 points on 12-of-15 shooting, with eight rebounds and seven assists. They also wasted a chance to rest him and Irving, who said afterward that his surgically repaired left knee is bothering him, and now once again they face the questions about whether they're prepared to defend their championship — at least until the teams meet again Sunday in Atlanta.
https://twitter.com/JasonLloydNBA/status/850524407755923456
https://twitter.com/MattGlenesk/status/850535115189100545
