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Fear The Sword

Where LeBron and Kyrie bring home titles

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NBA admits to seven missed calls at end of Cavs Game 4 loss to Raptors

The Cleveland Cavaliers had chances to take a decisive 3-1 lead over the Toronto Raptors in Game 4. They had an eight-point advantage with five minutes to play, but squandered the lead with a combination of bad defense, reckless decisions, and missed point-blank shots. This all added up to a 93-89 loss with the series […]

10 Takeaways from Cavs Game 4 loss to Raptors: Can Donovan Mitchell lead Cavaliers where they want to go?

The Cleveland Cavaliers didn’t get the reputation of being playoff failures overnight. They’ve earned it through years of falling short in the biggest moments. Although their first-round series with the Toronto Raptors isn’t over by any stretch, Game 4 showed all the telltale signs of what has plagued this team in previous postseason runs: lack […]

Winners and Losers: Cavs vs Raptors Game 4 – The core is crumbling

The Cleveland Cavaliers looked ugly once again as the Toronto Raptors tied their series 2-2. Let’s go over today’s losers. LOSER – The Core Four Yep, all of ‘em. Winning in the playoffs can often come down to having the best player on the floor. In the case of the Cavs, they have an argument […]

20 Stats to explain Cavs 93-89 Game 4 loss to Raptors

The Cleveland Cavaliers gagged away a chance to take a commanding 3-1 lead. Their offense let them down as they dropped Game 4 to the Toronto Raptors 93-89. The stats in the table below are taken from Cleaning the Glass. As a note, the percentiles are in comparison to other playoff games, which influences the […]

Player Grades: Cavs vs Raptors Game 4 – Another Mitchell no-show

The Cleveland Cavaliers dropped their second straight game to the Toronto Raptors. The series is now tied 2-2, heading back to Cleveland. All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player. Donovan Mitchell 20 points, 3 assists, 6 rebounds, 4 turnovers We’ve seen the worst of Mitchell across the last two games. An […]

Cavs prove loudest critics right in 93-89 Game 4 loss to Raptors

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been consistently criticized for being soft and unable to rise to the pressure of a playoff environment. They’ve publicly pushed back against that notion, but actions speak louder than words. The Cavs played scared offensively. Their highest-paid players didn’t just have a bad shooting performance — that could be explained. No, […]

Cavs at Raptors Game 4 open gamethread

The Cleveland Cavaliers will try to regain the momentum going as they take on the Toronto Raptors in Game 4. Share your thoughts as the game unfolds. If you aren’t a member of the community, sign up so you can talk to your fellow Cavalier fans and make your voice heard! Go Cavs!

Cavs at Raptors Game 4: How to watch, odds, and injury report

The Cleveland Cavaliers stumbled in their first playoff game on the road. They’ll get another chance to take care of business and head back home with a 3-1 series lead over the Toronto Raptors. To do that, they’ll have to look much better than they did in Game 3. The Cavs were thoroughly outplayed for […]

Raptors starter to miss entire first round vs. Cavs

The Toronto Raptors announced Friday that point guard Immanuel Quickley will not be available for the remainder of the team’s first-round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Quickley, who was recovering from a hamstring issue, re-injured it during the rehabilitation process. The team added that an update will be provided “as appropriate”. After several injury-plagued seasons, […]

Cavs won’t face Immanuel Quickley in the playoffs

The Toronto Raptors announced Friday that point guard Immanuel Quickley will not be available for the remainder of the team’s first round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Quickley, who was recovering from a hamstring issue, re-injured it during the rehabilitation process. The team added that an update will be provided “as appropriate”. After several injury-plagued […]

Player Grades: Cavs vs Raptors Game 3 – A full blown disaster

The Cleveland Cavaliers got run off the floor in Game 3 against the Toronto Raptors. All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player. Donovan Mitchell 15 points, 3 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 turnovers Mitchell didn’t do enough tonight. Simple as that. It’s unusual to see Mitchell so uninvolved in a playoff game. […]

Winners and Losers: Cavs vs Raptors Game 3 – Raps control the paint

The Cleveland Cavaliers took a blow in their first game on the road against the Toronto Raptors. Let’s go over today’s losers, because there are no winners. Except the Tyson family, who deserve an honorary shout-out. LOSER – Turnovers Let’s start by setting the table. Or, like the Cavs, by spilling things all over the […]

Cavs fold in fourth quarter, drop Game 3 126-104 to Raptors

The Cleveland Cavaliers fought hard for three quarters, but got run off the floor in the final frame. Their inability to control the ball and rough games from their star backcourt came back to bite them. As did the Toronto Raptors‘ inability to miss in the final frame. This all added up to a 126-104 […]

Cavs at Raptors Game 3 open gamethread

The Cleveland Cavaliers will try to keep the momentum going as they take on the Toronto Raptors in Game 3. Share your thoughts as the game unfolds. If you aren’t a member of the community, sign up so you can talk to your fellow Cavalier fans and make your voice heard! Go Cavs!

Benching Jakob Poeltl makes sense for Raptors, but hasn’t helped close gap with Cavs

INDEPENDENCE — The Toronto Raptors made their first major lineup adjustment of the series against the Cleveland Cavaliers when they decided to bench their typical starting center, Jakob Poeltl, for the entire second half in Game 2. Instead, they opted to go small with the 6’7” Collin Murray-Boyles and the 6’9” Sandro Mamukelashvili nominally playing […]

NBA

Cavs at Raptors Game 3: How to watch, odds, and injury report

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been in complete control of their first-round series against the Toronto Raptors so far. They’ve cruised to stress-free wins in the first two games of this series, but anything can happen when the series shifts to a different venue. “The series hasn’t even started yet until you go on the road,” […]

Kenny Atkinson predicts Cavs role player to breakout against Raptors

INDEPENDENCE — The Cleveland Cavaliers have taken a comfortable 2-0 lead in their first-round series against the Toronto Raptors despite not getting consistent help outside of their star players. Max Strus’s 24 points in Game 1 account for nearly half of the team’s bench points through the first two games of the series. In Game […]

How the NBA’s most dangerous backcourt is learning each other on the fly

You can’t fake chemistry. It’s an intangible thing that’s so vital to playing winning basketball, you almost wonder why it isn’t mentioned more often. You can’t win a championship without rapport and trust. For the Cleveland Cavaliers, fast-tracking the process of building that connection between Donovan Mitchell and James Harden was their biggest challenge entering […]

Winners and Losers: Cavs vs Raptors Game 2 – Evan Mobley dominates

The Cleveland Cavaliers rode their three best players (Mitchell, Mobley, and Harden) for 83 points to take a 2-0 series lead over the Toronto Raptors. Let’s go over today’s winners, because there were no losers. WINNER – BAGcourt It was somewhere between Donovan Mitchell’s second windmill gather and James Harden’s third step-back jumper of the […]

Player Grades: Cavs vs Raptors Game 2 – Donovan Mitchell drops 30 again

The Cleveland Cavaliers took a 2-0 series lead over the Toronto Raptors. All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player. Donovan Mitchell 30 points, 5 assists, 7 rebounds, 1 steal This was another dynamic scoring game from Mitchell. He opened the night with a handful of ridiculous jumpers, including a one-legged fadeaway […]