Game 4 Recap
It wasn't a rout, but it was enough for the Cavs- 84-74.
Second straight sweep (assuring at least seven calm days for HD with no worrying about the team) and they did it the hard way.
Atlanta stayed with them the whole way, but down the stretch, the better team outplayed the gritty, gutty guys from the ATL.
It was an interesting game: Atlanta made a lot of free throws; the Cavs actually clanged some.
Josh Smith had a great game tonight, IMO- he and Joe Johnson showed up- very gutty performance by Johnson given the injury he suffered in game 2- but Mike Bibby only scoring 3 points hurt their chances.
The unsung hero of the game was Delonte West- 21 points, and two DAGGERS for threes.
LeBron did not have the astronomical numbers of other games, but his impact was HUGE- made key shots and big passes.
This game came down to three things:
1. Downtown shooting. Hawks made only one 3; Cavs hit 10.
2. Rebounding- Cavs had 48, Hawks 33.
3. Hustle and effort- there was a sequence late in the game when the shot clock was running low twice, and the Cavs got the ball back- two HUGE possessions.
As for the Hawks- good effort tonight, very good season overall. IMO, this team will challenge the Magic for the division title next season.
This was not a pretty game offensively, but in the end we played the game Coach Mike Brown was damn proud of. When the majority of our shots weren't falling, the team resorted to suffocating defense, led by Delonte West. D-West is one of the most underrated defenders in the NBA. He single handily shut down the opposing guard, Mike Bibby (3pts). Delonte was interviewed after the game and said that he's just executing what Coach Brown has taught him and the team; ie. "Defense wins Championships." Awesome game Delonte! I loved your effort!
A few stats from the series:
Through 8 games, the Cavs Defense is holding opponents to a mind boggling 78 points per game. That is unreal by today's NBA standards.
Despite an off night, LeBron is enroute to a historic postseason statistic wise. Only Oscar Robertson in 1963 averaged at least 30 points, nine rebounds and six assists in a single postseason. He did it through 12 games. Through eight games, James is at 32.9 ppg, 9.8 rpg and 6.8 apg.
BTW, it's funny we just said LeBron had an off night. He was still 41% from the field and 50% from the 3-point arc. The King finished with 27 pts, 8 ast and 8 reb. If that's an off night, I think we're starting to get spoiled.
The next week will serve as some much needed rest for the Cavs. We have a few players banged up and at this time of the season, rest is very much welcomed. I'll be watching the remainder of the Magic/Celtics series to scout out my Cavs next opponent. Good luck boys. See you in the EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ONE GOAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@party@party@party@party