Player grades: Kyrie Irving scores 32 in Nets’ intense 125-117 win over the Cavaliers
The Brooklyn Nets took a trip on Monday to Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse to take on the Cleveland Cavaliers and won 125-117. Brooklyn now leads the regular-season series 1-0.
For the Nets, Kyrie Irving had 32 points and five assists while Kevin Durant had 32 points and nine rebounds. TJ Warren had 23 points and eight rebounds off the bench and Nic Claxton had 10 points and two blocks.
For the Cavaliers, Darius Garland had 46 points and eight assists while Donovan Mitchell had 15 points and five assists. Evan Mobley had 12 points and six rebounds as Cedi Osman had 11 points and two assists off the bench.
This became a game of who was better from behind the three-point line. Brooklyn shot 60% from three-point while the Cavs shot 36.1%. It looks like the Nets concentrated of closing out on the Cavs and making them take mid-range shots or drive to the rim.
Brooklyn won the rebounding battle 38-33, but allowed Cleveland to win the points in the paint battle 48-34. Ultimately, the Nets had everything working in this game as they led by as much as 19 points that gave them the cushion to withstand the Cavs run in the fourth quarter.
Here are your Nets player grades:
Ben Simmons: B
Simmons was everywhere defensively. He was a pest on the perimeter as he was lurking in the passing lanes waiting to deflect/steal the ball and he did that several times. Simmons even did what he did defensively without fouling which is something that he as to work on as times goes on. He did not shoot a lot and actually passed up a lot of shots that he could’ve taken, especially near the rim. He did a good job rebounding the basketball and he was great in finding teammates for open shots throughout the game.
Kyrie Irving: A
Irving had a slow start to this game as he had only two points in the first quarter. However, he turned his game completely around by going off in the second quarter. Irving has his three-ball working in this game and he took full advantage of that as he rained threes on the Cavs. Irving did a solid job helping out on the boards and he was finding teammates in position to score to maintain the flow of the offense. He had his share of struggles defending Darius Garland though.
Kevin Durant: A
Durant scored in every imaginable way in this game. He was driving to the rim for some strong finishes, had his mid-range game working, and had his three-point stroke firing in this game even though this has been one of his worse seasons shooting the three. Durant was guarded mostly by Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, but neither one of them could stay in front of Durant or bother any of his jump shots. Durant did a good job on the glass and he was a menace defensively, especially in the first half as Cleveland struggled to score.
Royce O'Neale: B+
O’Neale did a great job shooting the ball in this game. He had some good finishes in the paint and his three-point shot looks to be back after he had some struggles from that distance recently. He also did a little bit of everything offensively as he displayed good vision by finding his teammates in scoring opportunities. O’Neale did a decent job in the rebounding department and he did a good job on defense when he wasn’t guarding Garland.
Nic Claxton: B
Claxton did a good job of being patient while waiting for the lob to come his way whenever his teammates drove by their defender. Other than that, he wasn’t involved in the offense like he was against the Bucks as Claxton did not get any post touches. However, he did not hinder the offense in anyway and he was great on the defensive end, especially at the rim. Claxton also did a good job of rebounding the basketball amongst the trees.
TJ Warren: A+
Warren had his best game as a member of the Nets. Not only was he uber-efficient from the field, but he was always in the right place at the right time. Warren is known more for his mid-range ability, but he was even hitting some threes in this one as he was clearly in a rhythm. He let Durant and Irving do their thing whenever they had the matchup, but when the ball came his way, he was ready to shoot and shot the ball with confidence. Warren did a great job on the boards and he was active on the defensive end.
Edmond Sumner: C
Sumner did not play much in this game and it was clear to see why. Even though he did a good job playing defense on the perimeter and playing the passing lanes, he was not involved much on the offensive end. He got some shots to go, but his lack of outside shooting prevented the Nets from exploding offensively. He did a good job of running the offense and not turning the ball over too much.
Yuta Watanabe: B
Watanabe had a slow start to the game offensively, but after awhile, his teammates found him in the corner for a couple of threes. He also had a couple of nice drives to the rim and he even challenged Jarrett Allen. Watanabe gave great energy as he was going after any 50/50 balls in his vicinity.
Patty Mills: D
Mills did not play much in this game. He wasn’t able to get anything going on offense and he even committed a turnover which probably led to his quick hook from the game. Mills also did not provide anything defensively and the Nets decided to go in a different direction for bench production.
