13 reactions to the Cavaliers brutal meltdown in Toronto
By Josh Hill
The Cleveland Cavaliers defense must have forgotten its visa and was left at the border while the rest of the team was sacrificed on live television.
Depending on who you are, Thursday’s Cavs-Raptors game was a doozy on a number of levels. Less a game and more a nationally televised public execution, Toronto utterly bamboozled Cleveland and pants them in a 34-point victory.
This latest loss comes in a long line of very troubling games in which Cleveland has let its opponent pull away like a getaway car after a robbery — whether it be Minnesota out West or Toronto in the East. Whatever is going on in Cleveland it’s not good and just about everyone had something to say about it.
To put it nicely, the Cavaliers were basically dragged behind a woodshed and quietly put out of their misery. The defensive struggles that have been food for thought this week on the talk show circuit showed up in a nasty way in Toronto.
Cavs defense currently: pic.twitter.com/KBSFqbEm6k
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) January 12, 2018
Fans are leaving the Air Canada Centre in the 4th quarter of a Raptors/Cavs game. Because Toronto is up 35.
— Faizal Khamisa (@FaizalKhamisa) January 12, 2018
Cleveland's defense is a major problem now like it was in October and will be in the playoffs. They must find a way to add personnel. The path to the Finals won't be a stroll. The East is stronger. If they make the Finals and face a healthy Warriors, these Cavs will get pummeled. https://t.co/I8p3aYShYC
— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) January 12, 2018
I see the Cavs defense taking the night off pic.twitter.com/CvFcxwrp7X
— Gifdsports (@gifdsports) January 12, 2018
Most people seemed to think that the reason the Cavs got caved in by the Raptors was that Kyrie Irving wasn’t there.
https://twitter.com/KobeTruthN/status/951648360619950081
https://twitter.com/KobeTruthN/status/951642111077531648
J.R. Smith did his best impression of a dumpster fire on Thursday night, and people didn’t let him off the hook for it. Smith played 27-minutes and mustered up zero (zero, none, nada, zip) on seven shots. The criticism wasn’t unwarranted by any stretch.
Other teams when the Cavs call them about J.R. Smith's availability ...pic.twitter.com/yew5oNPLCl
— Steven R. Walker (@Steve_R_Walker) January 12, 2018
“JR, HOW MANY POINTS U HAD? GET OUT. TRISTAN THOMPSON, GET OUT. HOW YOU PLAY FOR THE CAVS BUT YOU HAD ZERO POINTS. YOU NOT HOOPIN, GIVE ME YOUR RING. TYRONN GET OUT.” pic.twitter.com/S6qp7uZ5RB
— Angel Onuoha (@angelonuoha7) January 12, 2018
Not everyone is in full meltdown mode, however. While Thursday showing was one of the worst games the Cavaliers have played in during LeBron’s second tenure, it’s only January and that’s very important.
If only there were a precedent for the Cavs looking totally lost in January, folks freaking out, and then looking like fools come May...
— nick wright (@getnickwright) January 12, 2018
I hate Cavs games like this because you don’t want to overreact to what’s probably an exaggerated copy of what they’ve done every year since LeBron came back, but man. this is the worst
— Jordan Zirm (@JordanZirm) January 12, 2018
The fact of the matter is, it’s only January and never in the history of professional basketball has a team won a championship in the middle of the winter. Cleveland’s defensive struggles are real, and the trickle-down effect it has on the team as a whole isn’t great. But to write them off as a bust is one of the most shortsighted hot takes someone can walk away from this game with.
Problems need to be fixed, but lucky for the Cavs they have a couple of months to figure it out before things really start to matter.