Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals between the Cavaliers and the Hawks was about one thing and one thing only, the Cavaliers were ready to get this series over with and move onto the NBA Finals. They did not look past their opponent but the way the Cavaliers played it was obvious that they expected to win this game. They did not want this series to be extended.
This movie had a small plot twist, Uncle Drew aka Kyrie Irving returned to the starting line up after missing games two and three due to tendinitis in his left knew. The Cavaliers wanted him to get some playing time so that he would not go into the finals cold and out of rhythm. He scored 16 points on 6-11 shooting while only playing 21 minutes. He looked good on the floor he did not seem out of rhythm on the offensive end but he was sluggish on defense, which would be expected for someone coming off this injury.
This was a complete team effort for the Cavaliers; they received big contributions from every player that took the court. J.R Smith had 18 points, Tristan Thompson dominated the offensive boards, grabbing 11 boards and scoring 16points including a buzzer beater at the end of the first quarter to fire up the home crowd. Timothy Mosgov was big in this game he played big and brought energy when he was on the floor, he scored 14 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and had 3 blocks on the night. Then it was that guy, number 23, the king, Mr. LeBron James who’s 23 points, 7 assists and 9 rebounds led the team to a dominating victory over the helpless Hawks. James had another game where he just left him imprint on every part of the game and the Hawks could do nothing but watch as they were swept out of the Eastern Conference Finals.
Once again just as in all three previous games the Hawks inexplicably stopped doing all the things that got them the number one seed in the east. No player movement, no ball movement, too much one on one plays and they struggled mightily from behind the arc, in fact they shot a woeful 5-32 which in itself is one of the main reasons that they just could not make any sort of comeback against the Cavs. Many of those 3’s were contested and out of rhythm and led to Cavalier rebounds and fast breaks; the Hawks were out rebounded 56-39 in this game. Al Horford, the heart and soul of the Hawks could only manage 2 points on the night and was only able to secure 2 rebounds. Jeff Teague was aggressive to begin the game and finished with 17 points but only had 1 assist again highlighting their inability to move the ball. Paul Milsap contributed with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
The Cavs now have 8 days until game 1 of the NBA Finals; this gives Irving plenty of time to rest his knee and to regain his playing rhythm. They are still awaiting an opponent as the Western Conference finals continues on Wednesday night with the Warriors holding a 3-1 series lead over the Rockets.