Kyrie Irving and the Cleveland Cavaliers are making a triumphant return to the NBA finals after winning the Eastern Conference Finals against the Toronto Raptors, but it was not as easy as it appeared it would be at first.
Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers
After two blowout wins at home to open the series, Irving had the worst game of his postseason in Game 3 on the road Monday night, scoring a playoff-low 13 points on just 3-of-19 shooting. The 6-foot-2 point guard had just one assist and three turnovers as Cleveland never found its rhythm during a 99-84 loss—its first defeat of the postseason as well as the first time it failed to reach 100 points in the playoffs.
Irving was better in Game 4 with 26 points and six assists, but struggled to defend Toronto point guard Kyle Lowry, who poured in 35 points to help the Raptors defend their home court and surprisingly even the series with a 105-99 win.
But Cleveland picked up right where it left off at home in Game 5, jumping out to a 65-34 halftime lead on its way to a 116-78 rout, as Irving scored 23 points on 9-of-17 shooting. The West Orange, N.J., native played just 27 minutes, resting for the entire fourth quarter of the blowout.
Irving had his best game of the series in the closeout game on the road in Game 6, notching 30 points on 12-of-24 shooting and nine assists to help the Cavaliers build a double-digit halftime lead and pull away in the fourth quarter.
He will now hope his second appearance at the Finals will last longer than last year, when he fractured his kneecap in Game 1 against the Golden State Warriors. Cleveland will face the winner of the Western Conference Finals between the Warriors and the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Dahntay Jones, Cleveland Cavaliers
Since all four of the Cavaliers’ wins against the Raptors came by at least 19 points, Jones saw the floor several times in the Eastern Conference Finals. He played a total of 23 minutes across five games in the series and scored four points, and the 2003 first-round pick will now make his first appearance in the NBA finals.
That moment when you're headed to the NBA Finals...
— Duke Basketball (@dukeblueplanet) May 28, 2016
Congrats @KyrieIrving @dahntay1!#DukeintheNBA pic.twitter.com/6H3ad7ZyzO
Although Jones played more than he is accustomed to last week, he made more headlines for being held off the court. The 6-foot-6 shooting guard was suspended for Game 4 against Toronto after hitting star center Bismack Biyombo in the midsection in the closing seconds of Game 3.
Kyle Singler, Oklahoma City Thunder
The blowouts have not been confined to the Eastern Conference, as three of the five games so far in the Western Conference Finals have been decided by at least 20 points. Singler has played 19 garbage-time minutes in the series and made a short jumper in the Thunder’s 133-105 Game 3 win for his first points since Oklahoma City’s first game of the playoffs. The Thunder are leading the series against the top-seeded Warriors 3-2 and can advance to the finals with a win at home Saturday night.
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