The Cleveland Cavaliers have been consistently criticized for being soft and unable to rise to the pressure of a playoff environment. They’ve publicly pushed back against that notion, but actions are louder than words.
The Cavs played scared offensively. Their highest-paid players didn’t just struggle to find their shots; they shied away from the moment entirely. This allowed a Toronto Raptors team that would’ve struggled to hit water from a boat in the middle of Lake Erie to come away with a 93-89
victory to tie the series at 2-2.
To say it wasn’t pretty was an understatement. Neither team was able to generate any kind of offense through the first three quarters.
The Raptors took a narrow 60-58 lead into the fourth quarter despite shooting 26.7% from the field (26.7%) and 3-27 (11.1%) from three. Cleveland was slightly better in both categories, but their 16 turnovers and allowing 16 offensive rebounds allowed Toronto to close that gap.
The Cavs’ backcourt wasn’t able to generate anything through the first 36 minutes. Donovan Mitchell had just eight points on 3-15 shooting, with only two of those attempts coming in the restricted area and no free-throw attempts. James Harden wasn’t doing much to bail his backcourt mate out. He had 16 points on 5-10 shooting, but his six turnovers were a big reason why Cleveland’s offense was stuck in a rut.
Momentarily, it seemed like that was all going to change.
Mitchell broke out of the funk he was in for the previous seven quarters in the fourth. He kick-started Cleveland’s offense with a driving layup to trim the lead to three. The Cavs then scored on their ensuing six possessions, which was highlighted by a step-back three from Mitchell.
The Cavs had an eight-point advantage before the Raptors responded.
A flagrant foul by Sam Merrill helped Toronto to regain momentum. A 6-0 run made it a two-point game, punctuated by a rare Brandon Ingram three to make it a two-point margin.
Merrill responded with a triple on the following possession to make it a five-point advantage with 2:30 left in the fourth. Things fell apart from there.
Ingram registered two points at the free-throw line, then RJ Barrett made a layup after a Raptors offensive rebound to make it a one-point game with 48 seconds remaining.
In a play that is emblematic of this era of Cavs basketball, they committed an eight-second violation to give the Raptors the ball back. This wasn’t because of anything Toronto did. Mitchell was just lazy in walking the ball up the court. Toronto applied pressure at the midcourt line, and because of the lack of urgency, it resulted in a turnover.
The Raptors iced the game away at the line.
Scottie Barnes was fouled on a drive to the basket. He made both free throws to give the Raptors a one-point lead.
Mitchell missed a layup on the other end. Barnes made two free throws after the Cavs were forced to foul. Mitchell then missed what would’ve been a game-tying three, ending any chance Cleveland had to realistically get back into this game.
Scottie Barnes was once again Toronto’s best player. He was active defensively with three blocks and a steal while contributing 23 points, nine rebounds, and six assists on 6-15 shooting.
The Raptors have continually made an effort to get Brandon Ingram involved offensively. That continued again in Game 4, but once again led to middling results. He had 23 points, but it took him 23 shots to get there.
Mitchell led the Cavs with 20 points on 6-24 shooting with four fouls.
Harden had 19 points on 6-14 shooting with eight assists and seven turnovers.
The Cavs had a chance to take a decisive 3-1 lead and make this a short series. They blew two golden opportunities on the road to do that. Now, they’re in for a dogfight to save their season.
Game 4 is back in Cleveland on Wednesday.
