CLEVELAND: Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue played coy Friday evening when dealing with the question of whether forward Kevin Love would play in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.
Love went through a short pre-game workout and appeared happy after. That later proved an indicator that the third cog in the team’s Big Three would play. He was officially cleared to play less than two hours before tipoff and entered the game at 5:03 in the first quarter to a huge ovation.
Love suffered a concussion in Game 2, a blowout loss to the Golden State Warriors, and sat out Game 3 with Richard Jefferson starting in his place. Jefferson performed well overall, but especially on defense, giving rise to speculation that even if Love returned, Jefferson should start and Love would come off the bench. Jefferson said after Game 3 that his teammate is needed, but he is prepared.
“I think Kevin will be back in the series without a doubt, if you ask me. But whatever they need from me, that’s always been my motto,” he said after Friday morning’s shootaround.
Lue would not say during his pre-game news conference how he would use Love if he became available.
“I’m not going to discuss that,” he said.
No matter what he decided, it was obvious he had the team’s support.
“I have an opinion on who’s our general, and that’s coach Lue,” LeBron James said Friday morning. “He’s going to make the right decision that he feels is best for the team. I think what’s more important is his health and we hope he’s able to play [Friday].”
Jump start
The Cavs never trailed in Game 3 after a 9-0 start and eventually won by 30.
That doesn’t mean it was easy.
After building a 20-point lead with 1:22 left in the first quarter, the Cavs let the Warriors shave it to an eight-point advantage at the half.
“The Warriors are really the toughest team to go against when you’re up. When you’re up big on them, you’re really not up big. It’s almost like going against like the Green Bay Packers,” James said. “If you’re up a couple touchdowns versus Aaron Rodgers, you just know that like, you can’t relax. Because one 60-yard bomb here and 70-yard connection here and now they’re right back in the game. And that’s what Golden State does.
‘‘They’re never too far away from the lead or never too far away from when they’re down to get back into the game. So, you just keep playing. That’s why it’s a 48-minute game.”
Waiting for barrage
Holding the Warriors down starts with limiting the Warriors’ Splash Brothers, Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. Through three Finals games, Curry and Thompson are averaging 28 points combined, well below their playoff average of 48.5 combined points.
“They’ve shown what they’re capable of doing in our league. So, we just want to take care of what we can control and that’s going with our coverages our coaching staff gives us and living with the results,” James said. “Those guys are going to make shots. They’re going to make tough shots. They’re going to take tough shots. They’re great players. But at the end of the day, we just want to play our game.”
After the Warriors’ shootaround, Curry said the game plan was for he and Thompson to be more aggressive.
“You can’t make any kind of game plan, holding, grabbing, physical play, take you out of what you want to do, especially from the start. I think you’ll see a spirited effort [Friday],” he said.
Fond memories
A lot of fans still remember Steve Kerr as a 3-point specialist with the Cavs from 1988 until midway through the 1993 season. Even back then, he said he and that loaded team of Brad Daugherty, Mark Price, Larry Nance and John “Hot Rod” Williams were keenly aware of the hard luck Northeast Ohio’s sports fans endured.
“I remember when I was here, the Browns lost in the AFC title game twice in a row, and the famous Earnest Byner game when it looked like they were going to win the game, and he fumbled on his way in,” Kerry said. “I was a Browns fan. I was a converted Browns fan just from being here for a couple of years. That’s how much excitement there was in the city for the Browns.”
Of course, it’s Kerr’s job to now contribute to the misery of sports fans in this area.
Fizz has faded
Curry made waves back in January when a reporter asked about his team’s return to Cleveland for the second of two games this past regular season.
“Obviously, walking in the locker room, it’ll be good memories,” Curry said “Hopefully, it still smells a little bit like champagne.”
The Warriors celebrated their title after a Game 6 win at Quicken Loans Arena last season.
With the Cavs trailing in the NBA Finals 2-1, James dismissed the notion that quote remained relevant in the summer.
“What fuels us is trying to even the series,” James said. “We’re going against a great opponent and we understand what they bring to the table, so we have to bring that as well. I don’t remember too much about January.”
Celebrity sightings
Dick Vitale, Urban Meyer, Spike Lee in a yellow Muhammad Ali hoodie and Jason Kidd were all in attendance Friday night, and Secretary of Defense Ash Carter participated in the pregame national anthem ceremony.
George M. Thomas can be reached at gmthomas@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Cavs blog at www.ohio.com/cavs. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GeorgeThomasABJ.