CLEVELAND: When he first arrived as an assistant coach last season, Tyronn Lue didn’t know what to make of Matthew Dellavedova.
That tends to be the standard response. Lue indicated Larry Drew wasn’t sold on Dellavedova, either.
But Jim Boylan and Bret Brielmaier, two holdovers from the previous coaching staff, instantly praised the undrafted guard.
“He’s a winner. You’re going to love him,” they told Lue. They were right.
Dellavedova missed his fourth game Monday with a sore left hamstring and his absence has been noticeable. One executive called Dellavedova the heart of the team recently and blamed the loss to the Celtics, in part, on not having Dellavedova on the floor because he always seems to hit a big 3-pointer or make a big defensive play at the right time.
Lue, who came over from the Los Angeles Clippers’ staff, didn’t take long to understand Dellavedova’s value.
“When you play him two times a year, you don’t really get a feel for who Delly is,” Lue said. “When you’re around him and he’s on your team, I mean, you love him. Those are the types of guys you need on your team to win.”
At this point, it seems likely Dellavedova won’t return until after the All-Star break, but no one is willing to say that yet. Dellavedova had been playing through the hamstring injury, but Lue said it grew worse after he pulled it.
The Cavs conclude the first half Wednesday by hosting the Los Angeles Lakers. If he sits, he will have 17 days between his last game and the Cavs game against the Chicago Bulls after the break.
“I would like that,” Lue said. “I’m not sure Delly would like that. That’s the smartest thing to do, just come back, get seven or eight days off, and then come back fresh. He should be healthy by then. That’s the smartest thing to do.”
Talking Cam
LeBron James said he didn’t see Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton’s brief exchange with the media following Super Bowl 50, but said it’s up to athletes to take the bad with the good.
“I know it’s very difficult to play in one of the biggest games of your life and come out on the wrong side of it and then have to automatically answer questions,” James said. “And we also know as professionals that’s part of the business.
“We also know that you guys (media) are part of the reason that help the game as great as it is, so you gotta, as difficult as it is to answer some of the questions that you know this is the last thing you want to talk about, you have to go up there and take the onus, and take the good with the bad.”
Dribbles
• Kevin Love surpassed 9,000 career points during the first half Monday.
• Kyrie Irving has now scored at least 20 points in six of the last seven games.
• Kings guard Ben McLemore missed the game with a sprained right wrist.
• Kings coach George Karl, before the game, on how he planned to guard James. “I hope he gets in foul trouble or hurts his ankle,” Karl joked. “Hopefully, our pick-and-roll coverage will be pretty solid, but 48 minutes is a long time to do it. I wish this was a high school game where we only had to play 32 minutes.”