LeBron James moved one step closer toward his fifth straight NBA Finals appearance after the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Atlanta Hawks 97-89 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals. After a closely-contested first half, King James and company blew their competition away in the second to seal the victory.
Can the Cavaliers keep hot in their attempt to bring a 2-0 series lead to Cleveland? Read on as we breakdown the action to come. It’s a whole different story in the West, as the Golden State Warriors defended their house against the Houston Rockets. Check out our complete preview for Game 2 of the Rockets vs. Warriors.
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Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Atlanta Hawks Game 2 Preview
Series Scores and Schedule
Game 1 – Cleveland Cavaliers 97 at Atlanta Hawks 89
Game 2 – May 22, 8:30 PM ET – Cleveland Cavaliers (+1) at Atlanta Hawks (-1); total: 197.0 – view all NBA lines
Game 3 – May 24, 8:30 PM ET – Atlanta Hawks at Cleveland Cavaliers
Game 4 – May 26, 8:30 PM ET – Atlanta Hawks at Cleveland Cavaliers
Game 5* – May 28, 8:30 PM ET – Cleveland Cavaliers at Atlanta Hawks
Game 6*– May 30, 8:30 PM ET – Atlanta Hawks at Cleveland Cavaliers
Game 7* – June 1, 8:30 PM ET – Cleveland Cavaliers at Atlanta Hawks
*If necessary
Betting on the Cleveland Cavaliers
All hail King James. The Cavs superstar was once again impressive in dispatching the East’s No. 1 seed in Game 1 of the conference final. James scored a game-high 31 points and had eight rebounds and six assists in pacing Cleveland to victory.
[sc:NBA240banner ]James had plenty of help as well. J.R. Smith sizzled from three-point range, going 8-for-12 to finish with 28 points. Smith scored all 28 of the Cavs’ bench points. Having Smith on fire will be crucial for Cleveland to keep up with Atlanta’s usually reliable reserves. Smith’s 28 points outscored the whole Hawks bench combined (19 points).
Don’t expect Matthew Dellavedova and James Jones to keep quiet as well. The two have had some big games in this postseason’s conference semifinals. Dellavedova shot 43 percent from downtown, while Jones shot 42 percent.
The Cavs’ starting frontcourt has also been excellent despite missing Kevin Love for the rest of the playoffs. Tristan Thompson, filling in for Love, stood tall against the Hawks’ frontcourt tandem of Paul Millsap and Al Horford, finishing with 14 points and 10 rebounds (five offensive). Timofey Mozgov also had a double double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Expect Thompson and Mozgov to have their fair share of looks, especially with Atlanta focusing on locking down James.
Kyrie Irving, who was bothered by injuries on both legs, made just 10 points on 4-of-10 shooting. But he did well in facilitating the offense matching James’ team-high six assists.
The Cavs have won five of their six playoff road games, going 4-2 against the spread.
Betting on the Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks may have suffered a defeat, but head coach Mike Budenholzer has been excellent in making adjustments this postseason. The Hawks have won three of four games after suffering a loss in the playoffs thus far. They’ll need a better overall effort from their key players to pull off that feat again in Game 2.
Expect to see Jeff Teague and Dennis Schröder play together more in Game 2. Having the two play alongside each other means that the Hawks have two players capable of running pick and roll plays, making it difficult to see where the Hawks shots will be coming from. Teague was on fire in Game 1 with 27 points on 46 percent shooting and four assists. But Schröder was misfiring all across the floor with just six points on 2-of-10 shooting.
The Hawks’ super sub would do much better in driving toward the basket for easy layups. But that’s easier said than done against the Cavs’ suffocating inside defense. Schröder was forced to take mid-range jumpers in Game 1 rather than being denied in the paint by Mozgov or Thompson.
Kyle Korver was almost a non-factor in Game 1 with nine points on 3-of-5 shooting (2-of-4 on three-pointers), seven rebounds and three assists. Korver may be kept silent throughout this series. He’s averaging just 7.8 points and two three-pointers per game against Cleveland, the lowest marks he’s made against Eastern Conference teams.
But having Horford threatening inside should also help free up some space for Korver, who’s making 2.8 threes per game this postseason. Horford continued his excellent play against Cleveland, finishing with 16 points and seven rebounds. He averaged 18 points and eight rebounds in four regular season meetings against the Cavs.
The Hawks took a big blow in their bid to reach the NBA Finals when DeMarre Carroll sprained his left knee driving toward the basket late in the fourth quarter. Carroll has been Atlanta’s best scorer in the playoffs with 17.1 points per game. Losing him also means the Hawks will be without one of their top two threats from beyond the arc. Prior to Game 1, the Hawks small forward had averaged 1.7 three-pointers per game this postseason.
Atlanta has won five of seven playoff home games thus far, but are just 2-5 ATS in those games.
Writer’s Prediction
James has another monster game as the Cavs (+1) take Game 2. Create a betting account now and get in on the exhilarating NBA Playoffs.
