INDIANAPOLIS -- Save the moral victories for the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, arguably the best team in the league, aren't going that route.
Sure,they didn't have LeBron James and Kyrie Irving in the lineup when the Indiana Pacers defeated them 93-86 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday, but the Cavs weren't interested in a quick excuse before moving on to Houston for a Sunday matinee.
Kevin Love was noticeably miserableafter Friday's game. He took the loss hard at his locker stall.
"I think it might have been a little different in the past," Love said, "but now that we have an identity and we know what we want to do out there and how we want to play (there's frustration in a loss). Even short-handed."
Matthew Dellavedova, who started in place of Irving, filled in admirably with 14 points (5-of-18 shooting), 10 rebounds and five assists. Iman Shumpert played the role of backup point guard and provided 14 points and 10 rebounds.
After building a first-quarter double-digit lead, the Cavaliers inevitably slipped behind, but never found the game out of reach. There were encouraging contributions from unusual suspects, but Love said he didn't see a positive in a loss.
"Not really," he said. "We felt like we could have won the game. It's just a tough one for us. We're not going to hang our heads. We're still going to continue to get better. We know we're the better team."
Love was set up several times to expound on how much a difference James and Irving would have made. The power forward didn't bite.
"It's just one of those things where we needed to get a couple more to fall," Love said. "We get a stop here or there and we come out on top."
Love's game within the confines of the Cavaliers' offensive system continues to be a maturation process. He secured another double double that consisted of 17 points and 10 boards, but he shot 6-of-19.
"We're playing to win," he said.
The days of lackadaisical play and unmotivated body language is far removed from this locker room. The culture and dynamic of this team has been transformed. Now the roster is loaded with guys who will compete, and it has had a ripple effect.
"We want to win the game. We all are hungry," Timofey Mozgov said. "When we step on the court, we're ready to fight. We were fighting until the last second."
The Cavs' disposition and outlook has been altered. Even without their two best players, they considered it unacceptable to falter.
"We came to play," Cleveland coach David Blatt said. "Somebody asked me earlier if we took into consideration or thought we could afford to lose a game, that wasn't the case. We came to play. ... We were here to win."
Source: http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2015/02/a_short-handed_cleveland_caval.html
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