Epic collapse. I credit NY for making the plays they needed to make, but blowing a 22-point lead in less than a quarter is a textbook choke job. Harden, Mitchell, Merrill, Mobley ? all of them suddenly couldn?t hit anything. Merrill committed a couple of silly fouls, Cavs made a couple of terrible turnovers, Mobley couldn?t defend the rim? I think Cleveland blew its chance at winning this series.
It was a really bad loss, but It?s only game 1. Cavs just took out the #1 seed in a game 7 in Detroit. They should still be confident.
You could be right. I?ve certainly been wrong plenty of times.
It seems, though, like the kind of event that could destroy a team?s confidence.
Agreed. That was Cleveland's game to steal. They had momentum coming off Game 7 and were riding that energy. The Knicks were showing their long layoff rust. The opportunity was there in front of Cleveland to seize it and they absolutely choked it away. Now they'll be walking into Game 2 down a game in what will certainly be an insane MSG and the Knicks full of confidence. Not a situation I'd want to be in as a Cavs fan. Then again, that's a city who knows a thing or two about choke jobs.