Wednesday night's 124-89 victory over the Houston Rockets wasn't just a team effort for the Cleveland Cavaliers, it was a thorough dismantling and demolishing.
Without star rookie sensation Evan Mobley, who was out with hip soreness, the Cavaliers did not let the Rockets take the lead for a single second in the Wednesday night thrashing.
Part of the reason why? Cavaliers point guard Darius Garland and wing Isaac Okoro. The duo combined for 41 points on 70% shooting from the floor, including 6-9 from beyond the arc.
“Yeah, I mean, after putting in all this work, every time I shoot the ball I feel like it’s going in now,” Okoro said following the win. “So I mean, just keep on working, keep putting the work in and the shot’s going to keep on falling.”
“We put the work in,” Okoro also added. “Darius gets a lot of shots before and after practice. I do that, everybody on the team does that. So we just know guys are going to knock it down. I feel like we're playing great basketball right now.”
Fans could see that work paying off from Cavaliers big man Dean Wade and guard Ricky Rubio. Wade started for the injured Mobley, racked up a double-double with 16 points and ten rebounds in a team-high 34 minutes. Rubio managed to score 7 points, dish out a dozen assists, and nab away four steals in just 21 minutes.
Wednesday night’s dominance was not a one time occurrence or taking advantage of a team that is rebuilding. According to ESPN Stats and Info, the team has outscored their opponents by 100 points in their now five-game winning streak. Four of those five teams are projected to make the play-in tournament or better.
If nothing else, the team’s adoption of the “Next Man Up” mentality and accountability starts with Cavaliers head coach JB Bickerstaff and the rest of the coaching staff for developing the standard which these players play to.
“Well, I think the guys have to have a clear picture of what those standards are, and what is acceptable for this group and our performance, how we play and how we execute,” Bickertstaff told reporters following the win. “So once you paint that picture, and then it becomes the accountability piece. We have to hold each other to it and it's not just coaches to players, it's players to coaches, player to player, and then everybody that's involved, we have to hold each other to those standards.”
Those standards are one of the main reasons why the Cavaliers are in fourth place in the Eastern Conference and just three games behind the Brooklyn Nets for the top spot in the conference.
The Cavs will look to extend the team’s five-game winning streak on Saturday in Milwaukee against the Bucks at 9:00 pm EST.
