Cleveland Cavaliers, Tyronn Lue 'very anxious' to begin series with Atlanta Hawks after long layoff

Tyronn Lue

Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue believes the team is ready for the second-round series against Atlanta.

(John Kuntz, cleveland.com)

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- The Cleveland Cavaliers haven't played a game since completing the sweep against the Detroit Pistons one week ago. The East's top team has been waiting patiently, first for the opponent, and then for the opening game of the next round.

"Very anxious," head coach Tyronn Lue said following Sunday morning's practice. "A lot of messin' around, not messin' around, but you could tell we've been off for eight days and guys ready to start playing and getting ready and getting focused for the game. It's time and we're ready to play."

The wait is almost over, with the Cavaliers set to begin their second-round matchup with the fourth-seeded Atlanta Hawks on Monday night at Quicken Loans Arena.

"This is a long layoff," veteran Richard Jefferson said. "You look at San Antonio after a long layoff and they came out and played well so you have to use this rest, but at the same point in time you have to try to stay sharp mentally and physically you have to stay sharp -- not just eat, hang out and chill. You have to stay locked in this whole time."

Lue admitted that he didn't start formulating his plan for the Hawks until the series ended on Thursday night when Atlanta topped Boston in Game 6. Instead, the Cavs focused on themselves, looking at what they had to do to get better.

"Game 1 is a new series and it doesn't matter what you shot, how well you played, what adjustments you made in the first series," Jefferson said. "The second series is different against a better team."

During off days, the Cavs did conditioning work and players stayed in the gym late, getting extra shots. To stay loose following practice, they played other sports -- throwing the football around or grabbing mitts to toss the baseball back and forth.

But this time of year, there's always the question of rest vs. rust, especially after the rhythm Cleveland found against Detroit in Round One.

"Obviously, you can't get cute and overthink it," Lue said. "We have our principles, we know what we want to do going into a game and then if things don't work and you have to adjust. But we know what we want to do right now and we're ready."

The lengthy break didn't slow down the San Antonio Spurs, who mangled Oklahoma City in Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals Saturday night.

But the Spurs had five days in between games. And every team handles the layoff differently. The Cavs will lean on their experience.

"I think you look at this team here and how many guys on this team have been in a playoff series where they swept an opponent," Jefferson said. "I know last year they had a lot of success sweeping opponents. I was fortunate early in my career where we won 10 straight in the playoffs so we were waiting a long, long time for other games. We pretty much waited the whole playoffs. Everybody here has experience in this, it's not really a factor. Just have to be ready for Atlanta and they're coming from an intense, physical and emotional series. They're definitely locked in."

The Cavs know the Hawks well, winning this season's series, 3-0, after sweeping them out of the playoffs last year -- a step along the journey to the NBA Finals.

"I can't speak on anything that happened last year," Jefferson said. "At the same point in time, we have a lot of guys that were in the playoffs for the first time last year also. I think experience was gained on both ends.

"They're a well-coached team and they play a lot of guys so a lot of guys have opportunities to make impacts on the game. No one plays a ton of high crazy, crazy minutes so everyone is typically fresh and playing at a high speed. That's why they are so difficult. It's never about your opponent, it's always about how well you execute -- if you don't turn over the ball, if you're taking good shots and if you're knocking down shots."

The Hawks' defense fueled their second half surge -- ranking second in the league following the All-Star break. It also led the way in their first-round series win against the Celtics, holding them to 93.8 points.

Offensively, they don't have three All-Stars. They don't rely on any one player. Nor do they have two of the best closers in the NBA -- LeBron James and Kyrie Irving. They have to take another approach, a team-oriented approach, relying on their system and crisp ball movement.

"They're a balanced team," Jefferson said of the Hawks. "That's the biggest challenge against them is their balance. It's been well-documented, it's been talked about how many guys they play, the system in which they play in. Kyle Korver obviously is huge for them, Jeff Teague and their versatile bigs. They've got two Tristans on their team. Guys that can guard 1-5, that can switch out, that guard on the perimeter and guard on the post. Those are valuable assets. I think as a team and as an organization, they've done a really, really good job of producing some high level basketball."

For the Hawks, it's also a chance at redemption, to prove they are better than the overmatched squad that got bounced by James and the Cavaliers last May. It's a chance to show this is a new season, with last year's results being immaterial.

Ironically, that has been the same talking point emanating from Cleveland Clinic Courts this week.

"At the end of the day what happened in the past doesn't define what happens today," James said recently. "We've got to focus on the now and this is a team that's coming off a very good and challenging first round series against the Celtics. We understand that their coach is going to have those guys well prepared and well driven for the series starting Monday."

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