After the Cleveland Cavaliers dismantled the Atlanta Hawks 123-98 Wednesday night, some Hawks’ players were upset with the way Cleveland continued to pursue the all-time record for most threes made in a single game.
Following from Chris Haynes of cleveland.com:
“It’s a certain way of being a professional,” the Hawks’ Paul Millsap said to cleveland.com. “I’m not mad about it, but just being professionals man. If that’s how you want to approach it, that’s how you approach it. I think our team and our organization has class and I don’t think we would have continued to do that, but other organizations do other things so what can you do about it?”
Hawks big man Al Horford echoed his frontcourt mate’s sentiments.
“We probably wouldn’t do anything like that [if we were in that position],” he told cleveland.com. “…It’s hard to say, but I would say no.”
Kent Bazemore implied that what goes around, comes around.
“I’m a firm believer in karma,” the small forward said to cleveland.com. “Maybe we’ll be the team to break that record soon. Everyone knows how they play. They get out in front and they’re a totally different team. It is what it is. We’ll see them again. That wasn’t Game 4. That was only Game 2. They still have to beat us two more times before they can really celebrate anything.”
On Wednesday night in Cleveland, history was made. The Cavaliers set an NBA record for most three-pointers made in a single half (18), and then went on to chasing the all-time record for most threes in a single game. When it was all set and done, the Cavaliers ultimately broke the record and finished with a grand total of 25 made threes out of 45 attempted (55.6%).
Cleveland attempted more three point field goals than two point field goals on Wednesday, and the flurry of attempts continued into the fourth quarter from Mo Williams, Richard Jefferson, Iman Shumpert, and more.
It’s easy to imagine why Atlanta was against Cleveland’s tactics, but regardless, it’s the Playoffs. No team, including the Cavaliers, is going to have mercy on another.
The Hawks will host the Cavaliers in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals tomorrow, 7:00 PM on ESPN.
