In a game that had almost nothing to do with the game, the Brooklyn Nets played tête-à-tête with the Cleveland Cavaliers, who employ All-Stars LeBron James, Kevin Love, and Kyrie Irving, for 24 minutes, before the Cavaliers blew the game open with a series of easy shots by LeBron James and alley-oops for his teammates.
The Nets displayed a ton of offensive aggression early, looking to get shots towards the rim via attacks and dump-offs, taking only five mid-range field goal attempts in the entire first half. But the Cavaliers, who extended their winning streak to seven games, just proved too much for Brooklyn, and LeBron James didn’t need to play in the final seven minutes.
Indeed, the game played a secondary role to a whole host of other events: six players (four Nets) wearing “I Can’t Breathe” shirts in honor of Eric Garner, the Duke & Duchess of Cambridge enjoying their first-ever NBA game and meeting Jay-Z and Beyonce, and a “Die-In” staged outside the arena.
