Nuggets at Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers finally have a win under their belt, but they will be operating in uncertainty when they host the Denver Nuggets on Thursday. Larry Drew is serving as "acting" coach and has expressed his disappointment that the Cavaliers are refusing to offer him a better deal.
Drew began running the team after Tyronn Lue was fired on Sunday, and his first contest was filled with fun as Cleveland halted its 0-6 start with a 136-114 pounding of Atlanta on Tuesday. "He's a guy who's been through the wars and he knows how to put guys in position to be successful," shooting guard Rodney Hood told reporters of Drew. "I think it was more about us forgetting the first six games and coming out, just playing well. Regardless of the results, let's just play well." Denver has been playing well all season and won for the sixth time in seven games as it pulled out a 108-107 overtime win at Chicago on Wednesday. Power forward Paul Millsap scored on a putback with one-tenth of a second remaining and finished with a season-high 19 points for his fifth double-digit performance of the campaign.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Altitude2 (Denver), FS Ohio (Cleveland)
ABOUT THE NUGGETS (6-1): Denver was in danger of losing when it trailed by six points with 2 1/2 minutes left in regulation before coach Michael Malone challenged his squad to dig down deep. "I reminded our guys, 'Opening Night in L.A. (versus the Clippers), we were down six or eight and we never panicked,'" Malone told reporters, referencing a 107-98 triumph on Oct. 17. "I said, 'Tonight, we're not gonna panic either. We're gonna execute. We're gonna get baskets on one end and we're gonna get stops on the other and we're gonna win the game.'" Center Nikola Jokic recorded 22 points and 12 rebounds but missed the potential winning shot that was rebounded and kissed off the glass by Millsap for the decisive points.
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (1-6): Hood recorded 26 points against Atlanta for his highest-scoring effort since joining Cleveland in February as he made 9-of-13 shots, including all four 3-point attempts. Hood struggled upon being acquired from Utah last season and fell out of the rotation for part of the team's playoff run. "That's the Rodney Hood that I know," Drew told reporters. "Rodney is a passive guy by nature. That's who he is, but he is a very talented and very skilled guy, and when he's aggressive like that, he's hard to defend. He can make the 3, turn the corner and get to the basket. When he gets his mid-range game, he really elevates. But I thought he really started with an aggression that carried all the way throughout the game."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Cavaliers have won seven of the last 10 meetings.
2. Denver backup C Mason Plumlee scored 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting against the Bulls for his fourth double-digit performance of the campaign.
3. Cleveland C Tristan Thompson collected 13 rebounds against the Hawks to move into fifth place on the franchise's all-time list with 4,443, passing Anderson Varejao (4,434).