MIAMI — The text message was sent Sunday night — the eve of Game 4, about 24 hours before the Cavs dismantled the Miami Heat, sweeping them out of the playoffs and sending the proud franchise into a summer of uncertainty.
It came from Cavs small forward Max Strus, one of the battle-tested team leaders who has advanced further in the postseason than anyone on the roster not named Tristan Thompson.
“Take care of business so we can get some rest until the next round,” Strus’ text read, sent to the team group chat. “Take advantage. Take all the advantages we can get.”
There were some other undisclosed words. Perhaps a few profane ones to drive the point home.
Nonetheless, the message was clear — and it resonated.
“It was a good message,” Evan Mobley said. “I feel like everyone was on the same page. He sent it at the right time. Everyone responded and was locked in.”
“That was big, especially coming from Max,” added reserve forward De’Andre Hunter. “Max has been to the Finals and knows what it takes. We all have one goal. We’re trying to win a championship.”
The Cavs moved one step closer, with a merciless 138-83 near wire-to-wire rout that punctuated the most lopsided playoff series in NBA history.
“This series was humbling,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “These last two games were embarrassing. But Cleveland’s also a very good team. We’re as irrational as we usually are thinking we have a chance to win this series, and they showed we weren’t ready for that.”
Game 4 especially.
Urgency. Focus. Tenacity. Purpose.
The Cavs showed all of it from the outset — the championship-level traits that coach Kenny Atkinson saw during Monday morning’s shootaround inside Miami’s Kaseya Center.
“I really don’t have to say anything,” Atkinson explained. “It’s all kind of been said amongst them before I get to my pregame speech or film. There’s just a connection and a camaraderie. Our leaders send the right message and everybody kind of follows.”
Words into action.
On the opening possession, center Jarrett Allen extended his defense out to the perimeter, got into the passing lane and deflected the ball away. He quickly corralled it, dribbled to the other end and soared to the rim for a one-handed dunk.
It was a tone-setting play, letting Miami know that nothing would be easy. It was also one of Allen’s six steals that accompanied his 14 points and 12 rebounds, his third double-double in the first four playoff games.
“We all had the mindset,” Mitchell said. “It speaks to where we’re all at and just the maturity level as a group. We handled our business. This is the toughest game in the series, and, for us, we really set the tone, and that’s something to be proud of.”
Coming off his least efficient game of the series, Mitchell scored a team-high 22 points, including 13 during an eruptive first quarter that saw the Cavs outscore Miami, 43-17, while sucking the life out of an overmatched opponent that quickly accepted its fate.
Mobley, named Defensive Player of the Year upon landing in Miami Thursday, helped neutralize three-time All-Star Bam Adebayo — again. According to NBA.com matchup data, Adebayo scored just 24 points on 9 of 24 shooting with Mobley as the primary defender.
Defensive stopper Dean Wade lived up to his reputation, stymying numerous Heat dribble attacks.
Steady sixth man Ty Jerome orchestrated the offense brilliantly off the bench, tallying 18 points and five assists.
Trade deadline prize De’Andre Hunter, an essential non-factor in Game 1, continued his offensive breakthrough, scoring 19 points in 21 minutes off the bench.
“Playoffs is a different game, different schemes. I think it was just kind of learning how guys play in the playoffs and just making an adjustment,” Hunter said. “They just were putting me in different spots, ran a few plays for me, put a few sets in for me. The biggest thing was basically that whenever Tyler (Herro) or Duncan (Robinson) was on me, just get the ball. That’s kind of how I got myself into the game.”
Sharpshooter Sam Merrill knocked down three of Cleveland’s 22 triples.
Strus, despite missing five of his six shots, muzzled Miami leading scorer Tyler Herro, who failed to make good on any of his bombastic boasts.
“He’s not a bad player at all by any means,” Mitchell said of Herro. “But making his life tough, that’s the goal. The stats show how great of a defensive effort we put together to stop him.”
Strus guarded Herro most frequently, using strength, physicality and institutional knowledge from his Heat days to frustrate Herro and force him to tap out early.
With Miami’s season on the line, after vowing not to get swept, the mouthy Herro mustered just four points in 30 minutes while missing nine of his 10 shot attempts. With Herro on the court Monday, Miami was minus-44.
“We gave him an assignment and he definitely delivered,” Mobley said of Strus. “He shut Tyler down. He was doing all the little things that you don’t necessarily see in the box score.”
Like sparking one of the most dominant performances in playoff history with a late-night text message. Or passionately discussing a mental blunder with Mitchell late in the first half while leading by 34 — a moment baked into a blowout that shows these East leaders are never-satisfied perfectionists who refuse to let complacency seep into their title quest.
“It’s desperation, understanding how quickly a series can change if you give a team life,” Mitchell said of that moment.
“I flopped and tried to draw a foul instead of contest a 3. Max was like, ‘What the (expletive) is that?’ Excuse my language. I hope I don’t get fined. But very passionate about that stuff, because that’s what it takes.
“Max and I have a great relationship in that regard. I really respect him and his work ethic and what he sees. Just ways to be better on both ends of the floor and then accountability as well. Just never being satisfied and understand that we’ve got to be perfect, try to play as perfect as possible.”
Monday night certainly qualifies:
- The Cavs shot 56.8% from the field and 48.8% from 3-point range. The 138 points are a franchise playoff record.
- They held Miami to 83 measly points — the second fewest of any team in this year’s postseason.
- The 55-point loss, three points shy of the all-time record, is the worst by the Heat in franchise playoff history.
- The 122-point differential over the four games is the largest in any playoff series ever.
And the Cavs didn’t even have All-Star point guard Darius Garland, who was averaging 24.0 points and 7.0 assists before a nagging toe injury forced him out of final two games.
“It just shows how deep we are,” Atkinson said. “Players that can really contribute to winning. I’m not sure there’s any team in the league that can go that deep with so many rotation players.”
One series down. Three more to go.
The title quest continues into the conference semifinals against either Indiana or Milwaukee. The Pacers lead that series 3-1 and even though it could end Tuesday night, Game 1 of the semifinals wouldn’t be until Saturday at the earliest.
“We have a bigger goal in mind. We’ve been doing special things all year, but we didn’t come here just to sweep in the first round and get to the second,” Mitchell said. “Got to finish our breakfast.”
Even after devouring the Heat, Cleveland is still as hungry as ever.
- BETTING: Cleveland is +170 to win the East over on FanDuel. If you’re new to betting and want to learn more, check out our Ohio beginner’s guide.
