Friday afternoon, the Cleveland Cavaliers got the kind of bad news they -- and everyone watching -- feared as soon as Kyrie Irving went down during the overtime period of their loss to the Golden State Warriors in Thursday's Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Irving was diagnosed with a fractured patella, which will require surgery and end his Finals. Where do the Cavaliers go from here? Here's how I would respond if I were Cleveland head coach David Blatt.
Start J.R. Smith
When Irving missed two games during the Eastern Conference finals, Blatt went to his backup, Matthew Dellavedova -- who responded with 28 points in two Cavaliers wins. That's the easy choice here, but I'm not sure it's the best one. The bolder alternative would be moving J.R. Smith back into the starting lineup and playing without a traditional point guard.
