It’s an “off the cuff” edition of The Weekend wrap this week. Some thoughts on the Browns, the Cavs, Art Modell’s Hall of Fame candidacy and whatever else pops into my head while I dedicate the time to to think about our North Coast sports scene.

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On the same night that Derrick Williams started for the Minnesota Timberwolves and scored 5 points, Kyrie Irving connected on his fifth game winning shot in his short career.  On Saturday night, one guy had 5 points and the other had 32. 

With 12.9 seconds remaining in the game, the Cavs found themselves down 98-96 after a Jose Calderon driving layup.  It was set up by a high screen at the top of the three point line.  Tristan Thompson almost blocked the shot, but he was off by the slightest of margins.  Kyrie Irving got permission from Cavaliers coach Byron Scott to go for the win and to run an ISO on the final possession.  What was interesting about the sequence was that Alan Anderson gave Irving a lot of space.  It was not clear if he would drive the lane for a mid-range shot or jab-step to get open from beyond the arc. Instead, Irving launched a shot from 28 feet that went in with only .07 seconds left in the game.  It was ultimately the game winning field goal after the Raptors essentially passed to Alonzo Gee in the closing miliseconds of the game.

Once again, the Cavs found themselves down by double-digits early in the fourth quarter.  Byron Scott started Shaun Livingston, Dion Waiters, Wayne Ellington, Tristan Thompson and Marreese Speights.  This was similar to the group that he started against the Bucks on Friday night with the exception of Daniel Gibson and Luke Walton.  Gibson did not return after halftime because of a sore right big toe.  Luke Walton did not play because his left foot and ankle were sore.  The bench bunch proceeded to go on a 14-2 run to start the quarter which set the table for Kyrie Irving to score 12 points in the fourth quarter.

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When the Cavs found themselves down 79-59 to the Milwaukee Bucks with 6:12 remaining in the third quarter, it was evident that it would be another frustrating night for the Wine and Gold faithful.  Kyrie Irving orchestrated a run at the end of the quarter that erased ten points of the deficit and left the Cavs down by a score of 87-77. 

Irving was fantastic in that stretch.  He had 10 points and a rebound.  All of the good feelings that the fans in the Quicken Loans Arena felt like a distant memory when Byron Scott started the fourth quarter with a lineup of Shaun Livingston, Daniel Gibson, Wayne Ellington, Luke Walton and Marreese Speights.  It felt as if it would be another blown opportunity for a feel good win by conservative coaching by Scott.  Little did anybody know that the aforementioned lineup would outscore the Bucks by 16 points in eight minutes. 

This was quite possibly one of the wackiest lineups we have seen in recent memory and for reasons completely beyond my comprehension, it worked like a charm.  Luke Walton was instrumental in the streak for Cleveland.  In 10 minutes of play, he had 4 assists.  In fact, Walton tied his season high of 7 assists in back-to-back games with his performance against the Bucks.  Newcomer MarreeseSpeights quickly became a fan favorite because of his play in the fourth quarter.  He had 8 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals.  As impressive as his fourth quarter stats were, the way he played was more promising.  Speights was playing like a savvy veteran.  He played with a lot of energy and repeatedly found himself at the right place at the right time.  This is a welcome site considering he was just traded to the Cavs and hasn't even practiced with the team.

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(Note:  This article was originally written last fall about Jason Pinkston. With Anderson Varejao suffering a blood clot in his lung, I have updated and enhanced that article to address his situation.)

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