CLEVELAND — The Knicks still own the Cavs.
After a summer of plotting revenge against their playoff conquerors, the Cavaliers trotted out a depleted roster for a feeble payback attempt as the Knicks’ Big 4 used a balanced attack Tuesday in their 109–91 Halloween stroll at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
Jalen Brunson, RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and Julius Randle combined for 72 points and sat most of the fourth quarter because of the blowout.
The Knicks (2-2) had five players score in double digits and led for the final 39 minutes, with Randle grabbing 10 boards to notch his fourth straight double-double to start the campaign.
Donovan Mitchell returned to face his hometown squad and tried to keep the Cavs afloat while dropping 26 points on 11 of 20 shooting.
But, as former Knicks GM Scott Perry said recently to explain why New York didn’t trade for the athletic guard, Mitchell wasn’t that “singular force.”
The Knicks blew open the game with a 17-7 run to start the second half, and the Cavs turned back into a pumpkin.
Mitchell’s status was supposedly up in the air until close to game time, with the team listing him as questionable because of a sore hamstring.
But he looked perfectly healthy and athletic over his 26 minutes. He just didn’t have any help.
The Knicks — who shot 44.2 percent overall and 38.2 percent from beyond the arc — dominated on the road.
The Cavs had been vocal the previous two days about returning favors to the Knicks after getting hammered by Tom Thibodeau’s squad in last season’s playoffs.
Isaac Okoro, the team’s starting small forward, said the defeat stuck with him until the Knicks were eliminated by Miami.
Max Strus, the newcomer, said he adopted Cleveland’s beef with the Knicks.
“Whatever we have against the Knicks, I’m in debt to that here,” said Strus.
Strus added nothing Tuesday while missing 7 of his 9 attempts. Okoro finished with 11 points in 24 minutes. They scared nobody.
Cleveland coach JB Bickerstaff understood the added motivation.
“It’s the human nature,” he said. “It’s the competitiveness of the NBA. The guys who make it here, you do not make it if you don’t have that competitive edge. So it’s going to be a little bit more on both teams minds, that clash that we had in April. Just their human nature, you expect them to perk up a little bit.”
Still, the atmosphere was tame in the beginning Tuesday, a dead crowd on Halloween.
The Cavs were missing three of their top players — Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen and Caris LeVert — because of injuries.
The Knicks, conversely, were fully healthy and, like the Cavs, were operating on two days’ rest. They took advantage.
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