The Cavs rested Kyrie Irving on Friday in a loss to the Celtics. On Sunday, they play them again and this time, they’re taking that end-of-season rest several steps further, according to David Blatt:
This is the smart play for the Cavs. They have three games left in the regular season and nothing left to play for. They’ve already clinched the Central Division title and the second seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Nothing they do in their final three games is going to impact their playoff positioning in any way whatsoever.
LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love and J.R. Smith will all rest today for #Cavs and Celtics.
— Chris Fedor (@ChrisFedor) April 12, 2015
This is the smart play for the Cavs. They have three games left in the regular season and nothing left to play for. They’ve already clinched the Central Division title and the second seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Nothing they do in their final three games is going to impact their playoff positioning in any way whatsoever.
It’s great news for the Celtics, though, who are currently the seventh seed in the East. If the Celtics win and the Pacers lose to the Thunder, Boston will clinch a playoff spot. The Cavs have given them a lot of help with their end of that task.
