Cleveland Cavaliers: LeBron James sets tone with 57 points

The Cleveland Cavaliers got themselves back into the win column on Friday as they defeated the Washington Wizards, 130-122. It was a game LeBron James took over all night long. Will this win get the team back on track?

Everything is right with the world again. The Cleveland Cavaliers are finally back in the win column.

This was a game that the Cavaliers had to win. I know, it’s a little early in the season to anoint any game as a “must-win,” but for the sanity of fans, and the potential heat on coach Tyronn Lue, it was warranted.

Before Friday, the Cavs had lost four of their last five games. They struggled defensively (still are), and just couldn’t make open shots. Their effort was lethargic and sometimes downright painful. They didn’t look anything like the Eastern Conference champions of last season.

They still have a long way to go with building continuity among the new faces, especially on the defensive side of the ball, but Friday showed what the team could possibly be when everything is going right.

Jae Crowder finally played power forward like all Cavs fans were hoping. He wasn’t bricking shots left and right, and he finally played aggressive inside. It was Washington Wizards forward Markieff Morris‘ first game back, but he wasn’t ready for the complete game of Crowder.

I was also watching John Wall and Crowder closely during the game. Last season, the Boston Celtics and Wizards had a small rivalry going on and at the end of one of the games, Wall and Crowder got into a heated altercation.

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Morris grabbed Crowder and threw him down in the second quarter as he drove to the basket, but nothing came of it.

Derrick Rose also had his best game as a Cavalier. He was penetrating to the basket at will and showed that he still has that lightning quick first step that he did in the past. He finished with 20 points.

His shot is still flat, but he managed to go 2-of-4 from 3-point range.

I think Rose should get back into consistent pick-and-rolls. Cavs fans enjoy his aggressiveness to the hole, but if he was to get back into that mode, it would open up the offense and give everybody easier shots.

It seems like every attempted shot by the Cavs is tough and contested. It would also get the bigs involved. Tristan Thompson and Ante Zizic would thrive from it just like he and Joakim Noah did with the Chicago Bulls. It also gave Kyle Korver better shots when he was on the floor.

But the man of the hour was the former MVP himself, LeBron James.

Where do I begin? Was it Wall and Bradley Beal waking up a sleeping giant by stating they’re the best team in the East, as they said on ESPN‘s “The Jump” in an earlier interview? Could it have been James just being tired of losing?

It was all of those combined.

James finished the game with 57 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, tying Kyrie Irving‘s franchise record in points.

James also became the youngest player in NBA history to reach 29,000 points, which puts him in seventh place all-time. He will try to surpass Dirk Nowitzki, who has 30,362 points.

This was also James’ highest scoring game since coming back with the Cavaliers. His previous highest with the team was in 2005 against the Toronto Raptors where he scored 56 points in a loss.

It was obviously a record-setting game for James in every facet. James stated in his postgame interview that he’s been working on a fade-away shot since it makes him focus on the basket instead of the opposing defender.

The way it was dropping against the Wizards, Nowitzki might get a little jealous.

Other Cavaliers got involved, but the second half was his show. James also had two chase-down blocks to add to his total dominance of the game.

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He was unstoppable. I usually get on the players for standing around and watching instead of movement and cutting, but they all get a pass. It was quite a show to watch, and it might be something we never see again from this Hall-of-Famer– or we just might.

This was definitely a game that the Cavs needed to boost the team’s confidence. James set the tone by letting the NBA know that he’s still the best overall player and that his skills haven’t diminished one bit at age 32.

I think it also gets the Cavs ready to show who they really are within the Eastern Conference. It hopefully woke them up and showed them how dominant they can be when they’re firing on all cylinders.

It starts with beating the inferior teams. Yes, they aren’t always going to be motivated to play a lesser team. We’ve seen this movie the past three seasons. But in order to maintain consistency with new players, they have to play their best every night.

Cleveland must also find a way to play better defensively, individually and as a team. They are currently ranked 27th in the league in opponent points per game and dead last in defensive rating. That’s atrocious.

I believe that it’s more of an effort problem rather than a talent issue. For example, the Cavs all had active hands against the Wizards. Rose was defending passing lanes, J.R. Smith had a steal, and even James had three pilfers.

If they can put together that effort on a nightly basis on both ends of the floor, this team will once again dominate the East. But they have to start and finish strong.

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What Cavaliers team will show up against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday? It will remain to be seen.