Hammer: Opening w/Steelers is "good news"
Tony Rizzo and Aaron Goldhammer opened Friday's show by previewing the Cavs game with the Pacers and debating whether the Browns opening with Pittsburgh is good or bad news
CLEVELAND Teams
ESPN Stats and Information
It's been all LeBron James for the first 2 games against the Pacers. He's scored 70 points in the first 2 games, 46 more than the next-most, 24 by Kevin Love. Then it drops back to 20 for J.R. Smith. To compare, James had 20 points in the first quarter of Game 2 alone.
Dave McMenamin ESPN Staff Writer
Tyronn Lue's biggest talking point heading into Game 3 against the Indiana Pacers was making sure the Cleveland Cavaliers guards attack with more purpose. "Just showing them on film spots where they can be aggressive attacking the basket," Lue said at shootaround Friday. "Pick-and-rolls, we got to get downhill versus their big. DHOs - dribble-handoffs - coming off and turning the corner, being aggressive getting into that paint because they're a help team and then we can kick out and we can get shots and get 3s. So, we just got to be more aggressive attacking the basket and making plays at the basket and then look for our shooters when we can."
Napoli out for season with torn ACL, meniscus
Mike Napoli suffered a torn right ACL and meniscus while fielding a popup in a Triple-A game and will need season-ending surgery, the Indians said.
Dave McMenamin ESPN Staff Writer
LeBron James was asked about his streak of making it to seven straight NBA Finals at Friday's shootaround and said it was never something he set out to do. "How important is it to me? It's important to me to try to compete for a championship every year," James said. "It's not like it was a goal of mine coming into the NBA, saying ‘Let's have a Finals streak.' It just happened that way because I prepared myself and the teams were very prepared and good and talented to be able to compete for championships. It's just been a product of it."
Dave McMenamin ESPN Staff Writer
Tyronn Lue confirmed what we already reported following the Cavs' win on Wednesday: Kevin Love will indeed play in Friday's Game 3 in Indiana. Love had a wrap on his jammed left thumb at Friday's shootaround.
Malinda Adams ESPN Producer
LeBron James says he's just trying to get to another championship. Game 3 tonight is in Indianapolis. The series is tied 1-1.
Malinda Adams ESPN Producer
Kevin Love practicing with his left thumb taped. Coach Lue said Love will be ready to go for Game 3.
Malinda Adams ESPN Producer
Bankers Life Fieldhouse is decked out in gold. The t-shirts say "Together."
LeBron James' solo act recalls early Cleveland playoff runs
The lack of production from LeBron's supporting cast is eerily reminiscent of his first stint in Cleveland -- without the stingy defense to match.
Pairing up: Browns' possible combinations with first, fourth picks
The Browns' two first-round picks should be key pieces of the team for years to come. Which players are they most likely to select?
Franchise QB or bust? Making sense of Josh Allen, draft enigma
Rocket arm. Freakish talent. The Wyoming quarterback could be a superstar. But Allen has flaws that stand out from the usual top draft pick.
Kiper builds Browns' perfect 2018 draft: Mocking all 9 picks
Let's go, Cleveland. Time to go from 0-16 to ... a few wins. Mel Kiper goes through every Browns pick to create an A-plus draft.
Former Buckeyes coach Earle Bruce, 87, dies
Earle Bruce, who won at least a share of four Big Ten titles at Ohio State during a college career that spanned 21 seasons, has died. He was 87.
Are college transfers bound to become the norm? (3:26)
Mock draft 8.0: Two new players for the Browns in the second round
The calmness of the penultimate draft portends the storm of potential surprises coming ahead.
Browns draft preview: Defensive secondary
Is Minkah Fitzpatrick still a consideration for the Browns with the No. 4 pick?
Browns 2018 schedule: Another opener against the Steelers, but not another finale in Pittsburgh
One Thursday night home game returns the Browns to prime time after a one-year blackout.
Cleveland Browns face tough early test to snap losing ways
For a Cleveland team that went winless in 2017, the NFL did the Browns no favors with their opening opponents in 2018: Pittsburgh and New Orleans.
2018 Cleveland Browns game-by-game predictions
Now that we know the Browns' 2018 schedule, how will they do? Hint: don't expect another 0-16 season in Cleveland.
Pat McManamon ESPN Staff Writer
Here's the 2018 Cleveland Browns regular season schedule: WEEK 1 (Sept. 9) vs. Pittsburgh Steelers, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 2 (Sept. 16) at New Orleans Saints, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 3 (Sept. 20, Thursday) vs. New York Jets 8:20 p.m. ET; WEEK 4 (Sept. 30) at Oakland Raiders, 4:05 p.m. ET; WEEK 5 (Oct. 7) vs. Baltimore Ravens, 1;00 p.m. ET; WEEK 6 (Oct. 14) vs. Los Angeles Chargers, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 7 (Oct. 21) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 8 (Oct. 28) at Pittsburgh Steelers, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 9 (Nov. 4) vs. Kansas City Chiefs, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 10 (Nov. 11) vs. Atlanta Falcons, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 11 (Nov. 18) Bye week. WEEK 12 (Nov. 25) at Cincinnati Bengals, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 13 (Dec. 2) at Houston Texans, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 14 (Dec. 9) vs. Carolina Panthers, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 15 (Dec. 15, Saturday) at Denver Broncos, Time to be determined; WEEK 16 (Dec. 23) vs. Cincinnati Bengals, 1:00 p.m. ET; WEEK 17 (Dec. 30) at Baltimore Ravens, 1:00 p.m. ET
PTI: A Narrow Cavs Victory
Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon ask how encouraged the Cavaliers should feel by last night's win, preview the Sixers-Heat, and the upcoming NFL Draft.
Should Cavs Fans Feel Better Or Worse?
Tony Reali and the national panel recap the Cavs-Pacers game and ask if the Cavaliers should feel better or worse, recap the Jazz-Thunder, preview the Heat-Sixers and more.
Are Cavs Fans Confident In This Win?
Dan Le Batard, Papi and Pablo Torre question how we should feel about the Cavaliers barely beating the Pacers, what the *bleep* is going on with Karl-Anthony Towns, recap Donovan Mitchell's performance last night and more.
Windhorst: Game 2 recap
ESPN NBA analyst Brian Windhorst recaps the Cavs win over the Pacers including Kevin Love's injury and some positive things for the Cavs.
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Cleveland Contributors
NBA: 2017-18 Central Standings
MLB: 2018 AL Central Standings
| TEAM | W | L | PCT | GB | STRK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | 8 | 5 | .615 | - | W1 |
| Cleveland | 9 | 7 | .563 | 0.5 | L1 |
| Detroit | 7 | 9 | .438 | 2.5 | W3 |
| Chicago | 4 | 11 | .267 | 5 | L4 |
| Kansas City | 3 | 13 | .188 | 6.5 | L8 |