Cavs blast Hawks in Game 2

Four things to know after the Cleveland Cavaliers demolished the Atlanta Hawks in Game 2, 123-98, to take a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven series.

1. Warriors have nothing on Cavs. Before Cleveland sank 25 3s on Atlanta on Wednesday night, the single-game record for the playoffs was 21, set by the Warriors a few weeks ago in their Game 4 beating of the Rockets. Any time you break a 3-point record owned by the Warriors, you’re accomplishing something.

Indeed, it was an incredible performance by all of the Cavs’ shooters, especially J.R. Smith, who was 7 for 13 from deep. But this was also a damning indictment of the Hawks defense, which was second-best in the league this season. The problem is that Atlanta’s scheme is designed to collapse in the paint and close off the lane, then close out to shooters as a secondary priority. But the Cavs are moving the ball pretty flawlessly right now, and LeBron James has vision bordering on inhuman. The Hawks just can’t react to this kind …

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