Cleveland kept its season alive on Saturday with a 116-109 win over Detroit that cut the Pistons' second-round lead to 2-1, and the post-game conversation pivoted instantly to the man who had been the lightning rod of the series so far: James Harden.
Donovan Mitchell drove the bus, posting 35 points, 10 rebounds and four assists while attacking downhill instead of settling for the step-back threes that had defined Cleveland's road misery. Jarrett Allen anchored the paint with 18 points. Max Strus played the hustle role that had been missing in the first two games. But it was Harden — held to a single-digit fourth quarter in Game 2 and publicly written off by a chorus of analysts — whose closing-minute buckets finished the night.
"James will always be remembered, you know, Hall of Fame caliber player," Charles Barkley said on Inside the NBA. "He will always be remembered for his scoring and his shooting. He had a really nice game today down the stretch. He had three timely buckets, especially that three where he thought he got fouled. He played well. I'm happy for him. Now the question is, can you continue to do it?"
The Cavs did not stop turning the ball over — they did the unthinkable and made the Pistons pay for theirs. Detroit coughed up 16 turnovers that became 27 Cleveland points, a stat the Pistons usually win comfortably. Cade Cunningham played at his ceiling for stretches, finishing with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, but his eight turnovers — three of them in consecutive late possessions when the game was hanging in the balance — flipped the gym.
"It's funny enough, the level of activity from Max Strus is something they needed throughout the course of this game," Dime co-host Quab said in his post-game breakdown. "Props to James Harden for finally joining the series."
His co-host Josh added that Harden's late-game possessions were the cleanest of his series. "There's a couple of turnovers that weren't his fault," he said. "Late in the game, Kenny Atkinson having the confidence to go to him — he was able to attack the rim and also hit a step-back three, which we all knew he was going to shoot the way he was setting up. That's the signature by Harden."
Barkley's confidence in the Cavaliers' frontcourt cooling off in the road games has been one of his pet themes this series, and he doubled down with a pre-emptive guarantee for Game 4. "My Twin Towers are going to step up," he said, drawing a teasing reminder from his Inside the NBA colleagues that his last guaranteed result has not aged well. "In game four. Mobley and Allen. I'm guaranteeing it."
Kenny Smith picked at the same scab that has bothered Cavs fans for weeks: Cleveland is undefeated at home in these playoffs and winless on the road. "They're going to have to win one in Detroit if they're going to win the series," he said. "You are absolutely correct."
For Detroit head coach JB Bickerstaff and a young Pistons core that has overpowered Cleveland through two games, the chess match swings back to Game 4 on Monday in Cleveland. The Cavs hard-hedged Cunningham off most of his pick-and-rolls and scrambled the Pistons into long possessions. The Pistons, meanwhile, were encouraged by Reed in limited minutes and the continued shot-making of Duncan Robinson, who hit four of six from three.
Harden's takeaway, channelled through Barkley's voice for now, is that one good game does not erase a series. "He hasn't had a great game, but today was a good game, and hopefully this jump-starts him," Barkley said. "Now, you have to continue to do it on the road."
