httpss://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qau09TyWMyk
MILWAUKEE – Following a blowout loss to the Bucks on Tuesday in a game during which J.R. Smith allowed a wide-open dunk because he was busy greeting a Milwaukee player on the sidelines while the ball was in play, the Cleveland Cavaliers guard pleaded ignorance when asked about the mistake.
The bucket gave the Bucks a 53-50 lead en route to their eventual 118-101 victory, snapping a four-game win streak for the now 13-3 Cavs. The blunder certainly wasn’t the main reason Cleveland lost – it can blame its season-high 20 turnovers leading to 22 Milwaukee points and the 68 points in the paint it gave up – yet Smith maintained his charade of selective amnesia.
“What play are you talking about?” Smith said when a reporter continued to ask him about the clip that had gone viral even before the game ended.
During the interview, Smith wore a ski mask-style cover over his face, only making his answers more bizarre.
Smith got the hood during the Cavs’ trip to the Michigan-Ohio State football game over the weekend.
“I can’t tell you,” Smith said, as LeBron James chuckled while dressing at the locker next to him, causing Smith to laugh, as well.
Lue went back to his starters with 10:56 left in the fourth and Cleveland down 15, but the coach pulled them back out for good with 6:03 remaining, when the Bucks pushed their cushion up to 22.
While Love did not agree with a reporter suggesting Lue was “Sending a message” with the move, the team accepted it, no matter Lue’s motivation.