Without both Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters, the short-handed Cavaliers fell to Detroit, 89-79, while shooting a season-low 34 percent in front of a sparse crowd at the Palace of Auburn Hills. Heavy fog and two teams with a combined nine victories equated to just an announced 11,352 watching in the stands.
Waiters missed the game with a sprained left ankle suffered in Saturday’s double-overtime loss to Portland. The rookie is day-to-day while he receives treatment.
In seven games without Irving before Monday’s contest, the Cavaliers were 2-5, and in contention to win all but a blowout loss to Phoenix. The four other losses have come by an average of 3.3 points.
Without both Waiters and Irving, the Cavaliers were minus the backcourt’s combined 38.1 points per game.
“I don’t know if you can make up for it,” Cavaliers coach Byron Scott said. “I don’t know if you can.”
The Cavaliers were off-balance from the start with a new lineup that included Omri Casspi at small forward and Alonzo Gee at shooting guard — moves made, Scott said, to counter Detroit’s tall starting lineup. But Cleveland hit just 25 percent from the field in the first quarter while Detroit sank 61.9 percent, and before the Cavaliers could blink, they were down, 30-17.
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