ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski on the latest news on the Cavs and Hawks: “The Cavaliers are going to have to deal with a lot more scrutiny in the coming days.”

Posted On July 9, 2021

The Cleveland Cavaliers were the last team in the NBA to defeat Atlanta on Wednesday night, as the Hawks defeated the Cavs 103-98 in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals. 

The Cavs trailed by as many as 21 points at the half, but a late 3-pointer from LeBron James gave the Hawks a 90-89 lead. 

After a brief, chaotic back-and-forth in the final minute, Atlanta scored eight straight points to get within one with 2:34 left.

After Atlanta’s last-second layup, Kevin Love scored on a driving layup by Mike Scott with 1:10 left. 

Kevin Love scored 10 points in the first half, including four 3-pointers in the third quarter to help the Cavs extend their lead to a double-digit point advantage. 

“They are going through a tough time right now,” Cavs guard Kyrie Irving said of the Hawks. 

James and Korver both struggled for the Hawks in Game 3. 

Korver finished with six points, three assists and two turnovers, and James had eight points and 10 assists. 

They were the only two players to score in double figures in Game 2, and the Hawks led by as much as 18.5 points in this series. 

Despite the loss, James, Korver and Love all had big games for the Cavs, who improved to 9-0 in the series.

James led all scorers with 29 points. 

Cleveland’s win also clinched home-court advantage in the Eastern playoffs. 

Atlanta will host the Cavs in Game 5 on Thursday night.