Shorthanded Cavs come up short against red-hot Hawks

Kyrie Irving wouldn't stay down.

In his first game back from a bruised left knee that sidelined him for a pair of outings, the Cleveland Cavaliers point guard would've been forgiven for suffering from abandonment issues. Anderson Varejao is out for the season. LeBron James (knee soreness) and Shawn Marion (ankle) sat out Tuesday's game against the Atlanta Hawks. Kevin Love checked out in the third quarter with back spasms.

And then there was Irving, fighting for every possession, trying to keep a suddenly paper-thin Cavaliers team in it against one of the league's hottest outfits.

He ultimately failed, with the Cavs dropping a 109-101 decision in Atlanta, but the effort was nothing short of heroic. Irving finished with 35 points, six rebounds and nine assists, shooting 13-of-27 from the floor, with the Cavs getting outscored by seven points in the only five minutes Irving sat.

Unfortunately, he didn't have a ton of help on offense, despite strong efforts from Tristan Thompson (18 points, 13 rebounds) and Joe Harris (13 points). Dion Waiters (nine points on 3-of-10 shooting, four assists) failed to step up, Love (seven points on 1-of-8 shooting) was a non-factor while in the game, and Irving was left to go it alone against a game Hawks defense for long stretches.

Again, the effort was valiant, but the Cavs can't be expected to succeed with Irving and a cast of supporting characters. The Hawks are a very good team - they're now 23-8 and have lost just twice in their last 18 games - and executed too well on offense for the Cavs to keep up.

Paul Millsap (26 points, nine rebounds) in particular was a problem, with him and Jeff Teague (23 points, 11 assists) helping make up for the absence of Al Horford. Those efforts now have the Hawks just a game back of the top spot in the Eastern Conference.