J.R. Smith's standing with Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue is still intact after the veteran guard's potentially game-changing blunder at the end of Game 1.
"He's going to start. And no, I haven't lost confidence," Lue said at Cavaliers practice Friday, according to ASAP Sports. "J.R. can shake off anything, and when everybody tends to count J.R. out, that's when he comes through. So he's definitely going to start again. He's a big part of what we do. That last play is over, it's behind us and now we've got to move on."
With 4.7 seconds left in regulation, Smith grabbed an offensive rebound off a missed free throw from Cavaliers teammate George Hill, but instead of getting a close-range shot up to break the tie with the Golden State Warriors, Smith dribbled out to the 3-point line, wasting valuable time. The Cavaliers were unable to get a shot off before the fourth-quarter buzzer, and the Warriors ran away with the game in overtime to take a 1-0 series lead.
After the game, Lue said Smith believed the Cavaliers held a lead after Hill's miss free throw. Smith claimed that he knew the game was tied, and was expecting the team to use their remaining timeout after he secured possession of the ball.
Lue was quick to flip the narrative on his embattled shooting guard Friday, suggesting that even though Smith's snafu robbed the Cavaliers of a chance to win the game in regulation, the initial rebound he corralled to retain possession for the Cavaliers also prevented the Warriors from winning in regulation.
"It's a tough play," said Lue. "If J.R. Smith doesn't get the offensive rebound, they might get the rebound, call timeout, and win in regulation. Just him fighting for that rebound at the end of the game was important. Whether he knew time or score or not, getting the rebound and not getting the shot off, it was big, because they could have gotten the rebound, called timeout and, like I said, won in regulation."
