Cavs' Big 3 sit against Clippers

Alan Kee/ESPN Images(LOS ANGELES) — A marquis matchup between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Clippers Saturday night on ABC was anything but, as the defending champs fell to the Clippers 108-78 on the road. Cleveland decided to sit stars LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, which was a major reason for the lopsided score.

Cavaliers’ general manager David Griffin told ESPN the league office called him shortly after the team announced the Big 3 would not play and said they were not happy. Griffin also said his job is not to appease the league or its TV partners, but to ensure his team has the best chance to win a championship.

Cavalier head coach Tyronn Lue said afterwards that the team only rested one healthy player, LeBron James. Love was coming off his first game back from knee surgery, and Iriving left the Cavs’ game on Thursday with tightness in his knee and was feeling sore. Lue said he did not want James to carry the load on his own, so he rested him as well, but said James was unhappy and wanted to play.

This is the second time in two weeks that stars have sat out of prime time network TV games. Just last week, the Warriors decided to rest Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Iguodala against the San Antonio Spurs.

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