Dribbles: Cavs should get back to basics

Random dribbles on the Cavaliers’ 100-92 loss at Utah on Tuesday:

1. The ball movement hasn’t been as good lately, nor has the energy. The Cavs got away with it against Phoenix the other night — as the sad-sack Suns are proof the NBA has over-expanded and doesn’t have enough talent to warrant its overabundance of roster spots.

2. The same wasn’t about to happen against the Jazz, a strong and up-and-coming team with a real star in Gordon Hayward. The Cavs always struggle in Utah, too. They’re 0-3 there in the era of LeBron James, Part II.

3. Not really a big deal, though. You can’t win them all, and it means absolutely nothing to finish 73-9 or whatever in the regular season. So take some lumps, regroup and move on to the next one. The Cavs did that last year and won the title. So, just do what works. Right? Right.

4. Kyrie Irving held his own personal shootaround prior to the Cavs’ actual morning shootaround Tuesday in Utah. He missed some time with a hamstring issue before the start of the trip Friday in Brooklyn. Since returning, Irving has felt his timing was just a bit off, that he could do everything just right but finish.

5. Those struggles continued Tuesday, with Irving (20 points) going 5-of-18 from the field and still missing a lot of shots he normally makes.

6. Meanwhile, LeBron went 10-of-20 on his way to 29 points. Tristan Thompson did a nice job with 12 points and 12 boards. But it was not one of Kevin Love’s finest moments, as he shot just 4-of-14, and for one of the few times this season, failed to get a double-double (12 points, nine boards).

7. Kyle Korver made his much-anticipated Cavs debut after the trade with Atlanta. He finished with two points on 1-of-5 shooting in 18 minutes. Afterward, Korver smiled a lot and talked about still having the Hawks’ plays stuck in his head. Nobody is really worried here.

8. The Cavs (28-9) have another toughie at Portland on the second night of a back-to-back. The Trail Blazers have struggled this season. They also played Tuesday (at the Lakers). They are a team looking to make a deal and one name continuously being mentioned is Blazers guard and former Canton GlenOak star C.J. McCollum. The Cavs should try to bounce back by quickly burying what appears to be a deflated club.