The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Brooklyn Nets 99-97 on Monday night. Cavs guard Alec Burks drove the lane, went behind his back with the dribble for the dunk that put his team ahead with 3.2 seconds remaining. The Nets’ Spencer Dinwiddie missed a subsequent three at the buzzer. All in all, it was a good evening in Brooklyn for Burks, who finished with 13 points, 7 rebounds and was a +11.
Less than a week ago, Burks was on the floor of the Barclays Center participating in pregame warmups as a member of the Utah Jazz. He was pulled off the court minutes before tip-off and told he was being traded to Cleveland. A cold reminder that the NBA is a business and players can be moved at a moment’s notice.
Burks has only been with his new team for three games, but he appreciated the confidence the coaching staff and his teammates had in him by drawing up that last play. There is familiarity on this roster for Burks as he rejoins his former Jazz teammates Rodney Hood and George Hill.
Following the game, Burks talked about the winning play and told BSO what it was like to come back to the arena where he found out about the trade and score the winning bucket, and what his future holds in Cleveland.
Flip the page for Alec Burks’ postgame comments.