HOUSTON — It was around 10:30 p.m. CT and all but two Cavs had exited the visitor’s locker room inside Toyota Center.
Donovan Mitchell and Jaylon Tyson.
Mitchell didn’t want the burgeoning youngster to leave without a parting message.
I will go to war with you any day.
About an hour earlier, the Cavs staggered off the court, on the receiving end of their latest bloodbath.
A night originally billed as this cross-conference battle between a pair of preseason title favorites, Houston handed Cleveland its second straight loss, 117-100 — a final score not fully representative of the Rockets’ superiority.
“The word is disappointing,” Mitchell said when asked to characterize the latest embarrassment. “We didn’t match the fight. Everybody besides Jaylon Tyson, Tyrese Proctor, Thomas Bryant, Craig Porter, those four guys did. We didn’t. Can’t be the case.
“It’s not the loss. It’s the how. We have to figure it out.”
Fight was the buzzword Saturday night. It’s been a running theme throughout this perplexing two-month plod. Heck, it goes back to the spring — a 4-1 playoff flameout against the tougher, feistier, more tenacious Indiana Pacers.
Saturday felt like that.
The Rockets were forceful on defense, disrupting Cleveland’s rhythm by hounding ballhandlers, clogging the paint, pushing it away from the basket and forcing eight first-quarter turnovers that turned into 13 points.
They were attack-minded at the other end, racing out in transition and exploiting mismatches, using size, length, strength, skill and athleticism to overwhelm a floundering — and helpless — defense.
“We weren’t ready for the fight tonight,” Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said. “Call it what you want. Christmas hangover? I have no idea. It wasn’t the same team that played the other night against the Knicks. They manhandled us physically and I didn’t like our response.”
Coming off what Atkinson labeled an “encouraging” loss against the New York Knicks on Christmas, with an injury report that continues to shrink, the Cavs trailed for 42:51, by a game-high 31 points, on a night Houston was without All-Star center Alperen Sengun.
Add it to the ever-growing list of horrible losses.
When it was all over, Atkinson found just one positive: The bench mob.
Specifically, Tyson.
“Jaylon was the beacon tonight,” Atkinson said. “That’s how you have to play. He was ready for the fight. He was ready for the physicality. He was ready for the game. I highlighted him after the game. I said, ‘That’s what we needed across the board, and we didn’t get it.’”
Tyson finished with 23 points, 15 rebounds, one steal and one block in 30 minutes.
He brought toughness, heart, hustle, vigor and effort — everything he pointed to as problematic earlier this month when he chastised the team in a postgame press conference. He personifies those characteristics — ones that are too frequently missing from the Cavaliers’ portfolio.
“Got to play hard,” Darius Garland said. “Got to be ready to play, have some energy and play for 48 minutes. Gotta look at yourself in the mirror and see how you can contribute to this team and come out and compete at a high level.”
No matter what the plan was coming into the season or where he was slotted on the depth chart, Tyson has found his niche.
And Atkinson can’t afford to go away from him — even when Max Strus and Larry Nance Jr. eventually return. Because there aren’t enough players like Tyson on this roster.
By now, everyone has heard about Cleveland’s nasty reputation. It’s not going away. This enigmatic start only inflames it.
Soft. Fragile. Weak. Those are a few descriptors.
Doubters don’t typically point to talent. The Cavs had three All-Stars a year ago. They have the league’s highest payroll, the only team in the penal second apron. The starting five is in the conversation as the NBA’s best. Mitchell is an MVP candidate again.
It’s about whether they are ready to compete for a championship. Can Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen, Sam Merrill, Lonzo Ball and De’Andre Hunter — the high-priced supporting cast that the Cavs are counting on — withstand the physical and mental rigors of postseason basketball? Can they play through contact? Match the intensity? Be ready for the fight?
On Saturday night, those six players combined to tally 39 points — total. Only Merrill (13) and Garland (12) joined Mitchell and Tyson in double figures. Mobley, playing his second straight game following a two-week absence because of a calf strain, scored just four points.
Four.
One bad night shouldn’t induce a sense of panic. Only it wasn’t just one bad night. It’s been a hellish season. Frustration is building. Concern is developing. Questions continue to arise. Prior to tipoff, Atkinson was even asked about potential roster changes, reiterating that the focus of his conversations with team decision-makers centers on internal improvements.
At least, for now.
As the Cavs left Houston late Saturday night, one of those questions was answered. Everything with this team needs to be viewed through a specific lens: Who can help in April, May and June? Tyson can. He keeps showing it. Even though there will be young-player mistakes and he still has plenty to learn, Tyson belongs.
Atkinson knows it. So does Mitchell.