OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue reversed course and started All-Stars LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love on Thursday night against Oklahoma City Lue said after a 132-117 victory at Indiana on Wednesday night that he was strongly considering resting them. He said Thursday that all three said they "feel pretty good" and wanted to play. James played 38 minutes, Love 35 and Irving 34 against the Pacers. All three played more than 40 minutes Monday in an overtime win at Washington. The Cavaliers are on a four-game winning streak. Lue said the chemistry the team has developed during the run played a role in the decision. It is the last stop on a four-game road trip. The 32-year-old James ranks second in the league with 37.6 minutes per game.

All Star Night 2017 in NEW ORLEANS

NEW ORLEANS -- Kyrie Irving is with you. He thinks the All-Star Game has gotten too easy. "I think going forward, the All-Star experience will probably get a little harder in terms of defense," Irving said Sunday night. Irving was proud of his defensive effort in the 66th All-Star Game, won by the West 192-182 over the East, in which he recorded three steals to go with 22 points, 14 assists, and seven rebounds.But... A record of 374 points was set, beating the previous mark of 369 set last year, and 321 the year before that, and 318 the year before that. Anthony Davis, the Pelicans' big man, the host All-Star, and, now the MVP, broke Wilt Chamberlain's 55-year-old record of 42 points in the All-Star Game...with 52 points. Russell Westbrook, who was ON DAVIS' TEAM, scored 41. In 20 minutes. Both teams shot better than 56 percent. In summation, the All-Stars do not play defense. Period. Anyone watching the game on TNT or here at the Smoothie King Center can see it. And it's gotten much, much worse over the past few seasons. "I think that in the past, at least generally in the fourth quarter, guys have picked it up," West coach Steve Kerr said. "That's what I was expecting. It didn't happen tonight. I would like to see it more competitive. I'm not sure how to do it." Kerr said coaches at the All-Star Game are so useless, it's as though they're stand-ins for the movie "Weekend at Bernie's." "They might as well just bring a couple dead bodies on the sidelines," Kerr said. "We're not doing anything up there. Just prop us up." Kerr suggested incentivizing the players to win, maybe "get their charities involved or winner-take-all type thing." East coach Brad Stevens didn't want to answer the question, with this being his first All-Star Game, but he said "this game is about the players." That's why Irving said if it's going to change, if some semblance of defense is to return, the All-Stars would have to discuss it beforehand. "I told my team tonight, a couple of my teammates that I was just going to come out and try to come out aggressive and keep the pace going," Irving said. "But they're a little matador in terms of the layups that they let go, a few guys standing at halfcourt. "It's all in good fun, but I definitely think that, if we want a competitive game, guys will probably have to talk about it before the game." Irving, a four-time All-Star and past MVP, said the discussion would need to take place because some All-Stars are on teams fighting for playoff spots. They'll need to play, and play hard, every night now from mid-April. He didn't say this next part, exactly, but he and the Cavs are heading to the playoffs, as are the four Warriors who played in the All-Star game. There will be nights off in March and April. Thus, "guys in general trying to get ready for the second half of the season is far more important, which I totally get." The irony here is Irving and his East/Cavs teammate, LeBron James, are constantly said by league analysts to be playing too many minutes during the regular season as is. James scored 23 points in 19 minutes; he didn't play in the final 19 minutes. "I think the biggest thing coming out of the game is that everybody leaves injury-free," James said. "We gave the fans what they wanted to see and everyone left injury-free. Another successful All-Star weekend for myself and everyone." So you can see the difference in attitude on All-Star effort. James, who is 32 and has played in 13 All-Star games, hasn't past any torches to anyone just yet as far as being the NBA's standard bearer. But it was on the watch of him and his peers that the league's midseason showcase went soft. Irving, who's only 24 and presumably has many, many more All-Star games ahead of him, wants to right that ship. No one's talking about turning the All-Star Game into a mid-90s Knicks game at the Garden. Kerr said there is a way to do this "without taking a charge." It starts with a chat. "Going forward, I'm sure we've got to talk about it and just go out and compete," Irving said.

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