ATLANTA -- The Atlanta Hawks treated the Cavaliers as if it were postseason time in Friday's 106-97 home win. They showed their hand defensively, tormenting the visitors with a heavy dose of blitzes and traps in their pick-and-roll coverages.

If there was a time when LeBron James and Kyrie Irving were able to elude the defense and turn the corner, there were a flock of Hawks waiting near the painted area to deter them from finishing around the rim.

It led to contested shots and difficult cross-court passes. Either way, the percentages of securing a defensive stop were in the Hawks' favor. James was limited to 13 field-goal attempts and he only converted on five. He coughed up the ball a game-high nine times.

Irving was better but not great, coming away with 20 points on 7-of-16 shooting while committing five turnovers. Atlanta's scheme was evident: Get the ball out of hands of the playmakers and make the others beat them.

"They did a great job of forcing you to get it to your third and fourth options," Irving said afterward. "That's something we haven't seen this season. You have to give them credit. They played well. We'll get better and be better prepared next time."

The next time will likely be in the Eastern Conference Finals. These are arguably the conference's two best teams. If the Hawks did indeed reveal too much of their defensive strategy, the Cavaliers believe they'll be ready if another meeting is in order.

"They just tried to get us off the ball," James said, speaking of Irving and himself. "They wanted to try and make the other guys beat us tonight obviously with their pick-and-rolls. It's the first time this year they've played that type of coverage. They changed their approach and it's something that we'll be ready for if we face them again in the postseason."

Which brings us to Kevin Love, the other Cavaliers playmaker. He was 4-of-11 from the field and all but one of his attempts were three-pointers. He missed his lone two-point try, a failed put-back in the paint.

Atlanta turned Love strictly into a stretch-four. In the 35 minutes he played, the Hawks never saw the back of his jersey, only the front. Not a single post-up opportunity was available for the three-time All-Star power forward who is one of the most versatile players in the league.

But Atlanta doesn't get all the credit for altering Love's game. He has been venturing out further and further as of late.

Love is launching 8.1 threes per contest in his last seven games. His highest rate of threes taken in Minnesota was 6.6 last year, and that was along with the inside touches he received. No matter what the statistics suggest, Love is not in agreement on the big-man long distance tag.

"I heard some people calling me that but I know I'm not a stretch-four," Love told NEOMG. "I'm a post player who can shoot. Right now I'm just doing what I'm called to do. For good, bad or indifferent, I'm playing my role and doing what's asked of me. Tonight, I stayed out on the perimeter."

James says Atlanta's game plan caught them by surprise, but he doesn't foresee it being a blueprint that other teams will mimic.

"A lot of teams don't have the ability to do it," he said. "With their ability to have [Al] Horford and [Paul] Millsap and those guys that move their feet pretty well, and Mike Scott, they do a good job."

If the Cavaliers want to shred the Hawks' defense the next go-around, Love will need to be more involved in the interior on a consistent basis. Plays designed for him to get post touches have been dramatically reduced over time. The games he's played well are due to efficient outside shooting nights.

Ironically, after Friday's loss, coach David Blatt said he felt his team settled too much for the three-ball.

"I really wish we had rotated the ball better and attacked more even from the weak side of the defense because I thought we overshot the three again tonight," he said.

James disagreed.

"We had open looks, man," an irritated James said. "We had open looks. We lose and then you look at it we shot 38 threes, [but] how many free throws did we take? 33 free throws. So you don't worry about the stats. You play the game."

Atlanta played the epitome of unselfish, team basketball. On offense they moved the ball and kept the Cavaliers on their heels. On defense they smothered James and Irving. They cut off the heads of the two-headed dragon and the body collapsed.

But the Cavaliers are supposed to be equipped with a three-headed dragon. Love needs some love, and not just from 22 feet. If it takes fewer isolations and 1-4 flat sets, then so be it. If Atlanta and Cleveland happen to cross each others paths again, the Cavaliers will need the old Love to be on duty. Not the stretch-four.