CLEVELAND — By his own admission, Cavaliers coach Byron Scott “got lost” Tuesday night in Miami, where his team fell 92-85 to the Heat.

Scott took out rookie point guard Kyrie Irving with 3:49 left in the third period and didn’t put him back in the game until the 5:03 mark of the fourth quarter.

“(Tuesday) night was one of those nights where I got lost in how well the second unit was playing,” Scott said Wednesday prior to a game against the New York Knicks at Quicken Loans Arena.

Irving wound up playing 26 minutes against the Heat and finished with 17 points, four rebounds and four assists.

“I probably should have played him a little more,” Scott said. “I thought the second unit was playing well. I probably rode them a little longer than I should have.”

Ideally, Scott said he wants to progress to the point where Irving plays 30 to 33 minutes a night. Through the first 16 games of the season, the 19-year-old was averaging 27.8 minutes and putting up 17.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists.

“He’s close,” Scott said of getting Irving to the 30- to 33-minute level. “It’s more my feel. It’s not a timeline or his performance.”

Why Scott’s target level is so low for Irving is unclear. LeBron James averaged 39.5 minutes a game as a rookie. Derrick Rose played 37.0 a night, while Chris Paul checked in at 36.0.

Baron grounded

Knicks point guard Baron Davis, waived by the Cavs through the amnesty clause in the preseason, was inactive, but has begun practicing and could return soon from a herniated disk. New York coach Mike D’Antoni said the
32-year-old would work out today with some reserve players — the rest of the team will be off — but is also unlikely to play Friday in Miami.

“We’re anxious; he’s anxious,” D’Antoni said. “We don’t want to do something that’s crazy.”

Cleveland released the 6-foot-3, 215-pound Davis through a provision in the new collective bargaining agreement that allowed the team to pay the veteran the $24 million he was owed for the final two years of his contract, but not have it count against the salary cap.

“Obviously, he’s had a lot of injuries and that is going to slow him down a little bit,” Scott said. “But the one thing about him is he’s so intelligent on the floor.”

If Davis gets — and stays — healthy, he would potentially give the Knicks a third explosive scorer to go with Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire.

“If he’s healthy, they could be very dangerous,” Scott said. “There’s no doubt about it.”

Melo fellow

Anthony, who began the night averaging 24.1 points, had a career-low one Tuesday in a 111-78 victory over Charlotte, which halted New York’s
six-game losing streak. Anthony, who has been bothered by a sore wrist, was 0-for-7 from the field in 30 minutes.

“He’ll battle through it,” D’Antoni said. “He always has. He loves to play.”

Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4061 or rnoland@medina-gazette.com. Like him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter.

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