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Irving then rebounded a miss by the Wizards and it was his turn to pick up an assist to Thompson.
Wizards rookie Bradley Beal scored eight points -- all in the first half -- and Emeka Okafor had 10 points. Washington coach Randy Wittman has high hopes for his young team, but he won't know what he has until he gets Wall and Nene back on the court.
Despite Cleveland's youth -- an average age of 24.9 years -- and inexperience, Irving believes the Cavs can contend for a playoff spot this season.
"That's the goal," he said.
The Cavs were in the playoff conversation for the first few months last season before Varejao broke his wrist and missed the final 41 games. As has been the case in the past, Varejao may draw trade interest from other teams and it will be interesting to see if the Cavs hang on to a player with unique talents.
Irving, who had four wisdom teeth pulled last week, hit his first shot of the season, a 3-pointer, and scored 12 points in the first quarter as the Cavs opened a 31-24 lead.
NOTES: Washington was just 8 of 32 on 3-pointers, and missed some big ones in the fourth. ... Browns rookie QB Brandon Weeden, a big Oklahoma City fan, and RB Trent Richardson, sat behind the Cavs' bench and they got a huge ovation when shown on the giant scoreboard in the second quarter. They sat with Cavs owner Dan Gilbert in the second half. ... Before the game, Gilbert said he regrets guaranteeing the Cavs would win an NBA title before LeBron James, who left Cleveland as a free agent in 2010. "Looking back now, that probably was not the most brilliant thing I've ever done in my life," Gilbert said.
[Associated
Press;
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