Jeff Green to start for Cavs in Game 7 with Love out

The Cleveland Cavaliers will start Jeff Green at forward in Sunday's Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals in Boston, coach Tyronn Lue told reporters, including ESPN's Dave McMenamin.

Green's start against the Celtics comes with Kevin Love out of the game as he remains in concussion protocol. Lue has praised Green throughout the playoffs, and the 11-year veteran has had his share of strong games - including Game 6, when he scored 14 points.

"He attacked the small guys, the switches, and took his time, did a good job attacking, rebounded the ball well," Lue said of Green's performance. "I just think defensively being able to switch and guard multiple positions, that's huge for us. He was able to switch a lot more, we were able to do a lot of different stuff defensively."

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Still, the Cavs figure to be in tough without second-leading scorer and top rebounder Love. The last time LeBron James lost a Game 7 in the NBA playoffs was 10 years ago this month in Boston, when his 45 points weren't enough to defeat the Celtics.