Recap – Cavs: 100, Lakers: 94
2012-12-11
Mooooooo
PHEW! What…a…game! MAN is it good to have Kyrie back!
The Cavs came out FIRING in the first half thanks, in large part, to Kyrie’s 7 assists and a crazy first half from Miles, and lead by 15 going into the 3rd quarter. After only scoring 14 (to LA’s 23) in the third, the Cavs held off the comeback, winning the game 100-94.
The Good:
Kyrie Irving – THANK YOU BASKETBALL GODS, FOR RETURNING KYRIE! Kyrie had a ridiculous night – 28 points (on 11-21 shooting, including 4-6 from downtown), 11 Assists, and 6 rebounds, along with a steal. Not only did he clearly not miss a beat during his four weeks off, he looked invigorated and confident. What’s more, Kyrie’s D was actually passable in this game – he still got beat once in a while, but instead of just watching, tried to catch his loose man. Really, Kyrie was playing with more intensity than I’ve ever seen him on the D end. This was probably his best showing of the season. Man am I glad he’s back!
Andy – With all due respect to Kyrie and his absurd game, it was Andy who played the clutch role in the fourth quarter, snagging a beautiful rebound, hitting a clutch 12 footer and sinking two HUGE free throws. He and Kyrie picked up where they left off on the pick and roll and, after a few lackluster games (for him), Andy finally looked back in his comfort zone on O. As always his D was great, getting into Dwight’s head and disrupting all the action under the rim (even causing a bunch of Dwight turnovers.) Unfortunately, Andy fell short of a double double, partially due to the fact that Howard had 20(!) rebounds. Oh yeah, Andy had a RIDICULOUS dunk on Jordan Hill after faking out Dwight Howard. FUN!
CJ Miles – Despite Kyrie’s return and despite Andy’s phenomenal game, the biggest story of the night is probably the fact that Miles absolutely WENT OFF for 28 points (a team high) on 10-18 shooting (including 5-10 from downtown) and chipped in 5 rebounds to boot. If Miles keeps playing like this, we might have ourselves something, here.
Tyler Zeller’s D – I KNOW Tom noticed but, did anyone else? Zeller was disrupting an inordinate number of Dwight Howard shots. He was physical and fearless in defending someone much bigger and stronger than he. His long twos weren’t falling, but it didn’t matter, Zeller’s impact on D was enough to make him very valuable in this game.
The Bad:
Alonzo Gee – Yeah, he had 17 points (on 6-14 shooting, which isn’t great) and yeah he was playing a Kobe Bryant who was clearly channeling his younger self, but it’s not supposed to look this bad. While Kobe’s shooting was absurd, Gee got beat far too many times, missed some key switches (letting Kyrie pick up Kobe far too much) and bit on pretty much all of Kobe’s fakes. He’s allowed to have off nights, but to the tune of 42 points? When he’s our best defender? C’mon!
Jeremy Pargo – OUCH. Seriously…Ouch. We may have spoken too soon on the Pargo = backup discussion. Keep an eye on this in the future. (Side note: Pargo was the only Cavalier who was – in +/-)
The Cavs Bench in General, Minus Tyler Zeller – I mean…Minus Zeller, they didn’t score a point.
The Rest:
The Lakers Traveling Plans – Apparently extensive. I definitely saw them walk more than a few times (so did the refs). What’s up with that?
Andy’s Rebounding – Obviously Dwight played a huge role in Andy’s ability to rebound, but isn’t it amazing how Kryie’s impact on dictating offense leads to better scoring, which, in turn leads to fewer Andy rebounds? Varejao only had 2 O boards, by far his lowest since we lost Kyrie to injury. Hmmmm….
Note how I didn’t mention Tristan? That’s because he was a complete non-factor, minus some very good rebounding numbers. He looked fine and all, but definitely didn’t wow anyone. And 1 point? Really?
Tomorrow the Cavs face off against the Pacers @ Indianapolis. After tonight, there’s hope again. As always…GO CAVS!
Things I am not worried about
1. Kyrie Irving
2. Dion Waiters
3. Lakers making the playoffs – I think it’s obvious that they will make the playoffs
@Askel
Yes and yes. The Lakers have been quite bad for a team with that talent. Also, 5 of the next 7 are on the road, with one home game against the Knicks. I could see them losing 5 of those. I wonder if they wouldn’t be better off resting Howard for a week or two when Gasol does come back.
Still, they should make the playoffs. It’s still early in the season and Nash and Gasol should be back in a week or two. If they are below the 8th seed by mid-season, then it’s time to be concerned.
so, that lakers’ pick is lottery protected, right? that is, if they don’t make the playoffs we’re stuck with the heat pick?
You guys are still talking about Thompson? He looked fine yesterday. No need to panic on him.
That’s fair, Mallory. I’ve said many times that undersized power forwards are the 3rd round running backs of the NBA draft. One should never take them too early. Scarcity definitely plays a factor.
Nate Zeller definitely has great movement/help D, but he actually looked great one on one with Dwight last night. Granted Howard is a shell of his former self right now, but Zeller played good, physical D with him. Thoughts?
Dani that play, if I’m thinking of the one you are, was absurd. The switch probably gave Kobe a LITTLE space, but not much. That shot was insane.
Nate – It’s one of those wait and see situations. I don’t necessarily think he was a colossal whiff, but I definitely don’t think he’s proven to be solid yet. I didn’t see anything that stood out as GREAT D yesterday – certainly nothing blatantly awful, but also nothing that jumped out at me, like Zeller taking on Dwight and shutting him down (I can distinctly remember two great post-D possessions for for Zeller). The big argument about Tristan is that passable PFs seem to be more copious than SFs (like Klay Thompson and Kawhi Leonard) and true centers (like… Read more »
Yeah, Dani, Zeller had some decent defensive moments, as did Kyrie. Zeller’s lateral movement and help defense might be his best defensive traits.
s87 – I’m baffled why everyone thinks TT was such a colossal whiff. He’s still very young, but his attitude is great, he works hard, plays good defense, rebounds, etc. The real question is, who would have been better at #4 in 2011? Kawhi Leonard, Klay Thompson, and big V were the alternatives. Assuming we weren’t drafting another point guard, That’s the list (and no we weren’t going to draft Faried at 4). It was a deep draft, but not an especially top heavy one. The value at #4 was really only slightly better than the value in the 20s.… Read more »
I was shocked and amazed by that one defensive possession where on the pick for Kobe behind the arc Zeller switched onto him, hounded him, then switched back to his man as Alzonzo smothered Kobe into an awful fadeaway. Maybe the best play of the game.
Can’t we just say the jury is still out on TT and move on? He was neither great nor awful last night, and as long as he’s not shooting too much he’s fine. For now.
Now when he blows a game with 4-13, I’ll be pissed. But for now, whatever – move on. I prefer not to speculate on things like player development simply because I’ll always remain pessimistic until consistently proven otherwise.
It’s not like this puzzle is finished and there are two more first rounders (probably top 6) and like 30 million in cap room. You don’t have to hit a home run with every pick and your not. Presti didn’t hit on everyone. Jeff Green isn’t a superstar. Aldrich wasn’t a star. If Thompson develops into Okafor I’d say that’s a double in a pretty weak draft after you already hit a homer with Kyrie. Okafor went second. Most drafts aren’t 2003 where there’s 4 franchise guys. It seems like Thompson thinks too much when he has the ball. There’s… Read more »
Looking at the RAPM stat that I refer to now and then; Tristan’s defense is slightly better than his offense is bad. Of 316 players with more than five-hundred on-court possessions, he is the NBA’s 116th best player.
That sounds about right. Really, both sides of the Tristan debate are right-ish. It’s just a matter of perspective. He has been underwhelming for a 4th pick, but he is a useful NBA player.
s87 – I’m comfortable declaring Kyrie a generation prodigy at scoring. He can literally score from any spot on the floor in any situation. That bank shot tonight? Just silly. Step back 3s? Few people can hit that with consistency. Absorbing contact and finishing with either hand? Mid-range? He does everything – and he’s ELITE at everything. His court vision and game management seems so much better than a year ago. He doesn’t even need to be average at defense. He just needs to not be an abomination and he is a perennial all-star. Injuries are the only thing that… Read more »
Hey I hope Waiters proves me wrong. I’ve openly admitted I have unfounded hate for him and I’m not exactly sure why…I just really dislike him. Maybe it was because he was so cocky about being drafted that he didn’t even work out for teams? Maybe it’s because he comes off like an illiterate person during interviews? Maybe it’s because after the Cavs shocked the world (well my world at least) and took a chance by drafting him so high, he repaid them by showing up to camp overweight and out of shape? Maybe it’s because I was a “big”… Read more »
Wes, you’re being pretty negative. The cavs beat a kobe 40+ night basically because kyrie took on the challenge. You could use some history lessons about point guards not being on championship teams, but whatevs. Currently, point guards don’t seems to be championship center pieces, but that doesn’t mean we can’t build a team around one. And for the record, Chris Paul is a hall of fame point guard, and he has NEVER and will NEVER score in the same fashion Kyrie does. They are comparable, but not all that similar in the end. And it took a Westbrook to… Read more »
@nate – he had an amazing game though. X-factor
Oh, and let’s not start start going crazy on C.J. Miles. As I’m watching Sportscenter, I’m realizing the defense on him was absolutely abysmal.
@Nate – if you take away the Gasol fleecing – which directly led to 2 championships, the Lakers FO looks pretty putrid. Of course, you can’t really take that away. I blows my mind the way the organization/fanbase/management/KOBE!!11 constantly put Gasol in a position to fail. They will regret it.
Wes – coming from the guy that wanted Derrick Williams (A DUKE FAN NO LESS!) you are so freaking delusional about Waiters. Kid is going to be a star. He’s “chucking” now because the Cavs start Alonzo Gee and Tristan Thompson, and KI has been hurt half the season. I don’t even need to try to balance out your TT comments – there’s enough people here to do that. What if he becomes as good as Emeka Okafor? You still going to hate on him?
Rondo has a “ship”, buttsauce.
Absolutely fantastic comment, Wes. Sums up my feelings completely. Tomorrow will be an interesting game, for sure.
Regarding Miles, his shot selection actually was good – most of his 3s were smart, open shots, and he drove to the rim with authority. Lets hope he’s finally clicking.
CJ Miles before tonight has been utterly terrible. CJ Miles was amazing tonight. Was it a 1 game wonder or does he excel in a starting role next to KI2? I might give him the run with the first unit to find out, and let Waiters come off the bench like he did in college as a chucker…ahem I mean volume shooter. I saw TT tonight get passed the basketball with nobody within 5 feet of him right underneath the basket. What does he do? He looks down and ponders “what is this round orange thing?”. Then he shuffles his… Read more »
The Lakers situation is soo incredibly dumb because Mike Brown really wasn’t the problem. The fact that Kobe got what he wanted (Mike Brown fired), puts a lot of this on him. The Princeton offense was really ideal for Gasol (look how well Andy shines in it in Cleveland), but it wasn’t ideal for iso-Kobe, so Kobe got pissed and impatient. Now the Lakers are an even bigger mess, but the entire problem is the front office. THE LAKERS CAN’T STOP QUICK GUARDS. They’ve done nothing to fix this problem since last year, in fact it might be worse since… Read more »
excuse me to anyone who is an NHL fan…the spat is not new…just new to me because I don’t follow the league. It seems to me that the NHL and NBA spat are similar…now that I consider it. I apologize.
I totally agree about Mike Brown. He really was their guy. After the Celtics threesome championship ’08, it is almost as if teams think they can all-star their way to the title in a year. The only time that has happened is the Celtics. I don’t count the heat because they didn’t do it in a year, and they also made legit changes to the way they played in order to get it done. The players vs. owners spat is soooo intriguing in the NBA right now. In the NFL it is just silly, and in the NHL it is… Read more »
s87 – it could be a SPECTACULAR implosion. I’m trying to envision how they are going to do it. The pieces don’t fit with each other or the coach. I really don’t think the Lakers can win if the offense is Kobe-centric. It’s going to have to go through Gasol with Howard crashing the glass and Kobe initiating the offense. no idea where that leaves Nash, but if they continue to pretend like Gasol sucks it’s could be a really long season. Mike Brown was so the guy to get that team to play defense. they could have punted on… Read more »
Sorry..didnt’ explain myself well in the first paragraph. I think it is silly that Kobe seems not to notice how his playing style really really grates on Dwight Howard.
HAHA YES! I loved it. What’s silly about that comment is that Dwight seems to genuinely dislike Kobe’s 1000 shots per game attitude. It takes a special group to play with a guy like Kobe Bryant/michael Jordan/carmelo Anthony/Lebron James. I almost didn’t throw Lebron in there cuz he’s a totally different player than they were/are, but what the hell. He left like a turd. But what I mean is that if there were some way the Lakers could get rid of Howard and keep Gasol…I think they might do it. The only thing they have to wait for is to… Read more »
s87 – how crazy would it be if the Lakers really don’t right this ship. I’ll say this, D’Antoni does not have a history of getting teams to play defense and that’s what they are struggling with most. Did you see Kobe’s comment tonight on how he’s the fastest guy on the team and he’s “like 50”. LMAO
KJ – yeah I think the only reason Zeller is on the floor instead of TT at the end of games is because of FT shooting. What else would it be? Tristan is better at rebounding and defense and the offense is going to go through Kyrie in end of game stuff. Get me on your level so I can get in the argument you are trying to start. I noticed Andy get WHACKED a bunch of times (notably that dumb play where Gee didn’t just dunk the ball – andy got TACKLED) and not get the calls. Cavs FT… Read more »
I love the pick situation. Makes this and the next lakers’ game fun. As for TT/Zeller discrepancy, they accomplish different things on the court and are both valuable to this current roster. However, as the next couple years wear on, Zeller seems to have placed himself in a position where he could make $1-5 million off someone’s bench, whereas TT has found himself in the high draft pick and not panning out situation. Team defense is a real thing. Ask Kobe after tonight’s debacle. He’d definitely rather have Pau out there right now…no doubt about it.
Andy’s Dunk leads the midnight SportsCenter! Kobe’s talking about Phil. D’Antoni is getting pissed at reporters. I love it! We might’ve just cost ourselves a 15th pick!
Yeah, funny how Howard had a shot blocked by the rim too…however, he was bailed out by a late whistle. Something TT NEVER gets. Oh and Scott mentioned TT right after Kyrie in his post-game comments tonight. But I’m sure Byron is wrong to mention such a “non-factor.” This is why I have been staying away. I keep thinking people might actually learn something from posts/comments and watching the games and amend their opinions but then Mallory proves with this re-cap that is clearly not true. TT rebounded better than Andy, played good D on Jamison, who is a tough… Read more »
s87twist – yeah I couldn’t bear to not watch varejao nightly. He makes the game so much fun. And I love me some Hubie Brown. He makes some great calls.
plus, has anyone heard Hubie Brown commentate a cavs game? his verajao comments are gold.
Hooray. But srsly, isn’t andy verajao much more fun to watch than his replacement will be if we trade him?
@Roy – I feel like the Dad in the parable of the Prodigal son! Quick, someone slaughter that fattened clip-art calf. Get him the finest robe and sandals! Here is a ring! Commenters, your brother was lost and now he is found! Let’s celebrate!
@Tom- ok im back. Sorry I was rude, that was uncalled for. I will continue to visit C:tb on occasion, it is more than worthy of my attention.
s87twist – CJ Miles looked like a different player tonight. He stepped into some shots with serious confidence. Love watching andy finish PnR and not just launching 18 footers. This was a huge game for the cavs.
I know what you mean, Mal714. Andy got absolutely mugged on that dunk. Zeller had a total brick in the 3rd that I yelled at him for till I saw the replay and realized that Howard just reached out and smacked him in the face. The Cavs need a vet on the floor to work the refs.
Totally agree, Nate. To add to it, what is it with refs deliberately not calling blatant fouls on Andy? It’s driving me insane.
Can I talk about one thing I’ve noticed about the Cavs the last few games? The plus minus on Cavs when it comes to pump fakes has to average around -6 per game. As in, everyone fakes the Cavs out and then jumps into the Cavs players when they fly at them and draw fouls, and NO ONE on the Cavs pump fakes and then jumps into their defender when the defender is on a wild closeout. I swear I scream “DON’T JUMP!” 3 times a game, and scream “JUMP!” at least twice. The NBA has let this crap get… Read more »
Good point Mallory. Zeller’s a high bball IQ guy. I guess when you’re praising TT’s passable defense, it’s as bad a praising is after the whistle flip up and in. he was a top 5 pick after all.
But enough of the negative. MILES MILES MILES!
@Roy – I’m so sorry bro. Please stay. You add way too much value we can’t afford to lose you. Also, this is going to affect my commission.
Tom sort of summed up TT for me as well – The only notable things that I really saw were the missed hook/floater/shot thing, his blocked shot, and a TO under the basket. I watched the whole thing, but he didn’t exactly make a statement….that’s really why I didn’t put him in good OR bad. It’s not like he blew the game, but he didn’t exactly blow our minds either.
S87 and David – I noted he had a good rebounding game. And yeah, his D was passable and he did it against a bunch of different positions, but there’s a reason why Zeller played down the stretch.
And Nate, I forgot to mention that Austin Carr thing about TT’s hook/one hander shot. What a joke.
@tom-gotcha. if you caught andy’s stuff, you caught the whole game. that was basically the attitude they all took. One big “suck it” to the whole laker’s squad. it was marvelous.
S87Twist – agreed on Howard. Andy pump faked him into the air, and then drove by him for the FACIAL! And Howard was lost helping multiple times on the PnR. I honestly didn’t notice TT much on the court tonight. I noticed him fumble away an entry pass, and get blocked by the rim. I’m not dismissing his defensive prowess – I just didn’t see it tonight. I only caught about 1/3 of the game. He wasn’t on the court much during that time. I only saw about 10 of CJ Miles 28 points too.
@Tom- I know, it was sarcastic….. aaaaaaannnnnd I’m going back to other Cavs blog.
I said that C.J. Miles ought to be starting after the first preseason game. Some players are just better as starters (see Pargo, Jeremy). Who else forgot how good KI is? And I 100% agree with you. He got beat, but was actually trying to recover, and stole the ball once when he did. I actually thought Gee had a pretty good game. Kobe put up a ridiculous amount of shots, and some of them were incredibly difficult makes (how about that fadeaway 3 in the corner to cut it to 3?). Yeah, Gee lost focus in transition a couple… Read more »
@ Tom/Mallory-TT played totally passable defense on an admittedly struggling former all-star Howard when Andy wasn’t in the game. He fouled effectively, got in the lane a few times to disrupt penetration, and yes, found a fun way to get blocked by an inanimate object. But to negate his contribution and rebounding as ho-hum is ridiculous. He wasn’t an all star, but he had a definite impact on winning the game. He even boxed out twice until he grabbed the rebound, instead of jumping wildly into the air. Miles emersion could be a big deal, if he keeps that confidence… Read more »
Thanks. I get my hair cut at Legend’s Black Barbershop on Fairfax and they are all delusional Fakers fans. Can’t wait to remind them that the Lakers are garbage and that I called it before the season. Never thought it was gonna be this bad though.
Mike Brown is cackling rolling Nutter Butters in banana pudding and watching reruns of Moesha.
Roy – yeah Varejao’s been doing it for a decade.
@David – I trust you. I’m just glad someone is noticing positive things from Tristan.
Dion Waiters made the best “that is one bad man” head shake after Kyrie hit that insane step back 3 in the 2nd quarter
you mean basketball players do positive things that don’t show up in the box score?
I mean I know he isn’t a great offensive force, and maybe he never will be. But there is value in a 21 year old who plays 30+ minutes in a win against the Lakers and rebounds and plays defense. thats my point.
David – that’s awesome. I’m glad he’s making a difference at that end of the court. I didn’t really get to watch much of the first half. Thanks for filling me in.
Tom, I saw him guard 3 entirely different types of player. Jordan Hill, Jamison, and Howard all have differing levels of skill but they all do different things offensively. Tristan held his own with each. How many 6 8 power forwards can guard Howard straight up? Tristan did it at least three times tonite and got stops without even sending Dwight to the line. How many PF’s are athletic enough to step out and put a hand in Jamison’s face? I readily admit Jamison sucks, but the fact that Tristan is that versatile is pretty nice. Unless you don’t care… Read more »
Kobe just dropped an f bomb in the post game interview…Loves it.
SLYMAN’S IS THE BEST.
Corey – you get +10 for comments today. Loved your Phil Jackson at the dinner table comment.
David – i didn’t miss when the bottom of the rim blocked his shot. What did you see from TT tonight?
if you cant appreciate what Tristan did tonite, I don’t know what to tell you. Complete non-factor is missing an entire half of the basketball game.
Highly enjoyed getting to watch the Cavs on television for once instead on a quasi legal probably illegal internet feed. The Lakers commentators were really impressed with Kyrie and Andy. They obviously don’t know much about the Cavs because they repeatedly talked about how CJ Miles is a deadly shooter. Jameson gushed about Kyrie in his post game interview. Great win and a real reason for optimism. Still a deep lottery team and there will be some ugly nights to come, but it’s gems like these that offer a glimpse of what should be a bright future in the land… Read more »
Wait, do I detect…..optimism?
Where’s KJ when I need him/her.
I’d say CJ Miles was awesome. 28 points on 18 shots? I actually saw Zeller body up Howard, and force him into a missed shot. Haven’t seen anything like that from him this season. VERY encouraging
Kyrie was awesome
Gee was pretty good.
Miles was pretty good.
Thompson had a bunch of rebounds
Andy continued to play like a different player than he was in previous seasons
Zeller continued to look solid.
We are well set up going forward.
Andy and Kyrie with HUUUUUGE 4th quarters!!! and CJ MILES EXPLOSION!
hidden good: every Laker loss improves the value of our Heat/Lakers pick