Playoff Recap: Cleveland 111, Boston 102 (Or, The Better Bullies)
2018-05-22
The Cavs’ defense showed up once again tonight, and the series is now tied at 2-2. They held Boston to just 41.2% from the field and were able to use a 16 point lead built in the first quarter to come out on top with a nine point win. LeBron James led the way for the Cavs with 44 points, five rebounds, and three assists. It was his sixth game with 40 or more points in the playoffs to date.
James wasn’t alone tonight at all though. Tristan Thompson put up 13 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. George Hill chipped in 13 too on 6-9 shooting, while Kyle Korver dropped 14 to go along with four rebounds, and three blocks.
In the first quarter, it became clear that both teams were trying to bully specific guys. Boston wanted to get Horford going and gave him the ball against Tristan on the first play of the game and he bricked the shot. Tristan held Horford to 15 points and seven rebounds.
The Celtics also gave Marcus Morris a go at Kevin Love. He hit a turnaround jumper on Love for his first bucket, but after that Love held his own. Morris had just four points in the quarter and ten for the whole evening. Love struggled to hit his shots and was getting called for fouls, but he kept tough on defense throughout the game. He put up just nine points on 3-12 shooting and got 11 boards.
In the first, the Wine & Gold offense consistently focused on pushing the pace and forcing switches. The Cavs fed TT whenever Terry Rozier was on him. The Cavs fed anyone when Rozier was on them, and it worked.
Boston tried the same strategy of attacking switches, but Cleveland shut it down. With 5:45 to go, Tristan followed Jayson Tatum to the rack and forced him to miss a dunk. LeBron capped the miss off with a slam of his own for an And-1 to put the Cavs up 10-17.
https://twitter.com/SheaSerrano/status/998728464881635335
TT showed his hustle following James’ 3-point play by blocking Marcus Smart. Everything was clicking for Cleveland. Love even did his Tom Brady impersonation finding LeBron down the floor to put the Cavs up 23-15 with 3:23 in the quarter.
https://twitter.com/SportsQuotient/status/998730200866349057
The Cavs beat down continued even when the bench checked in. Korver put up two points, but he played absolutely smothering defense on Jaylen Brown. Brown had 25 points and led all Celtics in points, but that cannot change the fact that Kyle blocked him twice in the game. He went 1-7 in the first. Look at these blocks. Korver made Brown reconsider being a basketball player. George Hill dropped a 3-pointer in transition off that first block to put Cleveland up 30-17.
https://twitter.com/twitter/statuses/998741612745412609
Larry Nance had a pivotal screen for George Hill that resulted in Marcus Morris getting his third foul and heading to the bench for a little bit. James finished the first with 11 points.
The Cavs headed into the second quarter up 18-34. During the second, the offense sort of sputtered out and Boston banged hard with Aron Baynes and Horford going against just TT. The Celts moved to within 11 points around the mid-way point, but Kyle Korver responded and dropped two quick 3s in a row to steady the Cavs. He had twelve in the quarter. Terry Rozier responded with two 3s of his own over James, but the King just bullied Tatum a possession later for two freebies. Every time the Celtics got closer than 11, James had an answer. He had 11 in the quarter. including a beautiful turnaround jumper in the paint.
Notice who it’s over? It’s Rozier. Two of his four makes in the quarter were after Rozier switched onto him. James made sure the quarter finished on a high note after TT got a steal and then ran the floor for James to dime him on an open dunk.
The Cavs started the third quarter up 68-53, but they looked gassed. They turned the ball over six times, and no one on the Cavs could really score. They had just seven makes in the quarter. James had the Cavs first six points in the quarter, but that was spread out over five minutes. Three of James’ five buckets in the quarter came out of mismatches. He had five of Cleveland’s seven makes. Nance showed some hustle at the end of the quarter to keep the Cavs mood a little more positive. He got a putback and-1, and then followed it up by running the floor after a steal to get fouled.
And, Korver showed some hustle diving for an extra possession after a jump ball with under a minute in the action.
The hustle at the end of the quarter let them keep a 89-76 lead despite Boston getting within eight.
In the fourth quarter, Boston got as close as eight points. Cleveland hung in to start the fourth behind a George Hill and Love run. They scored all nine in the first six minutes. Boston gained ground but not enough as the action went on. Even on two timeouts, the Cavs were able to stop their out of bounds plays. And, James was just James. At one point, he tossed the ball away, but was able to steal it and put it back in the basket.
LeBron with the heads up steal and finish!#WhateverItTakes 104 | #CUsRise 93
3:31 left in the 4th on @ESPNNBA pic.twitter.com/wkhrDXXvAH
— NBA (@NBA) May 22, 2018
Gripes
- Jordan Clarkson and Jeff Green were limited to just 24 combined minutes. They combined for two points and five rebounds. They weren’t completely terrible, but at this point they shouldn’t be getting any minutes. Green was at the focal point of a lot of the defensive lapses.
- The Cavs played some great defense for stretches of the game. They were in jerseys and aggravating, but it was still just for short periods of time. They didn’t put together 48 competent minutes and that’s what they need to strive for if they want to compete in the Finals.
- They need to be competent on both ends of the floor. Cleveland had 19 turnovers, which is simply too much. The Celtics got 19 points from them.
- And, the Cavs didn’t really run an offense. They had just 15 assists tonight. It’s never a good thing to have more turnovers than assists. It’s even scarier that they came with the Cavs not playing an actual offense. They ran a few plays out of timeouts, but for the most part they just played mismatches while pushing the pace.
Hypes
- Who am I to complain though? The offensive game plan of attacking switches worked. They won. LeBron’s 44 points seemed quiet, because he didn’t hunt for them. He took what the game gave him for the most part, and when he needed to absolutely score he had no problem doing so.
- Kyle Korver was amazing too. He’s 37 and he’s the grittiest guy the Cavs have. It was nice to hear Jeff Van Gundy rave about his great positional defense. Korver shut Jaylen Brown down for a decent chunk of the game.
- The Cavs won this game not relying on 3s. They went just 8-23. There’s gonna be another 15-plus 3-point game for the team before this series ends.
- Kevin Love had just nine points and was troubled by fouls. However, he kept his head in the game. He kept screening for guys, and he kept his effort up on the defensive end. Boston wanted to find him and exploit him. They couldn’t though.
- Terry Rozier had 16 points and gave them all back on switches. Jaylen Brown had 25, but he was exploited too. And, Jason Tatum had 17 points. None of them shot above 50% from the floor.
- Props to Tyronn Lue. Lue matched Tristan’s minutes to Horford’s quite successfully. And, props to Tristan. TT was a screening and hustle machine. He took advantage of what he was given and played Horford into role player status.
- The Cavs came out blazing in game three, and much of that may have been because they had two days of rest. Tonight, they started out hot and slowly fizzled. This game could have been another blowout easily. Hopefully, the team can get enough rest ahead of Thursday’s game in Boston. A win in Boston would be huge for them. It’s in reach if they can ride the momentum they currently have.
- One bonus point: Hopefully Boston doesn’t realize they need to stop switching guys on James and Love. When those two face switches they are easily able to bully them. And, when Boston has to double switches, both of them freely kick the ball out. If Boston was wise, they would actually just switch Aron Baynes onto James. James does this mind boogling thing where he won’t drive on bigs. He always jab steps them and takes a long jumper.
I so desperately want to overreact to the Rockets winning. But with the way the Warriors and Cavs have bastardized the game with their inconsistency the past couple years, we can literally glean nothing from any win or loss. I just hope the Cavs keep fighting.
Nice piece posted on Amico Hoops. Has some tidbits that tend to reinforce my position on the GOAT debate. Which is, any GOAT debate (MJ v LBJ) that excludes Russell, Kareem, & Wilt is a debate between two idiots.
The tidbits. Apparently there is data for blocked shots in 112 games Wilt played (most late in career). He averaged 8.8 blocks per game and had 44 games of 10+ blocks in those. What you have ate literally 100+ (or more) unrecorded triple doubles with blocks.
Also, MJ 1-10 in PO games pre-Pippen.
http://amicohoops.net/pindowns-of-harden-draymond-lbj-mj-the-doctor-wilt-and-more/
I don’t disagree with your premise. I always state I don’t think MJ was the greatest due to the era he played. Looking at relative competition (not the skill sets or talent of the players themselves) there was less elite talent accumulated on single teams than in most eras before or since. I have been on record as saying Jabar is the best, but Wilt and Russell certainly have their cases. My dad watched all of them in their primes as an adult and always says Wilt. Looking at the actual video play of guys themselves doesn’t equate for the… Read more »
Post play is different as it appears (based all games I have watched from the 1960s/1970s) appears largely unchanged as far as moves. Wilt had a turnaround fadeaway out 12-15 (weird he couldn’t make free throws) and an unguardable drop-step and reverse pivot, Jabar had THE hook, and in general hook shots had been around since the inception of the league. The jump hook was less used back then but I have still seen versions of it. Additionally, post play has always been physical and really was the only part of defense where a ton of contact was allowed back… Read more »
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/23561760/cleveland-cavaliers-kyle-korver-plays-family-tragedy
Not ashamed to admit that article made me cry.
If Iggy and/or Klay are gimpy, we have a series. D’Antoni is basically going with 7 guys. Hopefully it goes 7 and Harden & CP3 are on empty when it ends.
Meanwhile, we need to take game 5.
This is all you need to know about this Cavs team… “If we use FiveThirtyEight’s Elo ratings to measure their point differential in each game of the season (regular and post-) relative to what we’d expect from an average team at the same location, the 2017-18 Cavaliers are the fifth-most-inconsistent team to make the conference finals since 1984.2 Fittingly, they’re joined in the top six by three other versions of themselves. . .”
From the FiveThirtyEight article linked below.
I hope somebody is reminding Kyrie that if he would have just had knee surgery in the offseason and stuck it out with the Cavs, he’d probably be coasting through the Eastern Conference bracket with another shot at a Warriors team coming off a pretty rough WCF and a banged up Curry and Iguadola. I know he really wanted his own team, but beating the Dubs again would have vaulted him into the best PG conversation and had him rivaling Curry in popularity.
Wasn’t a move about winning for Kyrie… Did it because he wanted to be “the man”. Was tired of LeBron sonning him…
It wasn’t about getting away from Lebron as much as it was about growing his brand as an individual outside of Lebron. But I just think he should realize he cut off his nose to spite his face because one more year in Cleveland wouldn’t have set him back and another ring in the spotlight against Curry, his main brand competition, probably would have vaulted him past Curry.
As far as I’m concerned his “brand” wasn’t suffering at all. Apparently that Uncle Drew movie wasn’t going to happen on the Cavs… /s
You aren’t wrong. I just think Kyrie has very little self-awareness. Actually, given the time he spent on “road trippin'”, maybe he has TOO much self-awareness…
I think I remember Windhorst saying that he’d heard some rumblings that Lebron was pretty appalled that Gilbert would fall in the first place for Kyrie threatening to sit out the season because he knew Kyrie well enough to know he wouldn’t risk the blow to his brand that sitting out for a year would have, and then when the injury info came out on IT, even more so that they didn’t leverage that and the fact that there was no way for Boston to bring back IT and Crowder at that point, into a more substantial additional piece because… Read more »
The extent to which the Cavs got played by that Irving trade is mind boggling.
It was criminally incompetent
Yeah, wasn’t so much Ainge owning them as it was a self own.
Well, Ainge vs. Gilbert… bigger mismatch than lebron vs rozier.
I wonder how the Warriors fans feel right now about their coach and team, four all stars on their peak with 2 of them been former MVP’s and they are still choking at the end of games with all that talent? It’s just unbelievable and unacceptable if you ask me.
I’m sure they’ve got any number of excuses/rationalizations. Don’t forget Curry is still playing hurt… -_-
The Rockets are a really good team. But yeah, very unimpressive 4th quarter by the Warriors. Refs swallowed the whistles on non-shooting contact and the Rockets played very good physical D.
Yes the Rockets are a really good team but the Warriors still had a chance at the end and they choked with all the talent they have.
I’m glad the refs are calling the series the way they have been. I mean would you imagine if the refs begin to call all those silly fouls then nobody would stand a chance against them.
I don’t think they take the rockets seriously. They probably will now though. I think their inconsistency is a product of their own talent and success. In a way they are similar to the cavs, but slightly more focused most of the time. They aren’t always though and obviously they can still lose if they play stupidly. If the warriors want to be focused, they aren’t going to lose. They don’t always have that sharpness though.
I get your point but to be honest the bottom line IMO is that if you have 4 all stars and 2 former MVP’s you should not be choking at the end of any game.
To me there are no excuses with that much talent on one team.
I ask you, if the Cavs had that much talent and they choked like this and the end of the game don’t you think everybody would be destroying the Cavs in all blogs and forums?
Again, to me it’s just unnaceptable.
Trickle down of missing Andre. Rotations, roles and fatigue. Curry trying to Alpha dog Durant. Klay looked drunk half the game, probably lack of focus, hopefully it messes with them mentally and they implode.
Klay hurt his knee in second quarter.
The are coming to grips with the fact that Curry does not have the clutch gene. He is a frontrunner who tightens up in the clutch. 1-8 in the 4th, at home.
Now, staying in contact with that team so that the last 6-8 minutes are tight is tough to do. But if you can, you can beat them. They have to revert to KD iso in clutch situations because Steph is a choker. If KD is off, they are gettable.
Exactly, I also believe that being physical on defense against them kind of hurts them at the end of games.
If the refs continue to let the Rockets defend that way then the Rockets may have the chance to beat them.
I can’t speak for all warriors fans, but that was really bad game. No ball movement, too much iso and you are right basically choked.
Chris Paul was really impressive.
Both CP3 and Harden have to play like this or better for at least two more games for the Rockets to win it.
Seconded. He bailed them out in the second half.
I am still pissed at Gilbert/Griffin for no exit interviews. Kyrie for CP3 & LBAM is a deal we could have gotten.
12 pt 4th for the Dubs. 1 assist in the 4th. I believe 10 or 11 straight misses from deep.
Klay looked gimpy. Iggy questionable. Lot of Durant iso.
Harden most overrated player in the league. Westbrook close behind him. Pulling for Houston big time. Cavs would take ’em in 5.
Ok – Cavs fans are maybe getting a little excited now. Right?
Curry was clearly bothered by the knee injury in that final possession. In all seriousness though, you have to give credit to the Rockets for making this a series. I still think they have like a 30% chance to win the series, but it is a series now.
Curry was clearly crippled except for when he was hitting those awesome threes. Also, the Warriors became disinterested once they opened up the 12 point lead.
Look for these stories and more from your favorite national hoops media types tomorrow.
Got a series here. Harden with only 6 points after half.
.5 should not be enough time to catch, step, pivot 180 degrees, and shoot. That’s almost tip territory.
I am not sure he got it off in time.
Hey Steph, whose house it is now?
CP3 is a competitor.
Joe Thomas out there clearing a path for the final Curry miss
The myth that these two teams are awesome is a myth.
They are frontrunners. When things get tight…….
nah.
irrational but lovably defiant nate is my homeboy
Hah.
Here is bad example since the Jordan teams are incorrectly overrated due to their poor competition, but they lost games all the time.
A good example would be that so did the 60s Celtics here and there in the finals.
Hold on folks.
Why the hell wouldn’t you miss that on purpose? There’s no way you can get that rebound and fling it full court in .5
GSW has a TO left.
You can’t get a rebound and call a to and get a play in to score in half a second
You need .3 for anything besides a tip to be a possibility, so it’s possible, but not that likely.
Rockets hang on.
Can’t believe those two teams had such a brick fest.
haha hell yeah
HOUSTON… THIS IS FOR YOU!
A lot of clank. Gordon misses a 3 up 3. Klay & Steph both miss 3s to tie. CP3 with an airball miss. GSW 8 strait misses from deep.
this is some ugly crunch time ball
WTF with that final possession.
Can the Rockets hang on?
This is a great game. Probably best game of the offs so far.
Rockets have taken two haymakers & come back.
The end of Game 1: Bos/Mil was pretty sweet.
What in the heck just happened at the end of that third?
Curry hit 3 3s in a row & then a layup. Houston settled for jumpers. Dubs got a bunch of o-boards.
Houston clawing back to within 3.
Harden getting into a 3PT shooting contest with Curry. Not going well. Can not belueve they haven’t attacked Curry more with 3 fouls. Now he is burning them.
Game today is olayed a lot less strategically than in the past (with some exceptions).
Dang. Steph is ridiculous
Rooting for the Rockets. Want to destroy the myth that the Dubs are unbeatable.
Just beat each other up, guys.
Not wishing anyone ill, but seven hard fought games that wear everyone down mentally & physically would help our chances.
Houston up 7 at half. Steph with 3 fouls Looney with 4.
Beard with 2 straight strips out top lead to two straight layups. The a CP3 puts Houston up 10.
Loving the rockets close of the half. It’s all about that early third though. Missing Iggy is a weirdly problematic loss for them
GSW has a strange roster. They do not have a lot of wing depth. 6 centers: Zaza, McGee, Bell, Looney, West, & Jones. 3 guys who are PGs: Curry, Livingston (non-shooter), and Cook. McCaw is hurt. Dray is a 4.
That leaves Klay, Durant, Iggy, & Swaggy P on the wing. If you play KD at the 4, their wing depth gets thin quick with Iggy out.
Livingston has the length to play on the wing. Not a threat from deep.
Surprisingly competitive game. Love to just see this drag out.
Klay back in. Seems OK. Knee strain. 3 fouls on Curry.
Harden puts Draymond on a poster. Hou down just two.
Klay to the locker room. Landed funny on ankle/knee. Rockets hanging around, down 8.
The Rockets turn it over a ton.
Rockets scoreless for 5 minutes. Down 12-0.
well I watched the first episode of The Expanse based on all the recommendations around here. Pretty captivating
The Expanse is pretty darn good.
GAME 5– ” BREAK OUT GAME ” FOR R. HOOD —20, + PTS —–OK MY “OVERCOMSUMPTION ” OF “BARLEY -HOPS-POP ” HAS MADE ME DILLUSIONAL ——————————-STILL HOPING FOR “UTAH HOOD “
I think he has played himself out of the rotation. Clarkson & Cedi would get minutes before he would. Probably even Jose.
I love your no quit spirit nomad haha. He is a system player. He doesnt have the bball IQ to play in an improvised system
The best analytic is regular season performance. Teams do not have to be the best to win, but winners are almost always pretty darn good in the regular season. Title winners have been a top 4 regular season team in 70/82 NBA/ABA/BAA seasons. 7 more times the champs have had the 5th best record. 77/82. The outliers (and a lot of the 4th/5th place champs) all fit into one (or more) of 3 categories. 1) Team had significant injuries & then got healthy; 2) Something clicked mid-season & team was elite AFTER the title; 3) Vet team with championship DNA… Read more »
daspec90—totally agree–‘IF ” somehow LeBron can carry this team to an NBA championship this season—-he SURPASSSES M.J. as GOAT ——-deep down he is fully aware of this—-fully motivated to make it happen !!—GO CAVS “INBELIEVELAND “
To me having to play every other day the rest of the series favors the Celtics.
I had so much hope in RH and the dude had been a huge disappointment.
To say the least. Some guys have trouble when the spotlight is on. A lot do.
Sometimes they can adjust & get used to it. Bron did not exactly light up the 2007 Finals. Harden in 2012 was awful. Hope Hood is that kind of guy.
He also has not had much time to adjust to playing with Bron and in our “system.” Perhaps he can improve with a camp.
His attitude is the most disappointing thing.
He always played well against the Spurs and the guy averaged 17 ppg in the western conference. And he played well at the beginning for the Cavs and all the sudden he just disappeared. Really weird if you ask me.
This team just defies analytics. If I write a book about this season, it will be called “The Problem with Averages.”
Analytics presume that teams are trying equally hard all the time.
Teams that are half-@$$ing the regular season, or experimenting, or are hit hard by injuries, just are not going to post numbers that are as good as teams giving mostly 100% all the time (if they are anywhere close in talent).
It is not an apples to apples comparison. The Raptors were not better than the Cavs. The Rockets are not better than the Dubs. The numbers say they are, but that is just not the case. The numbers tell only a part of the story.
This year’s team is so inconsistent in its effort that it makes it really hard for me to invest emotionally too much. I mean, if they don’t give an eff half the time, why should I? Still, despite everything that has transpired this season- and it has been a lot – it is not inconceivable we emerge as the unlikeliest champions since the Mavs upset the Heatles. I could see Lebron and the Cavs two-thousand-fifteen their way into two wins against a cocky and disinterested Warriors team and then everything is possible if you have Lebron on your side. Call… Read more »
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-cavs-are-back-and-no-one-should-be-surprised/
2+1+1 > 6
It’s a real long shot that the Cavs win it all this year (>10% chance maybe). But if the Cavs and Lebron were to win, you couple that with the 3-1 comeback in 2016 along with his two championships with the Heat plus all of the personal milestones, and I think that the case could be made that Lebron has scaled the mountain. It’s motivation, at least.
Yup… if LBJ and Co. pull off the upset…. it would be an all-time upset IMO.
Well said, GCF…. I think the same way…. Simmons’ “nobody believes in us” possibility is definitely in play with the Cavs. It’s also impossible to talk Cavs with other NBA fans IMO because to anyone who doesn’t follow the team, they don’t understand that the Cavs don’t lack ability…. they lack will and grit at the times they stink.
https://twitter.com/TommyBeer/status/998917564293140480?s=19
In fairness, Curry has been injured every game but 1.
To be totally fair, he was also injured the first half of said game.
And in the second half he was still just 90%
good recap—good game—believe it will come down to —–1 GAME —WINNER TAKE ALL–(7TH GAME )—–60 – 40 CELTS FAVOR—( THEY HAVE HOME CT/ STEVENS —WE HAVE LEBRON )——–STILL FRUSTRATING / BEFUDDLING / CONFUSING ETC . ——-THE MAIN PIECE– ( IN MY OPINION )—AT ALL STAR BREAK TRADE —R HOOD –HAS GONE TO —DNP FOR THE PLAYOFFS —AT VERY WORSE ———EQUATING THE LACK OF PLAYOFF EXPERIENCE—STIL L THOUGHT HE WOULD BE GOOD FOR AT LEAST 12–18 MIN’S / GAME OF SOLID / CONTRIBUTING TIME ———–FRUSTRATING / DISSAPPPOINTING —————-STILL HOPING !!
found this gem in our spam filter:
Did you forward it to Lebron??
yeah I texted it to him – he laughed.
https://twitter.com/KirkSeriousFace/status/998721854478135296?s=19
Saw that. Great news! However, the headline is a little misleading. Talks are still going on and apparently in the early stages so it is not a done deal. The Netflix international streaming rights may pose a hurdle. Still, it is certainly promising, especially if Bezos himself actually is a huge fan and was extremely frustrated Syfy got it over Amazon originally. I will be cautiously optimistic until the deal is closed.
Just thinking rotations & PT. Minutes: Bron = 40. Love = 30. TT+Nance = 48 for this series. That is virtually all the 4/5 minutes depending on how much 4 Bron plays. 118/240. Say Hill at 30. JR 28. Korver 24. That is 82 minutes. So 200/240 total. You have 40 minutes left with 7 guys. Options? You could milk 4/5 minutes more out of some guys & play Green 20 minutes. That was the game 4 plan. Clarkson played 4 min. You widen the rotation some & see if you can get 40 minutes out of Green, Clarkson, Cedi,… Read more »
Hood does not need to get any minutes. Not this year. He just doesn’t have anything to offer on either end.
Another interesting wrinkle: the Cavs’ defensive lapses were where they lost focus in the second (especially LeBron’s). their offensive lapses were where they lost focus in the third. They need to play a complete game to win game five. The LeBron-less lineups were decent, centered around Love and Korver. I’d like to see Cedi playing instead of Clarkson, with an Love, Nance, Cedi, Green, Korver lineup with Green and Cedi bringing the ball up. That lineup has some chops on D and enough spacing and cutting to work offensively. They can leave Clarkson in Cleveland. I’ve never been so wrong… Read more »
Clarkson seems to play hard, just not smart. He ain’t scared, either (like Hood seems to be). The issue is we gave him free reign almost all year to “be aggressive” with no consequnces. Same in LA? Now we are asking him to be selective and he gets benched when he goes 1 v 4 & ignore. It is the only way to get through to the guy. I do think there is a path for him to learn & grow as a player & come out of this a productive piece. But in terms of just smart basketball basics,… Read more »
Nice recap, David. I have to disagree with you that the Cavs didn’t run plays. They ran plays to get switches and get guys in isolation on the ball and off the ball and they ran them over and over again. The Cavs did the best job of sticking with an offensive gameplan that I have ever seen from them. The 1-3 pick-and-rolled the Celts to death in the fourth. If I’m the Celtics, I’m going way under George Hill and LeBron and just daring them to make threes. Hill’s hit a couple but I’d see if he and bron… Read more »
I was of course thrilled that Kyle Korver blocked Jaylen Brown’s shot two (or three) times, but I worry that Brown’s quickness in getting to the basket could hurt us. Lebron shuts him down. Ideally, we can continue to match Lebron to Brown on defense (but when Korver comes in, that may not be an option).
Boston is definitely not choosing to switch. They tried to avoid it most of the game because they know the Cavs will keep burning clock until they get the mismatch, and they shoot way worse as the shot clock dwindles. But the Cavs are forcing the issue, doing the little things to pressure them into it. The screeners are setting solid picks, hiding the direction and moving to the right spots off of them. And Lebron is doing a good job for the most part keeping them off balance with his hesitations and changes of direction. JVG was breaking it… Read more »
Game 4 seemed like much more of a chess game, with the Cavs having better pieces on the board and using them effectively, as you point out.
On Hou/GSW I am conflicted.
I desperately want Houston to win. I think we have a shot vs them.
However, I think the chances are slim GSW lose. Am I alone in thinking that if the Rockets get Housed that the ultr-competitive CP3 might fly the coop to team up with LBJ on the cheap? Or force a trade like he did with the Clippers?
I’m sure CP3 understands he has 2-3 more years of being a starter in this league. He needs to win a ring in order to supplement him as a great PG. Unfortunately the media/fans only give a shit about rings, so although he’s a fantastic PG, he will not get the recognition without a ring.
He’ll be ring chasing if Houston is bounced in 5 like I expect. Sucks but he got Durant’d like the rest of the league.
CP3 is an urestricted FA, and he basically changed the CBA so that he could cash in on one last longterm deal. His future is weird.
really? I’m interested in hearing more about this.
If Houston loses 4-1. I could see some weird scenario where CP3 might be willing to join the Cavs with Lebron. Might have to have him sign his extension and then do a sign and trade to include hill, nets pick + cedi. Only way Morey would even remotely consider it. Although, I am not sure how having CP3 and LBJ on 5 year maxes would look after 2020….
CBA rules make a sign and trades impossible between 2 capped out teams.
Good catch, wasn’t aware of that.
It’s going to be a complicated offseason for basically everybody except the Warriors, Celtics, Sixers and teams that just don’t care.
Back in 2016, Lebron and CP3 engineered this change to the CBA. Used to be that to protect teams from themselves they couldn’t sign anybody to a 4 or 5 year contract if the player turned 36 before Oct. 31 of any year of the contract. Then Lebron and CP3 stepped in with the last renegotiation and changed the age to 38. CP3’s contract just happened to turn 33 in May of the last year of his contract. Link: http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/18292626/lebron-james-chris-paul-sign-lucrative-deals-new-collective-bargaining-agreement So I can’t imagine what’s going on in his head or the Rockets. If they get rolled by the Dubs,… Read more »
Boogie/Cousins is weird.
I’m fascinated by what the Celtics are going to do with Kyrie. I think Rozier is a much better Stevens fit and Kyrie’s been injured enough to be concerned about his long term health.
Pelicans are nuts to even sign Boogie to a 2 year deal. They’d be punting on the chance to have cap room for a max FA in 2019, just as AD’s deciding on whether or not to pick up his option, extend or opt out. Ainge will trade anybody, but I don’t think it’s gonna be Kyrie. He may not be a typical Stevens player, but he’s exactly what they need, and he’s only going to get better over the next couple of years before he hits his prime. I gues as we saw with IT last year, though, if… Read more »
Actually, not even Ainge could trade Kyrie if he doesn’t want to be traded, as long as he doesn’t, because he’s on the last year of his contract next year.
Rosier switching onto Lebron (followed by easy buckets). Was that bad coaching by Stevens, good coaching by Lue, or heads up play Lebron?
Bad coaching by Stevens and heads up play by LBJ.
That’s 90% Cavs. Boston is constantly trying to avoid switching, but the way the screeners and ballhandlers are running it back, keeping them off balance and moving to the right spaces, eventually they don’t have a choice unless they really want to leave a shooter wide open or a massive hole in their defense.
I think the simplified offense is allowing the Cavs to play fast and free. Nance needed more than 10 minutes of run. Lue made two mistakes in the 3rd quarter…. allowing KLOVE to get the 5th foul, then substituting Green in instead of Korver or Nance. It’s sad that Lue has wasted Cedi’s year here…. one of the goals should’ve been to get Cedi ready for backup duty in the playoffs during the regular season, and Lue failed at accomplishing that. At least the Cavs seem much more together the last two games…. JR has come alive, Hill looks more… Read more »
Lue wasted a full season of Cedi and Zz. I’m sure, as good as TT has been the last few games, that Zz would be just as good if not better.
Sorry, but there is NO WAY Zz stays with guards or wings in a one-on-one iso like Tristan has the past few games… he does enough to challenge their dribble and stays close enough to contest shots. He also makes great use of “veteran” moves like wrist-holding and hip-checking to angle for rebounds and bother post players. Zz could really only get some burn against Baynes. I’d like more minutes for Zz too, but there is little evidence he’d be as effective as TT is… plus, unfairly or not, Zz does not have the PnR familiarity TT has with LeBron… Read more »
Agree to disagree on Zz. I think if he had had a full season he would give you everything TT has done the last few games, and with better offense.
Well… Then I guess you didn’t watch him in summer league or in the first couple months of the season. And you don’t learn defensive technique like TT’s over the course of one season. It took TT years of regular NBA playing time and practice and getting thrown into the fire against the Warriors.
Cedi would be a solid contributor if he’d been getting minutes because he came in more or less NBA-ready. Zizic was not even close when the season started. He needed that G-League time in the worst way. Good news, though… G-League works!
He still doesn’t belong in this series, though. He would be getting burnt alive on switches and by Horford. TT’s been playing high-level post defense on Horford and positional defense on switches the past 2 games that Zizic couldn’t touch with a hundred foot pole.
Have to disagree with you here. As bad as TT was in the regular season (and he was BAD), he’s returned to the form of the big that can switch and play guys in space. Yeah, Rozier got him once last night, but TT adjusted. His activity and rebounding are back too. The dude finally got healthy for the playoffs and it shows. Zizic just wouldn’t be able to defend in space like TT. I like Zizic, but if you think he’s getting some of the blocks TT got this series without getting fouls called on him (like rookies do),… Read more »
I’m curious about the TT “getting healthy” narrative. It looked more to me like, after three years of playing with LBJ, he decided to follow his big Klutch bro’s lead and chill mode the regular season (in between Kardashian shoots and late-night canoodling). It’s probably a smart move — so far, looks like it — but damn did it make the long stretches of abject misery watching this team in the regular season even more wretched.
Eh…I would say JR definitely went the “chill mode” route this year, but I think it was different with Tristan. He was just terrible. And if LeBron was okay with Thompson being out of the rotation when the playoffs started, he must not have had much faith that Tristan would return to form this season.
Clarkson and Green have been awful. They are in there for offense, and haven’t delivered. PUT IN CEDI!!!!
With olay every other day, Lue needs to use the bench more.
Starting V + Korver are easy calls. Nance needs more minutes. That us only 7 guys.
Ty will play Green, but he needs the short leash. He makes a ton of off ball mistakes on D. If that happens, then Cedi (or even Hood) may need a couple minutes).
Clarkson plays hard, just has trouble with the smart part. He isn’t scared or timid (like Hood), but a short leash is necessary. If he falters, go with Cedi/Jose for a couple minutes.
If only we could actually get thru to Lue and get Cedi out there for Green. Cedi should be getting at the very, very least, 15 minutes a night. I’d prefer to see him up around 20. Run him with the second unit while Bron is out for his 3 minute rest then bring Bron in for 2 more minutes of Cedi time.
calderon too is good in short bursts.
I would be okay with 5 minutes of Jose just to keep Clarkson from ever handling the ball.
Co-sign all of this…. give Calderon 5 minutes, see if his shots on. Give Cedi Green’s minutes if Green’s not on.
No way on Calderon. You cannot let a team struggling offensively get a mismatch they can win with almost every player on the floor. Rather have Cedi at the 1 and live with the offensive mistakes.
TT needs to watch some film of Capella. He should never come down with the OBoard. Keep his arms extended and go back up quick. Really frustrating to see him do it over and over again, even though he was great in this game. His offense would be so much better.
Honestly, when I was 6’0″ tall as a 13 year old this is what my coach taught me about playing in the post. I can’t imagine TT has gone all this time without similar instruction. His gather is atrocious and sometimes painful to watch. Thank goodness he is back in shape. At least his body is moving faster in other situations…
Exactly. He’s not helping himself. It’s not like he’s 7 feet anyway, now he’s making himself shorter. I find it funny when they see the mismatch and still throw it to him. He should only get alley oops and putbacks.
It’s cause his hands are so small. He’s gonna get it ripped away at times if he stays up.
Great Recap, David. Obviously, if the Cavs win game 5 the series is over. Will be a tough game though, I think. Boston just got rolled on the road and is going to want to come out strong back at home. Fingers crossed that the Cavs can break their backs tomorrow.
turnovers and poor free throw shooting are only gripes from last nights game. felt if those were even slightly fixed, it would be another 20+ point win….Game 5 will be huge for both teams but especially Cavs. Other than Raptors, Cavs haven’t won big on road in playoffs and Im thinking they are due for full breakout game. Cavs can easily drive on Celtics now and Stevens really has no answers. Even Jeff Green can do it, but he is incapable. Still think cavs need to use him for like 5 minutes and maybe play Cedi some minutes just to… Read more »
Let’s just say I expect Tommy Heinsohn to be pretty satisfied with the refs in game 5…
Cavs should dress Perk for the eventuality that Boston tries to thug it up in game 5.
Shhh on giving Boston some tips. ;)
“Max Contract” Marcus Smart’s lone NBA skill besides flopping is getting his hands on passes…Lebron in particular needs to take better care of the ball.
The turnovers were pretty big in this one…could have gotten hairy when it didn’t need to. Lot of sloppy turnovers.
Unfortunately, the schedule does not include rest for the remainder of the series. Next game is Wednesday, then Friday and Sunday. Fatigue is going to be a big part of these last few games, which means that desire, bench players, and the home crowd are going to be important factors.
arg, our 3 kryptonites!