Playoff Live Thread (Game 6): Cavs @ Magic
2024-05-03Good evening CtB!
The Cavs have traversed to Disney World to take on the Orlando Magic in the first elimination game of the series. The Cavs have the opportunity to close out the pesky Magic and advance to the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs for the first time in the post-LeBron era. Jarrett Allen is out, so another career defining game will be necessary from Evan Mobley. Thankfully, Coach JB Bickerstaff has inserted Marcus Morris, Sr. into the starting lineup instead of the young and struggling Isaac Okoro. Hopefully there will be more than a five minute sighting of Sam Merrill. Go Cavs!
Tip off is scheduled at 7:00PM Eastern time and will be nationally broadcasted on ESPN.
LT up. Sorry about the delay.
No JA. Oof. What a bad luck end here. Still can pull this out. I like starting Ice as it probably means a) no Niang and b) theoretically faster pace and more 3s
Let’s go Cavs!
when will the G7 LT be up ?
check you brave bros after the event.. i hope you are all joyous in 3 hours..
……
I hope Tristan has gotten back on the PED regiment of late. Could make use of his super charged play from (before the suspension) today 💊 💪 🥺
I didn’t know this till recently but Bernie Bickerstaff works as a Sr. Basketball Advisor for the Cavs.
he’s been there forever IIRC, I think I recall an article about KobeWade learning something from him?
i think he’s just a guy though. he precedes JB and I doubt he has the juice to keep him if the rest of the FO feels differently
Fedor on the Nate train: no minutes for Niang today.
Probably won’t have JA, might not have EM. Who is Fedor planning to play against the biggest team in the league?
I’d rather Damian Jones, who is not exactly an elite player but actually matches Orlando’s size and is athletic, unlike Niang (still too short and also too slow).
Anyone in on Darvin Ham?
raoul bro.. you mean after kolby fires jb ?
the chances of looking for a HC soon are pretty good.
the problem is getting a really good one. picking up a top HC who got fired for no reason is a great deal — like when the Indians got Tito after he won two WS’s for the Red Sox.
We should have good options. I’m expecting the FO to stack the coaching office with high powered assistants who can be HCs just for the extra experience. Terry Stotts would be a fun assistant as well
(Phil Handy I think is useful and available as an assistant)
riding with timberwolves to win it all (at the beginning of the season i was certain the celtics would win the title easily).. nice for the twin cities.. nice for kat.. anthony edwards is a beast..
Ant has 25 points at the half
uncle buck knows of what he speaks (although some on this site would dispute that assertion).. ant finished with 43
Somehow Ant’s teammates knew they were allowed to shoot in the second half, even though he’d scored the bulk of the team’s points at halftime.
Anybody who wants to see Game 6 again, it’s on NBA TV right now in the 1st quarter.
…
Two things can be true:
Team fought well. Almost pulled off the win. But also:
Feel like this game was Spida auditioning for a new home.
Interesting. Yeah, we may have clarity on this soon. If it is an audition, I guess that also helps the Cavs (better trade prospects). Better than mailing it in.
Good point.
Without an offensive system and vision it doesn’t matter if Mitchell stays. With a vision we’ll either get his buy in or get the right pieces
He’s already made his decision though. Man went to high school in Greenwich, he’s a politician here, keeping it close.
what does that even mean? and how would you assess if it is true?
Cavs and Magic shot chart for the series.
Cavs below
Magic
Shooting way over league average on the worst shots.
Sigh
It could be worse, guys. We could still be hoping Anthony Bennett and Dion Waiters are going to be stars. #perspective
At least we knew what we were, for the most part.
😂 comment of the evening.
KobeWade
Ha-Ha!
I’d really love to see them blow out the Magic in game 7 but think it’ll be another tight game, especially if the refs are pulling for the Magic like they’ve been all series. Cavs are 3.5 point favorites.
Would love a blowout for my heart.. cant deal with a close game in an all or nothing situation.
Sounds like JA may be back. I don’t have a lot of faith in the core 4 line up, esp with our two best players hobbled. I think DG just needs to take over and launch a bunch of 3s. Maybe Merrill will make a guest appearance and make his first 3, giving JB confidence in him?
AP reporter said he was struggling to raise his arms over his head in practice or shootaround
Would be nice if this went like Cavs-Celtics Game 7 in 1992. (A series I missed due to studying abroad; not many options for streaming games then, lol!). That Cavs team was better, but similarly had a tougher time with that opponent than anyone expected; then blew their doors off in Game 7 behind a super-energized crowd. Anyway, I’ll take a win however it comes.
Looks like the Mavs closed out the Clips. Cavs/Magic are the only 7 game series in round 1.
Ofcourse they are… dont have dependable role players in this series (outside 2-3 players per game).
In The Series:
Max:
11/14 in the paint (Real Solid, should be more attempts)
9/32 from 3
8.5 pts per game
Niang:
2/10 in the paint
2/2 inside the arc/outside the paint
2/15 from 3
3.4 points per game
Okoro:
5/13 in the paint
4/15 from 3
4.3 points per game
Caris
8/18 in the paint
1/7 on 2’s outside the paint
4/15 from 3
6.2 points per game
Tristan:
3/8 in the paint
Woof! What’s Mobley’s #s?
The Core 4 are in double digits:
Mobley:
24/44 in the restricted area: 54.5%
0/5 at the top of the key
2/3 on the baseline
3/10 from 3
Avg: 12.3 pts, 46% FG, 27.3 3pt%, 68.4 FT, 8 rbs, 1.8 ast, 1 stl, 2.7 blk
His restricted area numbers seem below average. Am I correct in thinking that?
I feel its pretty low also..
For Comparison
Jarrett:
25/32: 78.1% in the restricted area
0/5 around the top of the key/wing
Donovan:
32/52: 61.5% in the restricted area
11/13 in the paint
DG:
13/23=56.5% in the restricted area
8/13: rest of the paint/top of the key
The league average in the restricted area is 59.7%
Thanks for punching up those numbers.
Your welcome! Trying to understand what the hell is going on (despite the injuries)
And I would guess the league average in the restricted area for players 6’10 and up is even higher. Mobley really plays “small” around the rim sometimes on offense, such a contrast to his defensive presence.
I can’t see Okoro getting much interest around the league after this series.
With the better regular season shooting etc. I would’ve hoped for more from him.
While I’m of course disappointed that they lost, I was more than satisfied with the effort. Remember the last couple games in Orlando? Today, DM put up a masterpiece, DG made several jaw dropping layups in the first half. Mobley had some unbelievable blocks. Strus played well. The other guys didn’t crap the bed, did they? They were tired at the end, DG made a few disappointing turnovers, but they played well enough to win, and they almost did. The boys came to play today. I’m looking forward to Sunday.
Yeah this is a game I can’t be mad at. They fought. Orlando won it on weird 50/50 balls and a good whistle.
They did play well.
15 assists in the game. Pathetic!
Alot of iso ball, Everyone besides DM and DG shot 30% and had 25 pts.. ain’t much assists going to happen like that.
Gotta make shots. Niang and Mitchell and Vert had some WIDE open shit.
Yeah but they didnt miss 15-18 wide open shots. We didnt move the ball well at all. Also niang has missed nearly EVERY shot in the series. Him seeing the court spelled doom
It’s either Niang or TT as a backup “big” – they both stank. That goaltend by Tristan man
Oof yeah that was bad. But it isnt either of them. Its Niang rides the bench and anyone else with marginal size fills the spot. He is atrocious in this particular matchup
I’m ready for the WNBA season cause the Cavs just keep disappointing me. Mitchell: 50 pts – 22-36 FG, 3-9 3PT, 3-6 FT, 4 rebounds, 4 ast, 1 block DG: 21 pts, 10-17 FG, 1-4 3PT, 6 rbs, 5 last, 2 stls Rest of the team: 25 pts 10-33 FG = 30% 7-18 on 2PT = 39% 3-15 3PT= 20% Cavs Overall: Restricted Area: 19/29 = 65% In The Paint: 14/24 = 58% inside the 3pt line: 2/5 = 40% 3 PT: 7/28 = 25% If the Cavs better show up, stop fouling, make a damn shot and dont disappoint… Read more »
Not that I love Dantoni, I might be on board with that kind of hire next year. They need someone to help unlock this teams offense. It’s putrid!
Cavs in 7
Yeah it’s pretty clearly trending that way. Don bitching out the refs in post game
The refs ate their whistles like Saturday morning teens at an eighth-grade rec game. How TT’s charge or Suggs’ chest into Mobs wasn’t called, I’ll never know.
Tough loss: a lot of bad decisions in the first half and bad bounces and ref ball. Good fight but just not our night from jump. We were lucky to be down four at half time. Credit Orlando for leaning into their strengths just enough.
DG needs to play a complete game and shoot more in the fourth and the FT / 3P need to come back to normal.
Credit Orlando for sure.They’re making a pretty good case for themselves.If they had any outside shooting this series would be over.
I mean if Mitchell had the slightest bit of lift on his shots or if we had Allen the series would be over too.
It’s a tough series to draw conclusions from because there has been a lot of toughness on display. If Ice converts an easy 2-1 and we make one more three in the first half it’s a wrap.
The conclusion I’m drawing is that Orlando is playing well ,esp for no playoff experience.They’re taking a higher seeded team to game 7 and nearly ended it in 6.Lets not forget the Cavs threw a game to face Orlando because they’re afraid of better teams.They’re getting all they can handle.Contrast this to the Cavs performance last yr and in the play in year before.The difference is stark.
They have a much better coach. That helps.
The conclusion I’m drawing is Orlando is making a great case for themselves.Theyre taking a higher seeded team to a game seven and giving them all they can handle.The Cavs threw a game to face these guys and they’ll be lucky to hold serve and get to round 2.Compare that to the two previous Cavs playoff embarrassments and the difference is stark.
I didn’t think the playin was an embarrassment
An inauspicious debut maybe.
Vert stunk so bad in the first half that he didnt even play in the second. God i am so ready for this season to end and make some changes.
What a collapse in the 4th. On D. Let them score 30. They made some tough 3s and we were ice cold. I think we win g7 sunday but i really want to see changes to this team. They are just not built well.
mobley with shrinkage ???? holy shit.. 3 pts in 34 min is a “george costanza” masterpiece.. in his 3rd year ?? in his second playoffs ?? very glad i have walked away from this team.. time to break it up.. dump mitchell.. shop the rest of the team.. going nowhere fast.. they have enough decent pieces to build a competitive teams for the next several years.. i would enjoy seeing a new set of faces..
OK, buck…
SERENITY NOW! SERENITY NOW!
i am serene arch (but thx for the nice sentiment).. you guys must have cast iron stomachs.. hang in there.. i feel game 7 is probably a coin toss, but will give the edge to the cavs soiling their shorts at home.. too much money.. not enough larry bird old school heart.. glad i walked away..
It’s a day game too, which favors the Magic. Maybe if we lose, we can blow up this mess and send both JB and Korby packing.
It’s a win/win…
Prefer a win. Then fire JB after Boston.
Maybe an unpopular opinion…but mitchell kobe’d his team into this loss. And thats probably as much on JB.
Taking every shot? Yeah
Seriously?
Go back and watch the game with this lens and tell me it isnt true. Nobody had any rhythm and were all standing around watching by the time the 4th started. It was an incredible performance but like so many kobe games…he was amazing while his team lost.
I’ll give you this much. Props to Spida for feeling like he was on a heater, but he’s smart and experienced enough to know you can’t win on your own.
He stepped into a leadership vacuum.
And that is on the coach.
Nah, I dont see it that way. Team gave him nothing for the first 3 quarters (besides DG). Then DG starts his usual 4Q choke job so DM is all thats left and he did pretty well
Thats the thing tho…he wasnt all that was left. But by the 4th the team sure acted like it instead of taking shots. Strus and Garland shot great this game. But we gave donovan the ball every possession in the 4th and let him drive into the trees. As i said…its as much a lack of coaching as it was Donovan’s fault
And I don’t know about closing with ICE over Morris… really done with JB
Did Levert even play??!!
I was thinking the same. 7 minutes. Makes no dang sense. With the way the Guards were carving up the lane, LeVert couldn’t have done the same??
Did LeVert even play?
7 minutes. Question is why.
He was rough. Still think you close with him.
Dwight Howard in the crowd. What a scumbucket
Games like this I can understand why they quit in games three and four.
https://x.com/CoxSportsOhio/status/1786572299300139368
Thats 100% on darius and JB. And maybe .05% on Mitchell
Wow ,great game.Mitchell crazy stuff.
Mobley has got to get better
Upper body strength and offensive moves against big guys needed
Rebounding and turnovers, especially from leaping in the air and then deciding to pass.
Don has all 19 cavs points in the 4th
That kind of asymmetry speaks volumes.
DG just not effective in second halves
The problem is that the Cavs don’t have a two day rest. Don’t know if DM can recover.
Seems like the lob to Mobley would have been open this whole quarter the way Mitchell/Garland had been driving to the rim.
A lob play call would have been nice.
50 for Donovan including every Q4 point
Look, I want the Cavs to win, but if JA does not play……Magic in 7.
Maybe even if he does.
15 ORB for Magic. Refball. And we cant make 3s. Not too bad to only lose by 5 or so with thise situations
Yeah they fought just no room for error. At one point in the third had 1 FT make and 1 3P make.
15 points in the quarter 🤦♂️
20-10 free throw advantage. Just the most unevenly officiat d game I’ve ever seen
I mean on the bright-side game 7 in CLE, we win and head to Boston, we lose and JB gets fired. Win/win.
👆👆👆
atleast did something by rebounding.. smh
Missing Allen and Wade against these guys hurts
A stop!
Bucket + stop + bucket.