Playoff Live Thread: Cavs vs Pacers
2018-04-15
We’ve been waiting for 10 months. The NBA’s second season officially starts today for the Cavs, and we’ll shortly know whether Cleveland’s regular season issues were just due to malaise or if this roster is fatally flawed. For Indiana, it’s their chance to put the ghost of Paul George behind them, and for Victor Oladipo to make playoff hay.
The Cavs official starting lineup is George Hill, Rodney Hood, LeBron James, Jeff Green, and Kevin Love. For Indy, we’re gonna see Darren Collison, Victor Oladipo, Bojan Bogdanovic, Thaddeus Young, and Myles Turner. The Cavs are finally healthy (knock on wood) with a full lineup for the first time in forever, and Indy is by all accounts healthy as well.
When they last met, Cleveland won 115-108, despite Vic’s 25-6-7 line. Part of that was due to the Cavs’ trapping Oladipo and forcing him into four turnovers.Of course that was against a different Cavs team that even got 14 unexpected points from Derrick Rose. Now, the Cavs are longer and faster, and should be able to disrupt passing lanes and recover from traps and doubles more quickly. Expect the Cavs to make Thad Young beat them, as he he’s only shooting 32% from three.
Expect the Pacers to try to force the ball inside to Myles Turner, who they have to feel has an advantage over Kevin Love and Jeff Green. The Pacers other big “advantage” is that they’re one of the best mid-range shooting teams in the league. Turner is a great example of this, as there are no spots inside the arc where he shoots less than 41% (basketball reference). Guarding these Pacers everywhere is a good plan that is tough to execute. To that effect, consistent communication on switches would also be really nice.
The other key is controlling the defensive boards. The Pacers are 17th in the NBA on the o-boards, as is Cleveland. But as we’ve seen, the Cavs can lose track of athletic bigs and wings from the weak side and it has cost them games. Hopefully they’ve been doing box-out drills to control the boards. For my Money, Kevin Love is most important this game on those D-Boards.
For Cleveland, a consistent George Hill, a structured offense for Nance, Clarkson, and Hood, as well as an absence of Tristan Thompson are keys. Oh, and that LeBrob James guy. Prediction: 120-108 Cavs.
Pacers just playing better.
Prisoners of the moment – remember, most NBA champions in history drop games in the playoffs. We got spoiled by our ability to sweep everything.
Even if we lose tonight (plenty of time left), we still only have 16 games to win for our second trophy.
Sure. Cavs offense is easy to game plan for in the playoffs without a second creator the way they have approached it this game.
Lue finally deciding to double Oladipo.
Love got dunked on.
Hood finally getting a corner 3 to go.
lets get JR outta the game now and ghill in
Hood with a dumb pass to Nance…. should’ve shot the floater. Led to Sabonis dunk.
Hood. Just take the bleeping shot!
Be interesting how cavs adjust for game 2….pacers doing whatever they want…,maybe cavs catch fire next game
Pacers can essentially almost milk clock. They are bound to score a few more times.
Bogdanovic looks like a drywall hanger.
How, when we can’t hit a 3, do we not try to bring in Korver and get him hot!!?? Oh wait. Lue. Lue needs to go after this season.
Lue needs to go tonight
He has played four minutes this game. Calderon, 7. Our two most consistent shooters.
I can only guess Korver’s foot may be bothering him, but with Lue who knows…
Good call.. has to be it.
Gotta make the comeback at the free throw line
Jeff Green has been completely ineffective. Yet Lue will play him 35+ minutes game 2…
Hood and Clarkson and green have not hit like any wide open shots. Indy pulling away and James Jacks up a contested Trey. You know what that means as far as his attitude towards this game.
ughhhh
Pretty much gotta play flawless
Glad Hood took that wide open J.
The pacers energy seems unexpected by Cavs today
You can’t double an nba team 40 feet from the bucket.
This is just embarrassing.
Gilbert should sit lue next game haha
Jesus. Pacers running rudimentary sets.
I think Lue is actually just dumb.
Awful defense by JR and KLOVE at the top.
Oladipo has a very feminine face.
Obviously, Cavs are out of this game now. I am resorting to insults. We need LBJ to bait Oladipo into a nut punch.
Man… Hood clanks wide open 3.
Get Green the F out of there and play motherfuc$#&+ Zz. God damnit!!!!!!
clarkson and green left out there far too long. jr borderline
Cedi has a bad shooting night in the regular season and Lue buries him.
I wonder what he’s going to do with Green?
My guess – absolutely nothing
Green is killing us with missed threes. Has to take them but maybe he shouldn’t be in. That dipo bucket may be the the sixth foot in the rectangular hole the Cavs have dug for themselves.
Cavs biggest problem: lack of energy. Minutes allotted to Cedi Osman: zero.
Offense has been spectacular failure today. Defense has been great for 2 quarters.
Surprise surprise…relying on Jeff Green isn’t working out to well. Why is Korver not playing??? Substitute him for Green and this is a different game.
Anytime cavs get close they blow out
aannddd ty lue lets the game slip away
Lue is going to die on Jeff Green hill…whatever floats his boat, I guess…
Can’t get d boards
No one rebounding and guys shooting 3s that should not
Green awful as pf on boards. No one boxes out besides Nance. Basically our true bigs are left to board one on two or one on three a lot.
Did we mention at all that Jeff Green sucks?
Gotta get Green out.
Could be tough to complete a come back. Indy eaned up their tovs. Man James holds the ball while surveying for forever
That might be ballgame.
Yup. That’s game.
Might as well sit LeBron and Love and throw on the bench.
It ain’t over till it’s over
We were down 3-1.
And won the lottery multiple times.
There’s always a chance in Cleveland
6 point swing there… Green misses, Oladipo makes.
Jeff Green clanks wide open 3.
Argh. Jeff Green.
JR with the nice fadeaway.
Get Love back in the game.
Why is Jeff green playing?!
More lazy defense by JR on the perimeter.
Argh. JR’s d
… Yes JR’s o
Think James is going to play 45 minutes this game. Unsustainable.
wouldnt mind some cedi and korver, but we’re def running this lineup in to the ground
ghill too i thought looked decent unless hes concussed
I’d run Jose or Hill, Clarkson, Love, Nance and JR or Korver to see if we can spell LeBron for like 2 minutes.
I’m shocked but not shocked cedi hasn’t seen the court
More shocked how little Calderon and korver have played
Yup… treated them like rookies in favor of Clarkson and Green.
Cedi over Clarkson? And start Nance at center rather than Green?
Please
Nance with great d.
Need stops and hit open shots
Let Lance go hero ball if he wants. I’ll take our chances.
LBJ taking Sabonis to school there!
Need Clarkson to hit those if he is in instead of korver/calderon
Things Lue has done right with the playoffs:
– Put Nance in over TT
Things we can thank Koby Altman for:
– trading away IT/Rose/Shump so Lue can’t play them in the playoffs
Zz should be in for Green.
I don’t have enough time or sanity to write the “list of things Lue is doing wrong.”
None of us do
No foul there. Lance initiated all contact
Make wide open shots. That’s all we ask. Goodness
Clarkson misses wide open 3 and then commits dumb foul next defensive possession.
Ok, time to see what this team is made of. Which of the new crew is going to step up?
Why do I get the feeling Lue is gonna run this group Into the ground?
History
Definitely.
I’m worried about the same thing
jr giveth, jr taketh away in this game for sure. i think he’s about net neutral
Green with nice help defense but no multiple effort to get the rebound.
Needed green to step up and hit that. Pacers kind of collapsed and Nance and Jr basically turned James from not caring to giving an f. Pacers still in a great position if they clean up their tovs and the Cavs let down their energy to start the 4th.
Swish too
I said jr.
Sorry. Read it as Nance Jr.