Podcap: Cleveland 114, Atlanta 102 (Respect and Rec Specs)
2022-11-22Cleveland dispatched the Hawks methodically down the stretch, Monday. A Cedi Osman five point possession (clear path free throws plus a three) gave Cleveland an 11 point lead with 2:05 left and slammed the door shut on Atlanta. Donovan Mitchell was a calming influence on the Wine and Gold, and the late game turnovers that had plagued Cleveland in the previous weeks were replaced by smart timeouts and deliberate play which gave Trae and Co. no opportunities.
Cleveland even got some respect from the refs in the second half. After picking up a quick three fouls in the first half, Isaac Okoro had more opportunity for physicality and just picked up one in the second half, playing solid defense on any Hawk he was matched up with, while the refs didn’t fall for (much of) Trae’s BS. Let’s not kid ourselves though, this game was about the Cavs’ stars. Garland and Mitchell did not disappoint, combining for 55 points and 18 assists, while Trae and Murray put up 36 and 16.
Mobley swarmed on D, and just missed a double double after Mitchell stole his tenth rebound, while Allen added 11 boards and 3 stocks. The breakout player of this game though, was Cedi Osman who raced to a 23 point night on 8-10 shooting in 29 minutes. In fact, the Cavs shot blistering splits of 60%/53%/87%, and the only real blemishes were their 19 turnovers. It was all super fun, even if Darius Garland did get smacked in the face again at the end, illustrating the need for rec specs.
Nate Smith and Chris Francis dropped into the podcast booth and sussed this game and the Miami game out, dropping kudos to all the guys. In depth looks at the two game and the second overtime of the Hornets game fueled the discussion of this three game win streak.
Chris and Nate puzzled over J.B. Bickerstaff’s rotations (yet patience with Okoro), pondered the coming schedule, went deep on the Caris LeVert conundrum, fantasized about life with Rubio, and even tackled some more outlandish questions. Is Dean Wade a top five NBA small forward? Is Lauri proving the Mitchell trade was a bad one? Was losing Collin Sexton addition by subtraction? And do the Cavs need another small forward?
Finally, Nate shared his own tale about rec specs and (lack of) respect from his wife and kids while Chris verbally shook his head in disbelief.
Listen below, download the full audio file, or listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn, or Spotify.
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LT up
GLAD WADE IS BACK BUT WITH A MIN’S RESTRICTION WE ARE PRIMARILY OUT OF 3 VALUABLE PLAYERS —AND ADD RUBIO TO THAT EQUATION—-DON’T WANT TO HEAR ANYMORE ABOUT OTHER TEAMS NOT PLAYING UP TO FULL STRENGTH DUE TO INJURIES ——WAAAAAAAAAAA !!
https://twitter.com/chrisfedor/status/1595550707792646144?s=46&t=fA5tA7Fo0LT06x6OHD-Puw
The Spurs have crashed back to Earth, but the Pacers, Kings, & Jazz kicking butt is fun! So is the Zinger resurgence in Washington.
Hot take: The Mavs fail to make the POs. Suns, Clippers, Nuggets, Grizz, Jazz, Kings, Wolves, Dubs.
https://twitter.com/chrisfedor/status/1595449073628086273?s=46&t=fA5tA7Fo0LT06x6OHD-Puw
https://twitter.com/chrisfedor/status/1595492342768832517?s=46&t=fA5tA7Fo0LT06x6OHD-Puw
Good move with Wade back.
Figured they’d sit him for this one.
Apparently he’s sick as well.
RAOUL—I DID A “CLF”—-YOU MIGHT WANT TO ASK HIS OPINION PER YOUR POST—CINCINNATI NOT PART OF O-H-IO
Cinci spent a fortune on the “Cincinnati USA” advertising campaign.
BUCKAROOO—-BIT CURRENCY–IN MY OPINION –AND ALSO MY UNCLE’S –WHO IS A VERY SUCCESSFUL FINANCIAL ADVISOR IS —” BIT-THE DUST ” HAS ALWAYS ADVISED ME TO STAY CLEAR OF IT——–AND YES THIS SO CALLED VERSION OF THE BROWNS ” CARDIAC KIDS ” TAKES ON A WHOLE DIFFERNT MEANING THAN THE ‘ SIPE ERA OF CARDIAC KIDS ” ———-WHY I HAVE CHANGED MY ALLEGIANCE TO THAT “OTHER OHIO NFL TEAM—-WHO DEY “
Recall that Cincinnati does not consider itself to be part of Ohio.
Junk Yard Dog should be used sparingly. Not every game. Only when it warrants.
agree with Charlie E
very nice article on stevens in cle.com (re getting in mitchell’s face after he was getting torched).. haven’t watched since the losing streak.. my cardiologist prohibited it.. he said i can watch once they get their scheit together.. maybe it is time.. i see him next week.. as an FYI.. he also said there are many middle-to-old-age male corpses in the morgues this season.. dying from the “browns” death.. they are off-limits until 3 years after haslem sells the team
SAVE THE JUNK YARD DOG
Big picture, we made a big trade in the offseason, getting a high-usage, ball-dominant player. Those often take a while to integrate. We had/have questions about who starts at SF. We have had DG hurt early and Wade, LeVert, Love, Allen, and Mitchell miss games since he returned. And we vomited up a sure win vs the Clippers with some Bad News Bears/ Keystone Cops level play in the last 2 minutes. We have 14 guys on the roster & 2 are out the whole year. And yet…..we have the third best record in the association. 1st in Net rating.… Read more »
Preach it Jason! 100% agree.
me too
Cavs 8.5 point favorites tomorrow night.
If Dame does not play, we should take em. Even with Wade iffy & LeVert/Love out.
APPEARS THE PACERS DRAFTED A GOOD ONE IN MATHURIN——THEY ARE GOING TO HAVE A SOLID BACKCOURT FOR QUITE SOMETIME
NOMAD bro.. have you heard about the new crypto-currencies about to hit the markets ? Bit-Corn and Bit-Hops..
don’t forget Snake-Bit and Bit-Lip.
i will say i wish i had bought some bitcoin 10 or 12 years ago at 0.008 cents
they will probably be worth less than that soon
CANNNOT WAIT UNTIL RICKY IS BACK AND MESHES WITH THIS UNIT —–I THINK IT WILL BE ” EYEOPENINGEXCITING “
VERY GOOD POST// POINT JASON—WADE ISN’T LAURI BUT HE ISN’T REALLY THAT FAR BEHIND EITHER —SO ARE WE NOT GOING TO MAKE THE TRADE WITH JAZZ BECAUSE THEY WANT LAURI—–HELL NO BECAUSE WE ALREADY HAVE AN ADEQUATE REPLACEMENT IN WADE AND REMEMBER WE HAVE ……….3-A-KITE TO GROOM AS ANOTHER POTENTIAL REPLACEMENT
On rotations, I think the priority is figuring out the best combinations (and the SF starter) within certain parameters. One being the “one of” rule. One of DG/Mitchell & one of Allen/Mobley on court at all times. In the POs, that rule is probably gonna be in effect if we are healthy.
Second is mostly using the group of guys we think will/could play major PO minutes (DG, Mitchell, Allen, Mobley, LeVert, Rubio, Love, Osman, Wade, Okoro). Neto & Lopez surely are what they are at this point. Stevens to a lesser extent.
Now, that does not mean Neto, Lopez, & Stevens should not play at all. Nor does it mean they cannot help us…they have. They will get chances, but their roles are likely gonna be niche roles, rather than larger ones. Though, if Stevens could become a passable shooter. ….
We know DG, Mitchell, Mobley, and Allen are gonna start & play 30-35 minutes. Likely more come PO time. Figuring out how 5-10 (LeVert, Love, Rubio, Osman, Wade, Okoro) fit/not fit with those 4 & with each other is JB’s first priority. Along with SF starter.
Mobley missed almost all of camp. Garland missed the first 6-8 games. Then Allen, Mitchell, Wade, LeVert, & Love have all missed time. All has not gone according to plan. JB has already tried LeVert, Wade, Okoro, and Stevens as starters (at SF or SG). Okoro is still crazy young. LeVert joined late last year & was hurt. Wade has not played a ton of meaningful minutes in the league. Cedi may be leveling up some after the Euros. Point being, all those guys, IMHO, have some upside. This year. I’d rather give them minutes over Diakite & IM (surely),… Read more »
When we get deeper into the season, then I will worry about minutes. Some. But mostly for Love & Rubio. Wade & LeVert also seem to break down fairly often. And JA & Mobes are pretty skinny bigs.
So I get it. Especially given Love’s history and what happened with Rubio last year. But Mobley & Cedi are the only guys to play every game.
Mobley is 21st in minutes played. Mitchell 27th. LeVert 53rd. Allen 63rd. Garland 145th. We’re fine IMHO. Though, as always, YMMV.
Diakite is 25. It is time to start using him while he is still one of the most athletic guys in the league. Every time he has played, he has been better than Windler ever has.
Lively stuff on the pod.
On RoLo vs Atlanta, I’d imagine the concern is not so much guarding Capela, as containing Young on switches/after picks.
Do agree with Nate on LeVert. He will be the #4 ballhandler once Rubio is back.
Disagree on JYD.
Gonna call you guys out a bit. Chris is kind of all over the map.
One minute he is talking about games we are gonna regret in terms of seeding. Then the next minute you guys want more of IM & Diakite?
One minute talking about DG/Spida workload, then decrying Okoro’s minutes? In favor of Stevens? Didn’t you guys want Stevens cut in preseason?
Gotta talk about something for an hour. My JB complaint would be playcalls out of timeouts and OOB plays.
OK, so. Point of order. The argument I made during those games concerning this: the Cavs need to play the bench more:they lost those games cause the Starters were gassed and making physical and mental mistakes down the stretch. Also, clearly we wanted more Cedi, less Okoro. I find Stevens very meh, but he’s at least able to guard the wing. I can admit that his impact and leadership has helped on the court, and that Caris is better off the bench. Finally, we were a bit tired.
Fair point, and well made.
For me, the level of screw ups in those games went well beyond gassed in my book. Especially the Clippers game. I think you guys are letting the players off the hook and blaming the coach.
Vs Minny, we were not gassed, we made a huge run at the end. The Bucks just kicked out butts.
That leaves LAC, SAC, & GSW.
LAC. Both teams on b2b.
Cavs: Spida 38:36, DG 37:47, CL 36:24, EM 33:41, Allen 32:52.
Clips: PG13 39:41, Morris 37:54, Jackson 36:14, Zubac 33:02, Mann 30:21.
Our starters (4 of 5) played more than theirs. We the Clips so exhausted they could not just help but turn it over over & over again?
You have a bit better case vs Sac, and Wade was out vs GSW, so we were shorthanded.
So, what are we talking here? One game out of 17 the coach plays the starters a bit more than the opposing coach & we lose a close game? Twice? On the road no less?
Plus, the starters need minutes together. Crunchtime is the best data point.
I think you guys are blowing this WAY out of proportion. And calls for Diakite (who I do like) and Isiah Mobley are misplaced.
I believe we were calling for those guys over love with a bad thumb.
no kidding!
I’m 100% against you guys on the minutes thing.
Garland is averaging 35.5 minutes a game. What is the bitch? You want him playing 35, he is playing 35.
Mitchell was heavier early, but we have played a ton of OT games. He’s 26. Playing at an MVP level. And Rubio has not played and DG missed 5-6 games.
Relax.
The most important thing is getting Mitchell getting familiar with his teammates, and Garland in particular.
We are 16 games in. Guys should be fine. Later in the season, then we will talk.
https://twitter.com/AmNotEvan/status/1595184165133099011?s=20&t=pPkJ_cX4SCy8COO-yHP1bg
LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
I hope all of them rest. A guy whose shooting stroke is critical to his skillset shouldn’t be developing bad habits trying to play through pain.
Hope Wade is 100%.
Agree with Nate on the regrets game. Clippers by a TON. We blew that horribly.
Wolves game was without Spida & Allen. No regrets there.
Good pod, guys.
FWIW, The Ringer has Live as 6th Man of the Year in their 1st month awards section.
https://www.theringer.com/nba/2022/11/14/23456714/nba-awards-luka-doncic-jayson-tatum
LETS GOOOOOOOO THANK YOU JASON!
RAOUL—–I DID A “CLF “—- VERY SUBTLE SARCASM :-)
SAM ” MY MAN ” MERRILL 5/9 FROM 3 PT LAND—-NOT SURE WHAT HIS 3 PT % IS FOR THE SEASON—HAS TO BE RIGHT AROUND 50 %—–THIS MIGHT BE ” BLASPHEMY ” BUT HE HAS ALOT OF MARK PRICE IN HIM ——WE SHALL SEE
THIS HAS BEEN YOUR CHARGE REPORT!
keep ’em coming!
SPIDA TRADE A HUGE BUST ????????……………..” MORE BEER PLEASE “
The JYD is awesome.
Dean Wade is not a top 5 (10, 15, 20) small forward.
And yes, Sexton is addition by subtraction. Especially if you get Mitchell back in the trade AND have Rubio on the roster. He’s, at best, the #4 guard. And taking offense away from DG/Mitchell/Allen/Love, who are all more efficient.
And the idea that the Mitchell trade was a bad one has been idiotic since Nate (I think) first uttered “we got fleeced.”
Plus, don’t the ideas that: a) Wade is really good, and, b) The Mitchell trade was bad because Lauri is so good losing him sucks, cut against each other? If a) is true, then b) cannot be true.
Wade: 52.9% FG and 50% from deep.
Lauri: 53.9% FG and 36.1% from deep.
Now, Lauri has been fantastic and is clearly a MUCH better player than Wade. But if Wade can give us 75% of what Lauri gave us last year (14.8 ppg, 44.5% FG, 35.8% 3pt), I’m ecstatic.
And, when he has started, he has. Or come close. On better efficiency.
I am more than happy to let the season play out and see how Wade/Okoro develop and how LeVert keeps playing before making any kind of trade/move for a SF. Especially once Rubio gets back.
I think I first muttered “We got fleeced” months ago. Lauri is a surprise, Sexton and Agbaji not as much. It all bears out on how successful the Cavs are with Spida and whether he stays with this core past his current deal. The picks matter too but only if the Cavs never reach the Finals and fall to mediocrity in years 4-7. That won’t be know for a millennia in NBA time.
I see this as a win/win trade.
Spida is better than expected.
Lauri is much better than expected. We all saw that he finished last year strong, and was awesome in the summer event. So did Thumb Biter Ainge, which is why he made the trade. Recall that at the time, all the national media called Ainge a fool for making the trade
JYD IS AWESOME THANK YOU JASON!
I’m glad Sexton is gone, not because I dislike him, but it was just so tiresome to have to read posts from his stans about how he was a budding superstar, and how the Cavs needed to pay him $25 mill/per, and all kinds of idiocy. It was just ridiculous.
Very entertaining Pod, guys! I will say the Cleveland Clinic is next door so if the Cavs can’t get Top Doctors for Dean Wade the season is a wash and the Spida trade a huge bust.
you wanna trade Dean Wade for Topp Doctors? I never even heard of him!
Thanks DaveR CAVSDAN GET ON THE HORN AND GET WADE HEALTHY!
https://twitter.com/oldseaminer/status/1595127745427959808?s=20&t=_JxQfPp0QWS8L1RivTcDRg
Hilarious stuff guys! No Fun Nate!
LMFAOOOOO Love the subtitle and article segue!!
Apologies in advance for some of the audio issues here.