Another CtB Trifecta, Live Thread: Bucks @ Cavs
2024-11-04Good afternoon CtB!
The Cavs have had a brutal beginning to the season schedule-wise yet are currently sitting atop the entire NBA at 7-0, going for 8-0 tonight against a reeling Milwaukee Bucks who’ve never been more desperate for a win in the Giannis Era outside of the playoffs. How did we get here? Let’s check in…
Passing of the Baton…
The new King of Cleveland “Spida” Donovan Mitchell took his rightful place atop the Cavs franchise with a dominating 134-110 win over the LeBron James-led Los Angeles Lakers. It was Spida setting the tone right from the start that the Cavs were able to put up 42 first quarter points and cruise the rest of the game. The Cavs’ offense painted an absolute masterpiece with nearly 60% shooting from the field and nearly 40 assists, which should’ve effectively ended any “Anthony Davis for Defensive Player of the Year” talk, a ridiculous notion to begin with given the likes of Evan Mobley dominating the game on both ends of the court. He scored 25 points in only 19(!) minutes of action due to ridiculous, corrupt officiating. This game might’ve been the most egregious example of whatever Lakers’ mafia gambling ring works for Adam Silver, with the Cavs recording 26 fouls to the Lakers’ seven. If we had a functioning government, somebody’s ass would be rotting in jail right now for this atrocity in officiating. As always folks, remember to use the hashtag #SilverforPrison.
Rebounding Wins Championships
In what was a good game but should’ve been much bigger, the Cavs took out the ailing Orlando Magic on national TV 120-109 with Caris LeVert and Georges Niang playing pivotal roles off the bench against a Magic team that was out Paolo Banchero along with a few other rotational frontcourt players. As a result, the Cavs dominated the boards 49-39 against one of the most physical defensive teams in the NBA. It’s unfortunate NBA fans were robbed of a true playoff rematch, but yours truly expects the Magic to return to top three status once MVP-level player Paolo is back.
Spida = MVP
The Cavs and Bucks put on a magnificent basketball showcase Saturday night as Spida hit the game winning buzzer beater to lift the Cavs over the Bucks 114-113 on the road, against a championship contender, on the second game of a back to back. It really can’t get much more monumental than that for the Cavs this early in the season, and now the good guys have a real chance to bury the Bucks further in the East with a win tonight at home on the banks of the Cuyahoga River.
SPIDA CALLS GAME VS. BUCKS 🕷️🔥
THE CAVS MOVE TO 7-0 🤯 pic.twitter.com/JGlznyFE4z
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 3, 2024
The Initial Returns…
So far looking at the data, it’s pretty incredible the transformation the offense has experienced simply by picking up the pace, going from 24th in the NBA in pace last season to 11th so far this season. This has resulted in an offensive rating of 121.9, good for 2nd in the NBA just behind the defending champion Boston Celtics. Last season the Cavs offensive rating was 114.7, good for 16th at the time. Ironically, the Cavs are shooting nearly the identical amount of threes per game as last year, and even fewer relative to the increase in the NBA this season. So that means there’s another level to this offense it can unlock as soon as they can push their average three point attempts up. The Cavs are in the running for producing one of the best offensive ratings in NBA history thanks to Kenny Atkinson, and there’s a lot of room to improve!
The second thing that stands out in the numbers is how Coach Atkinson has unlocked Caris LeVert, Sam Merrill, Georges Niang, and Evan Mobley in terms of the Cavs’ net rating with these guys on the court. All four of these players led to some mediocre team play in one way or another last season for the Cavs. Atkinson has turned them into one of the deadliest rotational units in the NBA, they are the key to how the Cavs are dominating the competition:
Words about the Lakers, Magic, and Bucks…
It’ll be interesting to see what happens with the Lakers and Bucks because of their age and relative mediocrity. The numbers say the Lakers’ defense is completely cooked, which makes sense given the age and lack of overall athleticism on the squad. Will they make a move? They certainly won’t blow it up even though they absolutely should. They’re a unique case because they can usually attract free agent talent. But are today’s generation of player wired the same way? Where would LeBron go if he could go somewhere? AD? They reek of a team that will be making moves at the deadline.
For the Bucks, the situation is possibly more dire. Damian Lillard and Giannis played their A+ games against the Cavs at home with a rest advantage and still took the L. This is another team who’s an obvious blow up candidate and there are certainly several teams with the ammo to go after Giannis if he wanted out. Where would he go and how big would that deal be? Do the Bucks think Khris Middleton is going to solve all their problems? How bad is Doc Rivers? So many questions….
As for the Magic, that Paolo-less game didn’t count. Expect these guys to be really good, and get better. But, their offense is still suspect even with Paolo and unless they actually get some more shooting guards, there’s a cap to their ceiling. Franz Wagner’s jumper possibly being jacked up is a lowkey huge problem for them.
Hunting Season…
Tonight the Cavs welcome the Bucks to the banks of the Cuyahoga River for the second game of the home and home series against the good guys’ main Central Division nemesis. This is the Cavs’ opportunity to really bury the Bucks back from a top Eastern Conference seed and continue to sow doubt into the organization’s ability to dig out of the hole they’re putting themselves in. Also, the Cavs should expect an even more desperate Dame and Giannis. This is a game Donovan Mitchell needs to inspire confidence throughout the rest of the lineup either by scoring or making plays. If so, the Cavs could notch another huge victory and really start chasing some history.
Tip off is scheduled for 7:00PM Eastern time and will be broadcasted nationally NBATV and locally on Fanduel Sports Network, Go Cavs!
LT up!
It is hard for me to overstate how giddy I am at this start. I thought with a new coach we would take longer to click.
Though the 9-1 with all the injuries 2 years ago was pretty amazing as well..
ANOTHER TRAP GAME FOR THE CAVS WITH THE PELS HAVING INJURY ISSUES—— ANY REPORT ON WADE / LeVERT
Last I heard Wade was likely out until Friday. I think Caris is a game-time decision.
We are missing 3 of our top 7. Granted, 5, 6, & 7 (Strus, LeVert, Wade), but that is a lot of our wing depth (especially with Tyson out too).
One impression I have from Kenny A. press conferences is that he really projects a kind of ego-free attitude. I’m having trouble putting it into words, but he is very free with deflecting praise and letting it fall on players and staff in a very natural way.
I think he’s going to be very good at keeping the team loose.
good point. looks like we have gone from a sub-mediocre coach to an excellent coach. this can be the final step in transitioning into a long term top team!
1) Coaching upgrade.
2) DG playing like an all-star again
3) Mobley leveling up
4) Having success with 2 & 1 big lineups
5) Growing individually and collectively.
6) Being fresh come PO time.
I think the big question that I have is whether the starting lineup with Max in it can start really jumping on people with both bigs out there. If that lineup ends up being pretty transcendent then I think the sky’s the limit for the team. I also really want to see Max when he’s only playing like 20-25 min a night, he seemed so tired and banged up by the end last year. Leaning on depth is really gonna help him. I really hope the ankle isn’t too bad and he comes back strong in Dec / Jan or… Read more »
THANK YOU NATE —— BEEN “ PROMPTING “ ——- FOR MORE THOR “ FOR A FEW WEEKS—— TT IS NOT WHAT WE NEED FOR BACK UP POST ——- THOR IS YOUNGER / MORE ATHLETIC/ CAN PASS — DRIBBLE—-SHOOT/SHOOT THE 3 ——- TT / BENCH COACH—- PART TIME BROADCAST BOOTH
One of the more telling things about KA as a coach is he said he will play merril the same way every game if he plays defense and hustles. Shooting comes and goes. JB was the opposite it felt like. He played guys based on reputation and recency bias…and the role guys’ mins were all over the map. Nobody could get a rhythm. So glad he is gone.
right. and it led to the starters being in way too many minutes.
Exactly.
Good to have Garland back!
A combined 50 points, 18 assists, against only 2 turnovers in the two games against the Bucks. DG doing his best John Wick, “YEAH, I’M THINKING I’M BACK” imitation.
That’s about as good as PG play gets outside of all-timers (Magic, Oscar, Steph, Stockton, Zeke, Nash, Frazier, CP3, etc.).
Cousy.
I thought my favorite stat from last night’s game was the streak of twenty-point quarters (all of them)…right until the third quarter killed it. My new favorite stat, courtesy of ESPN’s recap: The Cavs were just the second team in history to start 7-0 with every player averaging less than 30 minutes. Seattle did it in 1978. With the team needing every one of Allen’s 35 last night, he now sits right at 30. I love how KA is keeping the rotation ten-deep, getting Travers and Porter, Jr. some run. It’s a long season, and these guys need to be… Read more »
absolutely! and that is a key stat — we were harping for years about JB running the starters into the ground.
Really wanna see JT thor get some run if one of Mobley, Allen, or Wade is out.
me too. hope he will be ready when the day comes
I am old enough to remember that Sonics team: Jack Sikma, Lonnie Shelton, Gus Williams, Downtown Freddie Brown, etc.
WATCHING CAVS REPLAY—— GRITTY WIN / NEEDED THAT / HAD SOME QUESTIONABLE POSSESSIONS IN THE 4th ——- MISSED WADE— LeVERT —— DG MADE SOME UNBELIEVABLE SHOTS
sometimes you need to get lucky — hopefully not too often because it gets used up fast
WATCHED BUCKS GAME ALSO—-KNOW THE DIEBLER FAMILY- COACHED WITH HIS DAD —- CONGRATS/ SOLID WIN
Buckeyes dominate Texas right from the start and win going away. Grant Hill and Candace Parker are unlistenable.
baker looking good vs KC.. on par with mahomes.. 2 TD vs 3 TD.. 24-24.. heading to OT
yo Buck, you are getting confused again. post this crap to a Browns blog. nobody here wants to hear it.
Go Baker!
Garland could’ve easily scored 50+
RAOUL I AGREE WITH YOU 100% !!
MAN CAN YOU IMAGINE THE REMORSE IF WE WOULD HAVE TRADED DG / JA AND THEY WERE PUTTING UP THESE NUMBERS FOR OTHER TEAMS—— GREAT JOB KOBY OF “ TUNING OUT THE OUTSIDE NOISE “ 👍
doubt if Koby or many GM’s would have made such a stupid trade — the outside noise was from clueless idiots. this is a major problem for everything these days, so many people pontificating on topics that they don’t know anything about.
The rumor was no one was taking garland. That seems silly now.
This is probably the result of our culture’s 24/7 news feed. Almost every team has to deal with the “what if…” ideas to improve their teams. The sites that do this are pretty easy to identify now. Even teams that win championships have the same issues. I admire the players who are able to block it out–especially in DG’s case, where injury and personal stuff impacted his game. The team clearly knew this. The team also clearly knew DG and JA could be even better with another coach. It probably frustrated the “what if” machine when the Cavs calmly resigned… Read more »
And basketball, unlike baseball or football, is so much more of a fluid game. Cohesiveness, familiarity, and trust WITHIN the team plays such a bigger part.
It took Boston & Denver a few years to get over the top, even with their cores intact. Though Jrue & Zinger & Gordon acquisitions helped. We got Spida.
agree
Big sandwich game potential Wednesday against the Pels with the big matchup coming against the 1-loss dubs, Friday.
The Pels just got some bad injury news, CJ & someone. Zion and Ingram are good, though.
WE MISSED LeVERT // WADE TONIGHT——DIDNT WATCH——WATCH REPLAY TOMORROW——8 GAMES INTO THE SEASON/ SCOUTING REPORT OUT / EXPECT TEAMS TO ADJUST HOW THEY PLAY US ———HAVE SO MUCH MORE CONFIDENCE IN KA THAN JB THAT HE WILL MAKE THE NECCESSARY ADJUSTMENTS 👍 8—0 WAY TO GO !!!
LeBron looking 35 tonight. Rough night for him
8-0 to begin the season while playing 8 games in 13 nights. Damn fine start.
poor dame.. guy can’t catch a break.. sweet game by garland.. very impressive 8-0 start.. i am assuming the coach is the major reason.. nice job koby.. looks like an optimal move.. looking forward to the games against BOS.. those will be a good test..
The TT/Niang postgame interview becoming a highlight.
74 more to go.
DG just masterclass. WOW
anyone remember all the experts trying to give JA and DG away last summer? it was me that was using the “idiot” word.
you know who was right about DG and speaks limited French? This moi
I was a hard no on JA, but would have been willing to listen on DG, he was brutally bad last year.
Apparently, there was some personal stuff on top of the injuries. DG now has as many 34 point or better games this year (two) as all last year.
Not an impressive win for us as they were without Giannis and Middleton. But us missing Strus, Caris, & Wade isn’t nothing. And we regrouped after blowing a big early lead and being down in the 4th.
agree keeping JA was a total no brainer, whereas DG was somewhat of a gamble. But DG was playing with major injury, so there was a good chance he would come back, and why sell low?
Also, team chemistry is ultra important in basketball. DM stated often he wanted to keep DG, and that was the end of the story. is it out of the question that LBJ might wind up being the second greatest Cav ever?
Whew! Nice rally. DG fantastic tonight.
8-0. Cannot do any better.
next four:
Wed: at Pels.
Fri: Dubs.
Sat: Nets.
Mon: at Bulls.
Although he never got to call JA, I imagined Fred on that block of Lillard exclaiming to AC “Jarrett fed Damian a leather sandwich!”
And dang that Green guy looks like he could be Meryl Streep’s son.
He is.
This was a joke
Looked like a monster from Garland (at least by the stat line)
It really was.
Carried the team tonight for sure!
Is A Green Caitlin Clark in disguise?
Love coach Buck on the sidelines for Milwaukee!
Go Cavs!
Goodnight Milwaukee
Lol who the eff is A Green
Had a night…
Pride of northern Iowa.
JA is sick of this bullshit. Game blouses.
Monster Block by JA!
💪💪💪
Okay Ice don’t foul Dame on the 3 attempt
Clutch play, cool and calm and JA finishes.
Oh what a finish Jarrett Allen!
WOW!
Saved by Garland tonight
G.D. DG.
Garland time
DG3!!!