Live Thread: Cavs @ Bulls
2025-12-17Merry Christmas, Cavs fans! With only two weeks left in 2025, the Cavs travel to the shores of Lake Michigan to take on the Bulls in a matchup that features two struggling teams. The 15-12 Cavs have struggled to beat bad teams, edging out the Wizards and then losing in embarrassing fashion to the Hornets. Meanwhile, the Bulls’ struggle bus has seen them stop for losses in eight of the last nine, including to some of the NBA’s bottom dwellers. The Bulls will be without Ayo Dosunmu while Cleveland is missing a litany of MnMs: Mobley, Merrill, Max, and Larry Nance Junior. I think the Cavs roll here and start to get out of the December funk. Go Cavs.
any info on when Struss will be back?
a lot of the panic might drift away if Struss, Merrell, and Garland all get healthy.
https://x.com/i/status/2001748083403558943
Some good news
I would trade Hunter and Ball in a minute.
the big question is the DG + DM combo. the Cavs have been trying to make it work but it is a tough sell. it is quite possible that DG will be more valuable to teams with better help on D, so the Cavs might get a good return for DG. I am not particularly in favor of that, but you gotta take that call.
the Cavs need MORE bigs, not less, so trading Allen is highly unlikely.
The trade everybody shit is tired, if only for the obvious point that selling low is always idiocy. If we did a move right now you know who would bring value? Jaylon Tyson. Not a 50% Garland or Allen with a broken hand. You can see a lineup with Mitchell at the 1, Strus, Tyson, Mobley and Allen (or a wing for Allen). But thatβs just different, itβs not better. Itβs basically the Clippers except you have Mobley as the back line and not Zu. I donβt think thatβs a particularly dynamic offensive lineup since Allen has the quickest first… Read more »
MR STEAL/ BW β- VERY GOOD POST s ππββ TOTALLY AGREEββ ONLY 1 TEAM IS THE NBA CHAMPIONββ- MUCH LUCK ALONG THE WAY TO ACHIEVE THISββ- I ALSO CAN LIVE WITH A TEAM THAT MIGHT NOT BE OF CHAMPIONSHIP CALIBERβ BUT DOES GIVE YOU A β GLIMMER OF HOPE β THAT IT COULD HAPPENβ- AND A TEAM THAT DOESNT β LAY DOWNβ- BUT FIGHT s β – NOT GETTING THESE VIBES FROM THIS GROUP
Every two weeks itβs bad news and no reinforcements.
November 10, Garland set back.
November 17, Merrill sprains hand.
November 28, Allen out, Nance out.
December 12, Mobley out through 2025.
Nothing positive on Strus.
Itβs a beast because you can barely brace and adjust from one gut punch before the next arrives. For teams that have turned the ship around, the punches stop.
IS IT TIME TO ADMIT ( EVEN THOUGH HE HAS BEEN SPECIALβ GIVEN US HISTORICAL MOMENTS) THE SPIDA TRADE IS β FLAWED β β WILL NOT EVER BRING US A NBA CHAMPIONSHIPββ- AM SURE HE HAS β MULLED β THIS OVER AND REALIZES THE SAMEβββ HATE TO BE A PESSIMIST BUT AM ALSO A REALISTβββ IF WE WOULD HAVE COME OUT AFTER THAT WEEK OFF AND DOMINATED OUR OPPONENTS I WOULD NOT BE POSTING THIS RIGHT NOW
I’m fine with a good team that comes up short of great. The NBA landscape can change fast, a lot can happen over the course of a season. I think you field the best team you can and who the hell knows what can happen in the playoffs. Crazy things can happen, major injuries and all of a sudden you have a fighting chance. Super low odds obviously, but better than rebuilding in my opinion. You do have to know when to fold them and not be like the Bulls or Raptors, but I don’t think the Cavs are at… Read more »
Yeah Iβm here. We will fold it after 26-27 is my guess. You get your own pick in β28 with some swap rights. But good with a chance for great is fine until then. And itβs not like we had a string of dumb choices to get here, unless your standard is something like βget an Allstar in every draft picking at 3-8 and fleece everyone in every tradeβ Mitchell was a smart trade bc he was as good as SGA at the time. Had he blossomed to MVP level instead of just below, we have a chance. But if… Read more »
FTS / KJG ALSO TURNING ON THE CAVSβ- CAVS BOUGHT INTO THE BLAZERS/ WARRIOR s β SMALL BALL β LINEUP s ( COPY CAT LEAGUE) β LEAGUE HAS NOW EVOLVED BACK TO MORE PHYSICAL/ ATHLETIC BIGS ββ WHOLESALE SUBSTITUTINGβPLAYERS WHO CAN RUN / ATTACK THE BASKET AJA: MIAMI HEAT βββ-PISTON s WERE β STUCK IN HELL β BUT THEIR DRAFT PICKS/ SIGNINGS ARE PROVING HUGE DIVIDENDSβββ JB MIGHT BE COACHING IN AN NBA FINALSββ- HOW IRONIC IS THAT
When you are comparing present teams to the Cavs, you always have to remember how the teams beating us got there and recognize the luck and time it took as well as the history/context. I am not willing to follow a team through 5 20-win seasons, which is what Detroit had. They started with what we had (dogshit) in 2018-19, won the lottery and just now got interesting. Cavs roster construction was absolutely NOT a copycat moveβ¦for three years all itβs been is βcan two small guards and two bigs work, OMG this is SO differentβ – no one else… Read more »
I doubt if “two small guards and two bigs” was a plan, it is just the way things worked out.
ο»Ώthe only decision was drafting DG, which was a pretty good choice when you look at that draft. then Allen was a gift and Mobley was an obvious choice. finally, no one would turn down a chance to get DM. the planning part was getting players to complent this core four.
Thatβs a fair point.
Itβs exhausting because this is a fanbase with no patience. Iβm not here for Garland to become the next Baker Mayfield.
the KJG clueless crew is totally on the “small ball” koolaid. the KJG cure for every problem is to give Allen away and make Mobley a center.
That didnβt work last week!
Kenny’s make a wish treatment of DG is singlehandedly tanking the team. 28th ranked net rating and 5-7 record when he starts. Simple as, any opinion otherwise isn’t worth considering.
MR STEALβ THEN ALL KOBY NEEDS TO DO / SAY IS EXACTLY WHAT YOU JUST POSTEDβββ SOMETIMES HEARING IT FROM THE HEAD MAN GIVES SOME REASSURANCE THAT WE WILL BE OKβββHOW ABOUT HEALTH UPDATES ON STRUS / LNJ / SAM / MOBES β- EVEN GARLAND ββ IF THEY MIGHT INCREASE LONZO s GAME RESTRICTIONSββ WHAT FORSEABLE PLAN s HE MIGHT POSSIBLY PURSUE
Yeah maybe.
Iβm not positive weβll be OK but maybe we fight to .500 in Evans absence and turn it on in January.
Feels like last yearβs Magic or Warriors (or the Sixers or Clippers) where we are at a really bad place but can have a good showing even from a 6-7 seed.
WE JUST PLAYED 3 OF THE WORST TEAMS IN THE ASSOCIATION AFTER A WEEK OFFββ SHOULD HAVE BEEN RELATIVELY EASY WINS β- GIVING THIS TEAM SOME β MOJO β BACK AND SPRINGBOARDING US TO SOME POSITIVE THINGS TO COMEββ- THESE LOSSES PUT A HUGE FRACTURE IN THIS TEAM THAT I DONT SEE US DIGGING OUTβββI CAN SEE SOME ATTITUDE s β LEAK β OUT TO THE MEDIAββββ- GO CHARGE!!
yup. now I am finally worried.
How could you not be? Weβre at the diagnosis but no cure stage. We donβt have 5 healthy guys who can play both ends, thereβs nobody to replace them with because weβve blown through our depth. Garland, Hunter and Lonzo are playing awful. Itβs fun to pretend that thereβs a single cause because being simple helps the simple minded get through the day but thatβs obviously wrong. If you are convinced Hunter is the problem, you have to give his minutes to a summer league guy who canβt play NBA offense and averages a foul a minute. Some with Garland:… Read more »
WHAT WAS PACERS RECORD AT THIS TIME LAST YEARβ- JUST TRYING TO COMARE β- SEE IF THERE IS ANY HOPE
WHEELS ARE FALLING OFF THIS TRAIN WRECKββWHY HASNT KOBY SAID ANYTHING PUBLICLY ALMOST ALL SEASONββ- NEEDS TO GO PUBLIC AND ADDRESS THE ISSUES
Why? Whatβs there to say? Weβre missing guys, itβs a slog, and players have to play better as a unit. A lot of ways to lose a basketball game when your bench is summer league guys, your PG and C are returning from injury, and you have 15 starting lineups in 28 games.
Any positives will be read as excuses and any negative comments from the GM will put further stress on the locker room.
Is it possible that when we got rid of Caris, Georges, Isaac and Ty, we somehow lost the heart and soul of this team?
These guys don’t like playing together.
But theyβre basically the same core as the past two years, when the vibes were good.
This board was not at all supportive of those guys. There was a running joke for a year about Ty Jeromeβs ankle injury, and even that was 100x nicer than the comments on Niang and Okoro. Vert is cool.
Ironic for all the make a wish talk re: Isaac the wish got granted and now weβre going through it.
I was always pro-Ice. Okoro Island, baby!
We have a lot of guys hurt. Jerome was off the charts last year and is gone.
Maybe we can start playing better at full strength. But we suck right now.
Totally. Our new acquisitions are a group of stiffs. This team has no chemistry, no youthful, athletic, creative players. The young rosters throughout the league are passing us by.
I do miss Caris, he was useful. Georges and Isaac were not good players. Lots of heart and soul though. Part of the reason Cavs reg season is worse than last year so far is not because of injury alone, but because the bench is weaker. Ty Jerome leaving is the main cause of this. I’m ok with that, since last season’s bench was unable to withstand playoff scrutiny. Cavs need to build a bench that is able to hold it’s own (within budget). Lots of injuries to starting players often helps blood the rest of the squad – we… Read more »
Our bench has been developed well but Ty Jerome hasnβt played a second. Weβre down to the 11-15th men, those guys always suck.
GOOD CAVS SEEMS LIKE AN ETERNITYβ- WHEN IS SAM DUE BACK βSO FRUSTRATINGβ- WOULD REALLY LIKE TO KNOW THE β REAL VIBES β IN THE LOCKER ROOMββ DONT CARE HOW TIGHT OF GROUP THEY ARE ββ LOSING WILL EVENTUALLY CAUSE/ SURFACE DISSENSION
Donnyβs stoicism is starting to fray
He was sick
Oof. Garland with an awful stretch.
I miss good Cavs.
NATE IS IN β ISO β MODEββ REMEMBER NATE β β YβALL NEED TO CHILL βββ WISH I WAS β VIEWING β ( OR NOT) TO β CHIME β IN WITH YOU NATE
I’m fine. Fire De’Andre Hunter into the sun.
GREAT look, Lonzo.
this lineup was awful in the first half. Much better in the second.
Cavs just running around like chickens with their heads cut off.
This is a bad challenge.
HUNTER SUUUUUUUCKS
PUT SOMEONE ELSE ON WHITE.
garland just lets white walk into a three
More brainless basketball on that Allen outlet turnover.
Hunter with a seeing eye basket.
Garland/allen connection!
Thank god for Mitchell and Garland tonight. Allen too.
JFC Hunter. Finally makes a shot then goes into iso turnover.
The jacks a bad three then gives up an awful offensive rebound to Okoro.
I have a feeling we’re not going to see any Tomlin minutes. That would be a mistake.
Need allen back. Not Bryant’s night.
Hunter stinking it up so far. 0-4 by my count.
Go Cavs!
Overpassing cause Ball can’t finish around the basket.
Looks like Hunter might have gotten the rebounding memo.
Cavs finally took Hunter out of the starting lineup. Thank God.
got that right!
TOOK YOUR ADVICE NATE ββ- TIME TO CHILLβ¦β¦β¦.WITH β MORE BEER πΊ PLEASE βππββ GO YOU β MASH β CAVS !!
Nice energy so far. I missed me some Jarrett Allen.
Yo thanks for getting the LT !!!