Let’s start by mentioning the United Way links that were posted before the game. Look past this recap for that; help if you can.
Perhaps Kyrie should have gone for this look.
Wow, I have recapped some amazing losses lately. First the Miami game; now tonight. Again, on the road, certainly fatigued, Cleveland gave one of the East’s best all they could handle. I would love to see wins, but this year, in some of these circumstances, it is fun to see our young group go toe-to-toe with heavyweights.
Tonight’s tilt featured a hot, undefeated-at-home Knicks team against an increasingly beat-up & worn-down Cavalier squad. Kyrie wore a black mask to protect his broken jaw, but in honor of New York City and theater, perhaps he should have worn white. Carmelo also sat, due to an ankle injury. Twenty-eight year old rookie Chris Copeland started in his place.
Cleveland started hot, behind perhaps Tristan’s best offensive quarter of the season. He posted & went baseline for a dunk, drove from thirty-feet for a layup, kept a possession alive with a tip, and netted a few assisted lay-ins. He did not make any three-pointers though (wink, wink). Kyrie pitched in seven, and the Cavs cruised to a 28 to 20 lead. Unfortunately, the Knicks scored seven unanswered to close the gap.
Early in the second, CJ Miles drained a few deep threes; the play-by-play refers to one as a 29-footer. I believe it. Kyrie continued attacking the New York defense, and his thirteenth & fourteenth points tied the game as the half neared a close. Unfortunately, Steve Novak’s fourth triple pulled NYC ahead 48 to 45 at intermission. New York assisted on 14 of their 18 field goals, compared to 6 of 19 for Cleveland.
The third stanza featured a series of Knick mini-runs followed by Cleveland recoveries. Kyrie continued his onslaught of stroked-threes, nifty pull-ups, and smooth lay-ins. His twelve points could not overcome an ongoing Tyson Chandler dunk-fest though; New York’s Center piled up thirteen points for the quarter, behind a barrage of pick & roll finishes and alley-oop dunks. The Gotham hosts lead 73 to 78.
The fourth quarter was crazy. Cleveland fell behind by double-digits twice, behind a parade of New York threes and Tyson Chandler dominance. Then, Kyrie did his, “I’m the baddest man alive” thing; seventeen points and two assists in five minutes…THAT MAN WAS BALLING OUT OF CONTROL!!! He got to the rack, he found open cutters, then BAM!! BACK TO BACK THREE POINTERS to cut the Knicks lead to two. The Knicks kept making their clutch free throws, but with ten seconds to go, Steve Novak missed…the Cavs rebounded…the Knick defense collapsed on Kyrie…he found a cutting Varejao…Andy’s fouled; two shots to tie with one second to go!!
Well, you know what happened next. Varejao missed the second free throw. It was a bummer; it was exhilarating. Some of these losses will turn to wins soon.
A few notes:
Kyrie scored 41, in a highlight packed career-best. Since his return from injury, he looks more engaged on defense also; perhaps some time for reflection and video watching proved beneficial. When he scores 42, it will be in a win. I can feel it.
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C.J. Miles notched 17, leaving his average at 20 points per game over the last five.
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Tyler Zeller scored 8 points to go with 6 boards on 4 of 5 shooting in 15 minutes. He flashed his soft touch around the basket and generally looked competent on the boards. Two more turnovers tonight though, via careless lazy-pass rookie mistakes.
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Another fourth game in five nights, which will be followed by two days off, then another four-in-five. The season starts with 29 games in 54 days, including seventeen roadies. That is nearly four games per week, actually the exact frequency of the recent strike-shortened gauntlet. They will have played away from Cleveland, on average, every three days. A relaxing holiday respite, featuring three games in ten days, kicks off 53 in 116. The twenty-four road games after Christmas amount to one every five days. 2013 Cav basketball looks much more promising than their 2012.
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As the unofficial tracker of Andy’s progression up the franchise leader-boards; his two offensive rebounds move him past Brad Daugherty to fourth. With eight total rebounds, he did not reach double-digits, which shocks nowadays. Tyson Chandler tipped approximately fourteen-thousand loose-balls to his backcourt.
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Daniel Gibson is shooting 28% from the field in the month of December.
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Iman Shumpert did not play, but he is rocking awesome hair.
I am somewhat surprised that it took Steve Novak until last year to find a place in the NBA. That shot is soooo fast and accurate, surely there were more than 300 minutes per season that could have been available to him. He appears pretty capable spotted up, off screens, or even dribbling once then firing. Of 450 attempts from deep in the last three seasons, he converts over 47%, shooting once every four minutes. That’s just stupid.
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For two straight seasons, Tyson Chandler paced the league in True Shooting Percentage. Last year, he posted approximately the best mark in the history of forever, this season is even higher, and tonight he tallied 88%. That man finishes pick-and-rolls and alley-oops. He’s a beast.
Man, Kyrie is fun to watch isn’t he?
Boobie is actually killing us. It’s starting to enrage me. But we don’t have anyone else to play.
Fun game to watch
No clue why Thompson gets 17 minutes the night he happens to be 5-5, while Boobie gets 35. Went small-ball for the entire 4th and most of the 2nd. Boobie was AWFUL tonight, on both ends.
It amazes me that a veteran of Booby’s experience can still be so bad directing an offense.
This game totally encapsulated a lot of what’s right and wrong for both the Knicks and Cavs. Some of you may not agree with what I have to say, but whatever, I’m drunk and according to Mallory I’m a bad commentor. Again, whatever, ’cause he’s not so popular around these parts either. One of the reasons the Knicks have been winning so much is because they’re shooting what may be an unsustainable amount from three. But did you see their three point plays? I would have been more angry if they weren’t so beautiful. How did Raymond Felton and Steve Novak end up with so many points? Because the Knicks managed to make that extra pass when they were wide open from beyond the arc. I don’t know if it was luck or the way Mike Woodson draws up those plays, but the Knicks made a heck of a lot of threes. Sure wish Boobie had actually shot a couple of similar looks. Also on the Knicks, Tyson Chandler is a center who is a solid defensive presence at worse and at best is able to abuse smaller centers like Andy. I sure am glad the Cavs didn’t trade for him when they had the chance /sarcasm. Also, Kurt Thomas and Pablo Prigioni may very well fit the definition of “solid role players.” Last Knick point, Ronnie Brewer was a non-factor other than this- it would have been nice if he hadn’t made that wide open jumper at the beginning of the game.
So I’ve been somewhat negative about the Cavs overall, but I’ll say this: Kyrie irving is the man. No other way to say it, tonight he proved he has the testicles of an elephant and the talent to back it up. He always made the right play offensively. He still wasn’t great on defense. but it was certainly one of his best defensive efforts to date. I’d even say that no defensive breakdown was his fault. That’s a great improvement over a year ago. To go back to offense, the final play showed this best. What other option did he have at that point but to give it to Andy? The big guy had a clear lane and typically shoots pretty well from the free throw lane. Oh well, Andy and Kyrie couldn’t force an overtime against one of the best teams in the league. Somehow I’ll go to sleep tonight ok with the fact that Kyrie nearly singlehandedly beat the Knicks.
This wasn’t the best analysis but screw it, it was better than Mallory’s. Except for Boobie, on that point I totally agree.
Agree with Rich on TT. The guy turned hot in the 1st quarter and what did Scott do? OH no he didn’t leave him in like Doc Rivers would; he yanked him and he was out of sight when needed. Andy was hurt and needed help with Chandler and what did Scott do/ Left ineffective Boobie in?? And what the hell is his problem with Pargo? Yeah he had 1 bad game with Lakers but he is way bettter overall point guard than slower than Moses Sloan. He can produce way more points than Sloan and those precious points could have translated into a win but OH NO Scott wouldn’t have any of that. He’s too busy with his ego making a msg to Pargo at any cost. This is insanity! His rotations are just plain stupid in close games we have a real chance to win. It’s close to 3 years now and he hasn’t changed on his maddening and nonsense rotations. Cavs players work hard out there and deserve a competent coach to put in players that can help them win in close games. Sorry Scott had his chance; he’s got to go. We can’t possibly do worse with another coach. We’re already at the bottom.
I’m with Jimbo in many of the points he made. Kyrie took 30% of the Cavs shots. That’s OK because he made them. It may be bad for the involvement of the rest of the team in the game. Surprisingly Gee played the most minutes in the Cavs (41 min). The other one to pass 40 min. was CJ Miles. These players make a lot of shots, but with low percentage (tonight CJ was fairly OK). Together with Gibson, Gee and Miles made 16 of the 3-point attempts and scored 4. That is 25% from downtown.
Casspi was in street clothes in NY. Casspi, who is a better defender that Miles and Gibson and not worse than Gee, is also one of the best 3-point shooters in the NBA. However, he rarely gets to shoot a 3-pointer, because he never gets the ball. The Cavs have to work out something concerning the green light to shoot and when. That’s what the stats are for. Plan your offense based on the probabilities. The teams offensive rating will benefit from it.
Sorry, I forgot to mention TT. He was really into it and ended up with only 17 min. I wonder what Scott’s plan was here.
I’m really enjoying this season, even though the winning percentage is still garbage. That stretch without Irving or Waiters was tough to watch but they really are a must see team on league pass when Irving is playing. Thompson was as good as he’s been all year. As previously said, he should have been on the court more tonight. TT and Zeller should have played 35 minutes each tonight. AV played hurt and was abused by Chandler. Irving was a bad man in the garden…Like James Harrison snorting coke and beating up a white women just cause he felt like it bad. Irving is a superstar right now. He’s the most dangerous scoring point guard in the league. The puppies are growing into their paws. Savor this season because our expectations are going to go up next year. The growth is still fun to watch.
Rich and TV63,
Nice mention of a number of rotation question marks. When I wrote this recap, the game had just ended, and I was basically basking in the glow of “OMG, Kyrie”.
JImbo,
Yeah, the Knicks run a great offense. I didn’t think the Cavs defense looked bad; Andy looks tired and isn’t hedging as hard on pick-and-rolls as we’ve become accustomed to. Chandler is a great finisher and the Knicks move the ball and are shooting lights out. They are tough to beat right now. Last time I watched them was when they dismantled Miami.
The Cavs offense does not look so smooth. Is it youth? Coaching? Next season will be a tell-tale year.
Mallory,
Dion comes back Tuesday, so that will loosen Boobie’s load, and also allow him to move towards strictly spot-up status again.
No reason to hate on Boobie for being who he is. He played quite a bit of 3 in this game. I don’t care how good the defender, defending different positions is very difficult. He does a great job against most 2s and a solid job on physical 1s, but having no Casspi or Waiters forced him to guard the 3 more. We also know he isn’t a point guard, but if Sloan didn’t suck so horrifically badly, Boobie wouldn’t be forced to initiate as frequently.
TT played well, but he certainly can’t guard the 3 either.
Backup PG and solid wing play remain our biggest questions. I’m not sure why Pargo’s backup leash was so short. He can occasionally be over zealous, but I have yet to see NBA caliber minutes from Sloan. He is and will continually be a trainwreck.
I hope Miles continues to start even when Dion comes back. Then Dion can always have the ball in his hands with the second unit.
Daniel Gibson’s role seems to change nightly. He is best when he is given one role and told to stick with it. His best year was the year after lebron left and he was tasked with essentially being a minor playmaker and shooter. He had a defined role that when he was in, he would be the primary or secondary ball handler (mostly secondary) and shoot the ball. This season he has been asked to do completely different things nightly. Play the 1 or 2, Defend 2 guards, Shoot, dribble, pass. Part of it is injuries to others, part of it is that he has always been a little streaky. Dont fault him, he is still an excellent shooter who is not in a shooter’s role.
A note about his Defense: He has never been good at defending shooting guards. He came into the league as a negative defender, worked hard and became a competent defender at the PG position. He is too small to defend the 2 well. That being said, he D has overall been down this year and I think its due to his ever changing role.
This is true of most of the players on the cavs. Their role changes nightly. Its terrible. Partly its injuries, but its also coaching. Scott changes his rotations based on the opponent. Basketball is all about flow. You can change things but you also have to have set roles and responsibilities that players can go to if things start to fall apart/not work.
I disagree. Dion needs to learn to play with Kyrie. That’s the future. Not CJ Miles. We drafted Dion to be the starting 2 guard, not the back-up point.
I am amazed how the pretty consistent bone-headed play of Gee gets no or very little mention on this blog. For all the wrong-headed bitching about TT, Gee seems to be the one Cav who really is regressing. He has arguably the lowest basketball I.Q. N this team and his offensive game right now us a nightmare. TO’s, drives to nowhere, no passing skills…I could go on. And quite frankly, his defense hasn’t been so good as to be a reasonable counter to his offensive worthlessness. Kevin, I know you had said earlier that you were surprised that Gee has turned out to be an NBA player. I agree he is but he is 22 minute a night guy, preferably off-the-bench.
In a shocking development, I agree with Mallory. Gibson has been brutal. And despite what his defenders may claim, this is basically the 3rd straight season were he stinks it up for serious stretches. I get the “veteran” influence in the locker room, but once Dion comes back, Boobie should see a lot of the bench.
By the by, I hope all you TT haters saw the PD today…facts are a bitch, eh? Oh, and good God, does Zeller need to toughen up. I trust that will come with experience but it sometimes it is painful to watch how soft he can be for a man his size…
Oy. Just watched the game from last night. Rough one… A couple thoughts: a lot of last night’s goofy matchups came because Byron didn’t trust TT to guard Novak, which, I GUESS makes sense, but he didn’t seem like he was given much of a chance, and making Novak guard TT on the block is a nice way to get him out of the game…
And it’s obvious that the Cavs guards don’t trust TT on the block even when he’s shooting well. There was no effort to get him the ball. It was nice to see him have a good game, and I hope it’s a sign of things to come.
And the Knicks are a REALLY good team. Can you imagine how good this team is going to be when they get Carmello, Stoudamire, and all Shumpert going? They are a championship contender. They might be the deepest team from top to bottom in the league. Donnie Walsh put together a good core, but getting Jason Kidd was the best move of the offseason. Remember when there was a time that the thought was the Mavs got fleeced trading Devin Harris for Jason Kidd? Doesn’t that seem comical now?
As the Knicks are a really good team, they get away with crap: crap like fouling Kyrie and Miles egregiously on consecutive possessions with less than a minute left; crap like Tyson Chandler’s constant moving screens and elbowing Andy in the face and Andy getting called for the foul; Crap like Jason Kidd playing illegal defense every other possession… So it’s really hard to beat a team like that on their home team. They’re proof that teams need veterans to win. Cavs need guys to work the refs, and the Cavs need an enforcer. Those should be high on the list for next year.
As for this notion that we drafted Dion to be the starting 2 guard, not the backup… Well that’s just idiotic. Manu Ginobili played half his career off the bench. James Harden played most of his career till this year off the bench. Staggering our best players just makes sense. We have lousing backup guards. Bringing St. Weirdo off the bench to be the backup guard at both spots is the smartest move, as Miles is CLEARLY better as a starter than coming of the bench. Besides, it’s not about who starts the game, it’s about who finishes it. It’s obvious that the best course of action with a fully healthy team is an 8 man rotation with Neon Dion, Casspi, and Zeller off the bench, with Boobie taking some time to get healthy again.
Kj,
I agree that Gee should be a 20 minute a night guy. Also, that the team needs to find Boobie back into his role of spot-up shooter.
For the record, KJ, I definitely called Gee out on my recap.
Kevin -
The problem with Boobie is that he isn’t hitting his spot-up shots. At all.