Recap: Cavs 87, Magic 81 (Or, Did The Cavs Just Win?)
2014-01-02
WOW. That game turned out differently than expected (and defeat seemed imminent). Really, though, did anyone see a comeback (and victory) coming? The writing was ON-THE-WALL!
After losing throughout most of the fourth quarter, by as much as 10, the Cavs managed to come back and tie it up, thanks in large part to some timely shots at the rim by Dion, some good defensive stops, and a silly 5 second inbound call.
Down seven with 13.9 seconds left, Jack was fouled on a three point shot, and hit all three FTs. Immediately following, the Magic committed a five second inbound turnover. Dion had been ABYSMAL inside all night (to quote Kevin Hetrick just minutes before the comeback, “It’s frustrating that…with Orlando’s rim protectors as Jason Maxiell, Andrew Nicholson and Glen Davis, that Dion Waiters has 3 shots at the rim and four free throws. Two shots at the rim were on fast breaks, and two free throws were thanks to a hand checking foul”), but he drove to the rim for a quick two. After getting fouled, E’twaun Moore, a career 84% FT shooter, who is shooting 90% on the season, promptly missed both shots. With 9 seconds left coming out of the time out, Dion isolated at the top of the key, drove to his left and tied it with .6 left. To say the least, this was unexpected. Thanks to some stupendously bad play by Orlando, the Cavs headed to their fourth OT in the last five home games.
In overtime, despite not scoring for two and a half minutes, the Cavaliers managed to pull out a win against the Magic on some big Andy elbow shots and free throws. Delly closed out the last minute with a couple of HUGE defensive plays, forcing an offensive foul on Big Baby and an out-of-bounds turnover on Afflalo, sealing the deal. (side note – Delly also had a pretty cool forced jump ball on Big Baby in regulation, and won it. Love that kid.)
That was just about the worst 47 minutes and 46 seconds of basketball I’ve ever watched. It took the Cavs an OT to score 87 points, and they still shot 34.4% from the field. Reread that – 34.4%!!!!!!! At least we can rest somewhat easy.
Really, though, has there ever been such a disheartening loss win? Why was Dion so passive all night, when he was able to score with such ease those last 14 seconds? How, in a game where Anderson Varejao had 25 REBOUNDS(!) did the Cavs score such few points and nearly lose this game?
Usually I do my good-bad-rest deal, but tonight we’re bypassing. Jarrett Jack was his usually inefficient self, taking 16 shots to score 14 points, TT was stable, if unspectacular (minus his 2nd Q buzzer-beating dunk – nice to see you remember how to finish at the rim, buddy!). Dion continues to astound us with his incredible passiveness/penchant for idiotic jump shots. He’s so clearly got the talent to do amazing things. For literally 47 minutes minutes and 46 seconds, I sat here dumbfounded at how this team could look so apathetic, slow, and just plain bad. They were decent on D most of the game, but again looked gassed in the fourth, and couldn’t buy a basket for their lives.
Maybe this is the turning point we’ve been waiting for; without their superstar point guard, the Cavs managed to rise to the occasion. Ultimately, a win is just that – another notch in the left column. But with so many glaring issues, was this win just too overshadowed by deficiencies? Did the Cavs win, or did Orlando lose?
Nate surely you realize that this team needs shooters more than the I need a girlfriend. And I’m commenting on an old message board at 3:30 on the morning about a team that sucks. And Olidopo in no way would help that cause
Mallory- you seem like a nice guy and I really respect the amount of hard work that it takes to maintain this blog, but it is obvious that you don’t follow the NBA as a whole as fervently as most other writers/commenters. I respect your opinion on Cavs players because it is evident that you follow the team closely, but when your arguments extend to other teams and players/league history you routinely make mistakes. It’s evident in the podcasts as well as you struggle to come up with other players names. All I’m suggesting is stick to what you know.… Read more »
I don’t have a problem with constructive criticism but there is such a thing as balance. And “touché” to Mallory’s argument on don’t turn a blind eye remark on Cavs doing bad. Well same holds true when they force an OT by scoring 9 pts in a minute. It pained several of us on here to read this link from Yahoo Sports http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/anatomy-collapse-magic-lost-10-point-lead-94-174053810–nba.html when our own backyard wouldn’t acknowledge the highlights of ANdy’s amazing record performance, getting those 9 points in a minute, Dion’s drive, Delly’s defense. This blog covers criticism fine the many losses Cavs have had. But YOU… Read more »
Atlanta isn’t giving up Korver and Millsap for that…
2nd comment because of 2nd link and sorry for off topic-ness, no other posts are really active.
http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=l5nxec9
-Solves our Bynum problem and gets rid of our 3 Point Problem and gets us Pau.
-Hawks get another center to take care of Horford’s spot for now (would probably cost us the kings pick or another first rounder) and Jack.
-Lakers get cap relief (assuming Covington is also to be waived)*
-Rockets get rid of Asik, get a quality PF to go with Howard and maybe Alonzo Gee will stop sucking?
Apparently Richard Jefferson has been added to our Bynum trade list. http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/10240190/richard-jefferson-utah-jazz-now-potential-trade-target-cleveland-cavaliers-look-move-andrew-bynum
I agree with Josh Sure right now I’d trade Olidipo for Bennett. Frankly right now I’d trade TT for Valancunius but acting like grant screwed the franchise with either pick is a gross exaggeration. Right now Of the first 5 picks I’d take Mclemore 1st. Olidpo 2nd. Bennett 3rd. Zeller 4th. And Len 5th. None of them have done anything yet.
Some other perspectives on the rookie class:
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/page/5-on-5-040103/most-promising-rookies
I like how out of all the points josh made, the one and only rebuttal Mallory had was “wait, when did I say TT was a total bust”. Come on dude, I’ve been reading this blog since the LeBron years and i can totally see you saying that. Heck I’ve even thought it if not said something similar on this very blog. The dude was Awful. Yes with a capital A. As much as you criticize the org and players with some pretty harsh comments, don’t try to say you couldn’t have possibly been that harsh on TT, knowing full… Read more »
Nate in a redraft using realistic possibilities I probably take Oladipo. But missing out on a college junior playing below average in his rookie year isn’t enough to get me worked up.
Based on age, offseason limitations and current playing time, I expect Bennett to get significantly better and Oladipo to get moderately better. I’d probably still bet on Oladipo being a better player, but again not by enough for me to overly regret passing on him.
I just don’t understand how you can ignore things like age, injuries and playing time when you rip Bennett apart and praise Oladipo.
Mallory your comparisons to the Bobcats, Wizards, T-Wolves is so far beyond ridiculous I don’t know why I’m even still trying. The Bobcats are TWO GAMES IN THE STANDINGS better than us after spending THEIR ENTIRE EXISTENCE rebuilding compared to our three years of rebuilding. They have far less draft pick and cap room flexibility going forward. Could the Cavs be two games better had they massively overpaid Al Jefferson instead of taking an incredibly low risk chance on Andrew Bynum? Sure, why not. And then we would have no cap room going forward and our future would only be… Read more »
On a team that routinely runs Jarrett Jack and Dion at the 3? I doubt it.
Ya victor would be playing the 2 while shooting 22% from 3 oh joy. On a team with no shooters at the 4&5
Oh, disagree, Rodney. Bennett has a wins/shares rating of -.6. Victor has a wins/shares rating of .2. That’s a .8 wins shares difference, which means there’s probably an 80% chance that Victor would have gotten the Cavs an additional win, by being below average, instead of earth shatteringly awful. Also, on this team Victor, wouldn’t be playing out of position.
Correction. We can all agree that he could of screwed up a lot worse. He could of taken Derrick Williams and Brandan Knight. Or Thomas Robinson instead of Dion. Whether he should of taken Barnes or Waiters I think is moving toward Waiters this year. Whether he should of taken Valancunius or TT is pretty up in the air. Neither would have made a serious difference at this point. Olidipo, Bennet, or whoever adds no wins this year. The only mistake anyone can claim he made is hiring Brown or signing Jack. But to pretend he’s demonstrably bad at drafting… Read more »
I think alot of us get annoued when people act like Grant screwed up when there is literally nothing he could of done that would have 3 win difference this year. Olidipo would not have added a win on this team yet.
It seems like the comments in this blog sometimes play out like rally-round-the flag politics before war. Critics and skeptics get lambasted as unpatriotic (bad fans) by the patriots (blind fans) while the critics and skeptics get rhetorically coerced into defensive corners.
This was one of the best debates I’ve read by the bloggers. It should be preserved forever. A psychologist reading this would say that everybody’s perspective on the Cavs here is “deeply seated in their primal personalities” . . . or something like that. Everybody defends their points well! Some people are “it is what it is” type people. Others see a glimpse of potential and live in the world of “this is would it could be.” Everyone probably agrees that the Cavs have been a disappointment. However, half say this disappointment will continue in perpetuity. Again, others see potential.… Read more »
@DaveR – To me, when I read someone like Josh, who says things like, “I think the Cavs are XYZ, but because they are so young I really don’t know for certain.” there is an appropriate level humility is appropriate that acknowledges the uncertain futures of the young players on the eeam. People who make strong claims about a team this young are, quite frankly, overly confidence in their own abilities to assess players, which is what I mean when I call them arrogant. I stand by that. They are arrogant in their opinions. @Mallory/Nate – Describing a bad team… Read more »
If the game against Miami was a moral victory, then was last night’s game a moral loss?
Anyone else have a problem with this, from Amico’s game story:
“It was an ugly game,” said Cavs coach Mike Brown, and he was right on target. “Just like how I like it.”
Last night’s game was dreadful in every way, save the final score. On one hand, yes, I’m thrilled for a win. But, big picture, yikes, dumpster is right, Tom.
“arrogant without any room for another perspective”…not to pick on Hot Sauce but that fits the opinion of just about everyone here. Lighten up.
Oh Just get it over with and rename this blog to “Rank & Berate Cavs Blog” You could give out prizes on the best floggings of the day. So much to choose from. Oh Goodie!! I can’t stand the suspense on WHO would win. Who needs our opponents to do this on their sites when we do one Hell of a job right here scorching our own players. Yeah We Rock!!!
TV63 – you are a longtime contributor and a passionate fan, so it pains me to see you so upset. The season has been a huge disappointment for most Cavalier fans and many are starting to have their spirits broken. Everyone is going to deal with that differently. I don’t think it is anyone’s intention to unfairly scorch or flog the Cavaliers. At the same time, most don’t feel a relationship with professional athletes like they would a high school basketball team or watching their own children play sports. These athletes are professionals paid millions (sometimes tens of millions) of… Read more »
If people are looking for something to be happy about, I will provide one nugget that i view as a positive sign: Chris Grant is unwilling to give up future assets for Pau Gasol. In other words, he’s not making panic trades to try to save his job and he correctly views the Lakers’ demands and egregious. If you have a vision you have to stick to it. Gilbert’s proclamation of playoffs may have been premature. The worst thing the Cavs can do is what they did in 2005: make panic moves to get only moderately better while handicapping the… Read more »
Nate, I realize you did say that TT and Dion are only average players, not below average. But I still strongly disagree with your assertion. They are definitely above average players and I’ll tell you what metrics I’m using: MY EYES AND BRAIN. Average players don’t consistently flirt with/achieve 20 point games and are not capable of 30 pt games. Average players don’t consistently flirt with/achieve double doubles. Metrics on paper are important to an extent, but to insist solely on them for your assessment of NBA talent is severely limiting and kind of geeky.
I, like Nate, agree about mischaracterization. It’s not that I would rather be the Bobcats, etc. It’s that those teams, who have many fewer top picks on their teams/have been perennially substantially worse WITHOUT the luck of top picks/etc., seem to have improved in the way the Cavs were expected this year. To put this into perspective, Charlotte has picked higher than 8th TWICE in the last 5 years, and that was last year and the year before. Likewise the Wizards have picked higher than 5 twice, drafting Wall the year before Kyrie and MKG two years ago. These teams… Read more »
Tyrone, you mischaracterize me. I do think Dion and Tristan are average NBA players. Their metrics seem to float between just below average, and just above, so average is a good place to put them. I said they certainly aren’t “above average.” But all-in-all, I think you make some really nice points.
I’ll be tackling these issues more, next week. The discussion has definitely given me some article fodder. As always, we appreciate everyone’s readership and passion!
I’m usually one to criticize the seemingly over-stated negativity of these Cavs bloggers… but this season has been the most baffling one I have seen from this team. I do still think that several of these bloggers are ignorant (Mallory about other teams not sucking and remaining in the lottery/ Nate saying that TT and Dion aren’t even AVERAGE NBA players), but there are alot of legitimate questions/concerns here. I have commented for years that I wouldn’t trade Andy. Not just because I knew we couldn’t get his value back in a trade, but because he’s a totally precious gem… Read more »
Nate, I certainly agree with all of your assessments, but those things don’t stop this season from being a huge failure compared to expectations.
If I had told you 6 months ago that the Cavs would have one of the worst records in the NBA, that TT and Dion both would have continued their inconsistencies, and that Bennett would be, statistically, one of the worst rookies ever (NOTE: I AM NOT SAYING HE IS DESTINED TO CONTINUE TO BE, BUT OBJECTIVELY HE HAS BEEN HORRIBLE THIS YEAR) would you all have been content?
I have to disagree with Mallory’s “abject failure” characterization. The Cavs do have some good things going for them. 1. The cavs have a star. 2. They have talented players (the level of that talent is the debate). As I see, they have one star, one above average center, two average starter level players, (Dion and Tristan), and everone else is below average or worse. 3. They are not embarrassments as people (see Sacramento), and they’ve gotten rid of the person who is. Number three goes a long way with me, and is part of the reason I am still… Read more »
Additionally, I’m sorry, but for the time being, this team is not good. Does that mean I don’t think they can be good? No. Does that mean they’ll automatically fail? Again, no. But looking at this as crystal clearly as possible, right now, they’re bad. It’s true that they are not the Kings, the Nets, the Knicks, or the Bucks. With that said, they’re underachieving badly compared to preseason predictions and expectations. Teams that underachieve (like the Knicks, Nets, etc.) generally have serious, inherent issues, whether it’s talent, chemistry, construction, or all of the above. These are not issues that… Read more »
Mallory I’m not looking through all of last years comments at the moment, but I 100 percent guarantee you said that the Cavs ability to build through the draft can’t be relied upon because TT is a complete bust.
Nate if you honestly think JJ Hickson, Danny Green and Boobie Gibson are better NBA players than TT and Dion will be, well I guess we have two different versions of reality. They are less than 2.5 and 1.5 years into their careers. At this point Green was in the D League and Hickson was on the end of the bench. Where were all these other players that are better than Dion and TT at this point in their careers? Both players have played WELL above average in their respective draft class, certainly in the top ten and most would… Read more »
Josh –
When did I ever label TT a complete bust?
Mallory do you even read what you are saying on here? So your argument is that teams like the Raptors, Bobcats, Pistons, T-Wolves and Wizards did a more competent job of rebuilding than the Cavs and that is why they are doing so well this year? The Cavs are currently in the third year of their way of rebuilding and are 11-21. Let’s see how these smart rebuilders did. The T-Wolves are currently in about year nine of their rebuild. They are a .500 team. Damn, if only the Cavs would have rebuilt the smart way like the T-Wolves six… Read more »
With as many “good losses” that we’ve had to the likes of Portland, Miami, Golden State and even Atlanta lately, I’m fine with a “bad win”. Each win counts as a win, just as each loss counts as a loss.
Josh, if you can find me any metrics that show Dion Waiters and/or Tristan Thompson as above average, I’d love to see them. The closest I can find is Dion’s slightly above zero simple rating at 82games. I would put their efficiency based on APM, simple rating, wins shares, PER, and Pie, as average at best. Dion plays better than his PER, but their adjusted plus minus is around zero. They are ,so far, run-of-the-mill for their positions. I stand by my statement. Furthermore, I wasn’t going by PER alone in the statement I made. Danny Green is not a… Read more »
I will say that Dion has not been the same since he’s returned from his injury. The tendonitis has taken a toll on his shooting, but he hasn’t let it affect his energy, which I respect.
As a huge Cavs fan, I understand how badly we want to believe that this “extended” rebuilding process is going to pan out for the team, but anyone with even a basic understanding of the game of basketball should be able to realize that our team is god awful. Keep up the honest posts Mallory and Nate.
Josh – the Cavs have drafted FOUR players in the top 5 over the last four years. Six in the first round. All those players remain on the roster. I’m not going to go through piece by piece, but I can’t remember another team…ever…that approached basketball in quite that manner, beyond OKC. On the flip side, it never felt like those teams were TANKING. The Wizards aggressively tried to improve last year (which didn’t work too well, due to Wall being injured), The Bobcats used FA signings, not the draft, to improve, the Pistons went for the fences in TWO… Read more »
I liked the Waiters pick. I liked the Zeller pick. I Liked the Karasev pick. I didn’t dislike the Bennett pick. I really thought Dion was going to start taking big steps forward from the strides he had already shown last Winter. I thought Tristan was going to keep moving towards establishing himself as a really solid starting power forward. Last night the team played a really bad team, missing their starting center, at home…Kyrie was out, and I wanted to see something big from Dion, from Tristan, from Tyler…really announce their place in the league and pick up the… Read more »
Mallory, Did you seriously just say the Bobcats, Raptors, Pistons, T-Wolves, and Wizards didn’t play the tank game for too long? The Bobcats have had a lottery pick in nine of their ten years of existence. Five of which were in the top five. The Raptors have drafted in the lottery every year since Bosh left (and actually the two years prior to Bosh leaving as well). The Wizards have drafted in the lottery five straight years, all five of which were top six picks. The Pistons have drafted in the lottery four straight years. The T-Wolves have drafted in… Read more »
Nate’s last post is the problem with PER. Nate will try and use it to “prove” Dion Waiters and Tristian Thompson aren’t above average NBA players. He also will ignore how putrid both of their respective drafts were. Who are we taking over TT in 2011 that is an improvement, Nate? According to the PER you are going to try to use to prove TT and Dion are below average players, Klay Thompson is a worse player than TT and JV was worse last year and a fraction better this year, which didn’t happen until the last week when TT’s… Read more »
Guys – It doesn’t really bother me that you disagree with my opinions, and I’m glad you’ve got so much hope for this young team. I don’t think I’ve ever said anything TOO inflammatory about any individual players (maybe Zeller, but whatever – dude was awful) and I’ve certainly said nothing close to controversial about Bennett (mostly because it’s pretty well documented how awful he’s been). I was harsh on Tristan when he was bad, and praised him when he played well. I’ve numerously stated that I love Dion Waiters, but c’mon, if you’re not frustrated with him then you’re… Read more »
Bennett appears to be terrible, and I don’t give missing a month or two in the off-season as an excuse. I wasn’t one who thought Oladipo would be so good at the NBA level on offense (though defense and athleticism translate well), and at Indiana he was a turnover machine and was never the #1, 2, or 3 scoring option, but it strikes me that we ought to have taken Oladipo (given hindsight). He could take the place of Jack or Earl Clark, and projects to be a solid Bruce Bowen style player in the NBA. While it’s still early,… Read more »
^^everything that josh said x1000000
Also, Bennett will without a doubt be better than Otto porter. Porter has a lean frame and limited athleticism that will limit his NBA potential. Bennett has nothing holding him back from being a very good NBA player. He has the size, he has the skills, he has the athleticism (to be a face up 4) but looks like he might need a few years to figure it all out, as most big men do.
If the Cavs had more than four draft picks in the last 10 years (James, Irving, Hickson, and Danny Green — and barely on the last two) that have turned into above average NBA players, then maybe I would not be so critical.
To second Josh and Kj, it’s not that every statement Nate and Mallory are wrong (well maybe Mallory), it’s the overall tone of your opinions – arrogant without any room for another perspective. This tone is particularly frustrating because you both have whiffed so many times in the past. It’s like the “boy who cried wolf” – if you scream the same thing every time, you lose credibility.
Anyway, sorry for the rant. Go Cavs.
Victor Oladipo also had two years more college experience than Bennett, isn’t coming off an injury causing him to miss the entire offseason and is getting significant minutes for a team who wants to lose. Just switching the teams the two play for almost certainly brings dramatically different results. There’s an enormous difference between getting 30 minutes whether you are good or awful and getting 11 minutes with the threat of being yanked for any and every mistake. Calling Bennett the biggest institutional failure in NBA draft history is beyond stupid. Especially this early. The 2013 draft was incredibly, incredibly… Read more »
Yeah, I agree, grover. I don’t know if I want this team to “turn it around” or go into tank mode. They’re clearly flawed in many areas. They lack athleticism more than anything, and I’m not sure Mike Brown is the right coach for them. We’ve been let down by our unrealistic expectations, and that’s a hard thing to overcome. This team may need more time to grow and “gel.” Also, the lack of a competent small forward on the roster is a bit of a problem. Earl Clark last night was… not good. He needs to go back to… Read more »
Don’t kill the messenger, man! If this were New York, Chicago, or L.A., the fans and media would be merciless. It’s not my fault that Anthony Bennett may represent the biggest institutional failure in NBA draft history. Do you want people to just whistle past the grave yard? And yeah, I called it, but I’m not happy about it. I would love for the kid to turn it around and be awesome, and prove me wrong. I take little joy in his failure, but it’s far easier to laugh than cry. Oladipo did have a good stretch last night, or… Read more »
It was an increadibly ugly game, and nothing to be happy about. But I guess it’s about time they played pathetically and one, to offset the number of games where they played really well and lost.
However, as I keep waiting for that “turnaround” to come about with nearly every single game, we’re now almost halfway through the season. I don’t see it coming.
Mallory Oh For God’s sake STOP IT!!! You sound like a nagging mother in this piece. It’s a freakin WIN!! Celebrate a little. Dam Life is too short in Cav Land to not once in awhile. Its almost like your mad that Andy did so well??? He deserved at least a High Five for his monstrous record beaking game but not on this local blog. Bunch of whiners here on a win. SMH.
Anyone notice how comical Nates comments are in this one? He had been commenting better lately, with two previous paragraphs not using stupid nicknames or beating his chest about how “right” he was and was really looking like a bottom 20 percent Cavs blogger. But he dropped back to the worst Cavs blogger on the internet with the last paragraph.
Oladipo was phenomenal. Can’t believe we missed out on that guy.
KJ, I’m a huge Dion fan–I love his feistiness and his “I do what I do” attitude. But last night (minus the last few drives, which were awesome), he was back in his crank-up-off-balance-jumpers, take-it-to-the-hole-get-stuffed-and-be-pissed, or stand-eight-feet-behind-the-three-point-line-when-I-don’t have-the-ball mode, and when he’s in that mode, it’s not a good thing. He’s in that mode less and less frequently on offense (and his defense is getting better, more committed, and more consistent), but last night, for the first 40-plus minutes, he clearly was. The fact that the Cavs won is nice, but if the goal is to build toward a talented,… Read more »
Gumdrop plays poorly. Blogger points it out. Fan gets irate. Press repeat.
Varejao was sublime. Who was CtB regular who called him soft? I wish other players understood their roles and played with as much energy as Andy.
Not much else to say about this game. One of these teams had to win, I guess.
We get it. Bennett is not good so far. Nearly as unsightly as Bennett’s play are the glee at being right and the schadenfreude among CtB bloggers.
I don’t think the criticism is undeserved. Anyone who was entertained by that game is a stronger man than me. It’s the type of game that would end up in the grantland column “a fate worse than death”. We all agree that mike brown is not running an nba offense but how in the hell can you when you have so many zeroes out there? Clark, gee, gdb, and zeller were so pitiful last night (and have been for most of the season). Also, Orlando is definitely in tank mode by not playing vucevic. To end on a bright note,… Read more »
Delly has Afflalo’s number man, ever game he just forces him to do stupid stuff. A win is a win and I’ll take it. The radio guys mentioned that Bennett is shooting with his arms and not his legs someone should tell him.
More tiresome is the obligatory “Look I was right about Bennett errbody!!!!!!!” comment, no matter how little the kids play impacted the game. Never in my internet life have seen one poster so shamelessly, nauseatingly, beat their chest about (possibly) being right about something. God help some people if Bennett turns out OK, SMH.
KJ!! Post of the year!
Where are all of the Oladipo lovers?
Yeah. What Kj said.
We seriously saw them miss about 12 shots straight in the second quarter. Soo good. I have no idea how they won, I m calling this one a tie because both teams were pretty abysmal.
Oh and you didn’t even mention that Andy tied a franchise record with his 25 rebounds. In fact, you barely mentioned at all. Nothing is so illustrative of your mistaken belief in your own writing skills and inherent Cavs hate then that. Yeah, I’m being harsh but I am sooooo tired of this garbage…
Mallory, I have no earthly freakin idea why you follow the Cavs. You can feel the zeal you take from ripping Cavs players in nearly every sentence you write. To call your schtick tiresome would be an under-statement. You make NO MENTION of the Cavs defense, instead focusing on our offense. You call Dion “passive” yet he had 11 points in the 4th and made the tying shot with less than a second left. Go look at how many double-digit 4th quarters Dion as has already this season. He is a WINNER and has shown pure winning instincts during WINNING… Read more »
I meant to mention gum drop, but completely forgot amid the mess of the a game. Anyone notice that when he shoots, it’s either a miss, a foul, or a block? Nice job, Bennett!
Thanks. It has been corrected. What a bizarre win. If a chain of four straight Orlando boners doesn’t happen, the Cavs don’t win… The foul, the inbound, the free throws, and horrible end of game defense (Aaron Afflalo is one of the more overrated defenders in the league). You can’t even really blame Jacques Vaughn. This was just a series of terrible mistakes. But hopefully this sparks something. Anyone notice how comical Gum-Drop Bear was in this one? 0-4 with 2 turnovers in 11 minutes… He had been playing better lately. For a nice four game stretch he seemed like… Read more »
…So what your saying is that Kyrie is the problem?
Andy had 25 boards, not 24, and he tied the franchise record according to Phelps/AC