Not a Recap: Bobcats 96, Cavs 94
2014-04-05
This shot probably didn’t go in.
I attended the game tonight and had a really great time. It was the first game I’ve been too since the “Welcome Home Z” game. The Cavs and Bobcats had lids on the rims in the first half and came alive a bit more in the second. Kyrie hit a big jumper to send the game into OT and had a wide open look for 3 to win the game in OT, but it spun out and the Cavs lost. Charlotte, meanwhile, clinched the playoffs and could face either Indiana or Toronto. The Cavs may not yet be mathematically eliminated but they won’t make the playoffs this season. The good news is they have played much better the last two months. I expect them to springboard off this foundation next October.
Interesting things I noticed:
-The Cavs really put on a show, but at one point it felt a little much. I swear Ahmad Crump was getting us amped up like crazy, with the epic movie scenes and the scream meter for….out of timeout free throws and must-foul situations on inbounds plays. I want that job. I’m officially throwing my hat in the ring as the apprentice in waiting for the job of pumping up Cavs fans. “CUHLEEEEEEEEVELAND! GET. ON. YOUR. FEET. for the 15th ranked defensive rating in the league since February 12.” I’ll work on the delivery. Trust me; this will be great.
-A fan in front of me had his family with him, very nice folks. Because we were in the nose bleeds I couldn’t discern that #12 was Gary Neal. He heard me thinking out loud and told me. I was impressed, but didn’t want to be outdone, so I started spouting off Gary Neal’s journey the last few years to show my moxy. Anyway, I point blank asked the guy if Delly should win the ROY. And instead of laughing, he said “they would never give it to him, but he’s so much better than his stats suggest.” #winning
-Cody Zeller and Tyler Zeller wear the same number 40, run the same way, shoot in a similar way, and just play the game with a familiar set of moves. Cody had a huge rebound late in the game after the Cavs had played solid D for 24 seconds.
-I love staring at the retired jerseys. I am so glad the Cavs honor Joe Tait up there too. I miss Joe. I tried calling a bit of the second quarter as if I were him. It’s really hard. He was so fast. #LegendsofCLE.
-I know this is sort of an already-aired grievance of a few people, including Zach Lowe, but the Cavs overhelp on the PnR, especially Tristan. I think they need to work harder to keep spotted-up 3-point shooters from getting comfortable releases. They seemingly had OCD tonight about sending the big so far out to block the ball-handler from turning the corner. Kemba Walker split that double team (H/T Mark Price) many times and it just seemed like it wasn’t worth all the extra effort and was even a bit risky at times although I didn’t see the Bobcats exploit the slow-retreating big as much as I thought they could.
-Kyrie’s abilities were on full display tonight. I haven’t looked but I assume tonight was his career high for points. He played with effort and intensity on defense the entire night – I was looking for that and I noticed it. There were times he left the wrong man or something but the effort was strong. Good for him. He was feeling it with his shot most of the game but you could still sense frustration in his demeanor. Upset about a few no-calls, hanging his head at times. After he hit a heat-check 3 that sent the crowd into a frenzy, he put his head down and had a very aggravated jog up the court before succumbing to the adoration and deciding to feed off it. He put his hand in the air and asked for even more. At times tonight you could tell he didn’t want to take over but he saw no other options. The Bobcats are a very good defensive team and they really defended the Cavs well tonight. Irving almost overcame them by himself.
-There was a sequence in the 1st half where Alonzo Gee hit the side of the backboard and then Gary Neal did likewise at the other end. Points were an epic struggle in the second quarter.
-The refs let a ton of contact go, especially in the first half. I love it. No need to slow down the game every time players touch each other. As the game went on they called it a bit tighter. I didn’t see the foul when Dion missed the two handed dunk.
-Kyrie probably makes the final shot 6 out of 10 times. He was WIDE open, spotted up at the top of the key. He looked pretty upset he missed it. But I was pleased with the inbounds play to get him so open!
-Spencer Hawes fired up a three-quarter-court shot after securing the rebound on the final free throw that missed. He could have passed to someone else upcourt or taken a few dribbles, I think he had two and a half seconds or more. He just immediately heaved it with two hands. From that distance in NBA Jam it’s an underhanded uppercut heave. #seasonofhuh?
-Kyrie and Dion were displaying positive interactions all throughout the game, even when Dion wasted a possession in the midst of a Kyrie scoring barrage for some reason.
-I really get a kick out of fans participating in half court contests or timed shooting drills. I’ve seen some epic ones at the Q. Tonight, a decently athletic looking guy had to make seven free throws in 30 seconds. “EZ” I thought. Well, he airballs the first one by 4 feet. Airballs the second one by 2 feet, front-rims the 3rd, rims out a few, and then he front-rims one in. And another: front, back, in. Then net, and net, and net, net, net….and they just made him stop at 7! I think he was a machine and once he calibrated the distance he would have made 100 in a row! It was not what I expected, someone with that form and touch shouldn’t airball the first two.
-Seems some of the other “local Cavalier writers” have either corroborated Windy’s “Kyrie’s camp sez” information or expressed frustration similar to Irving. I won’t say who they are or link you to them though.
-I got to meet Mark Price after the game. We spoke for a few minutes and he thanked me for the #CavsRank tribute I wrote here a week ago. It’s pretty surreal meeting your childhood hero. I probably bumbled like an idiot. We talked about the Bobcats playoff seeding and he seemed to intimate that he thought Toronto was a better match up for them even though he agreed with me that Indiana is struggling.
-I presented him with a framed commemoration of #CavsRank and he seemed to enjoy it although I’m not sure he had actually seen the #CavsRank list before. I hope he likes it. There seemed to be some old friends of his there too, waiting to meet him. He held it up and looked at them and said something like “The blog had a ranking of players…and I won!” Indeed. It was fitting that on this night they showed Price on the jumbotron with his career stats overlayed and he received a roaring ovation. He stood up and acknowledged the crowd.
Did I read that the Cavs are last in the NBA in 3 pointers given up? If so, that’s an utter failure. Can there be any excuse for that? Even if your guards are bad defensively and easily beaten off the dribble, they should still be able to defend the 3. During the LeBron era, the Cavs led the league in 3pt% against for three straight years. The problem now, IMO, is that we don’t have an enforcer like Ben Wallace or Shaq to punish penetrating guards, so teams soften up the Cavs D by jacking up 3’s until the… Read more »
Woah, you’re way up there. I’m down in Youngstown haha.
right on lake erie ( islands at my doorstep )—-THE DANBURY LAKERS OF LAKESIDE OH
Where do you guys coach at?
JHILL YOU ARE WISE BEYOND YOUR AGE ( 24 YRS )—-ENJOY YOUR COMMENTS—KEEP IT UP AND I MIGHT HIRE YOU AS MY ASSISTANT COACH —–UNDERDOG ALSO AGREE WITH YOU —THEY ARE VERY POOR ( SLOW ) / CLOSING OUT ON 3 PT SHOOTERS
Nomad I’m 24 but trust that my father has told me much about the good ole days of Bill Walton. One only has to watch a highlight reel of Bird or Magic on YouTube to see how dominant ball movement can make a team. But at the same time when everyone is having trouble making shots this game shows how valuable it is to have a guy who can score like Kyrie is. But one must also ask that if the ball was moving more, would everyone have had as bad of a shooting night.
Did I read that the Cavs are last in the NBA in 3 pointers given up? If so, that’s an utter failure. Can there be any excuse for that? Even if your guards are bad defensively and easily beaten off the dribble, they should still be able to defend the 3.
I agree with your comments on ball movement—–coaching high school ball for over 20 yrs –I coach that basketball is a game of REACTION—IF YOU CATCH THE BALL AND THEN TAKE 3 SECS TO THINK OF YOUR NEXT MOVEMENT THE DEF HAS CAUGHT UP WITH YOU—-I ALWAYS ENJOY WATCHING THE SPURS PLAY BECAUSE OF THEIR BALL MOVEMENT —–JHILL ( NOY SURE OF YOUR AGE ) BUT DO YOU REMEBER THE TRAILBLAZERS CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM/ BILL WALTON AND JACK RAMSEY COACH THAT WAS ONE OF THE BEST TEAMS AT MOVING THE BALL—ALSO THE KNICKS CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM OF FRAZIER/ MONROE. DEBUSCHERE ETC—-O.K. ENOUGH… Read more »
Everything in this team’s offense is a delayed reaction when you think about it. When Thompson gets the ball under the hoop he takes like 3 seconds to try and dunk it, or he just rubs his face on someone and doesn’t get the call because who the hell’s first response when shooting a layup is to jam your face into someone? Seriously. Then it goes to Dion who gets the ball and almost always takes 2-3 seconds to decide whether to drive or dish and by then the defense is ready for him. Kyrie delaying by about 20 seconds… Read more »
I don’t really want Mark Jackson either. Then problem with this team is that often times players go multiple possessions (Like 3-10) without touching the ball. I don’t care what you say, no matter if the guy is gonna shoot it or not, just swinging around the perimeter gets the defense moving and keeps everyone engaged. No one blames you if you don’t pass but get an easy layup or a wide open 3. But what should be ostracized is a player dribbling for 10 seconds and bricking it or running in and getting swatted. This is a major issue… Read more »
I have heard mark Jackson is on ” hot seat ” ( for what reason I don’t know )—–GRAB HIM AS A COACH—KARL AS G.M./ SPECIAL CONSULTANT—-I THINK MOST PLAYERS ( ESPECIALLY KYRIE/ DION WOULD LOVE TO PLAY AND FLOURISH IN JACKSON’S SYSTEM AND HE ( JACKSON ) CAN MAKE GAME ADJUSTMENTS
Ben, Grover, Tom,
I think you nailed it. Brown is a likable guy, but he is not showing any signs of being able to coach in the NBA.
I hope Dan hires George Karl for team guru. He is likely be be better than Big Phil. The team needs to figure out how maximize what we have, and go on from there. Maybe MB can do a better job with some help. If not, he would make a great Boy Scout leader.
Hate to say it Tom, but he’s a one trick pony. Even those that defend him admit that in-game, he does not make adjustments well. But if you step back and look at the bigger picture….that applies to his entie philosophy as well. The NBA evolved beyond the one system he had that worked for a few years, and he has proven time and time again he can not- or will not-adjust. He doesn’t have any other tricks, or we would have seen them by now, don’t you think?
@grover13 – I wouldn’t say that, but I concede he needs to rethink how he is using the bigs in the defense. Having a rim protector would help, but even now I think they worry too much about dribble penetration. not everyone is an amazing finisher around the rim, especially from the basline. The Cavs always overhelp and it leaves guys like Mike Scott looking like superstars.
@Ben- “Part of their defensive strategy is to minimize ball movement and avoid overhelping. Occasionally, that gives up some huge numbers to guys with Iso talent, but it is also the reason they don’t give up a lot of easy shots off ball swings.” EXACTLY!!!!! This is precisely why Mike Brown’s defensive philosophy does not work. He coaches overhelping and double teaming. This leaves the Cavs prone to exactly what has killed them all year- fast ball movement to find the open man on the perimeter. When Mike Brown made his name working for the Spurs, his defensive philosophy worked-… Read more »
@grover13 – I really want to defend Mike Brown, but you make a compelling case.
Two very short points: 1. After seeing Tom’s picture with Price, it dawned on me that Price works for Michael Jordan. I mean, of course he does. It’s just that I hadn’t thought about it that way before. Weird. 2. The Bobcats were made fun of for giving up huge scoring games to LeBron and Melo. Part of their defensive strategy is to minimize ball movement and avoid overhelping. Occasionally, that gives up some huge numbers to guys with Iso talent, but it is also the reason they don’t give up a lot of easy shots off ball swings. Their… Read more »
“1. After seeing Tom’s picture with Price, it dawned on me that Price works for Michael Jordan. I mean, of course he does. It’s just that I hadn’t thought about it that way before. Weird.”
@Ben Werth – also working for Michael Jordan? Patrick Ewing.
Nice pic with Mark Price! Thanks for the positive remarks. Since you were at the game, did you notice the Bobcats right at the 5 min mark before the second half started. Both teams fg% was horrible. Their entire team came out and had a detailed and methodical practice shooting from both sides of the net, and then they all stepped back for the mid-range shooting in an orderly fashion and then the specific 3 point shooters stepped back at the 3 point line. It was impressive how many of the players got exposure to a very wide range of… Read more »
TV63 – I was out and about mining for deals on Cavs-themed onesies until right before the 3rd quarter started. I am impressed by the discipline of the Bobcats. For such a young team, they hardly ever turn the ball over. They play a very conservative style; they are the best defensive rebounding team in the league but they prefer to limit transition opportunities and points off turnovers from their opponents. Thus, they don’t crash the offensive glass much at all, although Cody Zeller’s o-rebound late in OT was principal to their victory. I agreed with the sentiment of many… Read more »
i *hate* watching dion stand around, his body limp, sometimes for 10-12 seconds, if he thinks it’s likely he won’t get the ball.
@Underdog-
“Maybe we could have drawn up some stuff for that during timeouts.”
HA! Love the sarcasm.
Dion and Kyrie did pass the ball a lot but it wasn’t that fast passing we seen from before where almost everyone touched the ball when Delly, Dion, Jack. Andy . The bench really suffered without DIon. I wish Brown would have found a way to get DIon some minutes with them. It had to be a culture shock BooM He’s gone and so was Delly. I don’t want to get on any bandwagon oH Kyrie ad Dion Will NEVER work. BUt I think you’re on to a very good point. Dion and Kyrie have completely different styles. Dion has… Read more »
There’s no getting away from the fact that Kyrie and Dion are both naturally “iso-ballers.” It’s what they’ve been successful at all their lives. There’s been some improvement there . . . but some games they revert back to what they are comfortable with. They’ll both have to round their games out for this team to be consistently good. My pet peeve right now is when Kyrie walks the ball up the court and we go into a set offense every possession. I still like pushing the ball and the movement it creates. Campy and Austin stated a couple of… Read more »
I was at game too. Dion’s shot as off. Dion was looking for rhythm similar to what he had with Delly and Andy. It’s not there with the starters He wanted to team to gun it and it wasn’t the same. You know what I mean?
Tom – I was there, too . . . so I just re-lived the game through your report. The only thing I’d question is that while Dion’s and Kyrie’s personal interactions were all positive, Dion’s body language seemed out of sorts most of the night. He frequently stood as a floor spacer on the perimeter flat footed, not ready to react quickly to make a play. He picked his spots to be energized. He just didn’t move, and because so he didn’t seem to get the ball much. At first I thought the game was a stinker. The Cavs shooting… Read more »
Charlotte signed Jefferson as a free agent and it paid of , Atlanta also signed Milsap and he played great for them and they have a better record than us dispite their major injury, what I’am trying to say is that we need a good free agent signing and also we have to address either small forward position or a great rebounder in draft. The game was great and it was good that Mark got ovation he deserves. Kyrie was great and seemed like he was trying to prove a point. This team is not far from competing for playoff… Read more »