Grizzlies 106, Cavs 103 (or, who needs talent when you have The Grindfather?)

Grizzlies 106, Cavs 103 (or, who needs talent when you have The Grindfather?)

2016-03-07 Off By Mike Schreiner

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On the surface, the Cleveland Cavaliers hosting the Memphis Grizzlies would seem like a fairly big game. After all, the Grizzlies came into the game with a very respectable record of 37-25, which would be good enough for third in the Eastern Conference. Alas, the Cavaliers didn’t so much play the Memphis Grizzlies as they did the Memphis Leftovers. With Marc Gasol, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph, Matt Barnes, Chris Andersen, and Brandan Wright all out with injuries, the Grizzlies went with the immortal starting lineup of Mario Chalmers, Tony Allen, P.J. Hairston, JaMychal Green, and Ryan Hollins. This did not work too well… for the Cavs.

First Quarter

With their backs against the wall, the Grizzlies came out with much more energy than the Cavaliers and took the early lead. The Cavaliers were sluggish, particularly on the offensive end, and before they knew what was happening, the Grizzlies led 11-4. The Cavaliers closed the gap, but Memphis continued to be the more aggressive team, pushing the pace while LeBron James continuously walked the ball up the floor. James had nine points in the first quarter, but forced up several shots instead of passing out of the double team. J.R. Smith, Timofey Mozgov, and Kyrie Irving were a combined 1-for-8 to start the game, while the Grizzlies shot 62% and led 33-25 after one. At this point a certain blogger whose wife and kids were out of the house let loose with several expletives regarding his favorite team’s effort.

Second Quarter

The Cavaliers started the second quarter with a lineup of Dellavedova, Irving, Shumpert, Thompson, and Frye. This group picked it up defensively and scored the first seven points of the quarter to cut the Grizzlies’ lead to one. Channing Frye had a nice spurt, including a block on Green followed by a midrange jumper after being run off the line. The Cavaliers kept it close in the middle of the quarter, but weren’t able to quite get over the hump and take the lead due to a combination of the Grizzlies’ continued aggression and the Cavaliers’ poor execution on both ends of the floor. The Cavaliers finished the half with a whopping 13 turnovers while shooting 39% from the floor, allowing the Grizzlies to pull away again, and go into the half leading 58-49 after being up by as many as 13.

Third Quarter

The Cavaliers went small to start the second half with Irving, Dellavedova, Smith, James, and Love. Smith quickly hit a three, and then was dropped by a shot to the face from Tony Allen. The Grizzlies continued to crash the boards and the Cavaliers kept turning the ball over. At this point I just stared blankly at the television as I couldn’t believe my eyes. This game was a train wreck that was beyond comprehension. The Cavaliers couldn’t get out of their own way. They just kept fouling and turning the ball over on what seemed like every possession. When they did show energy, they took bad shots, often in isolation. At this point, Fred and A.C. were both in shock due to the team’s play, and I was in shock when I looked at the seats and saw most of the crowd was still there. JaMychal Green (“Who he play for?”) tip-dunked in a miss after no Cavalier put a body on him.  A.C. was incredulous: “Who’s guy is that?” The Grizzlies pushed the lead to 14 before the Cavs clawed their way back to single digits before the quarter ended.  The Cavs had eight more turnovers, couldn’t hit an outside shot to save their lives, and the Grizzlies went into the 4th ahead 82-74.

A beginner plumber having trouble with a toulet plunger isolated on white background

Fourth Quarter

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, the Cavaliers came out with some energy to start the quarter and were able to cut the Grizzlies’ lead to four. Kyrie then turned the ball over trying to force the issue (dribbling into a triple team) and the Grizzlies scored six quick points to push the lead back to ten. When Tony Allen responded to a Kyrie Irving three with one of his own (as LeBron stared at him from six feet away), I asked my wife to hit me over the head with something to end the game for me. Unfortunately, she didn’t understand my pain and play continued.

Arguably the worst part was that Memphis never quite pulled away enough to make you think the Cavaliers couldn’t come back. Kyrie scored seven quick points to pull the Cavaliers to within three, but Lance Stephenson bulldozed his way to the hoop to keep Memphis up by five with less than four minutes left. At this point, the Cavaliers finally seemed engaged, and took their first lead of the night with 2:38 left after a Memphis turnover led to a Kyrie Irving layup. The teams then exchanged the lead until a Mario Chalmers mid-range floater gave the Grizzlies the lead with 25 seconds left. LeBron tried to get to the basket, but Tony Allen forced a jump ball that the Grizzlies recovered after Lance Stephenson tackled Dellavedova.

Delly responded with a holding foul before the ball was inbounded, giving the Grizzlies a free throw and the ball. Vince Carter made that and two more free throws to put the Grizzlies up four. LeBron hit a three to prolong the agony, but Carter hit another pair of freebees and Kyrie back-ironed a three at the buzzer (a clean look) and the Cavalier fell 106-103.

Don’t Poke the Bear:

Tony Allen, and, to a lesser extent: Lance Stephenson/Mario Chalmers just landed repeated body blows to the Cavs defense.  Trick or Treat Tony basically has one offensive skill: a straight-line right handed layup.  (The Antonio Daniels Special, if you will)  Tonight, the Grindfather (seriously Tony Allen, one dude, has two of the top 5 nicknames in the NBA) was 11-17 (LOL?) with five steals.  Here’s his shot chart:

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That rhythm 3 is the product of EIGHT layups.  Obviously some of those were in transition, but some weren’t!

Chalmers slashed into the teeth at will in the first half and Stephenson played like a man possessed in the second half, frequently taking it right at the Cavs (including one where he embarrassed The King on a simple tough guy drive to the rack).

The Grizzlies can’t really shoot, so they just worked to get layups and putbacks.  It’s simple: they outworked the Cavs in every facet to overcame a phenomenal talent disparity.  Kudos to them.

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What I Know

The Cavaliers continue to lack a killer instinct, which manifests most notably when they play down to the level of their opponents. Forget the stuff about tweets, brands or anything else, this is by far their worst trait. They had a chance to build a three-and-a-half game lead over the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference and, instead of coming out with energy and focus, they proceeded to play one of their worst games of the season. The officiating may have been shaky at times, but it was shaky on both ends of the court. Twenty-five turnovers, each one more absurd than the one before. I’ve been as much of an optimist as nearly any Cavs fan out there, but a night like this makes me wonder why I care so much about this team.

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