Atlantic Division Preview
2017-10-16
(Editor’s Note: This is the fourth installment in our annual six part series of division previews, here at CtB. If you missed the Pacific, Northwest or Southwest divisions, you can check them out in the aforementioned links.)
Brooklyn Nets (Cory Hughey)
Danny Ainge wasn’t a genius when he landed three basically unprotected first round picks from the Nets for Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry’s corpses, he stole the change cup from a hobo. The Nets complete and total dysfunction makes the Cavs front office look like a German engineered juicer by comparison.
I don’t blame teams for going all-in to win a championship, generally the only squads who do actually win one. The danger though, is if you push all your future draft chips to the center of the table, and you don’t have a winning combination in your hand, you’re screwed for years. The Nets did that in the most dramatic fashion in recent memory.
The Nets turned over half of the their 20 win roster from a year ago, and plenty of people are optimistic that the additions of D’Angelo Russell, Timofey Mozgov, and Allen Crabbe along with a healthy Jeremy Lin will surprise the league and claw their way to NBA relevance, and that since the Nets don’t have the salvation of a top draft pick they won’t tank, and thus lower the value of the Cavs asset.
Additions: D’Angelo Russell (Lakers), Timofey Mozgov (Lakers), Allen Crabbe (Trail Blazers), DeMarre Carroll (Raptors), Tyler Zeller (Celtics), Jarrett Allen (Draft)
Subtractions: Brook Lopez, K.J. McDaniels, Randy Foye, Andrew Nicholson, Justin Hamilton, Kyle Kuzman (Draft)
Storylines:
1-D’Angelo Russell has been the the bad player, bad leader, and the bad teammate, but was he born to be the bad boy that drives opposing defenses mad? Many are presuming that the light is suddenly going to glow in Russell’s brain, and that he’s going to learn from his first two seasons of failing and suddenly be able to lead the Nets’ dirty dish rag quilt? I don’t. Not even a little bit. If anything, I could see them looking like the 2012-13 Cavs with less talent, and Russell portraying an inefficient role of Kyrie Irving. For all of Kyrie’s sins early in his career, he was at least efficient from the field on offense. Russell’s pathetic 0.518% true shooting percentage was 274th in the league last season.
2-Does Mikhail Prokhorov sell the team? Is owning this team really worth more than the $2 billion he could potentially sell the them for? He bought a controlling interest (80%) in the team just seven years ago for a clearance rack at T.J. Maxx price tag of $200 million. Why would he want the hassle of losing money on the team every season when he could invest that time going to more fancy shmancy dinners with Vladimir Putin, Jill Stein, and former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn.
3-Just how many lottery combinations are the Cavs going to get?I was teetering on my barstool when the Kyrie trade was coming together. I LOVED Crowder and thought he could be a younger Shane Battier, so I was almost okay with it. Once Dave McMenamin tweeted that the Holy Grail Nets pick was included, without protections, I was ready to pack up Kyrie’s collection of vanity fake eyeglasses and his kramtom supply and drive him to Hopkins.
The thing people are dismissing, is that it doesn’t matter if the Nets aren’t the worst team in the league again. They’ll be in the bottom five. Book it. If there’s a sports book in Vegas that is dumb enough to make that a prop bet, at any odds, put the $185 you have in your son’s college tuition account and have some Nobu on Vegas’ dime. Also, if anyone thinks that the Nets won’t have one of the five worst records in the league, I’ll gladly challenge you to a hair match in which the loser shaves the others head at the end of the season, LIVE, here on cavstheblog.com. I won’t shave your entire head either. I’ll take my time, and I’ll give you a Friar Tuck and make you shave the rest yourself later. I repeat, THE NETS ARE GOING TO BE GARBAGE.
Player I’d Love to Have: Assuming we’d have to take the fellas’ current contract status, I’m going to go with Jeremy Lin. Last season, he put up the second best PER of his career (19.2), and his second best TS% (56%). He was also 24th at point guard in RPM (0.45). The 12.5 million AriZona Fruit Punch cans he can slam is not that bad of a salary for a third guard, and he would be the Cavs best point guard now. He’ll never be the rockstar he was for a month five years ago, but he’s a good NBA player.
Player I’d Hate to Have: We’ll always have Brew Garden. Timofey Mozgov will always be beloved in Cleveland because he was part of the team that put the streak to rest, but he’s horrible at basketball now and he’s in the running for having the worst contract in the league. I wouldn’t mind seeing him back for his last year of his career when the Cavs are rebuilding again in four two years to ‘member the good times we had.
Prediction: 24-58
What would “The Island of Misfit” toys characters look like as a basketball team? A squad comprised of a Charlie in the box on the wing, and an elephant with polka dots in the paint would definition give the opposition something to fear, or they’d be fricken terrible! Are you kidding me?! They have a bird who can’t fly as their sixth man! They have a coach named King Moonracer! A basketball team comprised of misfit toys would suck, and so will the Nets because they are a collection of misfit toys, and that never, ever works.
The Bulls and Hawks could have worse records, but the Nets will still be one of the doormats in the East. They will be a bottom five team (I’m thinking third). The primary reason given for them improving is because they aren’t tanking and that they’ll actually be trying. News flash, the Nets had the worst record in the league last year, traded away their best player in Brook Lopez, and they were trying then too. Dan Gilbert, you can call up the dry clearer to get the bowties pressed. They Cavs are going to have a high lottery pick again.
Toronto Raptors (Cory Hughey)
I’m sure this will ruffle some feathers, but the Toronto Raptors are the modern incarnation of the Price/Daughtery Cavs. They are a good team. The are a really good team, but they forever be in the hall of very good teams, but not very great teams. The Raptors are balanced, but the other teams in the conference are just a little bit better.
While I like the additions of former Cavalier C.J. Miles, and will go into detail how much I like OG Anunoby in a moment, I really don’t like that they lost P.J. Tucker, Patrick Patterson, and most forever underrated Corey Joseph, who has an awesome name, with a waste of ink ridiculous spelling.
Team President Masai Ujiri has built a team organically, which is always an impressive feat, but that team isn’t a title contender, and he has filled the cap books with the core that isn’t a title contender. Raptors ownership has shown it would rather give away future first round picks, than swim in luxury tax waters for a year or two. In their defense DeMarre Carroll has been so bad in Toronto, that him no longer playing for them should be listed under the “Additions” section below.
Additions: OG Anunoby (Draft), C.J. Miles (Pacers),
Subtractions: DeMarre Carroll, Corey Joseph, Patrick Patterson, P.J. Tucker.
Storylines:
1-Do they trade DeRozen? Just because basketball nerds don’t like a player, doesn’t mean that an NBA wouldn’t trade for them. Well, Ujiri is a basketball nerd too, and he knows that it’ll never work with DeRozen as his second best player. Some team will be dumb enough to trade for him.
2-Does cash slow Lowry’s drive? Lowry has so much fire, and when he’s good he’s legitimately one of the best players in the league. The difference between a star and a superstar isn’t just what superstars can do at their peak performance, but that you can count on them doing it on the reg. While Tortono has been the perfect place for Lowry professionally, he had a history of underperforming with the Rockets and Grizzlies, and his candle has faded at the end of his Raptors seasons. He gets within himself in a way, and withdraws from the team. Will $90 million trigger that?
3-Does everyone realize that Ujiri is more overrated than Brad Stevens? There was something in our school chocolate milk cartons in the 90s that made an entire generation of us become outraged if something is rated higher than it should be. Brad Stevens is an awesome coach, and Masai is a decent GM, but neither of them have come close to winning meaningful in the NBA. Lets put the tiara back on the shelf until their team is playing in June. There’s this aura about Ujiri that he made the Melo deal, and built a decent team in a terrible conference.
https://youtu.be/b9GKWJxKaOI
Player I’d Love to Have: For years many of us cried for Jonas Valanciunas, but the guy I’d want today is OG Anunoby. He has an 8’0″ wing span, is wet dog fast twitch athletic, and is just a slightly improved deep ball and some effort on defense away from being a 3-and-D guy with upside. It’s guys like him that have made me bummed that David Griffin traded away so many first round picks for guys who no longer fit a championship team a few years later. If late firsts don’t pan out, big whoop, it was the 23rd pick. If they do, bazinga!
Player I’d Hate to Have: DeMar DeRozan. Honestly, he would be great if your team was absolute garbage. He would give you a reason to watch the games just to see a few cool dunks he has each night. He’s just not the kind of guy who can lead a team deep into the playoffs. That’s not even a criticism of him. Kevin Love wasn’t either alpha dog material either. Neither was Chris Bosh. Maybe DeRozan is a third or fourth banana, but he’s being paid first banana scratch, and that’s rarely gonna get you past the second round.
Prediction: 49-33
I actually like them over their 48.5 win projection in Vegas. I could see them winning 52 games or so. I could also see Lowry kick it back a gear, and Masai decide that this team will never be as good as LeBron and the Cavs now. He’ll he’s drink some single malt scotch alone and start to think that after the Cavs fade that this Raptors team will never be as good as the Celtics, Wizards and maybe the 76ers in two years either. What if he blows it up? What if he deals the core for future assets, and decides that it’s best to just duck the Warriors run all together.
New York Knicks (David Wood)
The Knicks finally traded Carmelo Anthony this summer. Somehow after what seemed like a half of a decade long standoff with Phil Jackson, the star decided to waive his no-trade clause to team up with Russell Westbrook and Paul George in Oklahoma City. There are multiple levels of humor in this Melo trade. First off, he waited until Phil was gone. While Phil was there, Melo was adamant he’d get bought out if he was to leave. Secondly, the Knicks traded him after he morphed into Hoodie Melo. The form he conviently takes when he’s ready to destroy the league.
The Knicks incompetently couldn’t leverage this emergence and received Enes Kanter, Doug McDermott and the Bulls’ 2018 second round pick for Melo. Fortunately, the New York front office is very positive about the makeup of their new team. Please note these thoughts aren’t from former Cavalier general manager David Griffin, who wouldn’t take the GM job in New York because the Knicks refused to give him control over the front office staff.
Knicks general manager Scott Perry said that Kanter and McDermott fit the profile of young players the club hopes to acquire. Both Perry and Mills have said that Kristaps Porzingis, Tim Hardaway Jr., Willy Hernangomez, 2017 first-round pick Frank Ntilikina and guard Ron Baker make up the young group that management wants to build around. The Knicks have missed the playoffs in each of the past four seasons (Ian Begley, ESPN.com).
Additions: Jamel Artis (Draft), Michael Beasley (Milwaukee), Damyean Dotson (Draft), Tim Hardaway Jr (Atlanta), Nigel Hayes (Draft), Jarrett Jack, Enes Kanter (Oklahoma City), Luke Kornet (Draft), Doug McDermott (Oklahoma City), Frank Ntilikina (Strasbourg), Xavier Rathan-Mayes (Draft) and Ramon Sessions (Charlotte)
Subtractions: Carmelo Anthony, Justin Holiday, Maurice Ndour, Marshall Plumlee, Chasson Randle, Derrick Rose, Sasha Vujacic (Torino)
Storylines:
1. The Knicks need to take a strong stand and let Enes Kanter come off of the bench. Kristaps Porzingis is best suited as a center. He shoots 35.7% from deep netting five a game and averaged two blocks a night last season. If Kristaps can bulk up a little this season and get more than 7.2 boards a night, he will be one of the most promising players in the league.
2. Tim Hardaway Jr. got paid this off season for improving after being sent to Atlanta. He got $71 million over four years. I guess Hawks’ university is a real thing. The question is will Hardaway continue his upward trajectory on a franchise with no real culture.
3. Looking back on the draft, it seems like drafting French point guard Frank Ntilikina at the eighth spot might have been a mistake. Malik Monk and Dennis Smith Jr. both went later and certainly seem like better bets so far. Phil Jackson hit one out of the park drafting Porzingis, and seeing as he is a man of habit, he drafted another foreign guy earlier than expected again during the draft. There’s nothing wrong with sticking to your guns, especially when you get to leave town immediately after. There was no downside in the pick for Phil.
Player I’d Love to Have:
This is a super easy question. The Zinger would be perfect to pair with Kevin Love. Love could play center and the Zinger could clean up all of his mistakes on the defensive end. Don’t forget that both of them could launch 3s indiscriminately and terrify any defenses trying to stop a pick and roll. I might even go as far to say that if the Cavs landed the Zinger, it wouldn’t be unwise to start two non 3-point shooters in Derrick Rose and Dwyane Wade.
Player I’d Hate to Have:
Joakim Noah is a bondafide Cleveland hater who has repeatedly tried to mess with LeBron James and the city as a whole. Unfortunately, God doesn’t love Cleveland enough to exact financial revenge on Noah for us. Noah still has three years remaining on his massive four year contract worth $72 million. He has played just 75 games the past two seasons and looked awful in all of them.
Prediction: 28-54
The Knicks just don’t have enough talent or quality rotation players to play 48 minutes of basketball these days. This season is going to be about whether or not the front office has the guts to just take flyers on random G League guys and play the Zinger exclusively at center. If they do have the guts to do that, they could at least be fun to watch while they pile up losses.
Philadelphia 76ers (David Wood)
The process has finally ended. It’s official I’d say, as the 76ers don’t have Sam Hinkie in the front office, all of their draft picks from the past four years will finally see the floor in the same season, and I haven’t heard the word tanking associated with them once this off season. They also made a huge move signing veteran sharp shooter J.J. Reddick to a one-year contract worth $23 million over the summer. They are in the business of chasing the playoffs this year.
And, honestly, they might make it. Their starting five of Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, J.J., Robert Covington, and whatever point who isn’t Markelle Fultz (he is reportedly going to be coming off the bench) actually makes sense. They have a playmaker in Simmons. They have two extremely above average rotation players in Reddick and Covington. And, they have a real star in Embiid. Heck, their sixth man Jahilil Okafor is also a solid bucket getter that is probably better as a sixth man than a starter in the same sense as Kanter for the Knicks.
Brett Brown is also a pretty good coach. The 76ers have been abysmal for years now, and they haven’t had to deal with too many off-court incidents, which is impressive considering the team has been laden with young guys for so long. Brown commands some authority. During the 2014-2015 season, the 76ers were 12th in defensive rating. And, just last season they ranked 3rd in the league for steals with 8.4 a game.
Storylines:
1. The league wants to know how good Ben Simmons is. Simmons is going to have some growing pains, seeing as he hasn’t played a minute of regular season NBA ball. He’s an above average play maker and a below average shooter playing at the power forward spot. Sure, his passing and playmaking may be good, but it’s going to have to be phenomenal to command respect from opposing teams night after night. Otherwise, guys might play five feet off of him and just pray they have enough length to deflect any passes he’s trying to thread. If he can still make passes with guys laying off of him, they might just try to smoother him, which could allow him to develop a little of a dribble-drive game.
2. The 76ers’ bench might be legit this year. Dario Saric is a jack of all trades type lanky shooter and Okafor is, no matter what people say, a really able scorer on the block. They also have Amir Johnson coming off the bench at the four-spot. He may not be flashy, but he can at least not be a negative. Markelle Fultz is also supposed to be coming off the bench, which will help make sure Philly’s second unit isn’t an isolation fest. Essentially, Philly will have NBA level talent on the floor for 48 minutes a game.
My bad y’all , I thought I was using my burner account #TheProcess
— Joel “Troel” Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) October 14, 2017
3. Joel Embiid is the biggest question on this team. He can’t stay healthy, but when he’s on the floor he’s making a huge difference. He’s already able to command a high level defense. When Embiid was on the floor last season opponents had an offensive rating of 102.1. When he sat, opponents put up an offensive rating of 111.1. He also put up 20.2 points per game to go along with 2.5 blocks and 7.8 boards. He hit 36.7% of his deep attempts. He did all of this in just 25.4 minutes a night. The fact that Embiid has played 31 games in three seasons in the league is scary. It’s even more scary that he just inked an extension worth $148 million over the next five years. It could be worth even more if he meets certain criteria, and he’s also the best NBA follow on Twitter.
Player I’d Love to Have:
The Cavs are a contender and I have to be reasonable. J.J. Reddick would be a great fit next to LeBron. Having played with Chris Paul for so long, Reddick knows how to move off the ball and would be the perfect floor stretcher for the Cavs’ starting five. It also helps that he is a surprisingly okay team defender.
Player I’d Hate to Have:
Jahlil Okafor is just too old school for the new NBA. Sure, he gets you post points, but this isn’t 2010. He could be the next Al Jefferson in the post, and that isn’t going to mean anything to anyone.
Prediction: 40-42
This 76ers team is ready to succeed if a lot of things go right. They need players to remain healthy. Embiid is a true superstar and he warps how Philly can play. He can literally score from anywhere on the floor, and he was doing that last year without having real play makers helping him. He now has three on the team in Fultz, Simmons, and Reddick. Joel is going to have a way easier time being the offense, and he has already shown he can be a defense. The Sixers look ten deep and will get a lot of gimme wins in the East. If Brett Brown brings their defense back to what it was a few years ago, this team might be a little frustrating to face in the playoffs.
Boston Celtics (Nate Smith)
The Celtics return just four players from last year’s Eastern Conference Finals squad: Jaylen Brown, Al Horford, Terry Rozier, and Marcus Smart. Of course we know about their two biggest additions, Uncle Drew and Gordon Hayward, but this year’s squad looks to take “small ball,” to an unprecedented level. Given projected starter Marcus Morris’ ailing knee, Boston is rumored to start six-foot-eight rookie Jason Tatum at power forward in Tuesday night’s opener. Boston is also still churning its roster, having recently added Daniel Ochefu, recently cut by the Washington Wizards.
Additions: Kadeem Allen (Draft), Aron Baynes (DET), Jabari Bird (Draft), Gordon Hayward (UTA), Kyrie Irving (CLE), Shane Larkin, Marcus Morris (DET), Abdel Nader (Draft), Semi Ojeleye (Draft), Jayson Tatum (Draft), Daniel Theis (Draft), Guerschon Yabusele (Draft), Daniel Ochefu (WAS)
Subtractions:
Avery Bradley, Jae Crowder, Gerald Green, Demetrius Jackson, Jonas Jerebko, Amir Johnson, Jordan Mickey, Kelly Olynyk, Isaiah Thomas, James Young, Tyler Zeller.
Storylines:
"THE CAVS BETTER LOOKOUT" https://t.co/JPl06kGBRY
— Dr. SkyHook (@HypeBeastRelly) October 10, 2017
1. How will this team gel? Boston was 4-0 in the preseason, with Kyrie Irving leading the way with 15 points and about five assists per night. But the Leprechauns sport an almost completely new roster with five rookies, two second year players, and many relative NBA newcomers thrust into major roles for the first time. Jaylen Brown, Jason Tatum, and Terry Rozier will be expected to play heavy minutes. If it works, expect Boston to be dominant for years to come. If they struggle, better luck next year. I expect them to struggle.
I’ve made a simple chart based on last year’s RPM, minutes, and very unscientific projections based on NBA aging curves, and expect this team to win at least 5% fewer games than last year. That might be generous considering their young legs might not be the beneficiary of as many “schedule wins” as they would have garnered in years past.
| Player | 2017 RPM Wins | 2018 Replacement | 2018 Wins Projection |
| Jae Crowder | 10.5 | Gordon Hayward | 9.45 |
| Isaiah Thomas | 8.2 | Kyrie Irving | 8.3 |
| Amir Johnson | 7.0 | Marcus Morris | 5.9 |
| Al Horford | 6.9 | Al Horford | 6.9 |
| Marcus Smart | 6.0 | Marcus Smart | 7.0 |
| Kelly Olynyk | 3.5 | Jayson Tatum | 0.0 |
| Terry Rozier | 1.7 | Terry Rozier | 3.0 |
| Jonas Zerebko | 1.6 | Aaron Baynes | 2.6 |
| Avery Bradley | 1.1 | Semi Ojele | 0.0 |
| Tyler Zeller | 0.3 | Shane Larkin | 0.0 |
| Jaylen Brown | -0.2 | Jaylen Brown | 1.0 |
| Total | 46.6 | Total | 44.1 |
As you can see, the Celtics project to about 44 RPM Wins this year. If Rozier, Jaylen Brown, Smart, and Tatum beat expectations, this team could be a monster. If they have a significant injury or Irving or Hayward struggle, they could slide considerably. They’re exactly eight deep.
2. WhichKyrie Irving will we see? Irving was a -1.4 RPM player before LeBron arrived, with one of the worst defensive reputations in the league. He shot up to 3.4 in his first LeBron year, and back down to -.6 in his 15-16, getting healthy just in time for the playoffs. He bounced up to a 2.1 RPM player last season. He’ll never be known as a lockdown defender, but as a player who can at least be average in the playoffs, that’s all Boston needs. When paired with a bulldog in the backcourt like Marcus Smart, and a wing looking to establish himself defensively in Jaylen Brown, he shouldn’t be drawing his opponents’ first or second options on any given night. It will be interesting to see if teams specifically look to attack Irving. I know I would.
But will we see the Kyrie that holds the ball too long, doesn’t push, and isolates other teams (and his own) into oblivion? What offense will the Celtics run? Look for a lot of pick and pop with Horford, using Horford’s half court passing ability to get the ball to Irving on dives and Hayward coming off screens. The easy looks will be there for Brown and Tatum, especially outside, until they prove to teams that they can beat them. The Celtics will probably live and die by their youngins’ shooting. Kyrie’s should be able to provide all the scoring he can handle, but whether he’ll move the ball will be the real question. He’s not an instinctive passer, and often goes into tunnel mode, deciding whether to pass or shoot before the opportunity presents himself (how many times did Kyrie kick out point blank layups last year?) If I’m opponents in crunch time, I’m doubling Irving hard and not letting him get into his offense, much like teams did to the Cavs in ’14.
Will Irving stay healthy? He battled knee tendonitis for much of last year, and came back from a major knee injury in 2016, after suffering various knee ailments in 2015. We all know the dude can be fairly brittle, and with a brand new training staff in Boston, it will be interesting to see how he fares. (Boston says that the last staff wasn’t fired for how they handled IT’s hip, but the writing is on the wall). Irving doesn’t have the Cleveland Clinic at his back anymore, and some of the best teammates in the NBA at taking care of their bodies on his team anymore.
3. How the heck is this team going to rebound? This team lost eight of its top 10 rebounders by rebound rate, and they were ranked 27th in the league last year.
| 2017 Player | ORB | DRB | TRB | 2018 Replacement | ORB | DRB | TRB |
| Al Horford | 1.4 | 5.4 | 6.8 | Al Horford | 1.4 | 5.4 | 6.8 |
| Avery Bradley | 1.2 | 4.9 | 6.1 | Gordon Hayward | 0.7 | 4.7 | 5.4 |
| Jae Crowder | 0.7 | 5.1 | 5.8 | Marcus Morris | 1.1 | 4.1 | 5.1 |
| Kelly Olynyk | 1.0 | 3.8 | 4.8 | Aron Baynes | 1.5 | 3.2 | 4.7 |
| Amir Johnson | 1.5 | 3.1 | 4.6 | Kyrie Irving | 0.7 | 2.5 | 3.2 |
| Marcus Smart | 1.0 | 2.9 | 3.9 | Marcus Smart | 1.0 | 2.9 | 3.9 |
| Jonas Jerebko | 0.8 | 2.7 | 3.5 | Jaylen Brown | 1.2 | 4.4 | 5.6 |
| Terry Rozier | 0.5 | 2.5 | 3.1 | Terry Rozier | 0.7 | 3.4 | 4.1 |
| Jaylen Brown | 0.6 | 2.2 | 2.8 | Jayson Tatum | ?? | ?? | ?? |
| Isaiah Thomas | 0.6 | 2.1 | 2.7 | Semi Ojeleye | ?? | ?? | ?? |
| Total | 9.3 | 34.7 | 44.1 | Total | 8.3 | 30.6 | 38.8 |
I’ve projected Brown’s and Rozier’s rebounds up based on minutes, but unless everything holds and Tatum can give them 5.3 a game, they’ll be worse. I fully expect them to be worse missing Amir Johnson, Jae Crowder, and Bradley, their grit squad. I’m sure they’ll look to minimize other teams’ chances on the offensive glass by getting out and running, but we all know, they don’t have the right point guard to do that 36 minutes a night.
Player I’d Love to Have:
I respected Jaylen Brown for calling Danny Ainge on his BS.
It’s still a little weird to me, to be honest, because when I came in everything they stressed was culture, environment, Celtic basketball. Now, it’s like what is the environment, the culture, what is Celtic basketball?
Other than that there’s no one on this team I like.
Player I’d Hate to Have:
I’m not going to say Kyrie. I don’t like him very much, but I love him despite himself, just as I’ll love everyone from 2016, forever. I loathe Al Horford. He’s the definition of a fake tough guy, and he’s been massively overpaid for being mediocre for going on a decade now. Can I pick a GM? Danny Ainge is a fraud.
Prediction: 48-34
Vegas has the over/under at 51.5. I’m guessing one injury and this team is in major trouble. They’re young and brittle.
RJ to Nuggets. No word on the Killer Shrimp.
Chicago is in play apparently.
On the Knicks: they have like four centers. Who needs four centers?
Well since Kyrie’s no longer a part of the Cavs, I’m going to challenge the “Kyrie took the biggest shot in NBA history” motto. Wasn’t there like a minute left, and the Warriors had plenty of time to score. Don’t get me wrong, it was a great shot, but LeBron’s block was much more impressive IMO.
Name a bigger shot
You could argue Jordan’s shot against the Cavs.
Wasn’t the Finals.
It was the biggest shot in Cavs history, possibly NBA’s. Can’t take it back because we’re angry ex’s.
That was in the first round.
I think Brons second free throw is underrated. You know if he misses the Warriors bury a 3 and win in OT. And his wrist was injured, and he missed the first one. Truly pressure filled shot
That’s some revisionist history there Arch…
I’m playing devils advocate. It was a great shot.
I agree with Arch on this one. There have been a dozen last shots like that in NBA history. On the other hand, that was one of the best blocks ever, AND is sealed a championship.
The Love defense on Curry is also all time great, primarily due to the mismatch, and unlikelihood of Love being able to do it.
Just to refresh your memory…
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-biggest-shot-in-nba-history-1482235610
Yes. LeBron block was the more impressive play. But the Irving shot was the most clutch shot in NBA history
Probably not in Nba history, but certainly Cavs history.
We’ve never seen that side of LeBron like he just did in that interview with Wade and we’ve watched him for 14 years.
East. Cavs>Washington >Toronto>Celtics>Bucks
West. Dumb warriors>Houston>OKC>SAS
you do realize that, calling warriors dumb is basically challenging your own IQ.
Who’s the bigger fool? The fool or the fool who’s compelled to argue with him?
fool who doesn’t realize he is a fool, needs a friendly reminder now and then for 100 dumb posts.
Agree with pretty much everything posted in the article but one thing, DeRozan is a great player and a younger/better version (currently) of Wade. I would absolutely love to have him next to (currently healthy) Rose and LeBron.
Kyrie will have a video tribute tomorrow. Yeah let’s honor the guy who demanded a trade and kept throwing shades. Yeah, I’m salty and why not?
Dude made the biggest shot in NBA history. He should be honored. Cheer during the video. Boo later. That’s my opinion
Reasonable. I don’t mind he asked for the trade, especially when he did. A few of the comments he made afterward were a little classless if he expected the response or completely oblivious and naive if he didn’t, in my opinion.
Disagree. He screwed the team by asking for the trade very late in the off season. I will be booing from wherever I am.
Technically he asked a year ago. I think he may have caved if they went into the season with him, but who knows. He didn’t want to be here and apparently there was no patching up the relationship after the PG trade got nixed. I mean I can’t blame him for asking for a trade in private and preferring to go somewhere else. That technically also didn’t mean they had to trade him. However, they got an ok return as long as Thomas is playable or tradeable, which means the cavs came out ok despite the idiotic and weak spined… Read more »
Every analyst everywhere gave the Irving trade an A for th Cavs. They did more than just come out OK
He’s an attention whore. A troll. Don’t give in. Just ignore
They should do a highlight video of his pick and roll defense.
WAS THINKING ON THOSE SAME LINES ( ANGRY SMURF ) —-COME PLAYOFFS WHO BETTER TO HAVE ON YOUR BENCH EVEN IF HE IS IN A 3 PIECE SUIT —-THE OPPOSING TEAM WOULD HAVE TO TAKE NOTICE AND RESOECT THAT
You guys realize that perk signing with the Canton charge basically means that he’s going to be this year’s Dahntay Jones? Right?
This puts him in position to Mentor the Cavs young players Osman, Zizic, Holland, as well as stay within the organization. Plus he’s in shape for the late season call-up.
I don’t mind it if just to get somebody on a playoff roster that will take Green’s head off if he starts kicking people in the nuts again. Never seen any other plays like that which could ever be considered “basketball” plays. Anyone that does clearly would have to be delusional and lying to themselves.
I’ve wondered why Perk can’t just be an assistance coach who fights other teams players.
Things I worry about. Health, health, health. If we are healthy we are going to be great.
True. Which is why it’s incredibly stupid of Lue to start Wade.
That is stupid for that and 10 other reasons.
It is a lot like the Indians honoring past achievements, and putting Kipnis, Brantly, and Chisenhall on the playoff roster when they were rusty and could not play. The Indians would likely be playing right now if Diaz and Alamonte were on the playoff roster.
If you are counting on Diaz and Almonte to win a playoff series for you, you’re just not good enough. The Indians lost for a lot of reasons, but Diaz and Almonte weren’t hitting for Lindor and Ramirez, who were atrocious. Diaz and Almonte weren’t pitching for Kluber, who pitched, literally, the worst of his entire career. Diaz and Almonte weren’t going to do any better than the rest of the team with runners in scoring position. Our best players choked. That’s why they didn’t move on. Francona made some bad decisions? Sure. Encarnacion got hurt? Yeah, that was bad,… Read more »
Yep. We lost because Ramirez and Lindor and Kluber all sucked.
Sorry, but you are way wrong. You are arguing that replacing guys who just won 28 in a row with guys who could not play was a good idea? Here are some details: Alamonte in CF rather than Kipnis would have absolutely saved one run, and probably two or three. And, he has a higher BA. Going with the Diaz/Urshela half and half combo that worked so well in the 28 game winning streak would have been a huge improvement. And Diaz at DH after EE got hurt could not have possibly have been worse than Brantly at DH. The… Read more »
NATE JUST WONDERING ON THAT 3RD POST PLAYER—–YOU DON’T THINK “ZZ-ANTE “—-CAN BE OF ANY HELP—-IF NOT — BECAUSE OF YOUTH/ EXPERIENCE OR SKILL —OR ALL THE ABOVE
Forgot about him. Sure. He’s a body. Not gonna get a lot of run in Cleveland, but, he’s a body.
Watch some videos of him. Zizi is an intriguing throw in. If he could be an offensive post big off the bench someday that’s a good get.
He seems better as a roll man than a post. Needs to get more chiseled and better hands.
Zizic needs 20-25lbs of muscle and to continue practicing the PnR with Rose and Wade.
OUCH YOU DON’T THINK SOME OF THEM YOUNG / FRAIL GLEAGUE PLAYER S AREN’T TREMBLING JUST A LITTLE ——NATE GET THOSE TICKETS READY—-HAVE TO COME SEE “ANGRY SMURF ” INTIMIDATE THOSE YOUNG PLAYERS —– THINK ITS A GOOD MOVE BY THE CAVS
Contrarian in me has a hard time believing this will be that easy. Cavs are too old. They will have more than their fair share of injuries and old guys will have streaks of energy and then games where they don’t have it. I think the Cavs will have a wild up and down regular season, just like always, with streaks of winning and then weeks of LeBron sulking. I am very concerned that they will get stomped by the Western Conference super powers and this will affect their morale and effort level against EC teams. Kyrie will play better… Read more »
It’s either we stay optimistic or we watch the Cavs like we watch the Browns… Knowing no matter what we do, it won’t be enough. Having to do that for one CLE team is enough for me. Even if irrational optimism is what it takes.
Not sure about the connection about the play of the Cavs and the play of the Browns.
I understand not yet ready to root for Rose and Wade but you’ll come around.
Rose, if he stays healthy, will be phenomenal on a team where he’s the 4-5 offensive option, specially against the bench.
IT will be playing for a contract, and although he probably knows he’s not a max player, he will try his hardest to get it. Also, considering he’ll be the third option after LeBron and Love, the game will be easier for him.
Last year with the Celts, it was IT and everyone else, and dude still scored 29ppg.
A contrarian point of view is always needed. If you applied the same perspective to any other team in the East, you’d see that the Celtics have more new players, less grit, and no one in the conference is close to as good to LeBron. Also, no one has as good of a second banana as Love.
Do you know who the top three oldest teams are in the NBA? The Cavs, The dumb warriors, and the Spurs.
Good research, Cols!
This Cavs team is better than last year’s team which was better than the team the year before. Management has once again done an excellent job.
I’m not sure that’s true, but it is deeper than last year’s team. At least to start.
It’s definitely true. Last year we had to run out guys who don’t even play anymore like Liggins and the two Williamses. This year we have a true backup PG in Rose and a true backup SG in Wade (or JR, depending how it works out). This is in the terms of the dumb disgusting arrogant cock warriors owner, LIGHT YEARS ahead of what we had last year. Add in Crowder and Thomas and yeah, we are better.
cocky, not cock. Sorry. Although I guess both work!!
By the playoffs, boston might have a better top seven. Not top 11, but top 7.
I don’t even think this is true. I think it gives Horford too much credit. Kyrie is the only player on that team that I see beats out someone on the Cavs at his position.
There’s a rookie and a sophomore in their top seven…
I didn’t believe they were better till you put “LIGHT YEARS” in all caps.
All depends on how IT comes back and when…
…and how. That kind of injury layoff takes time to recover from and gaining confidence.
WITH EVIL ON THE KYRIE BOOING—-BEFORE HE MADE THE ‘ BOSTON REAL SPORTS TOWN” COMMENTS I WAS O.K. WITH JUST LE T IT BE / MAYBE SOME LIGHT BOOING ——NOW IT I S “OPEN SEASON ON KYRIE ” AS FAR AS I AM CONCERNED—–I AM BETTING LEBRON DOESN’T PLAY WHICH IS FINE BY ME —-T.V. WILL DISLIK E THE DECISION VERY MUCH
Agree… dumb comment (amongst many) from Kyrie… probably just pandering into the Boston fanboy mentality…
Nate, What do you think of the gap between Cavs and Celts ? Did it increase or decrease in Cavs favor ? IMO, Cavs adding Rose and Wade instead of one of those and deciding to start those two, made the team worse. Celts are better on page with more go to players in the roster now. I think Celts have become better playoff team. As per Cavs, I am having hard time to decide if they have become better or worse playoff team, Wade and Rose may flame out by playoffs like Deron Williams last year. No one knows… Read more »
You think all that from a team that has exactly four players who played together last year and (as Nate so comprehensively mapped out above in the article) will be a significantly worse rebounding team than last year’s squad that ranked 27th in the league?
EG, on paper it looks like rebounding is going to be an issue for celtics, then I look at dubs, we don’t have anyone who averages 10+ rebounds per game, so I think Celts can overcome that with quicker guards and team rebounding. Also, pretty much every one sans Kyrie is a two way player. Also, I think Brad Stevens will make them play D. Their depth is affected so might end up being worse reg season team but better playoff teams where you will play only 9 anyway.
They have Durant, Green, Pachulia, Iguodala, and Curry: all good to excellent rebounders for their position. They’re seventh in the league.
I also take issue with “everyone is a two way player.” No. They’re not. Smart’s never been a good offensive player, Tatum and Brown will probably be minuses on defense, and Gordon Hayward is average defensively. You’re just not spouting truths. Perhaps they will get to that point, but to declare them so without playing a game and decades of evidence that very young players just aren’t good at defense, is pretty ridiculous.
Rose, Wade, Frye, Korver, JR Smith and Love are bad defenders because of their age or the position they will play this year for Cavs. I will bet that Celtics young guys will be better defenders than the Cavs old guys or Brad Steven won’t play them ensuring there is always good defensive team there. Lue already have created some chemistry issues, TT and JR Smith didn’t really like the demotion, now when Lue puts them back into starting lineup, he is going to make someone else unhappy. I think a better coach would make Cavs a better team, this… Read more »
You’re just making things up now.
I’m baffled how you think a team that was 27th in the league rebounding is going to rebound better with worse players.
How do you know what TT and JR think? Also, JR has turned into a very decent defender. You are probably right about Fry and Korver. Love looked pretty good covering Curry on the last shot of 2016, took the smirk right off his face. Wish he would choke on that thing hanging out of his mouth.
We will sweep or win in five against the Celtics if they even get past Toronto or Washington.
If the Warriors have weaknesses (granted, it’s grasping at straws), they are turnovers and rebounding. TT was shut down last finals, I’ll give you that, but the 2016 Finals we won because we dominated the offensive rebounds. Put the Celtics in that situation and they will crumble. Not to mention depth really effects team rebounding rates because boxing out is exhausting.
TT was critical for win against Warriors, he was really in the 2016 series, very active both rebounding and defense. Then, he didn’t look same last year.
We can check after 3 months, Brad Stevens has been a great defensive coach(I know most here think he is overrated), I think he will have them rebound and defend well.
So… you’re now comparing the thin and relatively inexperienced Celtics team with the Warriors? And tell me who else is a proven two way player outside of maybe Hayward? Smart, Rozier and Brown are probably their best defenders, but they’re absolutely going to miss guys like Crowder and Bradley. You’re putting an awful lot of stock in a rookie (Tatum), a second year guy who hasn’t yet really done much (Brown), two second tier all stars and a third tier “star” in Horford. Don’t believe the hype…
lol, I think we should revisit, end of december.
OK. Everyone place their bets, and I will hold the money!
Let’s not and say we did…
Thinking that adding Rose and Wade to a team who gave major minutes to a washed up Deron Williams and Richard Jefferson, and had to play two guys who are out of the NBA in Liggins and Williams is crazy talk. This Cavs team is way deeper than last year’s and Thomas+Crowder is better than Irving. , Rose+Crowder is better than Irving the way Rose looks.
But I can see how someone who is not a Cavs fan and generally doesn’t watch the Cavs play would think the team is worse.
Ya…. No way Boston is better than they were last year. Also, you are overestimating the issue of Love at Center. If he struggles, and I don’t think he will, the Cavs can quickly change gears and go back to starting TT and JR and bringing Crowder and Wade off the bench. It’s an easy fix that is worth testing out to start the season.
The difference being, that the Cavs have plenty of flexibility to fix things if they aren’t working. I expect the Wade starting mess to last about 14 games when the grind of the regular season starts to wear him down. And to be honest, that Cavs’ second unit is going to destroy teams. Wade isn’t going to play more than 28 a night unless Lue is a moron. The thing, is if something isn’t working, then the Cavs have the depth to fix it. The Celtics just don’t have the depth. Rookies and first year guys unless they’re truly like… Read more »
Nate, who in Cavs will play at C, other than Love and TT ? Love is coming off a season where he played 60 games and now the load will be higher to play at C. TT have not averaged a 30+ minutes per game last 4 years. Frye’s (and Korver’s) confidence must have been shot the way Lue handled his role., not sure if he can play at 30 mpg either. Wade+Rose can’t play together. This season is going to put lot of load on Lebron and he doesn’t like to take too much load in reg season. As… Read more »
How have we seen anything from Tatum other than preseason and summer league? There’s no evidence he’s anything yet. As for third center there is Frye. There is LeBron and there is Green. No one plays with more than two real centers anymore anyway and most teams get by with one.
As for Boston youngins, they need to be “just good enough rotation players.” what’s that even mean? They’re young. Young guys suck. Last rookie to make any real impact was. Anthony Davis. Tatum is not AD
Harrison Barnes, while not being a star player made huge impact in his rookie year for dubs to upset Denver in playoff series and played very competitive series against spurs. With talent around, talented rookies do shine, but most lottery picks don’t make playoffs on rookie season.
Harrison Barnes sucked for the warriors.
Not a star doesn’t mean he sucks. Getting waived might mean he sucks, like Richard Jefferson. Barnes didn’t suck in his rookie year and not in playoffs starting for injured David Lee. That is how warriors found out that playing a stretch 4 is way to win games over a traditional PF. He sucked in 2016 playoffs but he was a championship starter and starter for 73 win team.
I do agree that KK looked old last year, with occasional great nights. Generally as outside gunners get older, the good nights get fewer. I was a bit surprised about giving him a three year contract. Was anyone else competing for him?
third year is partially guaranteed. Some bottom dweller teams would have probably given him the same contract. Kyle along with Frye and even Love need a PG to get them the ball. Kyrie was never that PG and replaced by Rose, not an upgrade at point.
Thomas for Beverly or Bradley is perfect. I want either even if the Cavs have to sweeten it with their own first.
Rose is going to be electric, and Thomas will end up coming off the bench or getting traded. I’m baffled how you think replacing bet starters and rotation guys with rookies and other players with very little NBA experience will close any gaps. That’s just not the way the NBA works.
Maybe.
But Rose appears to be LIGHT YEARS (parsecs, even) ahead of Deron W last year. Probably Wade is a least miles ahead of DW2. And there is a reasonable chance IT will come back around December and average 20 efficient PPG. That would be a game changer.
I have to begrudgingly admit Rose has looked good. I still don’t like the guy. It would be much much better if either Wade or Rose could space the floor in any capacity, but that isn’t in the cards. Even if either makes around 33-34 percent from three, teams will still lay way off them and dare them to shoot in the playoffs. They aren’t going to make enough to punish that strategy either.
Think Kyrie will get lukewarm applause.
I would have agreed prior to his “Boston is a real sports town” comment…
Yeah, that was such a dumb comment.
He is either still incredibly immature or completely out of touch and oblivious to the responses generated by half of what he says.
He should be booed, Cleveland did everything good by him to get that ring and he slights the city the moment he leaves.
Great stuff guys! Agree with nearly all of this
Thanks man.
These are pretty much spot on for what I think. Celtics thinking Tatum is going to be anything other than the green rookie he is is laughable. I hope we stomp them with or without Bron tomorrow.
I am hoping that Irving gets cheered during introductions for that winning shot. After that they can boo him all they want.
I don’t think you understand how fanbases work… especially fanbases who have been questioned for the veracity of their sports town recently…
I’m not even sure it’s true, but can every article include a statement about how Brad Stevens is overrated? It really gets
…..my dopamine receptors firing. (Sorry for the split comment)
You mean… this guy?
The Nets suck. The Raptors will be good again. The Celtics are going to start out hot and then suck.