Podcap: Oklahoma City 96, Cleveland 86 (or, Milquetoast Motivators)
2018-11-08After trailing by as much as 16 in the early third quarter, Cleveland came all the way back to lead by two with six minutes left. OKC rallied to hold the wine and gold to just four points for the rest of the game while Dennis Schöder scored seven down the stretch to bring the Thunder the win. The umlaut finished with a game high 28 points on 19 shots and joined the human wall, Steven Adams, in going +20 from the floor.
The shorthanded Cavs were even more shorthanded as Cedi Osman left early with back spasms never to return, yet they fought valiantly, with Jordan Clarkson going for a near triple double with an 11/9/8 line and Ante Zizic coming off the bench for 10 points and nine boards in just 16 minutes. The Cavs fell in love with threes late, and it took them out of their offense as the tried to hit home runs instead of doubles, and they just couldn’t hit them. Clarkson and Smith each went 5-17 and a combined 4-18 from three.
A couple of those drop and this was a different ballgame. On the bright side, Collin Sexton got extensive playing time in his first start in George Hill’s absence, and logged almost 42 minutes. Sexton finished with 15/2/1 and three turnovers. He finished well, with great left handed finishes on both sides of the basket, but got abused by Schöder and was hesitant in his shot and also left guys in terrible positions by giving them the ball with just a few seconds remaining on the shot clock and no clear options.
Tom Pestak and Nate smith hopped into the podcast booth to discuss the Thunder loss, the overall NBA, the disaster that was Monday’s collapse against Orlando, and the guys the Cavs could’ve drafted instead of Sexton. We also hit on a lot of “get off my lawn” topics with rants on punditry, horrible headlines, clickbait, and the mind numbing blandness of linked-in and its mind-numbingly milquetoast motivational memes. It seemed like a metaphor for how the Cavs are competing: saying all the right thing while nothing really changes.
Catch us below, on Soundcloud, Apple Podcasts or Google Play.
https://soundcloud.com/ctb-5/episode-185-milquetoast-motivators
Hey before the next thread opens and all this is lost – I just wanted to repeat: I clearly saw Kyrie call for, and USE, a screen in Q4 tonight.
Maybe it really is all about effective coaching /s
When I say “tonight” I obviously mean “last night” for most of you and this morning for me ;)
Hmm, I wonder how Kyrie feels about leaving Cleveland. Has anyone asked him about this?
I think he’s hurting badly, but he’ll never say it.
Damn, got to give him credit.
Seriously though – just imagine his stat line if he came back. Never have to play D again.
The Bucks’ collective length on defense was so problematic for GSW tonight…. that’s the key to their ability to beat good teams…. you can’t just pass it all over the court against them.
interesting. bucks might be the real deal.
I think they definitely are, if ‘real deal’ means they can get to Finals. I still favor Raptors, but Bucks would be second, Celtics third.
Seems that hiring Budenholzer is paying off for Milwaukee.
Yeah….they look like one of the best three teams in the East, with a great shot at the finals…
Funny how much impact coaching has
WOW…. BUCKS ARE DOMINATING.
Having Bledsoe and Brogdon is a smart move…. love the dual combo guard backcourt.
64-51 Bucks at half…Bucks look good…
GS cold from three or are the bucks smothering them? Also what scheme are they using? Drop backs on p and r or something different this game?
Only Klay has been hitting threes…not sure on schemes, I have been doing other stuff and watching when able…pretty clear that Bray not playing hurts their spacing…
Giannis ridiculous… PAT CONNAUGHTON balling out here! Wanted the Cavs to draft him back a few years ago… Think we got stuck with SirDominic Pointer and Rakeem Christmas instead.
He looks good…
He just needs confidence in his shot…. he’s like a more athletic, better defending Joe Harris.
Bucks up 15, about a minute to half…
Celts-Suns game is pretty great watching
Bucks up 12 Giannis shooting fts
Bucks up 11…
Bledsoe dicing Dubs off of drives…
Great pass by Kyrie to Morris, hits it – overtime.
OT for Celtics- Suns?
Off a Morris three…gross
Bucks up 7 after a Giannis dunk..
Hey, Kyrie just used a screen!
97-9 Suns 58 seconds left…
97-92, 43 seconds.
Was looking at the box score and was curious to see how Josh Jackson is doing in his second season. So…..Josh Jackson has a PER of 2.37. 2.37. In his sophomore season. Think we dodged a bullet not trading for him.
He’s not having a good year so far, but I still like him
Only Suns game I have watched was against the Mavs. Feel like he looked ok then. Wonder how he is defensively. That was supposed to be his big draw.
Giannis is ridiculous…
Suns still up 92-80 on Celtics, around 4 minutes left.
Middleton is one of the most underrated scorers in the NBA…he is nails…
Kyrie deferring to Morris with the game on the line. Amusing.
Is that the dumb Morris, or is it the other one?
YESSSSSSSSS!!!!!—-GO SUNS
48-28 Suns close to half…
55-35 at half. President Stevens may need to engage his massive brain.
Thunder pounding the Rockets. Guess all those folks burying the Thunder were a bit premature…
Suns up on Celtics 25-12 early in the first, but they’ll still lose by 20…
Err, late in the first, I mean…
I hope Booker hunts for 50 to agitate the flat earther
Hope his 50th is a long two at the buzzer with the Suns up 5…
THAT IS MY BIG CONCERN ALSO !!!!!
Hopefully he has LeBron like knees and joints.
NICE MOTTO __” TRYIN FOR ZION —–REALLY NOT LYIN (G) “
Really really really unfortunate the lottery changes begin this year. Not only do the odds go down for the top teams. The lottery now includes picks 1-4 instead of 1-3. Watch four teams with better records get the four lottery picks.
It sucks, but the Cavs look like they are in fantastic position…
About the three spot odds every year, not terrible. About 1 in 6 for number one. Thankfully there are two guys that look like surefire superstars. Just need a top two, though Reddish looks good too. Someone else may pop up as a top tier guy this season, who knows.
every year previously
Dying for Zion!
Not tryin’ for Zion.
Felt like the season was lost after the first week, so this doesn’t feel like much of a blow.
Yeah. The only thing that really bugs me is all the idiots who say hey look how crap you are without Lebron. Like that’s the only difference.
Yes it is aggravating. Old school uninformed mentality.
Good game tonight, Bucks at GS, 2230e on TNT. Should get a good idea of where the Bucks stand.
Not really…isnt draymond out?
Is he? Even so, it’ll give a good measure.
Should be interesting to see how their d handles another 5 out offense. They have been great defensively this year since Bud instituted a more traditional conservative drop back scheme for the p and r with Lopez and their other bigs dropping back and their ballhandler defenders fighting hard over and around screens. Read Boston gave them some issues with a spread offense. Could be exposed by gs which would make sense since I am not sure you can really drop back on p and rs against that team. Wonder if bud will hedge and trap some this game and… Read more »
THE ONLY CONCERN WITH ZION —-WILL ACTUALLY 2 CONCERNS ARE ——1)—-HE IS 285 LBS @ THE AGE OF 18—–IS HE GOING TO GET BIGGER / ABLE TO CONTROL THE WEIGHT …….2)–CONSISTENT OUTSIDE SHOT —–THE NBA AS WE ALL KNOW HAS BECOME A 3 PT SHOOTING LEAGUE—EVEN THE BIGS HAVE TO BE ABLE TO SOMEWHAT HIT THE SHOT ON CONSISTENT BASIS ——-YEAH OTHERWISE HE IS A STUD ——POSSIBLY “TRANSCENDENT ‘ TYPE OF PLAYER
I have concerns (although I don’t believe he’s really 280 or 285lbs), but right now he looks like a guy who could be a legit superstar in the NBA if he reaches his potential. I’m willing to take that chance, assuming he gets through the season healthy, etc.
Oh I think he is probably 275. He was weighed at 282 this summer in team USA. He legit looks 15-20 pounds heavier than LBJ ever was. Btw, LBJ was never 270. 260 max. He came in at 240, maybe. Even in his Miami days he didn’t look anywhere near as big in his upper body or legs as Zion does. Zion probably carries a bit of extra weight in his core, but he is by no means fat. He literally looks like an NFL defensive end in terms of his bulk. The weight is a concern. Certainly if he… Read more »
Yeah, I agree probably 275. Also agree that knees etc are a concern, but those are chances I take.
Don’t get me wrong I would draft him in a heartbeat. Just stating my biggest worry with him. Barrett may be the safer pick though and I would take him in a heartbeat too. But yeah, as far as I am concerned, Zion is the pick I would take unless something changes. He might be better than Barrett right now and he has a higher ceiling. I mean you really couldn’t possibly play better as a freshmen in his first game than he did. Has to be the best debut by a freshmen in 40+ years, though I wasn’t around… Read more »
My choice is Barrett. More well-rounded, better shooter.
Better shooter, but not sure how bad of a shooter Zion is yet. His shot has been better at Duke and he shot and made both the long js he took with confidence including one three and a step back 20 footer. Not sure RJ is a better passer. Handled the ball way more than anyone else that first game, so had had more opportunities for assists, but I am not convinced he is a better passer. Zion has some special vision for finding guys on cuts, drive and dish, in the open court, and off kickouts. Some of the… Read more »
I’m all in for Zion, pending further info gathered as the season progresses.
from that perspective, 7-75 should do the trick.. we need another obvious #1 #1.. anything more difficult appears to be beyond the cavs front office
HEY NATE THAT DRAFT INFO WAS GREAT—–MAN IF I GET TO CANTON FOR A CHARGE GAME—-BEERS ARE ON ME THANKS !!!
Funniest twitter thread ever (no bball)
https://twitter.com/quinncy/status/1060303097178673152?s=19
Read that yesterday. Pretty funny!
EVIL LMAO——WHO IS THE DRAFT GURU HERE ——-WAS POSTED RECENTLY THAT THE NBA HAS CHANGED THE DRAFT RULES THIS YEAR—COULD POTENTIALLY HURT THE CAVS CHANCES –( EVEN IF THEY FINISH WITH THE WORST RECORD ) –OF THE TOP PICKS—WHAT ARE THE RULE CHANGES —– HOW MUCH COULD IT TAKE US OUT OF THE TOP 2 PICKS—OR EVEN THE TOP 5 PICKS—–THANKS IN ADVANCE OF ANYONE EDUCATING ME (US ) ON THIS
Courtesy of the folks at http://www.tankathon.com/pick_odds
That would be hilariously hideous.
JUST BRING BACK THE “WORL B FREE ” AL L ORANGE—DON’T THINK THEY WORE THEM ONCE LAST YEAR—THEY ALWAYS PLAY BETTER IN ALL ORANGE —MAYBE HALF ORANGE WILL BE A SLIGHT IMPROVEMENT
WOW LOOKING AT THOSE NEW JERSEYS —EITHER I HAD TOO MANY ADULT BEVERAGES ……OR I NEED TO START CONSUMING MORE –I WILL PICK THE LATTER !! : )
Ladies and gentlemen, your Cleveland Denver Boncoliers
On one hand… it’s kind of cool to see Nance Jr. in those colors just like his old man… on the other hand… WTF on the mid-90s design callback?
Mid 90s were better than these. These uniforms remind me of the album “shark sandwich” from Spinal Tap. Of which the review was, “s**t sandwich.”
http://img.wennermedia.com/920-width/rs-129915-sharksandwich-1800-1394046340.jpg
I hated the mid 90s unis… but yeah, these ones are worse…
New City threads…
These are awful.
Yeah… this is what I thought too…
Silly me for not expecting the replacement to be WORSE than the grey ones…
No way… these are definitely better than smog/soot grey IMO…. these aren’t the best, but they aren’t the worst either IMO.
Nike fell off…they really don’t understand how to make a timeless jersey…its sad.
SIMMO —THANKS ——-I BELIEVE YOU ARE FROM AUSTRALIA CORRECT —–MY SON WAS INVITED TO COMPETE THERE ABOUT 10 YRS AGO —RUNNING / NATIONAL HIGH SCOOL CHAMPIONS—SPENT 3 WEEKS IN AUSTRALIA– ( I WAS UPPOSED TO GO WITH HIM AS A COACH —COULDN’T SWING GETTING OFF FROM WORK )——-HAD A GREAT TIME THERE —-NOTHING BUT POSITIVE TO SAY ABOUT AUSTRALIA ———WILL DISCUSS THE “RESPECT PART ” WITH THE MRS NOMAD ;)
Yes mate, it’s a helluva long trip but we’ll treat you well when you get here!
GO SAC KINGS —BIG FAN –GOING FORWARD —–IS TY “HIDING” ON LAKERS BENCH–SEE LA-BRON PLAYED 40 MIN’S AGAIN LAST NIGHT ——————NOMAD/ OLD………..MRS NOMAD / YOUNG ……………..SEX INFREQUENT —BIG AGE DISCRIMINATION CASE AGAINST HER !!!!! : )
Nomad your posts give me hope for your country and people. The passion is strong! Just encourage Mrs Nomad to respect her elders.
So attorney weighing in. The Boylan Complaint states damages in the amount of $25,000 or more. That ‘or more’ is the important part of the damages claim. Basically it leaves the amount open to be determined in the future, so it very well could be $1,000,000. The reason the $25,000 is included is because there is a damages threshold that a person has to meet for the case to be filed in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court. If they did not include the $25,000, the Cavs could try and move the case to a Municipal Court. Also, that voicemail from… Read more »
Thanks! My question: it’s a contract option. how can they be sued for not picking up a contract option?
It is more about why they are not picking up the option. You cannot have age being factor in your decision to hire, someone, fire someone, promote someone, reassign someone. So since their decision not to pick up the contract option was at least partially based on age, that is a pretty clear case of age discrimination. Also, most of the time, the company is able to point to other issues with an employee or other factors, mainly because the age discrimination is not as blatant and the evidence is more circumstantial (he said, she said). But here, Lue just… Read more »
I pretty much wrote your first paragraph danz but then you posted. Spot on. Not simply a case of letting the contract expire, there is a reason given for not renewing.
Haha, thanks. It was nice to have something of value to contribute. Also, if the Cavs Organization does not want to give CavstheBlog a press pass, maybe they would at least want to hire some of its commenters to give their executives some training on discrimination in the workplace.
Absolutely! “Lesson #101: How to discriminate against your employees without letting them know”.
Hmm. But a contractor isn’t an employee. Where is the delineation there?
I think they are talking about his Employment Contract. I don’t think he is an independent contractor. I could be wrong, but I am pretty sure he is an employee, but most employees with that kind of salary have a contract. Think of it like a player, they are employees, but they also have contracts as well, its just an employee contract.
Or Lue knows he’s going to get himself fired, and on the way out he’s going to send the middle finger to Dan and Koby.
So when an NBA team claims to want to get younger, and cuts/sheds/deals veteran players, isn’t that age discrimination? I get that there is a huge difference between how age would affect a coaches’ ability to do his or her job versus a player, so how are rules against “age discrimination” enforced? Age can absolutely be a detriment to someone being able to do a job productively. Can my Dad apply for a job as the social media curator for a tech company and sue them for age discrimination when they realize he’s too old to write ridiculous tweets that… Read more »
I’m curious too, but I think the NBA would have all of this stuff fairly carefully delineated, given the churn in the industry. It would be a pretty poor lawyer (ie Boylan’s) to push this case if it were going to be a slam dunk for the employer. But I’m assuming.
How does it get enforced? In court.
I think age discrimination happens pretty often, the answer to the question of why cases are not brought more often is twofold; 1) finding a motivated plaintiff; and 2) getting enough evidence to show age discrimination happened. It is pretty difficult to find people who are willing to deal with the hassle of going through the courts against a company that typically has more resources to devote to a case. As such, many cases of age discrimination go under the radar because the person doesn’t want to pursue it, or didn’t know their rights and that age discrimination is illegal.… Read more »
[Continued]
Like I said before, usually evidence in an age discrimination case is more circumstantial (conversations between a boss and employee, off hand comments (we would like to get younger), etc.) As such, the Company can try and say that though someone made ageist comments, it wasn’t a factor in the Company’s decision, and the decision was based on performance or credentials. It can be hard to definitively show that age was a factor in a decision, especially when the Company’s attorneys are trying to obfuscate the facts.
This includes the first class inf Employment Law. Please make sure you read pages 10 – 210 in the textbook for next week.
*concludes
Is the textbook available on the pirated web? If so I’m all over it.
You can usually find a used one on Amazon for way cheaper.
You can also join my other class: “Defining Bankruptcy – Am I bankrupt, broke, or having Financial Difficulties?”
Another lawyer here, albeit late to the party. The other aspect of the “in excess of $25K” request is that the Ohio court rules say that in most cases, plaintiffs can’t include in their complaints (the document that the claims) a specific monetary amount if they intend to seek more than $25K. If that’s the case (as it usually is), you have to say you’re seeking more than $25K and leave it at that. The idea is to deter plaintiffs and aggressive plaintiffs’ lawyers from including outrageous amounts in their initial court filing just to intimidate or to gin up… Read more »
*(the document that states the claims)
Mike Malone has been credited for the improvement (relative to what they had been) in those Mike Brown teams’ offensive creativity. Think the story was he basically ran the offense.
Nate, it’s called “Porkopolis” (i’m a native).
NATE!!! Man in the High Castle!!! YES!!!
Also, every sane person is pulling for the Kings so the freaking Celtics don’t get a super high draft pick in next year’s draft. I’m a huge Kings fan.
Still listening, but I doubt Cavs had a realistic chance at trading up to get Doncic. I was hoping for that on draft night, but I just don’t see it. I don’t care what Vardon thinks.
Same. Don’t remember the details of Vardon’s story, but I said the other day maybe there was some framework worked out. However, I think a likely scenario is that the Hawks pulled out after The Godfather offer from the Mavs. Just no way the cavs could compete with that.
The pain in your voice in acknowledging Jordan Clarkson played a good game was real and hilarious Nate.