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Cleveland Cavaliers: Their Game 6 Secret Weapon

By Gerald Bourguet

Jun 11, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Andre Iguodala (9) loose the ball against Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) during the third quarter in game four of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 11, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Andre Iguodala (9) loose the ball against Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) during the third quarter in game four of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Cleveland Cavaliers, trailing 3-2 in the 2015 NBA Finals with their backs against the wall in a do-or-die Game 6, have one hope for staving off elimination and forcing a decisive Game 7.

That secret weapon isn’t sacrificing lambs for J.R. Smith to replenish his shooting stroke or locating the nearest Lazarus Pit for Shawn Marion. It isn’t having one of the NBA’s best home-court advantages or playing with desperation. Hell, it might not even be LeBron James. No, Cleveland’s best friend heading into Game 6 is the most annoying and despicable and NBA controversy since Donald Sterling.

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I’m talking, of course, about the Hack-A-Shaq strategy of intentionally fouling a poor free throw shooter to send him to the line. The question is, will head coach David Blatt use it?

At the end of Game 5, the Cavaliers may have discovered something out of their desperation. After Stephen Curry drilled a 27-foot dagger to put the Golden State Warriors up by 10 with 2:44 to play, the Cavs called timeout. On the ensuing possession, LeBron missed a seven-foot jumper and the Warriors secured the rebound.

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With 2:31 to play in the game, trailing by 10, Blatt had already made the executive decision to intentionally foul to save any chance at a last minute comeback. With only 31 seconds of game clock to execute the league’s most annoying loophole, Cleveland still managed to intentionally foul Andre Iguodala, a 59.6 free throw shooter this season, three separate times off the ball.

Iggy made only one of the resulting six free throw attempts, putting him at a putrid 2-for-11 for the game. In fact, Iguodala was responsible for nine of Golden State’s 14 free throw misses in the game. After clanging his first two free throws in that stretch of Hack-A-Shaq, LeBron buried a triple to cut the lead to seven with 2:19 to play.

In fact, if the Cavs had just secured a defensive rebound after Iggy’s fourth consecutive miss at the free throw line, they would’ve been looking at a seven-point deficit with 2:15 to play. Instead, Harrison Barnes tapped the ball back out to the Dubs, Cleveland had to intentionally foul Iggy again, and this time, he finally made one of his two attempts.

The Warriors extended their lead to eight, LeBron missed a layup the next time down, the Warriors grabbed the ball and subbed Iguodala out to get to the two-minute mark and Game 5 was effectively decided. But the point still stands: Hack-A-Dala might be Cleveland’s only hope of controlling Game 6.

So far in this series, we’ve learned quite a bit about LeBron James’ greatness, but even his phenomenal Finals performance hasn’t been enough to carry the Cavs. We’ve learned that Matthew Dellavedova probably shouldn’t be the patron saint of Cleveland, we’ve learned that Iguodala’s been waiting his whole career for this series and that’s just the tip of the revelatory iceberg.

But the majority of what we’ve learned about this series revolves around Steve Kerr‘s decision to go small and the direction the league is heading in. To dumb it down, here’s all you need to know: the Warriors are winning this series because they’ve trotted out versatile, small-ball lineups that allow them to double-team LeBron, get the ball out of his hands and push the tempo.

In the first three games of the series, the Cavs dictated the pace of the game. The offense was, ironically, the definition of hero ball: LeBron would get the ball, wind the shot clock down as much as possible and make something happen against one-on-one coverage.

Kerr abandoned his defensive strategy mid-series, mixing up the coverages and sending help to get the ball out of LeBron’s hands once it became clear he might be able to beat the Warriors on his own. Kerr has forced Cleveland’s role players to beat the Dubs and it’s working, but the biggest change is that LeBron’s iso-ball can no longer prevent the Warriors from getting out in transition and playing at a pace they’re more comfortable with.

The Hack-A-Shaq strategy is despicable in nature. It’s not basketball, but it is an unbearable tactic that slows games down to a grinding halt, making the entire essence of the game about free throws (the least fun part of basketball) and denying fans the chance to see greatness by accentuating the flaws of a few poor free throw shooters. It’s honestly baffling that it’s still allowed in 2015, and it’s a detestable practice I’ve been bashing since the first round.

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    • But from Cleveland’s perspective, and the perspective of any team in this position, Hack-A-Shaq is currently still allowed. The Cavaliers would be foolish to not utilize it with their backs against the wall.

    As the last nine quarters have shown us, Golden State’s small-ball lineups make them a better team. They’ve outscored Cleveland by 40 during that span and unless King James drops a 50-15-15 in Game 6, everything we’ve seen from these lineups indicates that the Warriors have figured this series out.

    Blatt needs an ace in the hole that can slow down the tempo, plug up the Warriors’ high-powered offense and accentuate Iguodala’s one fatal flaw. As much as it will burn me up inside to see an elimination Game 6 ruined by this tactic, if I’m David Blatt, I’m going to Hack-A-Shaq as early as the second quarter of Game 6.

    Think about it. LeBron and the Cavs are gassed, running on fumes that have only ignited to Golden State’s explosive offense. James is logging minutes that would be inappropriate misusage for a player in a game of NBA 2K and he needs a breather, but the Cavs don’t have anybody on the bench to go to with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love already out.

    You want to find a use for guys like Shawn Marion, James Jones, Kendrick Perkins and Joe Harris? Put them in the game and let them use every single one of their damn fouls while the starters rest. Maybe a bit hyperbolic, but I’m half-serious. Make a spectacle of it. Go all out and make Game 6 the most miserable viewing experience in recent memory.

    (Even better, going all out with the deplorable Hack-A-Shaq strategy might prompt the league to, you know, freaking change the rule already. The 2015 NBA Finals have been the highest rated Finals ever through five games, so the viewers are there. Imagine if we get an all-time free throw suckfest in Game 6 and Adam Silver has some tangible evidence that Hack-A-Shaq turns off viewers and ruins lives? But I digress.)

    Mr. Blatt, foul Andre Iguodala with the scrubs every single play of second and third quarters if you have to, until Kerr relents and has to pull him before Iggy has a mental breakdown. Doing so gets the LeBron stopper off the floor, prevents Curry or Klay Thompson from heating up and controls the tempo of the game again.

    Hack-A-Shaq has not been proven to work, but the Warriors thrive off the analytics that tell them that three points is greater than two. Their offense is designed to provide good looks from downtown and it doesn’t hurt that they have the best shooter in NBA history. Why not force them to earn points one at a time from the line with their least efficient free throw shooter?

    There’s a chance this is all meaningless conjecture. Maybe LeBron James has another masterful game and that’ll be enough. Maybe his supporting cast steps up just enough to edge the Warriors at home. Maybe Curry leaves his rediscovered shot back in Oakland. Maybe Blatt didn’t even notice the key to the rest of the series at the end of Game 5.

    I hate even suggesting this strategy, so I’d completely understand Blatt and the Cavaliers fan base being flabbergasted by the idea of resorting to such a cheap and irritating tactic.

    But given the fact that this franchise is still awaiting its first championship, not to mention the fact that Matthew Dellavedova is deified by this fan base, I’ve got to think Cavs fans care less about annoying people than they do about winning two more games.

    With a championship on the line and the Cleveland Cavaliers running out of energy and backup plans, what else do they have to lose? Help us, Obi-Hack Kenobi. You’re our only hope.

    Next: Golden State Warriors: 5 Keys To Closing Out The Finals

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