The Cleveland Cavaliers Still Have Issues
The Cleveland Cavaliers showed that they still have issues to address in the loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday.
Well, the results of this game were a lot different than March of last season for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Kyrie Irving didn’t have 57 points and the game didn’t go into overtime. It was a hard fought game by both teams from start to finish. While the Cavaliers dominated the first half, the San Antonio Spurs took over the rest of the game. The Cavaliers were all out of sorts with turnovers and terrible shot selections. They had 17 turnovers compared to the Spurs’ 11.
This was also one of the more poorly officiated games that I have seen in a while. As a sports journalist, I avoid blaming any kind of supreme force, fans or officials deciding the outcome of a game, but this was pretty bad. For example, in the third quarter, Irving shot a corner three-pointer and had such physical contact that he fell to the ground, and nothing was called. As frustrating a game that it was, the Cavaliers played through it, but still fell short.
Many national pundits believe that this was a preview of the NBA Finals. While the game was full of excitement to the very end, the Spurs were the better prepared team. They overcame a 12-point deficit and made halftime adjustments which led them to victory. The biggest change was the Spurs realizing that the Cavaliers weren’t very aggressive inside defensively and the bench scoring.
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The Spurs bench scored 35 combined points, which is right around their average of 40.4 bench points per game. They are the best team in the NBA in this category. The Cavaliers only scored 12. They average 28.2 bench points per game, and that is 16th best in the league. That can’t occur on a team with championship aspirations, whether it is the regular season or playoffs.
It was a great win for the Spurs, but it showed even bigger issues with the Cavaliers. They have to consider trading for an aggressive, interior presence while also looking for another scoring threat for the rotation.
Kevin Love and Timofey Mozgov got bullied inside by David West, LaMarcus Aldridge and Tim Duncan all game long. West elbowed Love numerous times in the chest and he failed to hold his ground against him. During the second to last possession, Duncan took the ball right at Love for the easy basket. Mozgov looked lost for most of the game and only contributed two rebounds. His footwork was questionable, and he looked liked he wanted no part of being in the game.
For new readers, you might think this is a “hot take,” but this has been a problem with the team since the season began.
David Blatt has potentially went into playoff protection mode with Anderson Varejao, and he only plays Sasha Kaun during garbage time. They could be the rim protectors the team needs, but they are averaging a combined 0.8 blocks per game. That’s not good. Mozgov was originally brought here to fill that void and he has failed atrociously this season at it.
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There have been numerous rumors of Phoenix Suns forward Markieff Morris being on the trading block. A lot of fans have pondered at the Cavaliers trading for him. He is averaging 10.4 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. His blocks per game leave a lot to be desired at 0.3, but he brings all the intangibles the Cavaliers would need, even as a stretch power forward.
He plays with attitude (sometimes too much) and could be that physical presence the team needs off the bench and during certain game situations. Statistically, he has career lows across the board, but most of it could be attributed to the disappointing season by the Suns and his issues with head coach Jeff Hornacek.
I think it would put the Cavaliers over the top, and would be the deciding factor of winning the Finals. Because as they are currently constructed, they would potentially do well against the Golden State Warriors–but would struggle immensely against the Spurs without a physical interior defensive presence.
The other issue is scoring off the bench.
Just like with Varejao, Blatt has put Mo Williams into playoff protection mode. Without Williams, most of the scoring has been put on Matthew Dellavedova and Iman Shumpert. Richard Jefferson and James Jones have their rare moments at times. Dellavedova played well all year for the Cavaliers, but he should not be relied upon as an offensive threat. Shumpert has good scoring ability, but he was brought in to make a difference on the defensive end. Anything he contributes on offense is a bonus.
In one of my articles a few months back, I mentioned how the Cavaliers should either trade for Lance Stephenson or Jamal Crawford. I was with trading for Stephenson since he was the most like Shumpert due to his injury history. I also made a case for Crawford since he would be automatic offense and could be relied upon when the team was struggling to score.
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Well, the Los Angeles Clippers have won nine games in a row and he has helped contribute to it. There are future free agent guards/forwards available, but teams would likely want too much back for them.
Whether it is through the Canton Charge of the D-League or via trade, the Cavaliers have to do something to address these issues quickly.