Cleveland Cavaliers: 5 takeaways from 2017-18 Media Day
1. Establish an identity
This was the biggest takeaway from Media Day and it is the most important.
The Cavaliers have struggled with this since the Lue/James era began. They’ve switched between being a balanced and 3-point shooting team for the last few years. They won a championship by playing a balanced offense, but they struggled by reverting to a 3-point shooting one.
In order for an offense like that to work, you need the personnel, and the Cavs didn’t have it. James and Irving were taking too many shots from long range, and everybody else followed suit besides Thompson.
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I understand it’s the way the league is trending, but it makes sense to stick with what works.
As stated in the last section, Lue mentioned that the offense will stay the same…but for how long?
In reading my articles, a lot of you know that I’m old school when it comes to what offense is ran. I’m all about ball movement, passing from the outside/in, and finding the open man. Taking 98 shots a night is not a winning formula for many.
Yes, it works for the Warriors, but they drafted the correct pieces and parts to that team for it to work. Cleveland had those pieces last year when it ranked second in 3-point percentage, attempts and makes en route to the league’s third-ranked offense. But the Cavs may not be that team anymore.
The additions of Rose and Wade make this more of a dribble-penetration team. It will fix another problem that Cleveland had last year. Let Smith, Korver and the guards shoot threes, but everybody else should be driving to the basket trying to score or draw the foul.
Imagine James and Crowder coming at a defense full-speed in transition. Does it make sense for them to complete the drive, or pull up at the line and shoot a three? I think most would pick the latter.
It took the Cavs until the postseason last year to find themselves, and once they did, they were unstoppable. They started out 10-0, and didn’t look back.
They must find out early that they’re better suited as a balanced team than a 3-point shooting one. The Cavs cannot wait that long again to realize their potential. Once they figure that out, the league might as well fast forward to the playoffs.
Next: HoopsHabit 2017-18 NBA playoff field predictions
Media Day 2017-18 was full of expectations and a new beginning without Irving. It all begins on Wednesday night against the Atlanta Hawks in the preseason. Let the games begin!