Game 63: Cavs @ Hawks 2/24/2023

[ijspeelman]

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[afarmenian]

Cavs don't look very interested in this game. Thick of the playoff race and they look bored......this team has problems deeper than talent folks

[afarmenian]

Mitchell's defense has been awful too this small backcourt doesn't look like it's gonna work

[TheLand13]

Mitchell's defense has been awful too this small backcourt doesn't look like it's gonna work

We’re the number one defensive team in the league, I’m not concerned about the small backcourt.

Right now the hawks can’t miss. That’s our biggest problem.

[afarmenian]

Mitchell's defense has been awful too this small backcourt doesn't look like it's gonna work

We’re the number one defensive team in the league, I’m not concerned about the small backcourt.

Right now the hawks can’t miss. That’s our biggest problem.

People keep parroting that like they are suffocating good teams. They are not. They give a lot of bad teams fits with the towers and get blitzed by good teams when the pressure is on. The defense is overrated this is not some juggernaut all tine defensive team like the pistons or spurs. The pace I still maintain throws other teams off at times.

You can't give up 80 points in a half and call yourself a great defensive team

[ijspeelman]

I turned this game on late and watched the first 12 minutes and saw the shots we were missing and they were making and said nah and turned off the game. I’m out and may take a small hiatus from watching. Its been affecting my mood recently

[TheLand13]

Mitchell's defense has been awful too this small backcourt doesn't look like it's gonna work

We’re the number one defensive team in the league, I’m not concerned about the small backcourt.

Right now the hawks can’t miss. That’s our biggest problem.

People keep parroting that like they are suffocating good teams. They are not. They give a lot of bad teams fits with the towers and get blitzed by good teams when the pressure is on. The defense is overrated this is not some juggernaut all tine defensive team like the pistons or spurs. The pace I still maintain throws other teams off at times

No one is claiming they're suffocating teams. But they're the number one defensive team in the league for a reason. Yes, I think our defense would be better with a regular sized SG instead of two small sized guards. The reason I'm pointing out that we have the number one defense is because that's an indicator that we're performing sufficiently enough in that aspect to the point where it's not something we need to be concerned about.

Sometimes, teams are just going to get hot and make everything. It is what it is. That's what's happening right now with the Hawks. Not much we can really do about it other than try to play on to the best of our ability. Either way, I'm not concerned about us getting blitzed against a team that can't miss no matter what we do on the night of a back to back.

[JujitsuFlip]

Mitchell's defense has been awful too this small backcourt doesn't look like it's gonna work

We’re the number one defensive team in the league, I’m not concerned about the small backcourt.

Right now the hawks can’t miss. That’s our biggest problem.

People keep parroting that like they are suffocating good teams. They are not. They give a lot of bad teams fits with the towers and get blitzed by good teams when the pressure is on. The defense is overrated this is not some juggernaut all tine defensive team like the pistons or spurs. The pace I still maintain throws other teams off at times.

You can't give up 80 points in a half and call yourself a great defensive team

I was gonna say, I got rid of the luck excuse long ago but everyone seems comfortable playing that broken record. Honestly, at this point, just get to the playoffs and see what happens.

[TheLand13]

I turned this game on late and watched the first 12 minutes and saw the shots we were missing and they were making and said nah and turned off the game. I’m out and may take a small hiatus from watching. Its been affecting my mood recently

This is a lot like the games from earlier in the season where the opposing team is just making everything regardless of what kind of defense we play. In this case though, it's probably the worst I've ever seen. I go back to the game at one point and I just see a random Hawks player hit a heavily contested off balance three pointer. Like, what are we supposed to do at that point?

[TheLand13]

We’re the number one defensive team in the league, I’m not concerned about the small backcourt.

Right now the hawks can’t miss. That’s our biggest problem.

People keep parroting that like they are suffocating good teams. They are not. They give a lot of bad teams fits with the towers and get blitzed by good teams when the pressure is on. The defense is overrated this is not some juggernaut all tine defensive team like the pistons or spurs. The pace I still maintain throws other teams off at times.

You can't give up 80 points in a half and call yourself a great defensive team

I was gonna say, I got rid of the luck excuse long ago but everyone seems comfortable playing that broken record. Honestly, at this point, just get to the playoffs and see what happens.

That's because it's true. If you have a better explanation for why teams are able to hit a good amount of their three pointers against us despite us contesting their shots, have at it. But I'm not going to act like there's areas we need to improve in when we're doing our part. That's just not logical.

[JujitsuFlip]

People keep parroting that like they are suffocating good teams. They are not. They give a lot of bad teams fits with the towers and get blitzed by good teams when the pressure is on. The defense is overrated this is not some juggernaut all tine defensive team like the pistons or spurs. The pace I still maintain throws other teams off at times.

You can't give up 80 points in a half and call yourself a great defensive team

I was gonna say, I got rid of the luck excuse long ago but everyone seems comfortable playing that broken record. Honestly, at this point, just get to the playoffs and see what happens.

That's because it's true. If you have a better explanation for why teams are able to hit a good amount of their three pointers against us despite us contesting their shots, have at it. But I'm not going to act like there's areas we need to improve in when we're doing our part. That's just not logical.

Well, like I have said all season, it is much easier to shoot over Garland, Mitchell (i almsot called him Sexton, lol), and Okoro than it is KD, Giannis, and Scottie Barnes... Not all contested shots are created equal.

[jbk1234]

Well, if JBB is still the coach, I'm no longer worried about getting out of the 2nd round.

[jbk1234]

Wade got zero 3 point attempt, got pulled when it was a 10 point game, and didn't come back in until garbage time.

[JujitsuFlip]

Well, if JBB is still the coach, I'm no longer worried about getting out of the 2nd round.

Yup, JB will get circles coached around him in a playoff series. He may deserve to start next season, depending what the front office does this summer to fix the gaping holes on the roster. However, it is rather clear JB is most likely not the man for the job.

[jbk1234]

Well, if JBB is still the coach, I'm no longer worried about getting out of the 2nd round.

Yup, JB will get circles coached around him in a playoff series. He may deserve to start next season, depending what the front office does this summer to fix the gaping holes on the roster. However, it is rather clear JB is most likely not the man for the job.

I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt when Rubio, Wade, and Love were all injured (not to mention both Garland and Mitchell missing time). But now with the Cavs and most of our competition at full strength, his ability to identify how what the other team does impacts our ability to execute, and respond appropriately, is really in question.

This isn't an LBJ-led team. We don't have the luxury of doing what we want and forcing the other team to respond. He needs to be more adaptable and I'm not sure he's wired that way.

[JujitsuFlip]

Well, if JBB is still the coach, I'm no longer worried about getting out of the 2nd round.

Yup, JB will get circles coached around him in a playoff series. He may deserve to start next season, depending what the front office does this summer to fix the gaping holes on the roster. However, it is rather clear JB is most likely not the man for the job.

I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt when Rubio, Wade, and Love were all injured (not to mention both Garland and Mitchell missing time). But now with the Cavs and most of our competition at full strength, his ability to identify how what the other team does impacts our ability to execute, and respond appropriately, is really in question.

This isn't an LBJ-led team. We don't have the luxury of doing what we want and forcing the other team to respond. He needs to be more adaptable and I'm not sure he's wired that way.

I would say from his other stops in the NBA as a HC, he's not wired that way.

I think it's the hardest part about a team keeping their tanking coach once they want to try to start winning. Brett Brown obviously isn't a great comparison and his replacement hasn't been much better but JB has never won anything, no one on the roster out side of Danny Green has ever won anything. They just have to find a coach who can actually utilize all the talent, before the talent wants to leave.

[TheLand13]

It's times like these where I really wonder what our team would be like if David Blatt were to come over and coach us now instead of when he did back in 2014. As much as I love LeBron, the one thing I hated about having him around was what it did to David Blatt and his ability to effectively coach the Cavaliers. He never fully bought into Blatt's system and Blatt was too afraid to force him to, opting instead to play to his strengths. Blatt currently lacks that stretch four that would unlock his offense, but with Mobley's three point shot actually falling more during the latter part of the season, the hope and assumption is that it's only a matter of time before Mobley becomes good enough in that regard to have a consistent three point shot.

Unfortunately, it doesn't matter. The way we let him go pretty much burned that bridge and I don't think David has any desire to return to the NBA (edit: apparently he does want to come back to the NBA, at least that was in 2018 so I don't know if he still feels that way. And I doubt he'd want to be back with the Cavs but I could be wrong about that too). And that's an absolute shame, because with the kind of roster we have right now, even though we lack a lot of the perimeter shooting he would want, you don't have to worry about anyone having an ego on this team. They will fully buy into their coaches system and do what is asked of them. And with how brilliant of a coach Blatt is, I have no doubt in my mind that he would find a way to make it work.

It's an absolute shame what we did to him. Firing David Blatt will always be the number one thing that pissed me off the most as a Cavaliers fan. It makes me more angry than the decision.

[jbk1234]

It's times like these where I really wonder what our team would be like if David Blatt were to come over and coach us now instead of when he did back in 2014. As much as I love LeBron, the one thing I hated about having him around was what it did to David Blatt and his ability to effectively coach the Cavaliers. He never fully bought into Blatt's system and Blatt was too afraid to force him to, opting instead to play to his strengths. Blatt currently lacks that stretch four that would unlock his offense, but with Mobley's three point shot actually falling more during the latter part of the season, the hope and assumption is that it's only a matter of time before Mobley becomes good enough in that regard to have a consistent three point shot.

Unfortunately, it doesn't matter. The way we let him go pretty much burned that bridge and I don't think David has any desire to return to the NBA (edit: apparently he does want to come back to the NBA, at least that was in 2018 so I don't know if he still feels that way. And I doubt he'd want to be back with the Cavs but I could be wrong about that too). And that's an absolute shame, because with the kind of roster we have right now, even though we lack a lot of the perimeter shooting he would want, you don't have to worry about anyone having an ego on this team. They will fully buy into their coaches system and do what is asked of them. And with how brilliant of a coach Blatt is, I have no doubt in my mind that he would find a way to make it work.

It's an absolute shame what we did to him. Firing David Blatt will always be the number one thing that pissed me off the most as a Cavaliers fan. It makes me more angry than the decision.

Blatt was a system coach and most system coaches don't work out in the NBA because it's really hard to match the talent available to you to your system. If you build a team around your system then chances are you have to swap more talented players for guys who are a better fit.

To me, trying to turn Mobley into a stretch big is a mistake because he's too talented for that. You're better off finding a coach who is fluid enough to adjust scheme to talent, perceptive enough to spot matchup issues, both positive and negative, and flexible enough to adjust in-game when the opponent is taking away what you planned on doing.

[JujitsuFlip]

It's times like these where I really wonder what our team would be like if David Blatt were to come over and coach us now instead of when he did back in 2014. As much as I love LeBron, the one thing I hated about having him around was what it did to David Blatt and his ability to effectively coach the Cavaliers. He never fully bought into Blatt's system and Blatt was too afraid to force him to, opting instead to play to his strengths. Blatt currently lacks that stretch four that would unlock his offense, but with Mobley's three point shot actually falling more during the latter part of the season, the hope and assumption is that it's only a matter of time before Mobley becomes good enough in that regard to have a consistent three point shot.

Unfortunately, it doesn't matter. The way we let him go pretty much burned that bridge and I don't think David has any desire to return to the NBA (edit: apparently he does want to come back to the NBA, at least that was in 2018 so I don't know if he still feels that way. And I doubt he'd want to be back with the Cavs but I could be wrong about that too). And that's an absolute shame, because with the kind of roster we have right now, even though we lack a lot of the perimeter shooting he would want, you don't have to worry about anyone having an ego on this team. They will fully buy into their coaches system and do what is asked of them. And with how brilliant of a coach Blatt is, I have no doubt in my mind that he would find a way to make it work.

It's an absolute shame what we did to him. Firing David Blatt will always be the number one thing that pissed me off the most as a Cavaliers fan. It makes me more angry than the decision.

Blatt was diagnosed with MS and has retired from coaching.

I liked the prospect of Blatt as the Cavs head coach with a roster of Kyrie, Waiters, Wiggins, Bennett, TT, Zeller, Gee, Jack, Andy, Karasev, Hopson, Joe Harris, and Felix.

But I was all onboard with firing Blatt, once LeBron and Love were brought on, Blatt was out of his depth. There were multiple examples of him not understanding the NBA, he never played or was any level of coach at the NBA level, prior to his hire. 31-11 was cool but I doubt the Cavs have the lone banner if Griff didn't make that move.

[TheLand13]

Blatt was a system coach and most system coaches don't work out in the NBA because it's really hard to match the talent available to you to your system. If you build a team around your system then chances are you have to swap more talented players for guys who are a better fit.

He may be a system coach, but the 2015 playoffs showcased his ability to make key adjustments based on the talent available to him at hand. It was a key reason as to why the Cavaliers were able to sweep the 60 win Hawks and why they were able to take a 2-1 lead over Golden State.

To me, trying to turn Mobley into a stretch big is a mistake because he's too talented for that. You're better off finding a coach who is fluid enough to adjust scheme to talent, perceptive enough to spot matchup issues, both positive and negative, and flexible enough to adjust in-game when the opponent is taking away what you planned on doing.

I'm not saying Mobley should permanently be a stretch four. But I think that in order for the team to take the next step, he has to develop that consistent three point shot. He has shown that he's already very good in the paint and can even flat out dominate there. But I think that he needs to become either our number one or two option on offense for us to be consistent title contenders. I can't see that happening unless he develops that shot.

Blatt was diagnosed with MS and has retired from coaching.

Oh.

Well so much for that idea.