2024 NBA Playoffs - East 1st Round: #4 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. #5 Orlando Magic (CLE WINS 4-3)

[jbk1234]

I applaud JBB's innovative approach of just don't play any of your sucky bench bigs, but I'm not sure how sustainable it is over a 7 game series.

Boston pretty small right now with Porzingis out. Horford and Luke Kornet aren't exactly forcing you to play big.

It's more what will Boston do if we have both Allen and Mobley healthy.

[Bob Ross]

Damn the cowards won. Orlando played a great series for such a young team

[azcatz11]

I respectfully disagree with this,

They are in the East. Young team on the rise. Great defensive team, big and physical. They get some offense player, they will climb as well.

I’ve seen too many stories like this. They are just an average team to me with limited ceiling. Nothing dynamic at all

What other stories were like this?

97 super sonics
2003 bucks
2015 Jazz

The list goes on

[XTC]

Who says no to a Franz - Garland based trade?

Cleveland?

Garland had a tough year due to injuries but the previous two seasons he has averaged 22/8 while making the allstar game, and he just turned 24 a couple months ago.

You don't trade guys like that, you build around them.

[Chuck Everett]

So I was wrong.

I said before the series Magic in 7 and that Paolo would go off and Okoro would be bad. Well, for 6.5 games, it was near accurate. That other .5 though? Okoro came alive. Strus scored all of his points in the 2nd half, Mobley completely walled off the paint with an undersized crew around him while all everyone complains about is that he isn't scoring more. Without his interior defense (with no Allen) in support, the Cavs would not have even made it to this Game 7. He had 12 blocks the last three games of the season and countless contests. Elite defender around the rim.

Here's hoping they get Allen and Wade back for the Celtics series to make it competitive.

[JujitsuFlip]

Good series Magic fans, bright future!

[Message Boar]

We choked and the Cavs deserve to win this, but I don't want to hear Cavs fans complain about officiating ever again. The refs have been a big factor in favor of the Cavs tonight, as is expected in a home game 7 I suppose. Straight up allowed to maul Magic players in the second half while calling ticky tack stuff on the other end.

Suggs got fouled on a 3 twice, no whistle.

That was in favor of the Magic for the entire series up until the second half today

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That's just your Cavs-colored glasses talking. Check your bias. Refereeing was mostly fair this series. Magic are a physical team playing a finesse team in the cavs and it shows in the regular season FT rate.

[FrightCoward]

I’ve seen too many stories like this. They are just an average team to me with limited ceiling. Nothing dynamic at all

What other stories were like this?

97 super sonics
2003 bucks
2015 Jazz

The list goes on

Banchero is going to continue to get better and his playoff performance will give him more confidence going into next season. They’re definitely finishing over .500, lmao.

[babyjax13]

Read on Twitter

on what efficiency lol

61.1% shooting in game 6 (not TS, not EFG, both obviously much higher), 41.% today, but higher efficiency b/c of his insane amount of freethrows

[Handlez]

Franz has potential to be great, but he has a lot of work to do.

Hopefully he doesn't piss away the off-season and actually puts in that work.

[Mad Guru]

Franz has potential to be great, but he has a lot of work to do.

Hopefully he doesn't piss away the off-season and actually puts in that work.

He needs to get his three back

[OldSchoolNoBull]

This is the first time the Cavs have advanced past the first round, without LeBron on the roster, since 1993, in the Daugherty/Nance/Price days.

In fact, it's only the fourth time in franchise history they've advanced past the first round without LeBron - the other two being in 1992 and 1976.

[basketballRob]

Congratulations, Cavs fans!

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[cgf]

Who says no to a Franz - Garland based trade?

Cleveland?

Garland had a tough year due to injuries but the previous two seasons he has averaged 22/8 while making the allstar game, and he just turned 24 a couple months ago.

You don't trade guys like that, you build around them.

Is it going to get better with Mitchell there? Unless Mitchell is leaving, then they can't trade Garland...but if Spida sticks around, I'm not sure it's going to get much better for Garland...even though (in a vacuum) I like his talent more.

Just feels like both would help the other team a lot more than their current team* and a change of scenery could help them bounce back from their struggles this season.

Plus it's not like Franz is some scrub. We're talking about a 6'10" wing who shot over 35% from 3 his first two seasons, is a career 85% guy from the FT line, and has averaged over 18.5ppg & 3.5apg the past two seasons...while making significant progress this season as a rebounder & defender.

*EDIT:
Mitchell | LeVert | Porter
Strus | Merrill | Jerome
Wagner | Okoro | Bates
Mobley | Wade | Niang
Allen

Garland | Anthony
Suggs | Black | Ingles
Isaac | Houstan | Howard
Banchero
Carter | M.Wagner | Bitadze

Both just look a lot more balanced to me

[basketballRob]

Franz has potential to be great, but he has a lot of work to do.

Hopefully he doesn't piss away the off-season and actually puts in that work.

He won a gold last summer and is playing in the Olympics this season. I wish he'd just take 3 pointers all summer, but he has time. The rest of his game and defense improved

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[KazuoOda]

Great showing by the Magic. Paolo is going to be a problem going forward

[bmurph128]

We choked and the Cavs deserve to win this, but I don't want to hear Cavs fans complain about officiating ever again. The refs have been a big factor in favor of the Cavs tonight, as is expected in a home game 7 I suppose. Straight up allowed to maul Magic players in the second half while calling ticky tack stuff on the other end.

Suggs got fouled on a 3 twice, no whistle.

That was in favor of the Magic for the entire series up until the second half today

Sent from my Pixel 6 using RealGM mobile app

That's just your Cavs-colored glasses talking. Check your bias. Refereeing was mostly fair this series. Magic are a physical team playing a finesse team in the cavs and it shows in the regular season FT rate.

The audacity of a comment like that when you said the same thing in reverse for the second half today.

I do feel for Suggs though....letting him get away with committing fouls all series and then actually calling them is rough, even if it was the right thing to do.

And on that note - I'm not talking about free throws.

Sent from my Pixel 6 using RealGM mobile app

[Marvin Martian]

This is the first time the Cavs have advanced past the first round, without LeBron on the roster, since 1993, in the Daugherty/Nance/Price days.

In fact, it's only the fourth time in franchise history they've advanced past the first round without LeBron - the other two being in 1992 and 1976.

Lebron really made that franchise relevant

[bmurph128]

So I was wrong.

I said before the series Magic in 7 and that Paolo would go off and Okoro would be bad. Well, for 6.5 games, it was near accurate. That other .5 though? Okoro came alive. Strus scored all of his points in the 2nd half, Mobley completely walled off the paint with an undersized crew around him while all everyone complains about is that he isn't scoring more. Without his interior defense (with no Allen) in support, the Cavs would not have even made it to this Game 7. He had 12 blocks the last three games of the season and countless contests. Elite defender around the rim.

Here's hoping they get Allen and Wade back for the Celtics series to make it competitive.

Here's my thing with Mobley....if he's a liability on offense (some games he is - can't catch a pass sometimes, can't shoot, can't score on smaller players at times) - to offset that he has to play defense like he did today.

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[jkvonny]

I’ve seen too many stories like this. They are just an average team to me with limited ceiling. Nothing dynamic at all

What other stories were like this?

97 super sonics
2003 bucks
2015 Jazz

The list goes on

'97 Sonics.
57-25, 1st pace Pacific Division (lost SemiFianls to Houston 4-3)
'91-'96, deep playoff runs, winning seasons. Lost NBA Finals to the Bulls (4-2)
1998 finished , 1st place Pacific Division , 61-21. Lost/upset in SemiFinals to younger Lakers team (4-2)
4 division titles during the '90s. 1st seed in the West, twice during that decade.
Older team than Orlando.
They regressed, declined by the late '90s. Aged out.

2003 Bucks
42-42 (lost NJ Nets 4-2)
Older team on the decline.
Regressed in '04, 41-41 but did make the playoff (lost to Pistons 4-1)

Years prior. '99-'01 3 straight winning seasons. Including 1 Central Division title (2001) . 52-30, deep run , lost ECF (Sixers 4-3)
This was already an older, declining team by '03

2015 Jazz
38-44, young team, rebuild year. No playoffs. Losing season.
Afterwards
2016, just missed the playoffs (40-42)
6 straight winning seasons, playoffs. 3 division titles. One 1st seed in the West.
2017, Young team, Northwest Division title. Upset veteran Clips in 1st round (4-3) 51-31. Lost SemiFinals to GSW.
2018 48-34, lost SemiFinals to Rockets (4-1)
2019 50-32, lost first round playoffs (4-1, Rockets)
2020 44-28 lost first round playoffs (4-3, Nuggets)
2021 52-20 , 1 seed in the West, won Northwest Division title. lost SemiFinals to the Clips (4+2)
2022 49-33, won Northwest Division title. Lost 1st round (4-2, Mavs)


What other list?