Iman Shumpert: Gone! Thank God!

[David.]

Look, mozl

Mozgov is the most replaceable? You do remember the defense before Mozgov got here right? He helps the team out so much in multiple ways. Before Love got hurt, those two were a dynamic duo. Mozgov runs the floor well, hits FTs, and can knock down jumpers.

I think he can continue to improve and grow his game. He is a huge part of this team. I'd actually rank Mozgov as the most important piece we acquired ahead of both Shumpert and Smith.

Look, moz is a tall guy. No one is taking that away from him.

He is far from a remarkable player.

We need the position, but good Lord can we upgrade on the specific player playing it.

Out of our core 8, I put him at 8th best at being good at basketball.

 

[Jordan]

Look, mozl

Look, moz is a tall guy. No one is taking that away from him.

He is far from a remarkable player.

We need the position, but good Lord can we upgrade on the specific player playing it.

Out of our core 8, I put him at 8th best at being good at basketball.

I think he's a good, athletic seven footer. But I agree. He provides solid paint defense and is minimally mobile. His offensive game is incredibly simple and he is a liability against big men with an outside shot. I think his skill set works well with what our current system needs in a center (paint protector) but, if a more talented center arises, I think it should be looked at. The dilemma is I don't know if anyone available or in the draft is better than Moz.

 

[TitleTown]

Look, mozl

Look, moz is a tall guy. No one is taking that away from him.

He is far from a remarkable player.

We need the position, but good Lord can we upgrade on the specific player playing it.

Out of our core 8, I put him at 8th best at being good at basketball.

I mean, no. Just, no.

Here's why:

Were we looking at all players as equal, then sure. But how many 7 footers can move like he moves, hit a mid-range jumper, run the floor, and play good defense?

Besides, who would we get to replace him, and what would the cost be?

All things considered, Moz is perfect, he's the right price, he plays his role. My only complaint is that he could be more consistently aggressive and have better hands catching the ball at times.

But I don't see who we could afford as an upgrade.

 

[Jscc]

His offensive game is incredibly simple and he is a liability against big men with an outside shot.

Centers with outside shots are called power forwards and they are the exception, not the norm.

 

[Posterchild]

Look, mozl

Look, moz is a tall guy. No one is taking that away from him.

He is far from a remarkable player.

We need the position, but good Lord can we upgrade on the specific player playing it.

Out of our core 8, I put him at 8th best at being good at basketball.

Does this include Delly?

 

[Jordan]

Centers with outside shots are called power forwards and they are the exception, not the norm.

Al Horford, Pau Gasol, Andrew Bogut, and Tiago Splitter amongst others can step outside of the paint and score. So no, centers who can step out of the paint and score are not an exception. I can see where my post is flawed as I meant more of a midrange game than 3pt shot but it still stands.

Listen, I really like Moz and I think he is the best we can currently find. But to pretend he is an elite center is just wrong. He is perfect for this team unless we can find someone better.

 

[Kizzle]

I saw Shumpert has only shot 36% so far from 3. I was surprised by that because it just seems like every 3 he hits is important. Honestly I can't remember a lot of Shumpert misses but defensively this man is killing.

He's also good at being that random guy that scores when we need it. Dude has stepped up his game this playoffs and his increase in minutes supports that. Definitely one of my favorite players. Oh and keep in mind he's only 24. He could realistically be here as long as Kyrie.

 

[kovanovich]

This should go in the Mozgov thread, but I don't know what more you could reasonably want from this team's center. I sort of criticized Griffin for becoming fixated on him as a trade target, but I don't think even Griffin could have guessed Mozgov would put up a 62% TS on higher usage than in Denver (where his TS was a pedestrian 55%). All advanced stats show a dramatic improvement in his performance once he arrived in Cleveland. So does PER (18.7 in Cleveland). He obviously was key to turning the defense, and the season, around. He developed chemistry with LeBron very quickly on the pick and roll, and LeBron clearly likes playing with him. Plus, he seems to have no problem accepting his role. The question is whether the Cavs can afford him after the coming season, given their likely team salary profile. I don't know who you could plausibly find as an upgrade, unless the Cavs chance upon a player like Hassan Whiteside.

Bringing this back to Shumpert, I think he is important too, and is a near perfect fit between LeBron and Kyrie.

 

[I'mWithDan]

I saw Shumpert has only shot 36% so far from 3. I was surprised by that because it just seems like every 3 he hits is important. Honestly I can't remember a lot of Shumpert misses but defensively this man is killing.

Shump shot 36% (14/39) against Chicago and then 43% (9/21) against Atlanta.

He's been shooting incredibly well the last two series on an increased number of attempts.

 

[CosmoKramer]

He's a guy I'd like to keep but I wouldn't be heart broken if he left. Shumpert is a better fit between Irving and James and is younger than Smith. Ideally the Cavs keep both, but both have to be re-signed. It's easier to find a scorer off the bench than it is to replace a young, top-notch perimeter defender like Shumpert.

Count me among those that would be heart broken if JR leaves this summer.

Calling him a scorer off the bench is an understatement, he also started 45 games for us in the regular season and was one of the best volume shooters from deep in the entire league. He's been even better coming off the bench in the playoffs, become a two-way force while upping his efficiency as well. He completely buried the Hawks in Game 1, then was arguably the second best player for us in Games 3 & 4.

Replacing him would be tough, he's big (6'6'', 220 lbs, 6'11'' wingspan), has a quick release and limitless range, can effectively guard both wing positions, and is one of only a handful of players capable of shooting over 39% on 7+ three-point attempts a game (his numbers as a Cav). It's not a matter of which one, both him and Shump need to be retained.

 

[rabman_gold]

The luck we had this season turning Dion (and talent-less bodies) into the 3 players we received was price-less.

But the reason getting Moz was so important we because the usual price tag that comes with getting 7 footers. Normally it costs a lot to just get a productive 7 footer. We were fortunate, to say the least.

Meanwhile (to make this post relevant to Shumpy), he gave us exactly what we needed throughout the year. He has a future here. J.R. may have given us a lot, but I compare getting him to the Pistons getting Rasheed for their miracle run in 2004. It worked for 2 NBA Finals appearances.

Whatever happens, Shumpy and Moz were worth it. Hope they stick around a while during this and future playoff runs.

 

[Hydroponic3385]

I still can't fathom it...how the fuck did we get Mozgov (well half of him), Shumpert and Smith for Waiters?

 

[Damien O'Connel]

I still can't fathom it...how the fuck did we get Mozgov (well half of him), Shumpert and Smith for Waiters?

Because Sam Presti

 

[614balling]

Shump doesn't give you Jr's offense and I don't really even think he's a better defender than jr. If he is its not by that much. I'll give shump the edge on strips and steals and Jr the edge on blocks and overall d. Crazy the things I'm hearing from fans recently.

 

[blommen]

Shump doesn't give you Jr's offense and I don't really even think he's a better defender than jr. If he is its not by that much. I'll give shump the edge on strips and steals and Jr the edge on blocks and overall d. Crazy the things I'm hearing from fans recently.

Shump is not only a better defender than JR, he is a much much better defender. J.R. is a good defender but he tends to lose focus and end up ball-watching a bit, which can lead to breakdowns in the defense. a good example would be the multitude of backcuts i believe Chicago scored on us in rapid succession. When he is focused he is actually pretty damn good, good speed and hands and tough enough to not give up.

Shumperts defense is just on another level, tbh. First of all, he doesn't suffer the same lapses as JR, he rarely makes mistakes and has ridiculous instincts and reaction time. he is also younger and faster and at least as strong as JR, if not stronger. I think people were so surprised that JR wasn't absolute death on defense that they ended up overhyping it a bit too much, tbh, whereas Shumpert was nursing an injury for so long that his defense initially seemed a bit underwhelming. the work he has done during the playoffs should have convinced people just how special he is on defense, I'm kind of shocked that some people actually think JR is as good, or even better.