Cavalier effort???

[highplainsdrifter]

I am not a great analyzer of basketball, but it seems to me the Cavs do not play with consistent energy. A LeBron dunk may get them going, but then a bad call and they lose their focus. I think our problems with poor defense, road games, falling behind may be due to a lack of heart/hustle.

Why is our defense so bad? Mike Brown is a supposed great defensive coach? Maybe our defensive schemes need a tweak here and there, but you play D with hustle and energy. Mike Brown may be a great teacher, but i question his ability to motivate.

At home the fans are there and help you get fired up. On the road you got to look within and fire yourself up in a hostile place. We have no killer instinct on the road.

The team still seems to defer to LeBron too much. All the guys gotta play at a high level, not just LeBron. Do our role players have the confidence in their games, or do they expect LeBron to bail them out every time?

And LeBron Z and all players need to quit bitchin at the refs. Keep your head in the game! LeBron himself said that 5 sec backdown call took the life out of the team, sapped their energy. If you need to rely on the refs to win a game, you need to check yourself! I think the team needs to go to Rucker Park in Harlem and play some streetball. Refs aint gonna help you there!

I was a Psych major in college, and i just think our recent struggles are partly due to a effort/energy thing. Maybe theyre thinking too much out there. Get MEAN! Be FEROCIOUS!!!

Is it possible to play at a high level for 48 min both ends of the floor?.....

 

[ootbttnlagitnbasf]

yes. maybe if we are meaner and more ferocious the refs will give us the calls we deserve. we need to think less. that's the ticket.

 

[Dungong]

I agree here, the Cavs do WAY to much talking to the refs. Lebron is basically in there yapping after every foul and especially the non-calls. Z is another complainer. Basically, once a foul is called, I have NEVER seen anyone reverse a foul, its not going to happen so quit bitching about it.

The Cavs also dont play that well under adversity. If they blew a big lead or another team gets on a run, the team just doesn't handle it very well and goes to 2 options. 1) chucking 3 pointers praying they go in and 2) giving it to Lebron and seeing what happens.

Weve mentioned home court, but really I dont think the Q gives that much of an advantage. I've only heard the crowd a handful of times this season. The refs might be nicer, the rims might clang louder, or maybe they play more music than other arenas, but I just dont see much there. That being said, the Cavs don't play well on the road in loud arenas, so maybe its just a road disadvantage, not so much a home court advantage.

 

[LyXo]

Our focus is on the offensive game.

LeBron, Drew, Z, Damon Jones, Donyell Marshall... all offense first players.

When offense gives us drive, then stagnation leads to loss of effort and energy. It's a basic principle. If you're in the mindset that you need to score to win, then if you can't score, you give up. Confidence is shot. On the flipside, if we score, if we dunk, if we run it to them, then coincidentally our defense improves and we look like a great team.

What Mike Brown is trying to do is change someone's inherent behaivior. Will it work? Can he? It's no easy task.

Should he change plans? Should he focus on getting our offense going and get that energy translated to the defensive side? Or will he continue to preach only defense, defense, defense, until it gets into the skulls of our players?

Until we beat somebody by holding them to under 70 points, I don't think he's going to stop hammering and start some offensive sets. I don't think he gives up this season, it's a long process.

One suggestion to Mr. Brown: Hire the And-1 squad. Make them play pickup with our players. However, it will be in a half court setting. And the And-1 squad is the only side that can play offense. When they make something, it's 2-3 points. Then they get the ball back. The Cavs score points when they get stops. 1 steal = 1 point. 1 block = 1 point. 1 rebound = 1 point. Why the And-1 squad? So they get humiliated and pissed off when the Professor bounces the ball off the King's head. Do it until they win.

 

[Karma]

There is definately a problem with the teams intensity level from the opening tip. We come across as if we are just going through the motions. You dont see LeBron and co pumped up by an early play, just late in the game. We just need to lift and be desperate to make stops from the start, not just when we are trying to make a run back into the game.

 

[Rimage]

Newble and AV aren't the best players, but they do the little things. They both work really hard to get everything they can. Talent is not a problem. Making a trade is not going to get us more talent. Every game, the only player I see out there not taking a break is Snow but he is getting older. Also, maybe Z, but as good as Z is he does have his limitations. Gooden, Marshall, Hughes, Jones and yes, even Lebron all have a had specific times when they just don't look like they care. Maybe they have to suffer these humiliating defeats in order to understand that just stacking a team full of talent does garauntee anything.

 

[Pioneer10]

AV and Tractor used to get the energy up last year. Gooden especially seemed to respond to those two. While Marshall has his strength he's not exactly the vocal type. We don't have Tractor but AV will really help with the intensity when he comes back

 

[Rimage]

Oh, another thing. Mike Wilks?...I wouldn't be opposed (from what I saw) to having Wilks backup Snow and having Jones backup up Hughes. Wilks is a hustle guy as well and he looked pretty nice out their. He is sort of what we need out there.

 

[Karma]

Wilks could be used in small patches to change the tempo. Its hard to describe his game but what it is is 100 mile an hour. Sometimes a player like that can help for small segemnts to lift the teams energy levels. varejao did this at a higher level last season, and Wilks to a smaller extent can attempt to do the same.

 

[highplainsdrifter]

After watching the Atlanta game, it seems the Cavs simply got outplayed. How could this happen? Against the worst team in the NBA? At Home? I say lack of Cavalier Effort. They were playing in MUD the whole night. No Energy.

I really am starting to doubt Mike Browns ability to motivate. He may be a good teacher, but what we need is not a new lesson. We need someone to tell the Cavaliers to get your heads out your ass!!! We got outhustled by Atlanta tonite. There is no excuse. Its not what you do, but HOW YOU DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[CleveRocks]

Mike Wilks?...I wouldn't be opposed (from what I saw) to having Wilks backup Snow

OMG you must be insane. Wilks is further from starting than Zendon Hamilton. He looks good because our point guard play is pathetic. This is a guy who is unable to crack a rotation behind the third worst pair or point guards in the league.

There is obviously a problem with effort on the team, and someone is going to have to do something. I would put this in part on Lebron. If there are problems in the locker room, he is either the problem or the solution because it is in effect his team. He has to decide if he is going to be the next Paul Pierce, or the next Micheal Jordan.