David Blatt is a former NBA coach

[Kypus]

- We need to continue to play hard and keep our rhythm. Although it would give us a change to rest some guys. But we're not gonna change the way we play. We want to continue to prepare for the playoffs.

Music to my ears. Glad he's going to pretty much keep the pedal down to keep us in rhythm for Game 1 of Series 1. Been thru too much "we'll turn it on when (insert player) gets back for the playoffs" in past years. I remember thinking we'd be alright when Larry Hughes came back before the playoffs. I remember thinking we'd be fine because Shaq was coming back. Nuh-uh Step on their throats!

 

[Paul]

Did anyone else notice a ramped up physicality on the Cavs' part in the last 2 games. It seemed like there was almost a gameplan in place to go out there and inflict some hits on the opposing players. Nothing real dirty but it did feel more proactive than reactive if that makes any sense. In most of the other games I've seen it usually was the other team initiating the rough stuff, usually on LeBron.

I recall a couple of hard shoulders being delivered onto the Bulls players in the Bulls game (LeBron and Shumpert), and I think Mozgov got a real hard elbow into Mayo yesterday. TT had a couple yesterday. LeBron also had a couple others where he seemed to be sort of shoving guys out of the way after he finished a dunk or a move to the basket where he was fouled. It's kind of nice to see, im wondering if this was a gameplan from Blatt to sort of go out there and make sure they "felt" us. Perhaps a ramping up sort of thing before playoffs.

 

[Cavatt]

It is tough to watch the scrubs, but Blatt has done a good job doing what we wanted Mike Brown to do, which was play the young guys and he has consistently looked at his bench throughout the year to see what he can get out of them. I just like so much that he is willing to try something else when his primary move isn't working.

 

[teamballer]

Here is @Chris Parker's latest piece on Blatt, interviewing two of his former players. My favorite quote is below:

“You take it week to week. Literally you can be the villain and as far as players go, be ready to be shipped back to America on Monday and everybody is writing these nasty things about you all throughout the week,” Blu recalls. “Then you play a game and you guys win and all of a sudden you’re a hero.”

Sounds a lot like the Cleveland press pit. Apparently only the bylines change, never the story. Hell, they probably even have their own Brian Windhorst, which is a shame, because we’re open to offers.

http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and...r-maccabi-players-talk-about-the-coachs-style

 

[Paul]

Does anyone think that one mostly overlooked possibility in all of this is that Blatt may actually be a positive x factor for the Cavs playoff hopes? I think it was tough for Blatt, especially before he had seen each team once. He seemed to do very well in "revenge games" or whatever you want to call it when you play the same opponent after a loss.

Some things I think are more or less givens at this point:

1)Blatt is very smart

2)Blatt is an experienced coach, although he is less familiar with the NBA

3)He tends to thrive wherever he goes

4) He works very hard, probably harder than the average NBA coach because the Cavaliers are a high profile playoff team and also I think just because it's in his nature. It's possible he struggled early on in part due to the fact that there simply wasn't time for him to get up to speed. Lack of days off...lack of practice days, changing roster etc...basically having to deal with day to day coaching duties while also learning the league on the fly.


In the playoffs, he will be able to focus in and have more time and energy to develop a clear plan. Also he will be able to adapt and make adjustments. The other NBA coaches he faces will be talented as well, but I think Blatt may have more potential to shine in these situations. He just had too much going on especially in the first couple of months..now that he's familiar with the league and will be able to focus on one opponent at a time, I think we may be pleasantly surprised to discover that he's not just some random stiff, but actually an asset.

 

[nikolajz1]

One of the only things I hate about Blatt is how defensive and awkward his interviews are. He comes off as quite dislikable to the general public.

 

[blommen]

One of the only things I hate about Blatt is how defensive and awkward his interviews are. He comes off as quite dislikable to the general public.

I vehemently disagree. Sure, he can come off as defensive but that's only when people ask him bullshit questions that aren't about basketball ('cause why would you want to ask a basketball coach about basketball, right?) When people ask these kinds of questions he shuts them down and I can appreciate that, no reason to waste time on that shit. Whenever someone actually asks a proper question he is both forthcoming and eloquent in his rhetoric, with a pretty sharp sense of humour.

 

[Cayman13]

One of the only things I hate about Blatt is how defensive and awkward his interviews are. He comes off as quite dislikable to the general public.

Because the Cleveland media are a bunch of tools and he's probably tired of taking their crap.

 

[TitleTown]

One of the only things I hate about Blatt is how defensive and awkward his interviews are. He comes off as quite dislikable to the general public.

Who cares?! Popovich has done this for years--long before he was regarded as one of the best coaches ever. Fuck the media--this isn't a popularity contest.

 

[Splitz]

One of the only things I hate about Blatt is how defensive and awkward his interviews are. He comes off as quite dislikable to the general public.

What good does a media darling do for us? A few more favorable articles here and there? Forget all that. All that matters are the results and no matter what you say about the talent level of our squad, Blatt can be judged on the result. This is a Championship squad. Once Griff gave Blatt the proper personnel, he seemlessly integrated it and got instant results. That cannot be underscored enough. The impact of the new players was instant. I don't think that happens without an extremely special coach.

 

[Man Called X]

At this point, I might just have to convert to Jewish if we win a championship.

 

[Kbiz]

Playoff series are won by adapting to match-ups, something MB rarely did. He would trot out the same lineups, almost up to the minute EVERY game. We were fortunate enough to have pre-prime LBJ who willed our team to wins countless times before he took his talents to South Beach.

I am very anxious to see how Blatt manages different lineups, game-to-game. I just hope he is as smart as i think he is. Only time will tell.

 

[SteelSmack]

Once Griff gave Blatt the proper personnel, he seemlessly integrated it and got instant results. That cannot be underscored enough. The impact of the new players was instant. I don't think that happens without an extremely special coach.

I'm a fan of Blatt's. He does some things that concern me, but overall, I think he's a very good coach. Certainly top 10, in my books, and close to top 5 (and honestly I'd have a hard time listing 5 coaches that I'd rather have than him).

That said, if it takes perfect personnel to get results, all while having the best player in the game on your team. And Kyrie. And Love. That's... concerning.

Now there certainly can be something said for the way LeBron played and led this team at the beginning of the season. For a coach to get past that and get his team to the 2nd seed is pretty impressive.

 

[Paul]

What good does a media darling do for us? A few more favorable articles here and there? Forget all that. All that matters are the results and no matter what you say about the talent level of our squad, Blatt can be judged on the result. This is a Championship squad. Once Griff gave Blatt the proper personnel, he seemlessly integrated it and got instant results. That cannot be underscored enough. The impact of the new players was instant. I don't think that happens without an extremely special coach.

I agree the squad is good enough to at least be in the conversation. The trades for Mozgov and Smith and Shumpert were huge. I think the next step will be to gradually phase out the veterans who were brought in and replace them with players who are either promising young players who have low salaries and upside, or bring in some new free agents who are more in their prime. I'd really like to see us find a defensive minded player who can run the fast break and shoot 3s. A player like that would be a great off the bench guy to rep LeBron or Love. We have so much offense in LeBron, Love, and Kyrie, that I think we need more defensive minded guys, but guys who can be trusted to make an open shot. DeMarre Carrol definitely comes to mind as a guy who would fit well. I think he could play multiple positions and score when he needs to while also playing great defense. Lou Williams would also be a great guy to get, so that we could have a spark plug coming off the bench. A shot blocking reserve center might also be nice. Unfortunately the veterans we brought in are all a year or two past the point of where they can be big contributors for us, or so it seems. They've been great as mentors and I think it's helped get us ready for this year's playoffs, but we need more depth to help protect us against injuries and so we can get more points from our bench.

I think us winning it all this year is not super likely but there's obviously a shot. But if we can hold the core together and get a couple nice free agents in there, I think we could make a real good run at things in the next few years.

 

[crabbyshark]

Once Griff gave Blatt the proper personnel, he seemlessly integrated it and got instant results. That cannot be underscored enough. The impact of the new players was instant. I don't think that happens without an extremely special coach.

The new players have all spoken highly of Blatt. But after the trades happened, LeBron bought in a little bit and that has been more responsible for the "instant results" than anything else.