Game Thread | Game #21 | Cavs @ Raptors | Nov. 28, 2022

[Dr. Claw]

When Cedi is in bad Cedi mode, he’s tough to stomach

true, but strangely enough Cedi was so far down the list of what made me mad. At least he was out there hustling.

 

[jjvors]

I’m as old school as anybody too but were the dudes you and I were playing with as big as fast or as strong as these NBA guys??? Yeah I didn’t think so.

I remember the fastest player on our amateur team could run a 10-flat 100-yard dash. (I'm that old.) I asked our player-coach if he could play in the NBA if he were 6 7. (He was a 6-foot guard.) He said, "Maybe. He might not be fast enough."

So many NBA players have a lightning first step that they're past you and laying up the ball before you can jump. Then when they're 220 or 240 or 250, are you really going to step in front of them? More than once?

That's why the players get tired.

 

[Smooth]

 

[Dr No]

This is the modern NBA. You win some games because you can’t miss from 3. You lose some games because you can’t throw it in the ocean. It’s an ugly game when it’s one of the latter. But if we hit 17 instead of 7 3’s (roughly the same % that Toronto shot) it’s a blowout win.

 

[Dr. Claw]

This is what actually made me mad. Just a horrible night shooting.

The looks were good. People took the shots that they got open, the hoop did not agree. A bummer in all phases.

I might have to backpedal a BIT about the offense complaints, but they really need to chill with the 1 on 1.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

So on 37 of the 38 three-point attempts the closest Raptor was at least four feet away, which means they really weren't a factor.

This bodes well for future games where the Cavs will not be playing with dead legs. Also, when Allen, Love, and Rubio are back I don't see Okoro, Wade, and LeVert getting as many minutes as they did last night when they went 3-for-15 from deep.

 

[Cavatt]

So on 37 of the 38 three-point attempts the closest Raptor was at least four feet away, which means they really weren't a factor.

This bodes well for future games where the Cavs will not be playing with dead legs. Also, when Allen, Love, and Rubio are back I don't see Okoro, Wade, and LeVert getting as many minutes as they did last night when they went 3-for-15 from deep.

They Blew plenty of close looks too if we are being honest. Bad game.

 

[stick]

I'm still trying to figure out why the hell Diakite was on GLeague assignment after the game he had Sunday. His plane ticket to Canada should've been purchased and hand delivered midway through the second quarter.

Diakite matches up well with the Toronto '6'8"' roster and he was bouncy and energetic the other day which would have helped Monday.

Lopez is not a good matchup with Toronto. He did set some decent screens, but was getting run by all over the court. And even though the Cavs couldn't buy a bucket, Robin has WIDE open players on the baseline he elected not to pass to on multiple occasions. One of those times was Wade. Yes, Okoro was the other but even still... It's the right play to make instead of a long ass setup for a contested/swarmed paint miss.

Ultimately, Cavs lost because they couldn't buy the open shots they generated in the half court. The defense was fine, Toronto hit some stupid ass contested shots, and I walk away from the game not very impressed with the Raptors. Holding Donovan to sub 10 points is impressive, but Mitchell himself would've had better looks had the role players (well, pretty much everyone) hit the wide the fuck open shots and adjusted the Raptors defense a bit. Mitchell was missing decent looks too, but couldn't get any consistent inside-out rhythm going with the clogged paint.

Cavs going through a mini cold spell. Tired legs likely play a role. Shooting displays like Monday shouldn't be the norm.

Pascal 'Off-Arm' Siakam has a really annoying game to watch. Credit to him for his tough makes, but goodness gracious.

 

[Jscc]

I remember the fastest player on our amateur team could run a 10-flat 100-yard dash. (I'm that old.) I asked our player-coach if he could play in the NBA if he were 6 7. (He was a 6-foot guard.) He said, "Maybe. He might not be fast enough."

So many NBA players have a lightning first step that they're past you and laying up the ball before you can jump. Then when they're 220 or 240 or 250, are you really going to step in front of them? More than once?

That's why the players get tired.

I was researching this a while ago. In an NBA game, the average player can burn up to 2000 calories in 40 minutes. If they're running around screens all game trying to get open like Curry, that could be as many as 3000 calories. The average person would likely need to be on their exercise bike for over two hours going as fast as they could to exert that much energy.

I recall watching Brian Scalabrine take on 3 average Joes at once in a pickup game. They could not score a single point on him and he won like 10-0 against all 3 guarding him at once. This was after he had been out of the league for almost 10 years at around 40. NBA players are the purest and greatest athletes in the world imo.

 

[Ohioplayer00]

This is the modern NBA. You win some games because you can’t miss from 3. You lose some games because you can’t throw it in the ocean. It’s an ugly game when it’s one of the latter. But if we hit 17 instead of 7 3’s (roughly the same % that Toronto shot) it’s a blowout win.

Live by the jump shot…..die by the jump shot!

 

[Randolphkeys]

So on 37 of the 38 three-point attempts the closest Raptor was at least four feet away, which means they really weren't a factor.

This bodes well for future games where the Cavs will not be playing with dead legs. Also, when Allen, Love, and Rubio are back I don't see Okoro, Wade, and LeVert getting as many minutes as they did last night when they went 3-for-15 from deep.

The Cavs really felt the loss of Love in that Toronto game.

We treat Wade with kid gloves around here, but I do understand he was out and unable to work out much with that infection. His defense looked sloppy and his shot is a mess. I think he can get back to where he was to start the season fairly quickly, but he was clearly working his way back, and with him went all our reliable spacing for the guards.

Of course, I would say the same about Cedi clearly playing while sick and LeVert trying to get back after the ankle injury, but those two don't get the long leash of Drippy Dean. Plain and simple - the role players are important to give guys like Mobley, Garland and Mitchell the space to operate... and without reliable outside shooting they cheated off the role players with ease.

I see all of those role players as excusable off nights, especially at the end of the road trip. Sometimes it's not your night, especially with Toronto only playing twice in the past week and completely fresh. I just want to reiterate that Love's offense is still vital on the team, despite his defensive limitations.

I'm also more certain than ever that priority #1 is a knock down outside shooting threat for the end of the bench. Maybe that means a minor move for a one dimensional 10th man, but that's the big roster hole right now.

 

[Cavatt]

I'm still trying to figure out why the hell Diakite was on GLeague assignment after the game he had Sunday. His plane ticket to Canada should've been purchased and hand delivered midway through the second quarter.

Diakite matches up well with the Toronto '6'8"' roster and he was bouncy and energetic the other day which would have helped Monday.

Lopez is not a good matchup with Toronto. He did set some decent screens, but was getting run by all over the court. And even though the Cavs couldn't buy a bucket, Robin has WIDE open players on the baseline he elected not to pass to on multiple occasions. One of those times was Wade. Yes, Okoro was the other but even still... It's the right play to make instead of a long ass setup for a contested/swarmed paint miss.

Ultimately, Cavs lost because they couldn't buy the open shots they generated in the half court. The defense was fine, Toronto hit some stupid ass contested shots, and I walk away from the game not very impressed with the Raptors. Holding Donovan to sub 10 points is impressive, but Mitchell himself would've had better looks had the role players (well, pretty much everyone) hit the wide the fuck open shots and adjusted the Raptors defense a bit. Mitchell was missing decent looks too, but couldn't get any consistent inside-out rhythm going with the clogged paint.

Cavs going through a mini cold spell. Tired legs likely play a role. Shooting displays like Monday shouldn't be the norm.

Pascal 'Off-Arm' Siakam has a really annoying game to watch. Credit to him for his tough makes, but goodness gracious.

I felt the same way. The Raps didn't even look that good. They hit a lot of contested shots and still didn't break 100.

I dunno. I think if the team is reasonably healthy they are significantly better than the Raps.

Still hate the whistle Siakam gets. He use his off arm every time. Watching Wade get thrown backwards and get called for the foul sucked.

I really don't get their benefit of the doubt. They are 10 on defense and the Cavs are top 5. What is up? Why is the 10th best defense get the benefit of the doubt?

 

[Ohioplayer00]

I’m as old school as anybody too but were the dudes you and I were playing with as big as fast or as strong as these NBA guys??? Yeah I didn’t think so.

No but my point is the guys we were playing against were big for that era. I don’t know if anybody that played HS or city ball in Cleveland remembers a brother name Freddy Beaman of East Tech (about 6’5) weighed about 195 but he was solid as a rock and when you got hooked up inside with him it was like battling a bull. My point was on the weekends we started playing ball around 11 or 12 and we played b ball all day long and came back on Sunday to get at it again! These guys play back to back games for not even a full 48 mins!
People talk about getting a flight to fly to the next game. These guys don’t fly commercial! They fly in custom made planes to cater to their bodies and fatigue. And the equipment in their locker rooms are top notch to help their bodies recover from bumps, bruises and fatigue. So I’m sorry if I’m don’t feel sorry for these guys having to play back to back games.

 

[Randolphkeys]

I felt the same way. The Raps didn't even look that good. They hit a lot of contested shots and still didn't break 100.

Quietly, our defense was just fine last night. If the Cavs hit a completely reasonable 30% from the outside instead of the low teens, we win.

Still hate the whistle Siakam gets. He use his off arm every time. Watching Wade get thrown backwards and get called for the foul sucked.

I'm alone on the "Dean Ain't All That" Island - but he needs to clean up his fundamentals on defense. You are right, he had the correct positioning, but he gets handsy. Bump with the chest and keep the hands up high and you get more calls.

 

[Jscc]

I'm also more certain than ever that priority #1 is a knock down outside shooting threat for the end of the bench. Maybe that means a minor move for a one dimensional 10th man, but that's the big roster hole right now.

I wish they had gone after Bryn Forbes.

Minnesota signed him for $2.5 million. Prior to this season, his career average is 42% from 3 in six seasons.