Open Discussion (Cavs + related issues)

[LeeBuckeye]

LeBron just might be guarding Trevor Ariza...

Speaking of that, here is a video of LeBron vs Ariza in high school:

https://youtu.be/-2A75GXeD5E


LeBron: 52 points
Trevor's team: Less than LeBron

Trevor's father allegedly talked smack about his son being better than LeBron. LeBron actually tried that day. It was embarrassing.

 

[Cavatt]

We may very well see a different starting lineup against GS. I highly suspect Green Lebron Love as the frontcourt. TT gets very few minutes that series.

 

[JMoneyYourHoney]

I don't think LeBron should guard Durant at all. If this was 5 years ago then sure, but he isn't at that level defensively anymore. Durant's going to get his points no matter who is guarding him. There's no point having LeBron expend energy on him.

I agree with that...thought it was the wrong strategy last year as well.

But unless we change our starting lineup, what is the solution? We can trap Curry every possession down the floor and leave Durant open. Or we can stick Love on Curry, guard him straight up

 

[jvpertz]

Why would acquire Larry nance jr and not start him against the warriors.

He’s literally built to play against that team and he’s the exact type of defender they don’t want to play.....

 

[Cassity14]

LeBron just might be guarding Trevor Ariza...

As a fan, I'd be ecstatic to see the Rockets in the finals. I simply don't think that team will have what it takes to beat LeBron 4 out of 7 times. What I love even more about that matchup is the fact that LeBron can rest defensively against a guy like Ariza and Love can guard Ryan Anderson just fine.

Sure, they have two of the best guards in the league, but when the game slows down and the whistles get swallowed in the postseason, I'll take George Hill sticking with Paul and the Cavs defending Harden as a unit.

Capela becomes an x-factor, but I don't think he's the type of guy to decide a series on his own. His contributions, imo, will be negated by the Cavs' depth, an area where they'd have a serious advantage in that series.

 

[JMoneyYourHoney]

His contributions, imo, will be negated by the Cavs' depth, an area where they'd have a serious advantage in that series.

Eh, serious advantage? I've poo-pooed the Rockets all year here but that team is nothing if not DEEP...at every position. And if you were just talking front court, well, Capela, Anderson, Wright and Nene is nothing to sneeze at.

I'd rather play the Rockets too and with Kyrie I think it'd be a relatively short series. But I have a hard time seeing how we'd slow down their offense IF Paul and Harden are clicking.

The new additions are an improvement but people are acting like we acquired a bunch of all-world defenders which isn't true. We would need everybody to play the type of defense that I'm not sure we're capable of.

 

[ACisKING]

Eh, serious advantage? I've poo-pooed the Rockets all year here but that team is nothing if not DEEP...at every position. And if you were just talking front court, well, Capela, Anderson, Wright and Nene is nothing to sneeze at.

I'd rather play the Rockets too and with Kyrie I think it'd be a relatively short series. But I have a hard time seeing how we'd slow down their offense IF Paul and Harden are clicking.

The new additions are an improvement but people are acting like we acquired a bunch of all-world defenders which isn't true. We would need everybody to play the type of defense that I'm not sure we're capable of.

Yea the Cavs would definitely be underdogs against either Warriors or Rockets.

 

[Cassity14]

Eh, serious advantage? I've poo-pooed the Rockets all year here but that team is nothing if not DEEP...at every position. And if you were just talking front court, well, Capela, Anderson, Wright and Nene is nothing to sneeze at.

I'd rather play the Rockets too and with Kyrie I think it'd be a relatively short series. But I have a hard time seeing how we'd slow down their offense IF Paul and Harden are clicking.

The new additions are an improvement but people are acting like we acquired a bunch of all-world defenders which isn't true. We would need everybody to play the type of defense that I'm not sure we're capable of.

I'd certainly take the Cavs' depth over theirs. That front court rotation that they trot out, in the NBA finals, is honestly laughable. Capela is a great player, don't get me wrong. Anderson is a scrub, Wright is a buy-out guy, and Nene is the type of guy we've been chastising the Cavs for signing the last few years. Gordon is a good scorer/shooter off the bench, but he can never be on the floor with both Paul AND Harden, especially in a series against the Cavs.

What the Rockets can't do, which I believe will be the bane of the team, is play good team defense. They have tremendous liabilities on that end that are covered up by Capela as a rim protector. They struggle to defend teams full of outside threats, which the Cavs conveniently can be.

In that series, I think the Cavs are easily the tougher team to defend on a possession-by-possession basis. I've watched the Rockets postseason offense the last couple years after moving down here, and it isn't pretty.

This is all pretty moot because I think GS will beat them in 5 games away, but it's fun to discuss nonetheless. I don't see the Rockets getting to the finals without some serious injury luck or by locking up the 1 seed and hoping for an OKC miracle to take place.

 

[billmac91]

We may very well see a different starting lineup against GS. I highly suspect Green Lebron Love as the frontcourt. TT gets very few minutes that series.

Was kinda thinking about this today as well....

Gotta give the Heat some credit, in that they chose to let LeBron guard Tiago Splitter against San Antonio in the first finals match-up. It was one of the first true “small ball” lineups we’ve seen. It was for short minutes, and Tiago only played limited minutes.

I’d love to see Cleveland do something similar against GS. You could easily match LeBron on Zaza/Bell/McGee allowing him to free lance a bit under the hoop. LeBron isn’t Dikembe, but his athleticism around the hoop could provide enough of a barrier. Let Jeff Green guard Durant and Love guard Draymond.

Shit, it sounds crazy but you could also go San Antonio style and let Love guard KD. Just ask Kevin to defend the 3 ball as much as possible, give up the mid-range jump shots, and protect the rim. Let Jeff Green guard Draymond and prevent some of his playmaking.

I mean, this will never happen, but it’s something I’d consider....you’ve gotta get creative when GS is hot.

 

[JMoneyYourHoney]

I'd certainly take the Cavs' depth over theirs. That front court rotation that they trot out, in the NBA finals, is honestly laughable. Capela is a great player, don't get me wrong. Anderson is a scrub, Wright is a buy-out guy, and Nene is the type of guy we've been chastising the Cavs for signing the last few years. Gordon is a good scorer/shooter off the bench, but he can never be on the floor with both Paul AND Harden, especially in a series against the Cavs.

What the Rockets can't do, which I believe will be the bane of the team, is play good team defense. They have tremendous liabilities on that end that are covered up by Capela as a rim protector. They struggle to defend teams full of outside threats, which the Cavs conveniently can be.

In that series, I think the Cavs are easily the tougher team to defend on a possession-by-possession basis. I've watched the Rockets postseason offense the last couple years after moving down here, and it isn't pretty.

This is all pretty moot because I think GS will beat them in 5 games away, but it's fun to discuss nonetheless. I don't see the Rockets getting to the finals without some serious injury luck or by locking up the 1 seed and hoping for an OKC miracle to take place.

It just seems silly and premature to champion the depth and defense of a brand new team that has heretofore been almost league-worst in the latter category to a proven, top-seed team with a top-10 defensive rating.

LeBron is the trump card but we'd be heady underdogs in a Houston matchup.

 

[MediumBaller]

I agree with that...thought it was the wrong strategy last year as well.

But unless we change our starting lineup, what is the solution? We can trap Curry every possession down the floor and leave Durant open. Or we can stick Love on Curry, guard him straight up

I think we're gonna have to change the starting lineup against golden state. TT and Love isn't a winning starting lineup against them now. My hope is that major minutes the rest of the regular season and then the eastern conference playoffs gets Cedi acclimated enough to where he can guard KD for spurts until Jeff Green comes into the game. If that doesn't work then I'd just put Green into the lineup for TT and Hood in for Cedi. Hill/Hood/Green/LeBron/Love would be a pretty versatile starting lineup.

 

[CavsFan07]

Guys.... I love this fucking team.

 

[LeShaq]

Bench averaging over 50 PPG in the last two games, since the new guys arrived.

Damn.

 

[CavsHomer]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziJFFPkJOTM

 

[Jscc]

So we just beat an OKC where Westbrook, PG, Melo, and Adams all scored 20+ points each. At home. Without Kevin.