RCF Front Page

Can this Cavs team show up more often? It wasn’t perfect, it wasn’t always pretty, but it was much more along the lines how everyone expected this team to play. They had five players in doubt digits, competed (more) on defense, and the starting backcourt had 61 points, 15 assists and 4 turnovers. More of that please. Starting out, you thought it might be another one of those quarters. We’ve talked about the Cavs sluggish defensive starts, and being near the bottom of the league in first quarter defense. The Magic scored 10 of their first 12 points in the paint. It looked that way, and then things turned around. While the Magic were getting in the paint, the Cavs were pretty active and attentive defensively. But what really turned the...

Let’s address the elephant in the room: Yeah, the Donovan Mitchell contract saga is and will be a little awkward. Mitchell has two more guaranteed years on his deal with a player option in 2025/2026. He can be a free agent as early as two years’ time and the window to trade Mitchell to recoup value is next year. So, the fork in the road is quickly approaching. The discussion of a star player leaving Cleveland for greener pastures isn’t a new one. Cavs fans were ever used to it during the first LeBron James tenure and became more accepting of such discussions during his return. Guardians fans known it’s a formality once a homegrown player reaches a certain level of stardom that it’s only a matter of time until a prospect haul is...

If the Cavs were a rollercoaster, it’s not one I’d want to ride. Going 6-2, then losing to a lowly Blazers team at home, and to being down 8 deep into the second half versus a team that didn’t win in the month of November, is quite the ride. They managed to squeak out a 9-point victory (bad teams stay bad) but it was anything but revitalizing. The Pistons started out by pounding the paint, and challenging the Cavs inside the arc. While the Cavs are overall strong paint defensive team, they’ve been more susceptible to paint scoring to start games which goes against what you’d think would happen having Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley on the floor. In the 1st quarter of their last 15 games, the Cavs rank 22nd in points in the paint allowed...

The Cavs hit the road with the first game in Detroit where the 2-17 Pistons have lost 16 straight games. There’s not much to be said and anyone who wants to stop reading here is certainly excused. The Pistons are in a death spiral. These teams played in Cleveland two weeks ago and the Cavs, without Donovan Mitchell, prevailed by a 108-100 score. The Pistons had a mind boggling 18 offensive rebounds which kept the game fairly close. Fortunately the Pistons were just 9-for-35 on 3’s and committed 17 turnovers. The Cavs shot 51% overall and 43% on 3’s but took nine fewer shots than the Pistons thanks to all the offensive rebounds. Two days ago the Pistons lost on the road to the Knicks by just six points, so they aren’t throwing in the...

If the Cavs are consistent at one thing it’s being inconsistent. After finally starting a game strong, and being up by as much 16 in the first half, they fell flat. The Cavs went down by 12 in the 4th quarter and they dug themselves too deep of a hole to get out of. To see how the Cavs started the game versus how they ended the game is night and day. They held the Blazers to 40 first half points, and were attentive on the defensive end out the gate. They were forcing Blazer turnovers and capitalizing on those opportunities. Darius Garland was getting into the paint early for easy looks to Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, and then.. it just kind of stopped. The Cavs had the paint advantage for most of the night but went away from it. On a...

After a day off at home the Cavaliers take on the 5-12 Portland Trail Blazers, who they beat in Portland two weeks ago by a 109-95 score. The Cavs were without Darius Garland while the Blazers were missing Malcolm Brogdan. Both starting point guards are back so we may see more offense on both ends tonight. The Blazers started 3-3 but have since lost 9 of 11. They are really in a tailspin at the moment, but they did upset 9-6 Indiana on the road two days ago so they are not to be taken lightly. The Blazers are pretty good defensively and held the Pacers, who lead the NBA in scoring, to 110 points, 13 under their average. The Blazers are 14.1 points better with Brogdan on the floor, so they will definitely be a better team than we saw...

Jig and Rch try live streaming for the first time as they break down the Cavs win over Toronto LIVE and in the studio! Browns disappointing loss to the Broncos Jig's record recommendation will fill you with Grace The guys go back and recap the overtime win against Philadelphia @2 For The Brew joins with the best call we've ever had giving a live postgame call in after 76ers game Rchfld recommends a awesome music documentary that was just released last week And the guys give their take on what needs to happen for this current group, as constructed, to reach their potential Call in and shoot your shot with a :24 second take to be part of the next show 216-282-6289 or join the conversation by creating a profile, reading the rules and...

The In-Season Tournament is… kinda fun, maybe? The Cavs entered the night 2-1 needing some help to advance as a wild card. They exited 3-1 needing a lot of help to advance as a wild card. The Cavs pushed the pedal to the medal after the first quarter making it a race to point differentials – so much so the JB Bickerstaff left his starters in late into the 4th. In the end, the Cavs came up just short in point differential losing out to the Knicks for the lone wild card spot. The first quarter was all about the Cavs not hitting their 3s (only one) and allowing a lot of 3s. The Cavs also allowed another 50+ FG% 1Q which put them down 4 at quarter's end despite scoring 29 points and playing some good offense themselves. Of course, what...

After a rest day following a tough back-to-back against the Lakers and Raptors, the Cavs take on the Altanta Hawks at RMF. The Hawks are 8-8 overall and 5-3 on the road. The Hawks have lost games to Boston, Indiana, Philly, New York, Miami, and OKC, so they are not beating the best teams but they are taking care of business against the weaker ones. They have lost 5 of their last 8 with two of the three wins against weak sisters Detroit and Washington and the other against 8-8 Brooklyn. The Hawks took a big hit last week as starting forward Jalen Johnson sustained a wrist fracture and will be out several weeks. The 6’8” Johnson is one of the top forwards in the game averaging 14.1 points, 7.3 rebounds, and ranking in the top 5% at his...