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I wanted to compare the Cavs’ team from the play-in tournament to the team we will see in the playoffs next spring to get an idea of how much they will be improved (or not).
The first play-in game was on the road against Brooklyn with the Cavs losing 115-108. The Nets went all in; Durant and Kyrie each played 42 minutes. This was not like a regular season game - neither of them would play 42 minutes in that case. For the Cavs, Garland and LeVert played 39 and 40 minutes.
Since both teams went all out for the win this game is a good indicator of how good they were at the end of last season.
The Cavs were missing Jarrett Allen, Ricky Rubio, and Dean Wade, all of whom were injured. They still lost by only seven points on the road. Lauri Markkanen played 29 minutes with 12 points and 4 rebounds.
How good were the Nets at the end of last season? They were eliminated by the Celtics in the next round 4-0, losing by 1, 7, 6, and 4 points. IOW, they were very competitive with the team that ended up as the EC Champions. Yet the Cavs only lost by 7 despite missing their All-Star center and a key reserve in Rubio. Rajon Rondo played 26 minutes in that game. Cedi played 21. Love played 29 with Allen out.
Take that team that lost to Brooklyn, subtract Markkanen and Rondo, and add Allen, Rubio, Wade, and Donovan Mitchell. Is that team 8 points better?
If you ask me just putting Rubio in for Rondo for 26 minutes makes the team 8 points better. The rest of it is Mitchell, Allen, and Wade replacing Markkanen. I like that part of it even more.
The other play-in game was against the Hawks at home; the Cavs lost 107-101. With 1:27 left they were down by one point. The game was tied after three quarters but the Cavs only scored 17 in the 4th as Garland ran out of gas having played 43 minutes. Markkanen played 37 minutes and scored 26 points with 8 rebounds.
Jarrett Allen, with a bandaged thumb and unable to grip the ball properly, played 35 minutes with a line of 11/3/2. I don’t think he played another game last season for 35 minutes and only got 3 rebounds. He was playing one-handed.
The Hawks lost their next series to the #1 seed, Miami, four games to one. They were outscored by an average of 12 points per game.
Again, add a healthy Allen, plus Rubio, Wade, and Mitchell and do we lose that game? Not to mention another year of NBA experience for Mobley. I expect him to be a better player going into the 2023 playoffs than he was last year.
Next spring barring injuries we will have Allen, Rubio, Wade, and Mitchell in place of Markkanen and Rondo, who are the only Cavs players from last year’s play-in games who actually got on the court that we won’t have this year. I expect Mobley and Okoro to be better as well.
The improvement from the team that played Brooklyn and Atlanta last year will, by next spring, be immense. The fact that we only lost to Brooklyn on the road by seven and they went on to lose four games to Boston by a total of 18 points tells me that we’re a lot closer to the top of the EC than people are giving us credit for.
The first play-in game was on the road against Brooklyn with the Cavs losing 115-108. The Nets went all in; Durant and Kyrie each played 42 minutes. This was not like a regular season game - neither of them would play 42 minutes in that case. For the Cavs, Garland and LeVert played 39 and 40 minutes.
Since both teams went all out for the win this game is a good indicator of how good they were at the end of last season.
The Cavs were missing Jarrett Allen, Ricky Rubio, and Dean Wade, all of whom were injured. They still lost by only seven points on the road. Lauri Markkanen played 29 minutes with 12 points and 4 rebounds.
How good were the Nets at the end of last season? They were eliminated by the Celtics in the next round 4-0, losing by 1, 7, 6, and 4 points. IOW, they were very competitive with the team that ended up as the EC Champions. Yet the Cavs only lost by 7 despite missing their All-Star center and a key reserve in Rubio. Rajon Rondo played 26 minutes in that game. Cedi played 21. Love played 29 with Allen out.
Take that team that lost to Brooklyn, subtract Markkanen and Rondo, and add Allen, Rubio, Wade, and Donovan Mitchell. Is that team 8 points better?
If you ask me just putting Rubio in for Rondo for 26 minutes makes the team 8 points better. The rest of it is Mitchell, Allen, and Wade replacing Markkanen. I like that part of it even more.
The other play-in game was against the Hawks at home; the Cavs lost 107-101. With 1:27 left they were down by one point. The game was tied after three quarters but the Cavs only scored 17 in the 4th as Garland ran out of gas having played 43 minutes. Markkanen played 37 minutes and scored 26 points with 8 rebounds.
Jarrett Allen, with a bandaged thumb and unable to grip the ball properly, played 35 minutes with a line of 11/3/2. I don’t think he played another game last season for 35 minutes and only got 3 rebounds. He was playing one-handed.
The Hawks lost their next series to the #1 seed, Miami, four games to one. They were outscored by an average of 12 points per game.
Again, add a healthy Allen, plus Rubio, Wade, and Mitchell and do we lose that game? Not to mention another year of NBA experience for Mobley. I expect him to be a better player going into the 2023 playoffs than he was last year.
Next spring barring injuries we will have Allen, Rubio, Wade, and Mitchell in place of Markkanen and Rondo, who are the only Cavs players from last year’s play-in games who actually got on the court that we won’t have this year. I expect Mobley and Okoro to be better as well.
The improvement from the team that played Brooklyn and Atlanta last year will, by next spring, be immense. The fact that we only lost to Brooklyn on the road by seven and they went on to lose four games to Boston by a total of 18 points tells me that we’re a lot closer to the top of the EC than people are giving us credit for.
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