Game #67 Indiana Pacers @ Cleveland Cavaliers: March 18th, 7:00 PM ET

[Randolphkeys]

Speights had just sat there on the bench and watched Zeller and Thompson get abused and manhandled brutally without any fight back... I'm sure he came out on the floor looking to basically take out some frustration. At some point it's a pride thing.. When the opposition just punks your ass inti the ground in embarrassing fashion the competitor in you has a need to answer back.. That doesn't appear to be coming sny time soon from Tyler, but Tristan needs to take note. Playoff basketball, in the paint, is a man's fucking game. Get your ass ready for it, or you'll never see it.

I can understand his frustrations, and further I'd put a nickel on Speights thinking he should play more minutes against a good front line such as Indiana. Still, going on the floor with the mentality of taking a tech isn't going to work.

 

[Daniel89]

Can we please sign some D-League guy and play him instead of Gibson?

 

[Stark]

Well that was disgusting. Hope Dion is okay.

 

[kidduck]

Big difference between a 'hard' foul and a cheap shot.

If a Pacer yanked a defenseless Cavs player to the floor with a Speights-like slam, we'd be after his head.

Playing tough and hard doesn't require being dirty.

 

[Daniel89]

The only minor positive I take away from this game is TT's statline: 20 points, 6 off boards, 5 def boards, 2 blocks and 2 assists

 

[kidduck]

TT did most of that once the game was in garbage time.

 

[MRMsix6]

TT did most of that once the game was in garbage time.

75% of that game was garbage time :chuckles:

 

[Wine and Gold]

I can understand his frustrations, and further I'd put a nickel on Speights thinking he should play more minutes against a good front line such as Indiana. Still, going on the floor with the mentality of taking a tech isn't going to work.

No ..I'm not condoning it .. and as you said, he should have been out there playing long long before he was put in.

 

[Daniel89]

TT did most of that once the game was in garbage time.

TT was the only one who gave a shit in the 4th...I don't care if that was garbage time, TT at least showed a little bit of fight in contrast to most of the team

 

[Randolphkeys]

TT was the only one who gave a shit in the 4th...I don't care if that was garbage time, TT at least showed a little bit of fight in contrast to most of the team

Walton was still defending and going to the floor for loose balls, but unfortunately he's still just Luke Walton.

 

[Rich]

No ..I'm not condoning it .. and as you said, he should have been out there playing long long before he was put in.

I'd agree with this if I didn't see games where Speights comes in, shoots a jumper, loafs on defense, and then pouts. Guy has too many lazy games to ever be demanding more minutes or pulling shit like he did tonight.

Anyway, my own comment on the game is this: I can't get mad when we lose to a team that is already better than us, sans our two best players and three of our top four players. I mean, we have one of the lowest pay-rolls in the league (not counting Davis) and you take out three of our starters? Is Indiana NOT 20 points better at that point? I'd say yea, they are.

I mean, Daniel Gibson, Omri Casspi, Kevin Jones...these are guys who should not be playing ever. Let alone all three in the same game. But, with these injuries, that's where we are.

I'm far more disappointed that Dion and Kyrie are missing extremely valuable time right now that could have been used to develop chemistry. Far more so than what THIS team ends up doing in the W-L column. I now have one reason to watch: Tristan Thompson. After that, I really don't care at this point.

 

[Stark]

I can't stand Speights anymore. One good game for every six bad ones. Awful defense. Bad attitude.

I really hope he doesn't pick up his option next year.

 

[Wine and Gold]

I can't stand Speights anymore. One good game for every six bad ones. Awful defense. Bad attitude.

I really hope he doesn't pick up his option next year.

After a reallt nice start to his Cavs career, we are beginning to see Speights in real light now .. In saying that Speights should have been in game earlier, it's really to the point that having Zeller out there in some situations is just accomplishing nothing for him or the team. He's a young kid getting his ass handed to him with regularity. The book is out on him and the league is just taking it to him in brutal fashion. He needs to step away, evaluate ...somehow, someway come back next year with major changes in tow.

 

[Scholar]

After a reallt nice start to his Cavs career, we are beginning to see Speights in real light now .. In saying that Speights should have been in game earlier, it's really to the point that having Zeller out there in some situations is just accomplishing nothing for him or the team. He's a young kid getting his ass handed to him with regularity. The book is out on him and the league is just taking it to him in brutal fashion. He needs to step away, evaluate ...somehow, someway come back next year with major changes in tow.

Which is the problem with so many minutes having been force fed down his throat. I know he was getting the minutes because of Andy's injury. But, it wasn't the right way to try to develop him. He's been drowning in an ocean because they just threw him in. With how he has been used, he's had no chance to get traction. He really needed his minutes selected to develop him in an orderly manner. Picking opponents and primarily having him face the opponent's second team. Like they were doing with him at the start of the year. Back when a plethora of posters were calling for Tyler to replace Tristan in the starting line up. If they had continued to use him in that manner, we might not be facing this problem now. But, unfortunately, nothing can change that now.