Game Thread 2020-21 Season | Game #24 | Bucks @ Cavs | February 6, 2021

[MirORich]

So next year. Am I allowed to expect wins next year? And if they don't come can I call this first attempt at rebuilding a failure and blame the org?

Because the path I want to avoid at all costs is to just cling to players because we happened to draft them when they aren't gonna cut it the way Orlando has. Orlando is where you never want to be. Shelling out top dollar for your role players that you picked, hoping one day they turn into a star player.

I’m not the Rich police. And I hope nothing in that last post I made came off that way. You’re allowed to feel any which way you want.

I will be disappointed this year if we do not improve on last seasons winning percentage. And I will be disappointed next year if we do not subsequently improve on whatever this years win % ends up being.

While I‘m firmly in the camp of hoping we’re in position to draft a stud this year, that’s only because our results dictate it. I don’t believe in an intentional 4-5 year purposeful tank like Hinkie did.

I would shell out top dollar for Sexton at this point. Thankfully we have 2-3 years to have to decide on Garland. And 3-4 to decide on Okoro. If they were all eligible for an extension or RFA at the same time, then I would be incredibly nervous. But they are not.

 

[Rich]

I’m not the Rich police. And I hope nothing in that last post I made came off that way. You’re allowed to feel any which way you want.

I will be disappointed this year if we do not improve on last seasons winning percentage. And I will be disappointed next year if we do not subsequently improve on whatever this years win % ends up being.

While I‘m firmly in the camp of hoping we’re in position to draft a stud this year, that’s only because our results dictate it. I don’t believe in an intentional 4-5 year purposeful tank like Hinkie did.

I would shell out top dollar for Sexton at this point. Thankfully we have 2-3 years to have to decide on Garland. And 3-4 to decide on Okoro. If they were all eligible for an extension or RFA at the same time, then I would be incredibly nervous. But they are not.

Well, I'd be very, very nervous handing Sexton anything close to a max rookie deal at this point.

 

[cabs]

So next year. Am I allowed to expect wins next year? And if they don't come can I call this first attempt at rebuilding a failure and blame the org?

Because the path I want to avoid at all costs is to just cling to players because we happened to draft them when they aren't gonna cut it the way Orlando has. Orlando is where you never want to be. Shelling out top dollar for your role players that you picked, hoping one day they turn into a star player.

Yes I think that is fair. The expectation of year 4 of a rebuild in the East you should be expecting playoffs or maybe need to reassess where the roster is heading

 

[MirORich]

Well, I'd be very, very nervous handing Sexton anything close to a max rookie deal at this point

Going to be a tough call, with a few options:

1. Extend him this summer(after year 3)(Big money still would kick in until year 5)

2. Allow him to hit RFA after year 4 and then extend him or match if he’s offered by another team

3. Allow him to hit UFA after year 5 probably feeling pretty unwanted and disrespected

4. Trade him at some point between now and year 5

Lots of ways in which each of those scenarios potentially help us and potentially hinder us. Personally, I don’t even think about it or worry about it until after this season and the draft. Get another 50 games of data points behind us, see who we get in the draft, and figure out the best possible course moving forward. But barring a big disconnect with his teammates or the coaches/FO, I think Dan will be telling to Koby to extend him at the max for a rookie contract extension this offseason.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

Talk about deja vu. Last night the Bucks won the second half 63-42. Tonight it was 65-45. Both games were within 5 points at halftime but once the Bucks got serious it was a laugher. Giannis had seven points at halftime and got 10 in the third quarter. Nance was not quick enough or strong enough to stop him from getting to the rim, especially since the refs let him use his shoulder and arm to muscle defenders out of the way.

We have a big problem at forward, as Austin Carr pointed out. Our starters, Nance and Okoro, combined for 6 points and 2 assists in 52 minutes. Okoro failed to make a single field goal. Cedi came off the bench to go 3-for-10. The only guy who was decent was Prince who scored 12 points in 19 minutes. Other than him our forwards were useless offensively.

Drummond had the kind of game he needs to have, going 12-for-17 from the field for 28 points and 11 boards. Garland had a nice game with 17 points and 9 assists on 7-for-12. Sexton, however, was only 6-for-18 and committed three turnovers. He also lost his man a couple of times resulting in five easy points.

At halftime one of the Cavs assistant coaches said the third quarter is their Achilles heel and that proved true again tonight as the Cavs were outscored 35-23 which meant the 4th quarter was pretty much garbage time.

Bryn Forbes, averaging 8.4 ppg, came off the bench to score 18 points in 18 minutes, going 6-for-6 from deep. They have guys like Bobby Portis and Forbes coming off the bench. Forbes was a big factor because the Cavs couldn't close the gap when the starters were down with Forbes knocking down 3's.

For the Cavs to compete with a team like Milwaukee they need everybody to play well. Tonight they got off games from Sexton, Osman, Okoro, and Jarett Allen, who was a -26 in 25 minutes, scoring only 2 points. When Allen, Okoro, and Nance combine for 8 points in 77 minutes against the highest scoring team in the NBA we have no chance, especially when Sexton misses 12 shots. To be fair, he was being guarded by possibly the best defensive guard in the league.

All the Cavs can do is continue with player development and force feeding the young core group as many minutes as possible. Next year after the contracts of Drummond, Delly, and McGee expire they should have around $30 million to work with. Hopefully they can sign a couple of key pieces to augment what they have. But without a high scoring wing it's going to be tough.

 

[Rich]

Talk about deja vu. Last night the Bucks won the second half 63-42. Tonight it was 65-45. Both games were within 5 points at halftime but once the Bucks got serious it was a laugher. Giannis had seven points at halftime and got 10 in the third quarter. Nance was not quick enough or strong enough to stop him from getting to the rim, especially since the refs let him use his shoulder and arm to muscle defenders out of the way.

We have a big problem at forward, as Austin Carr pointed out. Our starters, Nance and Okoro, combined for 6 points and 2 assists in 52 minutes. Okoro failed to make a single field goal. Cedi came off the bench to go 3-for-10. The only guy who was decent was Prince who scored 12 points in 19 minutes. Other than him our forwards were useless offensively.

Drummond had the kind of game he needs to have, going 12-for-17 from the field for 28 points and 11 boards. Garland had a nice game with 17 points and 9 assists on 7-for-12. Sexton, however, was only 6-for-18 and committed three turnovers. He also lost his man a couple of times resulting in five easy points.

At halftime one of the Cavs assistant coaches said the third quarter is their Achilles heel and that proved true again tonight as the Cavs were outscored 35-23 which meant the 4th quarter was pretty much garbage time.

Bryn Forbes, averaging 8.4 ppg, came off the bench to score 18 points in 18 minutes, going 6-for-6 from deep. They have guys like Bobby Portis and Forbes coming off the bench. Forbes was a big factor because the Cavs couldn't close the gap when the starters were down with Forbes knocking down 3's.

For the Cavs to compete with a team like Milwaukee they need everybody to play well. Tonight they got off games from Sexton, Osman, Okoro, and Jarett Allen, who was a -26 in 25 minutes, scoring only 2 points. When Allen, Okoro, and Nance combine for 8 points in 77 minutes against the highest scoring team in the NBA we have no chance, especially when Sexton misses 12 shots. To be fair, he was being guarded by possibly the best defensive guard in the league.

All the Cavs can do is continue with player development and force feeding the young core group as many minutes as possible. Next year after the contracts of Drummond, Delly, and McGee expire they should have around $30 million to work with. Hopefully they can sign a couple of key pieces to augment what they have. But without a high scoring wing it's going to be tough.

They won't have that much space if they keep Allen.


I'd feel about 10x better about where we are now if we had actual cap space and were 10-14. Instead, we go into next summer with very little room thanks, again, to the Kevin Love albatross.

 

[Alec]

Thank goodness the team got the Nets wins. Things are gonna get pretty bad and they’ll need that memory to hang their hats on.

 

[Dr. Claw]

Thank goodness the team got the Nets wins. Things are gonna get pretty bad and they’ll need that memory to hang their hats on.

Pre-tty much.
The way this offense is going (can't even get 100 on the board in a league that is dropping 100+ on the regular) this is not boding well for the rest of the month.
Can't defend the 3.
Barely shooting the 3.
And strangely enough I'm not even going to blame Drummond for this one.
This was the Earth drop I was expecting to see when the season started. We know what the Cavs need to do, and which positions need help. Just gotta be patient.

 

[Dr No]

Talk about deja vu. Last night the Bucks won the second half 63-42. Tonight it was 65-45. Both games were within 5 points at halftime but once the Bucks got serious it was a laugher. Giannis had seven points at halftime and got 10 in the third quarter. Nance was not quick enough or strong enough to stop him from getting to the rim, especially since the refs let him use his shoulder and arm to muscle defenders out of the way.

We have a big problem at forward, as Austin Carr pointed out. Our starters, Nance and Okoro, combined for 6 points and 2 assists in 52 minutes. Okoro failed to make a single field goal. Cedi came off the bench to go 3-for-10. The only guy who was decent was Prince who scored 12 points in 19 minutes. Other than him our forwards were useless offensively.

Drummond had the kind of game he needs to have, going 12-for-17 from the field for 28 points and 11 boards. Garland had a nice game with 17 points and 9 assists on 7-for-12. Sexton, however, was only 6-for-18 and committed three turnovers. He also lost his man a couple of times resulting in five easy points.

At halftime one of the Cavs assistant coaches said the third quarter is their Achilles heel and that proved true again tonight as the Cavs were outscored 35-23 which meant the 4th quarter was pretty much garbage time.

Bryn Forbes, averaging 8.4 ppg, came off the bench to score 18 points in 18 minutes, going 6-for-6 from deep. They have guys like Bobby Portis and Forbes coming off the bench. Forbes was a big factor because the Cavs couldn't close the gap when the starters were down with Forbes knocking down 3's.

For the Cavs to compete with a team like Milwaukee they need everybody to play well. Tonight they got off games from Sexton, Osman, Okoro, and Jarett Allen, who was a -26 in 25 minutes, scoring only 2 points. When Allen, Okoro, and Nance combine for 8 points in 77 minutes against the highest scoring team in the NBA we have no chance, especially when Sexton misses 12 shots. To be fair, he was being guarded by possibly the best defensive guard in the league.

All the Cavs can do is continue with player development and force feeding the young core group as many minutes as possible. Next year after the contracts of Drummond, Delly, and McGee expire they should have around $30 million to work with. Hopefully they can sign a couple of key pieces to augment what they have. But without a high scoring wing it's going to be tough.

Our offense doesn't seem to create many good shots for the 4's. Its mostly "set a pick or go stand in the corner while Drummond and the guards work". We don't post them up or feed them when they do. Part of that is probably that our 4's don't have much offensive firepower without Love. But the way we are running offense right now even Love wouldn't be getting a lot of shots. I suspect that will change when he gets back. You don't pay a guy 30 mil to stand in a corner.

 

[ansatsusha80]

I have three suggestions:

1. A lot of the vet teams who played in the bubble and playoffs gave minimal efforts in the first few weeks of the season. We may have capitalized on that a few times.

2. Favorable early schedule. A lot of our wins were against teams who were missing key players to injury or rest or who were adjusting from recent trades

3. More than 60% of our rotation is players with less than 4 years NBA experience( Allen, Sexton, Cedi, Windler, Okoro, Garland). Inconsisteny is a hallmark of inexperience and with a jam packed schedule there is less in season practice time than ever to course correct and re-set things.

The schedule between now and the break is brutal. But we are where we need to be based on the roster talent and experience combo. A swing at another lottery talent is clearly needed. Hopefully the talent in this draft is as good as some purport. And it’s also clear we should be grateful to have gotten Allen because without him, that would be one more long term role/position that we would be needing to fill.

How can you say we had a favorable schedule when they had the third hardest schedule after playing the second Nets game. I wouldn't be surprised, if it's #1 when they come back home from the road trip.I don't want to hear about other teams having injuries when the Cavs had the second most bodies out for most of the season.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

Our offense doesn't seem to create many good shots for the 4's. Its mostly "set a pick or go stand in the corner while Drummond and the guards work". We don't post them up or feed them when they do. Part of that is probably that our 4's don't have much offensive firepower without Love. But the way we are running offense right now even Love wouldn't be getting a lot of shots. I suspect that will change when he gets back. You don't pay a guy 30 mil to stand in a corner.

Nance goes out of his way not to shoot. He passes up shots all the time. But when Love gets back I expect he'll do a lot of spotting up at the 3-point line while the guards and centers run the middle pick and roll all night.

 

[Dr. Claw]

Nance goes out of his way not to shoot. He passes up shots all the time. But when Love gets back I expect he'll do a lot of spotting up at the 3-point line while the guards and centers run the middle pick and roll all night.

True, but I wonder if injury has made that habit even worse. Early on it seemed like he was taking more open shots.