Game Thread | 2021-2022 Season | Game #21 | Cavs @ Mavs | Nov. 29, 2021

[bigfoot5415]

I know there is no going back, so this is just a pointless "what if" exercise, but how do you think the team would be doing now if we had not traded KPJ? On one hand, his athleticism is exactly what we need and I wonder why we couldn't have been more patient -- it isn't like that team was in a playoff run and needed immediate production from him. On the other hand, we were patient for a long time with him, and part of what makes the current team special is that they have all bought in to the team concept; it isn't clear how he would be affecting the dynamic.

I guess I lean towards the latter hand ... but wow, what a young and talented team we would have if he were on our roster.

Skill wise, I think he would help quite a bit. Personality & basketball IQ-wise....it would have been a huge negative. He & Jalen Green are meant for one another.

 

[cliffdawg]

I know there is no going back, so this is just a pointless "what if" exercise, but how do you think the team would be doing now if we had not traded KPJ? On one hand, his athleticism is exactly what we need and I wonder why we couldn't have been more patient -- it isn't like that team was in a playoff run and needed immediate production from him. On the other hand, we were patient for a long time with him, and part of what makes the current team special is that they have all bought in to the team concept; it isn't clear how he would be affecting the dynamic.

I guess I lean towards the latter hand ... but wow, what a young and talented team we would have if he were on our roster.

Let just say Mobley wouldn’t be here if we still had KPJ……Mobley in his family is not a fan of KPJ going back to there USC days…

 

[Rich]

Bro. Enjoy the blowout road win.

Not everything has to be worth getting your underwear in a bunch.

How is me typing the words "no they couldn't have" in response to that post getting my underwear in a bunch.

Y'all wanna create drama with me for no good reason at this point.

Blowing a 26 point lead in 8 minutes is just about statistically impossible.

I'm finding less and less reason to participate on this board with these type of responses to everything I say becoming more and more common.

I took a couple days off, decided that when I posted something negative I'd think about it before doing so and that I'd lay off of JBB and just let the season play out before laying into him again.

And still, I get this shit.

 

[bleedwineandgold03]

Let just say Mobley wouldn’t be here if we still had KPJ……Mobley in his family is not a fan of KPJ going back to there USC days…

Is crazy how everything turned out lol

 

[cavsfever]

How is me typing the words "no they couldn't have" in response to that post getting my underwear in a bunch.

Y'all wanna create drama with me for no good reason at this point.

Blowing a 26 point lead in 8 minutes is just about statistically impossible.

I'm finding less and less reason to participate on this board with these type of responses to everything I say becoming more and more common.

I took a couple days off, decided that when I posted something negative I'd think about it before doing so and that I'd lay off of JBB and just let the season play out before laying into him again.

And still, I get this shit.

You are sort of proving his point

 

[sailfish]

Cavs have never played well in Miami with a day off.

If this year has taught us anything, it’s that you have to throw history out the window. This team is well coached, they always get up for games, and rarely do we see lapses in their play anymore.

 

[Peacedog]

How is me typing the words "no they couldn't have" in response to that post getting my underwear in a bunch.

Y'all wanna create drama with me for no good reason at this point.

Blowing a 26 point lead in 8 minutes is just about statistically impossible.

I'm finding less and less reason to participate on this board with these type of responses to everything I say becoming more and more common.

I took a couple days off, decided that when I posted something negative I'd think about it before doing so and that I'd lay off of JBB and just let the season play out before laying into him again.

And still, I get this shit.

You make some valid points, Karen.

 

[InBoobieWeTrust]

Game notes:

- It was almost comical to watch Dallas try to hide Porzingis on pick and roll defense... while the Cavs were trying to involve him in every single PnR. LOL. I thought JBB did a great job here. The Mavs had a miserable time trying to contain the Garland/Allen combination with their weak drop coverage. Garland pretty much had a buffet table in front on him the second he cleared the perimeter screen.

- Dallas looks like a hopeless team. No chemistry AT ALL. Doncic is frustrated, doesn't believe in his teammates and they clearly don't like to play with him. So far Kidd has been an awful choice for this team. Not surprised. Their record is a lie. Dallas is headed for a cliff and it will get ugly.

- Garland makes me scratch my head. You can see the mountain of natural talent, and of course he's absolutely essential for this team - he's one of the few guys who are able to put pressure on the defense. However, he's just way too loose with the basketball for my liking. For a starting PG, he leaves his feet too much, forces passes and tends to paint himself in a corner. I get that he's still learning to play the position at the highest level, but with Rubio lately falling off a cliff offensively, there's a lot of pressure on Darius to be a dependable "floor general" for this team. Some of his turnovers are demoralizing, and we can't have those.

- Jarrett Allen should be an All Star. He's been incredibly efficient and has been able to expand his game as well. In my book he's easily a top 3 roll man in this league.

- You can see the league is now paying attention to Mobley. This was totally expected. Nothing comes free to him anymore, and he needs to figure out how to stay optimistic and aggressive despite it. Luckily he seems to be the type of guy who never gets too high or too low. I'd still like to see him at the high post more - he's been pretty ineffective on the perimeter. Trouble is, with Allen being red hot and needing space to operate in the middle, Mobley is getting caught in no-man's land all the time. This is a problem JBB is going to need to solve.

- Rubio either needs to start making his layups (and, to a slightly lesser extent, shots) or stop throwing crap at the basket altogether. This kind of thing won't fly. It's pretty astonishing that we easily beat Dallas even though we regularly had THREE non-shooters out there at the same time. Currently, any lineup with Ricky, Okoro and Allen/Mobley puts a tremendous amount of pressure on the dudes who actually CAN shoot. Lauri's hot streak couldn't have come at a better time. The Cavs have needed every one of his points lately.

Great post!!


Couple things I disagree with…
Re:Rubio and shooting. He’s shooting 36% from 3 this year. And he has had a couple recent seasons where he shot around 35-36%. That’s a very solid/passable number. His overall FG% is 36 which is rough but he’s much closer to 40% for his career. I think his twos will tick upward. We’ve relied on him more since Sexton went down to be the guy taking tough late in the shot clock shots off the dribble which truly isn’t his game…so some of it is really just because of that but he’s missing some frustrating bunnies. But Rubio is still a clear plus for the team when he’s on the floor and when he plays with Okoro, Allen and Mobley…while there are some spacing issues…that is an absolutely suffocating defensive lineup for the few minutes they may play as a unit. Usually Osman is in there for spacing as well which helps that lineup tremendously. Sometimes it’s Garland..

Mobley I think has been more effective on the perimeter than anyone expected coming into the league. He rarely loses the ball, hes miles ahead of expectations regarding shooting threes. He has had a handful of great assists when he started with the ball on the perimeter. That being said, he’s much more a 4 than a 3. Mobley is much much more KG/AD versus KD. The

Garland definitely needs to get the turnovers under control. It’s the one portion of his game where he hasn’t improved. I can live with aggressive turnovers which I’d say are 75% of his turnovers but if he can cut out most of the other 25%—-which are unforced errors like stepping out of bounds or being a little too lazy bringing the ball up the court whether he gets stripped dribbling or if he gets his passing lane jumped trying to advance the ball.

Other than that…I agree!!! Wonderful post, for real

 

[InBoobieWeTrust]

How is me typing the words "no they couldn't have" in response to that post getting my underwear in a bunch.

Y'all wanna create drama with me for no good reason at this point.

Blowing a 26 point lead in 8 minutes is just about statistically impossible.

I'm finding less and less reason to participate on this board with these type of responses to everything I say becoming more and more common.

I took a couple days off, decided that when I posted something negative I'd think about it before doing so and that I'd lay off of JBB and just let the season play out before laying into him again.

And still, I get this shit.

Don’t worry Rich, I didn’t take it that way.

Though I do kinda think the extra 2 or so minutes it took JBB to clear the bench was fine….you’re PROBABLY right…it was PROBABLY unnecessary….though I definitely don’t think it was impossible. A 26 point lead can get cut in half in 2-3 minutes with a quick 13-0 run. Very possible if they’re pressing, creating turnovers, hitting threes, getting an and-1…we’re playing lackadaisical..etc.

Then all of a sudden it’s a 13 point game with 5 minutes left and the momentum has shifted ENTIRELY. If the wrong player gets hot…and the young Cavs tense up…all of a sudden you could end up with a battle on your hands or a loss.

Now if you play that down to 5-6 minutes…all of a sudden even if the same scenario above happens…it’s still a 12-13pt game with probably 2 minutes left which you can basically just dribble out.

So I was fine with the decision to let the guys play 2-3 more minutes. But you are probably correct in that most likely the game was over either way. But I think it’s just part of JBBs coaching style. Take nothing for granted. Balls to the wall. Play hard for the full 48 minutes, etc.