Game Thread | 2021-22 Season | Game #5 | Cavs @ Clippers | Oct. 27, 2021

[Sir'Dom Pointer]

Mobley on PG is perfect.

 

[Heat Check]

They do count on 6'8" Luke Kennard off the bench. He's averaging 13.3 points in 24 minutes while shooting 56.3% from deep. Kennard is an eight-year veteran who is as slow as they come, but he knows how to spot up and knock them down from deep. The Cavs need to dog him on the perimeter and not allow any open looks. Dylan Windler needs to watch Kennard and pick up some things from his game.

We talking about a different Luke Kennard...?

The Kennard I know is 6'5'' and this is just his 5th year.

 

[Heat Check]

Guarding Paul George can't be a one man responsibility. As much as we like Mobley's D, this is a legit veteran NBA star we're talking about. At this point, he'd eat Evan alive 1-on-1.

Anyway, the Clips run PG off so many screens that it all comes down to switching. The Cavs need to communicate non stop.

 

[Adam]

Shame okoro won't play. PG would have been a good litmus test for him. This game is either a close win for the Cavs or a blow out for the clips depending on how hot Pg gets

 

[WorldFreeB]

That's a great observation.

Okoro being out will be a problem. I figured the Cavs would put Mobley on Paul George and switch to Okoro when Mobley sits down.

They may do the same thing with Mobley as they did with Allen against Denver - put him on the floor whenever Jokic was in and sit him when Jokic sits.

With Okoro out who does Bickerstaff bring in when Markkanen sits - Cedi or Windler? Cedi guarding George is a recipe for disaster. So is Windler on George, for that matter.

I'd hate to toss Windler out there on PG his first game back,,,I wonder if JB gives Stevens some minutes tonight to try to slow
George down when Mobley is out of the game.

 

[Lee]

Can't wait for Paul George's face when gets swatted and bothered by Mobley's length.

Tears are gonna be sweeeet.

He will get by mobley pretty easily imo, the top wing players can get by anyone. Hopefully he gets by deep enough that Allen and Lauri can come over and help. But I expect George to go for 30 on us, just contain Bledsoe and the bench and let PG get his 30-35 and we can steal this one.

 

[Lee]

Guarding Paul George can't be a one man responsibility. As much as we like Mobley's D, this is a legit veteran NBA star we're talking about. At this point, he'd eat Evan alive 1-on-1.

Anyway, the Clips run PG off so many screens that it all comes down to switching. The Cavs need to communicate non stop.

Durant, Lebron, George, ect...what top 6 or 7 wing in the NBA is guardable 1 on 1 by anyone?

I 100% agree, but I dont think a vet Mobley will ever be able to guard a top 5 wing ever....its always team defense for those guys no matter who you are.

 

[MirORich]

Would love to find a way to grind out a victory tonight and then potentially play a Lakers team that may be choosing to play it cautious with LeBron and AD's current injuries by holding them out.

 

[stick]

Would love to find a way to grind out a victory tonight and then potentially play a Lakers team that may be choosing to play it cautious with LeBron and AD's current injuries by holding them out.

Lakers will be playing their third game in four nights (!) with one of them already being an overtime game.

Will be curious to see how long LeBron is out.He might suit up on Friday and I see him sitting against the Thunder tonight.

Lakers saying something about the season being a marathon and not a sprint has me thinking they'll be taking the cautious route.

Sweeping LA is not even close to being off the table no matter who plays on their squads.

 

[Kouki]

10:30 games should be illegal wtf

 

[macbdog]

We talking about a different Luke Kennard...?

The Kennard I know is 6'5'' and this is just his 5th year.

No that's his cousin.

 

[WorldFreeB]

10:30 games should be illegal wtf

I already took a nap LOL .

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

It's early and these are small samples but the Clippers are 2nd in the NBA in forcing turnovers at 20.7 per game. Not committing a spate of turnovers will be critical for the Cavs. The Clippers are 2nd in steals per defensive play. They know they don't defend the rim well so they play an aggressive, gambling defense.

Paul George gets about 30% of their steals so the Cavs need to watch for him lurking in the passing lanes. They should probably avoid driving into the paint and then kicking it to the corner. The Clippers have a lot of guys with many years of NBA experience and they obviously anticipate passes very well.

On offense the Clippers lead the NBA by a significant margin in not committing turnovers - only 10.3 per game. So their turnover margin so far is +10.4.

They rank 5th in assists per possession and 7th in 3-point shots attempted per game. They pass the ball, avoid turnovers, and jack up almost 41 three's per game. Their accuracy on 3's is just average at 33.6%. The Cavs need to defend the perimeter and challenge those 3-point shots like they did against Denver, who went 9-for-38 from deep.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

We talking about a different Luke Kennard...?

The Kennard I know is 6'5'' and this is just his 5th year.

You're right, I was picturing another lefty, Joe Ingles, you I just watched some video of.

Kennard is a smooth jump shooter, the kind of player I'm hoping Dylan Windler will evolve into. He's a 41.5% career shooter on 3's. But Kennard was a #12 overall pick and played for Duke, whereas Windler played for Belmont, so he's obviously not as advanced coming into the league.

This is Kennard's 5th season yet he's only three months older than Windler. Kennard has played over 5,000 minutes against Windler's 515.

 

[Dr No]

That's a great observation.

Okoro being out will be a problem. I figured the Cavs would put Mobley on Paul George and switch to Okoro when Mobley sits down.

They may do the same thing with Mobley as they did with Allen against Denver - put him on the floor whenever Jokic was in and sit him when Jokic sits.

With Okoro out who does Bickerstaff bring in when Markkanen sits - Cedi or Windler? Cedi guarding George is a recipe for disaster. So is Windler on George, for that matter.

I'd probably go with Stevens and/or Wade. Honestly, Stevens is probably better suited to take on PG than Okoro and Wade gives you some height plus he helps on the offensive end.