The season came to an end much in a way it started -- a team that had the potential for more, leaving you wanting more but also wanting to watch less based on their inconsistent ways and bad habits. Being down 3-0 was a tall mountain to climb for any team, let alone this team, so there was a sense of finality to this season. But the way in which that came was as disappointing as any of the other games. They came out looking ready for a fight only to be knocked down upon the first punch. Shotmaking. Points in transition. Turning the ball over. Offensive rebounding. If you ask how we got here, the answer is in margins as much as it is in the star column.
By The Numbers
40: Knicks point differential the rest of the game after being down 14-17 at 6:37 mark in the 1Q
+19: Knicks FGA advantage
19: Knicks 3PM and the most 3PM given up in a playoff game this year by the Cavs
20: Offensive rebounds by the Knicks
22: Turnovers by the Cavs, tied for their highest total this postseason
32: Second chance points for the Knicks
33: Fast break points by the Knicks
17+: Another game another run of 17+ points - pick your quarter for G4
16: Landry Shamet points which would have been the second highest scorer on the Cavs
3: Knicks with 10+ rebounds while the Cavs had zero
30: Knicks had 30+ points in every quarter while the Cavs never touched 30 points in a quarter
By The Players
James Harden: A rough finish for what's been a rough series for Harden. The age, the finger, the minutes, the bad habits, all looked like they caught up with him. Just 25% shooting, 5 turnovers, and several plays in transition that will make you pull your hair out (if you have any). The Knicks once again picked on Harden defensively and had success. Harden tried to answer that on the other end in isolating the Brunson matchup with mixed results. Harden had just one shot attempt inside the free throw line area and gets to his inconsistent paint game and one that has taken a toll as he's lost a step. His aggressiveness in getting to that spot has also waned and he seemed too content to launch three-pointers instead of trying to find other opportunities. But despite all that, it's ironic the team still performed better with him on the floor. +7.2 on offense, and -23.8 on defense. For all his flaws, he stabilizes the offense and there's not enough playmaking outside of him that the play can sustain. Harden said he did pretty good this year with the Cavs and plans to be back but that may be determined on which pathway the Cavs go.
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Donovan Mitchell: He did enough to show that he came out and competed but didn't do enough to elevate his team in the way that they have needed it. Mitchell started 4-for-6, and was extra aggressive in looking for his shot in the 1Q. Then, he followed that with 5-for-14 the rest of the game and settling for far too many jumpers hoping it would jump start an offense that looked like it was in quick sand compared to the Knicks. Yes the Cavs didn't shoot well but Mitchell had one assist and four turnovers. The team was also 7.3 offensive rating points worse offensively with him on the floor. Donovan talked like a guy wanting to be back (o
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Max Strus: Kenny made the move to put Max in the starting lineup and it went, uh, well... okay in the first half as the starters were a +2, +10.5 net rating, and actually looking like they were putting up a competitive fight. But that turned in the second half with a -3, -23.6 net rating, in 4 minutes and was right before the floodgates came open. Brunson once again had a rough night but Strus's offense didn't to enough where that was truly felt. Strus finished 2-for-6, including 1-for-4 from 3, and shot just 32.8% over his last 10 playoff games and 30% over his last 5. Strus is a gamer, and competes his ass off, brings good energy, makes the hustle plays and can offer a little more offensively than the other role players. But he is simply not a starting level player at this point nor one that can be relied upon to be the do-everything-wing the Cavs need at this stage. Over matched, and under performed which is very fitting of the Cavs team in this round.
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Evan Mobley: For such a strong postseason it was a disappointing end for the progress he made. Once again, there was sloppiness inside the arc that lended itself to 3 turnovers off of a loose handle and weak hands in the paint that has been an issue for the entire season. The flashes of the playmaking were there but were stunted by the Cavs inability to convert spot-up attempts. Mobley fell victim to that same diseases as he went 1-for-4 on 3's. He also fell victim to being too perimeter reliant (wonder where he learned that from?) in accept spot-up 3's instead of using the catch-and-attacks like he did so well throughout the postseason with. Mobley will need to work on the in-between game, regaining his free-throw touch and having some semblance of a post move to go to. That may seem like a tall order but all are within his grasp as a scorer. Whether Mobley is back here next season or not being able to showcase his improvement falls a lot on Mitchell and Gilbert's willingness to support him in another playoff run.
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Jarrett Allen: What ever happened to elimination game JA? Allen was relatively non-existent for most of the game -- just 6 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 4 stocks and 1 turnover. His presence was not felt like it was in a lot of other games this postseason and felt like a forgotten figure on the court which is disappointing to have when the Cavs are paying him to be a high level role player and carry over the baseline consistency from game-to-game. The short roll wasn't there and the guards weren't getting to dump offs which paralyzes his offensive value. Defensively, he continued to struggle with Mitchell Robinson and the Knicks were in the Cavs paint converting at will. JA showed how good he can be this year and worked hard to eliminate the memes/generalizations about his play in the playoffs. But that likely won't be enough to keep his name out of trade rumors this offseason being one of the prime ways for the Cavs to change out this team if they want to.
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Sam Merrill: In a lot of ways Merrill was emblematic of this team not being able to recover from Game 1. After the missed game-winning shot, Merrill was never the same, just 15 points after three straight 10+ point playoff games. He shot 3-for-13 on 3's and wasn't the sharpshooter the Cavs so desperately needed him to be. And when he wasn't hitting shots, the drive game wasn't there and it was harder for him to be impactful defensively when the Knicks had long wings littered across their main lineups. Merrill undoubtedly has a role moving forward but like a lot of the Cavs players his impact is within better structured units as the Cavs often asked him to stretch outside of where he should be.
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Keon Ellis: He got minutes? It's hard to imagine how talked up Ellis was and how pleasantly surprised Kenny was to acquire Ellis only to see him collect DNP's throughout the playoffs and really be a non-factor. The Cavs talked up his POA defense and in needing it for matchups like these yet he never saw in the floor and it was in part a). due to roster construction of too many smalls but b). the shot we thought we were getting 6 3PA/36 on 40.7% was not the shot we actually got. It will be interesting to see how the Cavs value him given the glut they have at the guard spot but the value is there if the Cavs are able to find out how to better utilize him.
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Jaylon Tyson: He got minutes too? The minutes he did get seemed somewhat too-many-too-late as the impact Tyson could have had this postseason was somewhat muted by opportunities but also muted by his play during those opportunities. Tyson never really recovered after the trade deadline and getting injured and was a shell of the player we saw breakout as a potential core piece. This game was no different as shots early in the possession and some off-ball help issues cropped up that drove Kenny crazy during the postseason and is why he saw his minutes reduced. At the same time, he may have the offensive skills a lot of the other role players don't have and the energy/grit to be the emotional rock of this team if he can better control them. It would be nice to see him earn a starting spot next year and ride the roller coaster in hopes of he can be the player most expect him to be.
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Dean Wade: He suited up. By the time Wade entered the game off the bench the Knicks were already off and rolling and there's little Wade could do to stop the train. His matchup on Brunson is largely the value but that value is harder to be seen when the Knicks are playing in transition, moving the ball so well and his offense (1 FGA in 12 minutes) is doing little to help keep him on the floor. Wade played well within the difficult role that was tasked in being a band aid on a longstanding issue in the starting lineup, and off the bench, and did as much as one could expect in his position. He's a very solid role player who makes positive impacts even if they're not seen in the box score. But the Cavs were needing/hoping he coud be closer to the multi-dimensional wings we see scattered across the playoffs but just never was able to attain that level offensively. Being a free agent, and likely having a market, on a team trying to figure out its payroll usually doesn't end well but there's also not too many players like him on the Cavs roster and they need more playable size not less.
Game Notes
- If there's one video to sum up Game 4, it might be Charles Barkley yet again.
- So much of this postseason has been posing the question "we'll see who they are this game" which is an indictment against this team that we have to keep asking that but also the reality we still haven't been able to figure out who this team is and it's game 100. The Cavs consistency is their consistency. But their consistent lack of attention to detail and willingness to consistently do the small things needed to win, and better than the other team showed up in Game 4 in major ways.
- Abused on the boards. Just will, want, desire, whatever you want to call it. Giving up 20 offensive rebounds, the second most this postseason, but 14 more than you pulled down is just the mentality the Knicks were playing with.
- Turned over and turned down. Give credit to the Knicks: They were very active defensively, challenging everything and using their long arms to be disruptive. But so much of the Cavs issues with turnovers come down to not valuing the ball and being far too laissez-faire with their opportunities. The Knicks outshot them by 21 field goal attempts which is absurb to think about but how 30+ point wins happen.
- And then what has been a primary issue all postseason is the Cavs abomination that is transition defense. 15 live ball turnovers leading to 23 points. Mike Brown told his guys to run and boy did they ever. They kept pressing the Cavs on any turnovers or misses and were leaking out and pushing the pace forcing the Cavs to get back and communicate. If you talk about competing and showing up for your coach, the Knicks did while the Cavd didn't. It was demoralizing to see how easy and quick the Knicks were getting to their shots while the Cavs were running behind the play or confused on how to handle the ball handler coming up court. Transition defense is fundamental stuff but it's been fundamental issue all year.
- Even worse: To hear Tim Legler on the broadcast say that Kenny Atkinson had said transition defense was their primary focus coming in.... Well.
- Speaking of defense: Kenny pulled out some zone in an attempt to cool the Knicks jets off and make them play in the halfcourt. It worked for maybe a few possessions but the Knicks were shooting the ball too well, passing the ball too quickly and having Mobley out top left Mitchell, Strus and Harden as rebounders in the halfcourt setting which is inconsistent at best.
- Still don't know why the Cavs were such a switch heavy team that didn't fight too much pre catch when they don't have the personnel to consistently switch and allowing the switch plays into teams playoff opportunities to target the weakest link.
- How/why the Cavs come out to start games with such good sets and than it's completely by the wayside the next possession is beyond me. We saw these types of sets to begin last year with Kenny so to see them used so sporadically this year has been puzzling. These are looks that often times get the bigs looks and get them in ways that are replicatable so why is it used so sparingly or why are the looks not gone to within the flow of the game more?
- Speaking of offense: The Cavs once again ended up with more 3PAs than 2PAs while the Knicks had 12 more 2PAs than 3PAs. Teams need to be able to shoot the ball well and they have to be able to do so at high volume but it can't replace the volume in side that has defined these final teams. And especially for the Cavs as they have two big advantages inside yet they don't leverage the space they occupy enough. Some of this falls on Kenny for not forcing the issue and forcing the message more on paint touches and needing to work inside out, which we've heard postgame but never consistently followed through in game, but it's also a byproduct of giving the guards as much freedom as they have without repercussions for playing how they want.
- The Cavs can think they have a better team and believe they had better shot quality but they ran into an absolute buzzsaw playing their absolute best at the right now. It was also a team that was connected, dedicated to the small things and had the fitting pieces that complemented each other so well instead of overlapping.
- It is interesting to hearing the postgame comments about how much the first two series and Game 1 of this series impacted this team. The first from a fatigue standpoint and the latter from a mental standpoint. These are things they brushed aside at times but have admitted how critical they were to influencing the sweep. It also speaks to the attitude that's been the common theme throughout these game notes of the small things and things needed to do consistently to win at a high level that simply was not there.
Box Score & Highlights