Cavs Need To Adjust Their Style After The Break

The Cleveland Cavaliers enter the NBA All-Star weekend with the worst record in the Eastern Conference and second worst in the entire league.

They did make a splash at the trading deadline, acquiring two time All Star Andre Drummond from Detroit for pretty much a bag of balls and some warmups.

That’s not to disparage John Henson and Brandon Knight, but they were free agents to be at the end of the season, and weren’t coming back to play for the wine and gold.

With their roster set, what does the balance of the NBA schedule hold for the Cavs? What should they be trying to accomplish in the 30 or so games remaining on the slate?

GM Koby Altman was quoted as saying this season, yes, this one, has been a success because of the development of Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, and Kevin Porter Jr.

While we understand where he is coming from, no season in which a team wins just 26% of their games is a good one, particularly when they won only 23% last season, and supposedly added two first round picks.

These last 28 games should be about showing some progress on the court. No, we don’t think the Cavs should or will make the playoffs, but it would be nice if there were no more 41 point losses at home either.

And really, let’s say John Beilein’s group stunned the world and went 20-8 in the remaining schedule. Would people really be upset by that? That would be significant progress, no?

With the addition of Drummond, Cleveland is going against the grain in today’s NBA, going with more size. That’s not a bad thing, just different. But if you are going to go with it, you also have to change your style of play.

When Phoenix started the “small ball” movement, they didn’t line up and play the same style of all the taller teams in the NBA at that time, they started playing with pace and shooting more threes than the rest of the league.

The league average in 2004-05, Mike D’Antoni’s first year with the Suns, was 15.8 three point attempts per game. Phoenix took a league high 24.7.

If Beilein is going to feature Drummond, Kevin Love, Larry Nance Jr., and Tristan Thompson, the strategy should be play fast off of defensive rebounds, take advantage of fast break opportunities.

If that isn’t there, and the team is in a half court situation, the object should be to work inside out. Get the ball to Drummond or Love around the paint and surround them with shooters.

Thus, a greater emphasis should be put on defense, since the best way to fast break is to get stops, grab the rebound, and run.

That may also entail using a different rotation in the backcourt, maybe moving Garland to the bench and getting a little more size at guard by using Sexton and Porter, and occasionally Cedi Osman there.

We have said all season we would like to see Osman, Nance, and Love on the floor at the same time with Thompson at center, just to see if the Cavs can play that way.

This would be a good chance to experiment with that group together.

If you are going to play with size, then you have to use a style that doesn’t allow your bigs to be run off the floor, particularly with the way the game is played.

It’s going to take a new commitment from the coaching staff and the players. Will we see some progress in terms of team goals between now and the middle of April?

Getting Drummond For Virtually Nothing? Why Not?

We have commented for several years that the Cleveland Cavaliers’ organization ignored height in a sport where it matters a lot.

They addressed that yesterday in a huge way, trading impending free agents John Henson and Brandon Knight, and a second round draft pick to the Pistons for one of the best big men in the game, Andre Drummond.

Yes, we understand Drummond can be a free agent at the end of the season by declining his player option, but the Cavs have his “Bird rights”, meaning they can offer him more than any other team.

And even if he leaves via free agency, GM Koby Altman basically gave up the second round pick, because Henson and Knight were leaving anyway.

That’s what you call a win/win. He’s just 26 years old.

Quite frankly, Drummond is one of the game’s best big men. He leads the league in rebounding at 15.8, and has led the NBA in this category in three of the last four seasons. He’s also scoring 17.8 points per game.

Is he a guy who can be the best player on a playoff team? That’s doubtful, but he is a productive big guy and is a deterrent around the basket, averaging 1.7 blocked shots per game.

Does he make the wine and gold significantly better right now? Again, probably not, so any fear of a lengthy winning streak starting soon and putting the Cavs with lower odds of getting a top five pick in this June’s draft are probably unfounded.

However, no one should complain about adding a good player for virtually nothing, and Drummond is a very good player.

He isn’t like the flashy players today’s NBA seem to love, but you still need quality big men to win, even today.

How does he fit in with the current Cavs’ roster? That would be up to the coaching staff and the young backcourt players.

Beilein has talked about ball movement offensively, but we really haven’t seen it. And the young players (Darius Garland, Collin Sexton, and Kevin Porter Jr.) have had issues making entry passes to the low post, which is where you want Drummond to have the basketball.

If they don’t learn quickly how to do that, then the new big man won’t be much of a factor offensively.

On the other hand, Kevin Love and Larry Nance Jr. are very good passers, so perhaps some imagination getting the ball into the high post to either of them, and then playing off Drummond can work.

With Tristan Thompson remaining on the roster, you may be able to give Nance some minutes at the small forward spot, which we have also advocated.

That also makes you stronger defensively, and it goes without saying that is a huge need for this squad.

The point is this is a low risk move for the Cavs. They basically gave up a second round pick for a quality big man.

When in doubt, we are always in favor of adding good players to the team. That’s what Altman did yesterday.

Can’t complain about that.

Will Cavs Roster Be Reshaped This Week?

With the NBA trading deadline coming up on Thursday, this figures to be a pivotal week for the future of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

After a 4-5 start that had many people optimistic about the young roster, the last month to six weeks have been tough to watch. The Cavs have lost 11 home games in a row, and in the past few weeks, have been blown out at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse by three of the league’s worst teams: The Knicks, Wizards, and Warriors.

Clearly, there is a problem. While no one expected the wine and gold to make a playoff run this season, winning only nine games out of the last 42 (a half season) wasn’t what the organization was hoping for either.

Things looked a little promising after the “slug/thug” comment right before the Disney On Ice trip with road wins at Detroit and Denver, but since then, they’ve lost 11 of 12, with only four of the losses by less than 10 points.

We know the Cavs have five free agents to be at the end of this season: Tristan Thompson, John Henson, Matthew Dellavedova, Brandon Knight, and Ante Zizic, plus Kevin Love would like to be moved elsewhere.

Will GM Koby Altman be able to move any of these players before Thursday’s deadline? Or will be move one, if not more, of this group with another piece in an effort to revamp the entire roster.

Let’s face it, playing two small guards (Collin Sexton and Darius Garland) isn’t working, particularly on the defensive end, although really, that should have been expected.

Cleveland’s roster compounds this situation by having just one shot blocking threat, Henson, around the basket. It is very noticeable that the defense is better when Henson is in the game, he has the best defensive rating on the team.

Really, this franchise has ignored height for much of the last five seasons. The last move to get a true center (and yes, he know the game is different now) was when David Griffin brought in Timofey Mozgov in 2015.

Even the Steph Curry/Klay Thompson Warriors had big guys like Andrew Bogut, JeVale McGee, and Festus Ezeli to protect the basket. The Cavaliers need to get an inside presence, and we feel doing so would see an instant improvement.

And this isn’t to denigrate Tristan Thompson who works as hard as any player on the floor, but in reality, he’s a defensive minded power forward. At 6’9″, it’s tough for him to handle guys like Andre Drummond and Joel Embiid. He gives up a lot of size and bulk to those players.

So, we would not be surprised if Sexton isn’t included in a deal before the week ends. It wouldn’t be about the second year guard’s effort, he puts a lot of time in working on his game, but it would have to do with the mix with Garland, and can the franchise move forward with the pair getting big minutes.

We look at teams like Oklahoma City, who traded stars Russell Westbrook and Paul George after a 49-33 season, and now they sit at 30-20.

We look at teams like Toronto (who lost Kawhi Leonard) and Utah, who have a system for success at this point. The Cavs need to develop an identity as a franchise that doesn’t include LeBron James.

Bill Fitch did this when he took over the expansion Cavs in 1970. Lenny Wilkens did it in the 80’s, and Mike Fratello the same after the Mark Price/Brad Daugherty era ended. Right now, there is nothing for the organization to hang their hats on.

The rebuild may have started after James left for free agency in 2018, but the first retooling could take place this week. It seems to be badly needed.

No Luck, Neither Good Nor Bad, Involved In Lottery For Cavs

The NBA’s Draft Lottery was Tuesday night, and this year, for the Cleveland Cavaliers, there wasn’t any luck involved, neither good or bad.

The biggest percentage chance for Cleveland to end up was fifth, and that’s exactly where they wound up.

So, save the gripes about how the Cavs got screwed. In fact, we laughed all spring at media folks who said the wine and gold had to get the first pick, when the percentages said it was a 14% chance.

Now, by consensus, the first three picks in the draft will be Zion Williamson, who was the prize of the lottery, and will no doubt be the choice of the New Orleans Pelicans. And most agree the next two picks will be Ja Morant of Murray State, and another Dukie, R.J. Barrett.

That would seem to leave GM Koby Altman with a choice of Texas Tech guard Jarrett Culver, Duke shooter Cam Reddish, Vanderbilt point guard Darius Garland, and Virginia swingman De’Andre Hunter at the 5th spot.

And don’t forget, the Cavs have a second first round pick, the 26th selection, obtained from Houston in the deal where Cleveland took Brandon Knight’s high salary off the Rockets’ hands.

The biggest need for Altman and new coach, John Beilein is talent. Right now, the Cavs have one All Star caliber player in Kevin Love, and some other “nice pieces” in Collin Sexton, Larry Nance Jr., Cedi Osman, and Ante Zizic.

Sexton could develop into an all star type, and perhaps Osman can too, but if those two wind up being solid starters, that would be fine. There will always be a place on a team for someone with Nance’s skill set, and Zizic is still raw, but has ability.

Former Cavs’ GM Chris Grant used to say there are a few very good players in every draft, and his job was to find one of those players each year.

For what it’s worth, based on what we’ve seen and read about each of the prospects listed above, we would lean toward Culver, who is a student of the game, played in a great defensive scheme at Texas Tech, and whose weaknesses could be overcome with work, and he seems willing to do that.

The 26th overall pick could be important too, because don’t forget Altman could package that choice with a player, probably an expiring contract to move up from that spot.

Remember, the JR Smith contract is a very large asset as a trade chip. Maybe he brings back a higher pick and maybe even a third first rounder this season.

More likely though, Altman would be looking for another first round pick in the 2020 draft, to give him two next year.

Regardless, the Cavaliers have a very good chance to get a good piece this summer. And Altman will be moving at least one or two higher priced veterans (Tristan Thompson?) to accumulate more assets.

Remember, the best players on three of the remaining teams in the NBA playoffs were drafted 15th (Kawhi Leonard and Giannis Antetokounmpo), 6th (Damian Lillard) and Stephen Curry was picked 7th overall.

We will read a lot about the players who will be taken with the 5th pick between now and the draft at the end of June.

There is talent available in the draft, it’s up to Altman to find someone who can help.

Cavs Get More Picks, And Gamble On A Young Big Man.

The Cleveland Cavaliers had a busy week before the NBA trading deadline, but some wish they’d have done more.

Yes, they moved their two most tradable commodities in Rodney Hood and Alec Burks, and they did gamble on some young players, but they didn’t make the big splash many hoped for.

Don’t get us wrong, we are happy with what GM Koby Altman did. He accumulated more assets. Cleveland added another first round pick in this year’s draft (from Houston) and more second rounders, which can be used to sweeten the pot in some other deals.

We have heard folks be critical of the Hood deal, but the player had approval over where he could have gone, and quite frankly, the way Hood played in the wine and gold didn’t have other GMs beating down the Cavs’ doors.

Hood is 6’8″, athletic, with a decent shooting touch. He visually looks like he should be a very good NBA player. However, he disappears when he’s on the floor a lot. He had an opportunity in Cleveland to be a primary scorer, but never embraced the role.

Perhaps he’d be a better player if he had the attitude of Jordan Clarkson, who comes in and wants to be a scorer. But that kind of aggressiveness can’t be taught.

Burks was destined to be moved as soon as he arrived, because of his expiring contract. And really, he was part of the Hood deal, because the two players received for Hood (Nik Stauskas and Wade Baldwin) were sent to Houston in the deal that moved Burks to Sacramento.

In addition to the first round pick acquired in the deal, Altman did want we wanted him to do in picking up a young player who had been a disappointment to his current team in the deal.

He did that in getting Marquese Chriss, a 21 year old, who is 6’10”, something needed for the height challenged Cavaliers.

Chriss was the 8th overall pick in 2016 by Phoenix, and played every game as a rookie, starting 75 of them. He averaged 9.2 points and 4.2 rebounds on 45% shooting.

Last year, he lost time due to the drafting of Josh Jackson, and started the year coming off the bench. When he did start (he started 49 games), he averaged 8.6 points and 5.9 rebounds per game on 44% shooting. He was traded to Houston, with Brandon Knight (familiar?) for Ryan Anderson and De’Anthony Melton.

Is Chriss a future star? Who knows, but again, he’s only 21 years old. He should be a senior in college.

The Cavaliers have 28 games to evaluate him. And he did have 13 points and 8 rebounds in his debut.

Knight, who came to Cleveland in the deal, isn’t a bad get either, and he’s an expiring contract next season, which is a valuable trade piece at the very least.

He was the 8th overall pick the year the Cavs took Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson, and averaged 18 points and five assists in his third year in the league with Milwaukee, who was being coached by Larry Drew.

He was traded three times in his first four years in the league, and we believe mostly because he’s more of a Mike Conley-style point guard than an Irving-style player.

He’s battled injuries throughout his career, but he’s only 27 years old. Perhaps if he gets healthy, he can carve out a niche in the NBA.

The rest of this season should be about auditions for Chriss, Ante Zizic, Knight, and others to see if they have a place in the Cavs’ future.

However, it is easier to accumulate assets than it is to cash them in. That’s the challenge for Altman going forward.