Raptors Bringing Physicality. Can Cavs Answer It?

To quote the great Jim Nantz, “it’s a tradition like any other”. Nantz, of course, is talking about The Masters, but we could use the same line to describe the performance of the Cleveland Cavaliers in their series against the Toronto Raptors.

It started with the first-round loss to the New York Knicks four years ago, when the Knicks started playing a physical brand, some might say, playoff brand of basketball and the wine and gold just never matched it.

Opponents play with force, a physicality, and the Cavaliers simply don’t match it. And that’s what has happened up north, and the two teams come back to Cleveland with the series tied at two games apiece.

To be it simply, Scottie Barnes bullied the Cavs in the two games in Toronto and Kenny Atkinson’s crew hasn’t answered back. Following Friday’s game three loss, Atkinson switched Dean Wade on to Barnes, moving Evan Mobley to Brandon Ingram, and to some extent it worked, they held the Raptors to 93 points, and the two Toronto forwards shot 12 of 37 from the floor.

But Barnes got to the line 14 times, had nine rebounds and six assists. Wade and Mobley were just 7 of 16 from the floor, and the latter had nine rebounds.

Barnes is attacking and the Cavaliers haven’t seemed to have challenged him all that much. Conversely, especially in game four, the outside shot wasn’t falling for Cleveland, yet they kept hoisting the three, taking 40 of their 87 shots from beyond the arc. They made just 10.

The Cavs looked to take control of the game in the middle of the second, third, and fourth quarters, only to see the Raptors close each time. In the second quarter, Cleveland led by seven (33-26) with 1:40 remaining, only to see Toronto close the half on a 12-3 run.

In that quarter, Dennis Schroder and James Harden started taking the ball to the basket and combined for 11 of the team’s 19 points, going 5 of 9 from the field. The rest of the team went 3 for 14.

Cleveland led 56-48 with 3:53 remaining in quarter three only to see the Raptors go on a 12-2 spurt to lead after three 60-58.

And of course, in the fourth quarter they had an eight-point lead at 84-76 with 4:55 on the clock, but the Raptors closed the game on a 17-5 run.

We hate to blame a coach, but we have to wonder what Sam Merrill is giving the Cavs, especially if he isn’t making shots. He did make 3 of 7 on Sunday, but prior was 3 for 10 in the series. And in game four, didn’t have a rebound or an assist.

In the playoffs, we think you need more all-around players. We felt down the stretch the Cavs needed someone else who could take the ball to the basket. Jaylon Tyson is willing to do that and he’s also a stronger rebounder and defender than Merrill.

This is the playoffs. The physical play is enhanced. As for the rotations, the coaching staff needs to go with the hot hand(s). Thomas Bryant needs to play if for no other reason than he’s a big body. Atkinson seems to have gone away from Keon Ellis, who hasn’t done much, but Schroder should get more time. There is no reason he should have played less than Merrill.

We understand Harden is taking a lot of heat nationally, but to us, it’s clear Mobley has to step up from both a physical standpoint and be more aggressive offensively. And Wade needs to shoot if Toronto is ignoring him.

They are doubling the guards and several times Wade took the ball into the paint from the wing, then turned around and passed the ball back outside. He has to be more aggressive offensively.

The Cavaliers can still win this series and really must win the series. They didn’t get Harden to lose in round one. But they have to be more physical.

What we don’t know is are they capable of doing that.

Looking At Cavs-Raptors Matchup

The long 82 game grind is over and the start of the NBA playoffs start this weekend with the Cavaliers taking on Toronto in a best-of-seven series with the Cavs having the home court advantage. Cleveland finished the regular season with 52 wins, six more than their first round opponent.

The teams played three times in the regular season with the Raptors winning all of them but those contests were all played before Thanksgiving and Kenny Atkinson’s roster is much different now.

The first game, played on Halloween was at Rocket Arena, a 112-101 Toronto win, and Atkinson started two players who aren’t even on the roster right now in De’Andre Hunter and Lonzo Ball. R.J. Barrett, Brandon Ingram, and Jamison Battle all scored 20 for Toronto, and Scottie Barnes had 14 points and 10 rebounds.

The second game, also in Cleveland, was a 126-113 Raptors win. Donovan Mitchell scored 31 for the wine and gold, but Barnes had 28, Immanuel Quickley had 25, and Jacob Poeltl scored 20. Reserve big man Sandro Mamukelashvilli scored 13 off the bench.

The last game was a 110-99 in Canada and Ingram shredded the Cavs with 37 points with Barnes adding 18. The Cavs started Ball and Larry Nance Jr., in that game as Jarrett Allen was out.

In total, Allen has played 20 minutes against the Raptors this year, and all three games were before Koby Altman remade the roster with the deadline trades for James Harden, Keon Ellis, and Dennis Schroder.

We know the Cavaliers can score, the old coach in us worries about the defense, particularly the potential matchup problems Ingram and Barnes can present. Both are long, athletic players, the type the Cavaliers have had problems with over the last few years.

The plan should be to use Evan Mobley on Barnes and Dean Wade on Ingram, both very good defensive players. The concern with Wade is when will an opponent play him off the floor in these playoffs, because Wade seems to not want to shoot, and opponents could use the man supposedly assigned to him to start doubling on to either Mitchell or Harden.

Quickley is the Raptors’ chief three-point shooter, but he has a hamstring injury, so how much he can contribute is in doubt.

The Raptors’ are in the bottom five in the league in three-point attempts, which defending those shots is a weakness for the Cavs. That’s a good thing.

We also can’t overlook the reputation for having a lack of toughness Cleveland has garnered over the past few years. We do think Altman addressed this by getting Schroder, who is an irritating player (that’s a compliment) and also because of Jaylon Tyson, who is a tough defender, who also can shoot the ball.

But we need to see Allen and Mobley respond the first time an opponent knocks a Cleveland player to the floor. That’s not saying dirty play, it is saying they need to get mad and play with an edge.

We will see how this plays out over this playoff season.

As for this series, Cleveland has the best two players on the floor in Mitchell and Harden. They also have two inside scorers in Mobley and Allen, who Harden can get the ball to inside. We talk about the Cavs’ lack of size inside, but outside of Poeltl, the Raptors don’t have much either.

A first-round loss would be a disaster for the Cavs, but we don’t see that happening. We also don’t think it will be a cake walk because of Ingram and Barnes.

Getting Irritating Players Was Good Move By Altman

Since the Cleveland Cavaliers returned to prominence and returned to the playoffs, there has been a label attached to them. They were viewed as needing toughness.

Every time Jarrett Allen has a poor game against a good NBA team, his quote after a first-round playoff loss in five games to the New York Knicks is brought up again. He referred to the lights being too bright for him and his teammates.

Certainly, the James Harden deal at the deadline gets a lot of attention and rightly so. Cleveland is 8-1 in games Harden has played since the deal, averaging 19.1 points and 7.9 assists per contest. We said at the time that if the Cavs were going to have a ball dominant guard who isn’t strong defensively, it’s better to have one who is 6’5″ than one that is 6’1″.

However, the deal with Sacramento that sent De’Andre Hunter to the Kings for Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis brought something else Kenny Atkinson’s team needed more of, and that is toughness.

We say more toughness because Jaylon Tyson was already on the roster. Tyson is having a breakout second season, averaging 13.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, and is the player who draws the assignment of guarding the opponents’ best player on a nightly basis.

We watched last Friday’s loss to Detroit and had to smile even though the Cavs did not win. Why? Because Tyson bothered the Pistons’ star Cade Cunningham. He picked up Cunningham full court, was physical, and we saw the Detroit MVP candidate bumping and shoving Tyson to get away from him. He was an irritant.

The same is true for the players who came over from the Kings. We always thought Schroder was a pain in the butt when he played against the Cavs in the playoffs during Cleveland’s run to The Finals from 2015-18, and he hasn’t lost that edge with age. He’s not fun to play against.

As for Ellis, his hands are just amazing. We have no idea if he is fouling when he gets his hands on the ball defensively, but if the referees aren’t calling it, advantage Cavaliers. He’s averaging 1.7 steals and 1.4 blocks since his arrival and is doing it getting just 23 minutes per game.

And even Harden helps because he is a better defender if posted up than Garland simply because of size. He’s also been around a long time, so he knows all of the veteran “tricks” defensively.

We don’t remember the last time the Cavs had a player who played with an “edge” since guys like Matthew Dellavedova and Tristan Thompson on those Eastern Conference title teams. But they are needed, especially against the better teams in the league and in the playoffs as well.

The best thing about Tyson and Schroder are they contribute offensively too. Tyson is among the best three-point shooters in the league and Schroder is scoring 10.9 points per game and is very creative in getting to the basket.

They won’t get played off the floor in the post-season. That’s the difference between these players and guys like Isaac Okoro and to a lesser extent, Dean Wade, who has another chance to prove otherwise. If you can’t be a threat on offense, opponents ignore you and that makes it tough on guys like Donovan Mitchell, Harden, and the other scorers.

We love having irritating players on the Cavaliers. And although we would like more size on the Cavs, they could use some 6’7″ or 6’8″ wings to guard players like Jaylen Brown or Jayson Tatum with the Celtics. But getting players like these should pay dividends come this spring.

Tough Stretch Out Of The Break Should Show Cavs’ Progress After Deals

Certainly, there is a lot of optimism about the Cleveland Cavaliers after the trading deadline when Koby Altman swapped Darius Garland, De’Andre Hunter, and Lonzo Ball for James Harden, Dennis Schroder, and Keon Ellis.

The Cavs have won 10 of their last 11 games and although they sit in the #4 position in the Eastern Conference, they are just a game and a half out of the #2 spot.

We don’t want to pour cold water on everyone, but of the three wins since Harden arrived, Cleveland has defeated the Kings, who have the worst record in the West, and the Wizards, who have the worst mark in the East.

Yes, winning in Denver was a quality win, we are not minimizing that. But the real test is coming for this group.

It has been documented the schedule for the wine and gold is considerably easier down the stretch, one of the lightest slates in the Association, but the new roster will be test coming out of the All Star break.

After a home game tonight against Brooklyn, the Cavs hit the road for games against the red-hot Charlotte Hornets and the defending champs in Oklahoma City. Charlotte is currently a “play-in” team, and the Thunder came into town on MLK Day and waxed Kenny Atkinson’s crew 136-104.

The Knicks, currently the third seed in the East, comes to town on Tuesday, and the Cavaliers end February with a game in Detroit, and after another home game with the Nets, have a homestand against the Pistons, Celtics, and 76ers.

We will get a much better evaluation on all the roster moves after this stretch.

And you would think that in this stretch of games, Evan Mobley should be back on the floor, so we can finally see how Harden affects him on the offensive end. We have already seen how Jarrett Allen has been much more of a scorer, not only with Harden, but on the western swing.

Remember the 40 point, 17 rebound game against Portland came before the trades took place.

With Mobley back, another thing to watch is how Atkinson will handle playing time. Right now, he is basically starting with Allen and four guards, which makes a lot of minutes available for the glut of wings on the roster.

We would think when Mobley is back in the starting lineup, Jaylon Tyson will start at the #3, with Sam Merrill and Dean Wade (when he returns) coming off the bench. But the coach might want Tyson coming off the bench and have Merrill’s shooting space the floor for Donovan Mitchell, Harden and the big men.

And doing this would make Wade the backup for Allen and Mobley up front. If Atkinson wanted to go big, he can always use Wade at the #3 as well, he has shown he can defend on the perimeter.

Also, Nae’Qwan Tomlin should stay in the rotation. His energy and length have earned being on the floor.

The minutes for the wings will likely work itself out before the end of the season and Atkinson will have a better idea of his rotation for the playoffs, but in the meantime, players like Merrill and Craig Porter Jr. will be on trial for earning time on the floor.

Being deep is a good thing overall though, and hopefully the injuries are behind the Cavs so Atkinson will have a tough decision when the playoffs start.

Early Return On Deals Very Good For Cavs

The Cleveland Cavaliers are playing much better over the last month, winning 10 of their last 11 and just coming home from a tough trip out west where they dropped the first game in Phoenix and then ripped off four straight wins.

Certainly, all of the attention is on James Harden because let’s face it, no matter how you feel about his style of play, he is a former MVP and was named as one of the 75 greatest players in the league’s history.

But this span of better play started before Koby Altman swapped out Darius Garland, De’Andre Hunter, and Lonzo Ball. We could also be a little snarky and remind people it kind of started when Garland got hurt. They won the game he was injured to raise their record to 23-19, so the Cavs are 10-2 since.

We still worry about the lack of height on the current roster, but we also understand it is unfair to judge them now because Evan Mobley, the Cavs’ starting power forward, is out, and so is Dean Wade, who at 6’9″ can play both inside and outside.

But there is no question Koby Altman improved the Cavaliers’ defense on the perimeter with the acquisition of Dennis Schroder and Keon Ellis. Although the former is 6’1″, Schroder is a pest defensively, picking up opponents in the backcourt and making his man work to bring the ball up.

Ellis is long and seems to have good anticipation skills in the passing lanes.

As for the big trade, we have no questions about James Harden’s ability to score. The guy can put the ball in the basket. He’s a 24.1 point scorer for his career and is coming up on the 29000th point in the NBA soon and is 730 points away from moving in the top ten all-time.

We know about his playoff failures too, but for this current team, when Mobley comes back, he’s probably the third best player, so the burden isn’t on him like in the past.

We also know that at some point he is going to probably force his way out of town, but we choose to look at the situation as how it affects the Cavaliers this season.

An aspect that is overlooked about Harden is his passing ability. He is also 12th all-time in assists, and he is particularly adept at making passes into the post. Jarrett Allen has scored 29 and 22 points in the two games Harden has played, and no doubt he will aid Mobley when he is healthy.

Harden isn’t a force on the defensive end, but at his size we can hold his own if someone tries to post him up, but he never was a decent defender and at 36, he’s not getting better. But really, the player he was dealt for wasn’t proficient on that end either.

Now, Kenny Atkinson has to figure out who is going to lose time with the three newcomers in uniform. There is no question there is a glut at guard and at small forward. In the last two games, he’s gotten around this by playing four guards, but that doesn’t help the rebounding.

When Mobley and Wade get back, that’s when he will have to make an adjustment. Our guess is Sam Merrill becomes more of a specialist, a sniper if you will, and Craig Porter Jr. will have a lesser role because Schroder and Ellis do what he provided.

Yes, things look good right now, but one thing hasn’t changed for the Cavaliers. Nothing really matters until the playoffs. They need to get to at least the conference finals. At least.

Skeptical On Cavs’ Deal, Unless There’s Another Move Coming

The Cleveland Cavaliers made a deal Saturday night, sending De’Andre Hunter, who was acquired last season at the deadline to the Sacramento Kings in a three-team deal. The Cavs received Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroder in the trade.

One first thought is that this move has to be followed up by yet another transaction prior to Thursday’s deadline because otherwise it doesn’t make a lot of sense.

As we have been saying for at least three seasons, the Cavaliers need to get bigger, and this trade does the opposite. Hunter was the one wing Cleveland had that had some size at 6’7″, and the two players who come back to the wine and gold are 6’4″ (Ellis) and 6’1″ (Schroder).

If there is another move coming, then this deal may make some sense, but as it stands right now, it looks like this was a move to reduce the luxury tax bill the Cavs have to pay.

We aren’t capologists, but the reports are this trims Cleveland’s bill by $40 million, but we also don’t think Dan Gilbert worries about that if the team is a title contender.

Hunter was a disappointment this season, without a doubt. His scoring was about the same as it was after coming over from Atlanta last season, but his shooting dropped from 48.5% to 42.3% overall and from 42.6% to 30.8% from three-point range.

We believe part of this is because Kenny Atkinson was using him more than anyone would like at the “4”, when it is pretty clear to us he’s a “3”. Hunter was one of the Cavs’ bigger wings, so if either Jarrett Allen or Evan Mobley were out, he was the logical player to shift to the power forward spot.

But that’s because of the team’s chronic lack of size up front.

Ellis was the darling of this trade deadline, but frankly we don’t see it. He can shoot, a 41.6% career mark from three and he is a solid defender, but he profiles as another bench piece, and really at his size, he plays the same spot as Jaylon Tyson, the Cavs’ breakout player in 2025-26, and their first round pick last season.

It seems now like the Cavaliers have a logjam at guard when Darius Garland comes back. Along with the starting backcourt of Garland and Donovan Mitchell, Atkinson have to find time for Schroder and Craig Porter Jr. None of those players are bigger than 6’3″.

At the small forward spot, you have Jaylon Tyson, Sam Merrill, Ellis, and when he is ready to play again, Max Strus. Tyson is the biggest at 6’6″.

Dean Wade is 6’9″, but more of a perimeter defender, and at this point of his career, so is pleasant surprise Nae’Qwan Tomlin at 6’8″.

That’s a lot of small lineups, which might work in the regular season, but in the playoffs, more often than not, teams need length.

It has been reported that if the Cavs can move Ball and perhaps Thomas Bryant by the trade deadline on Thursday, they would be out of the second apron and have more flexibility in making trades. If this deal is the prelude to that, and perhaps taking a bigger swing at some size, then perhaps it will make sense to us then.

But on its own merit, we don’t like this move. Size matters in basketball. And the Cavaliers seems to keep getting smaller.