May 22, 2013

An Early Look at Cavalier Combinations

November 10, 2008 by 13 Comments

Though plus/minus numbers can be skewed in certain game situations, using them in combination form can be a very telling statistic.  Who plays better with certain teammates?  What players have been able to flourish at certain points in the game?  And most of all, what players have been responsible for the recent fourth-quarter surges, ultimately resulting in our current record of 5-2?

And for a team that has typically been considered a one-man show, looking at the two-week old +/- numbers lead to some surprising combinations.

**

Top Five-man Combinations

PG: Mo Williams
SG: Delonte West
SF: Wally Szczerbiak
PF: LeBron James
C: Anderson Varejao
+/-: +20, 13:40 mins

PG: Mo Williams
SG: Daniel Gibson
SF: Wally Szczerbiak
PF: Anderson Varejao
C: Zydrunas Ilgauskas
+/-: +12, 31:06 mins

PG: Daniel Gibson
SG: Delonte West
SF: Wally Szczerbiak
PF: LeBron James
C: Anderson Varejao
+/-: +11, 36:29 mins

Top Four-man Combinations

LeBron James, Mo Williams, Delonte West, Anderson Varejao
+/-: +37, 39:13 mins

LeBron James, Wally Szczerbiak, Delonte West, Anderson Varejao
+/-: +33, 51:52 mins

Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Mo Williams, Anderson Varejao, Daniel Gibson
+/-: +30, 48:25 mins

Top Three-man Combination

Wally Szczerbiak, LeBron James, Delonte West
+/-: +48, 70:49 mins

Top Two-man Combination

Mo Williams, Anderson Varejao
+/-: +46, 120:54 mins

Top Individual (tie)

Wally Szczerbiak
Anderson Varejao
+/-: +49

**

That’s right, Cavs fans.  Using the +/- system, your top individual players that have experienced the biggest point differential when they are on the floor are Wally Szczerbiak and Anderson Varejao.  In fact, Varejao is having such a solid start to the season that his name is featured in the majority of the top Cavalier combinations.

What does this say?  Well, it comes as little surprise that Andy’s name is more prominent in these situations than that of Zydrunas Ilgauskas.  Big Z has had a solid start as well, but his inability to run the floor as well as Andy has not provided as big of a spread in points scored. If it’s a close game and we’re in the bonus, there is no denying that I would want Ilgauskas on the floor.  But if we’re looking to run the ball, it appears that Andy has been the answer thus far.  Of course, this also could just mean that Wally and Andy have been successfully finding themselves in the right place at the right time…

Another surprise has been the position of LeBron James on these lists.  In the two five-man combinations that he is a part of, he has been playing the “four” – something that we have toyed with on occasion here, especially after watching LBJ in the Olympics.

Now, the downside to these numbers is the rotation that Mike Brown uses during games.  He doesn’t use a starting five/back-up five system.  Instead, he rotates players in and out, creating many different line-ups.  For this reason, the “minutes” associated with the +/- numbers are a lot lower than a team like Houston or Boston, who play their reserve units together.

Either way, this rotation study is something that I’d like to do as the season continues on.  As with any statistic, these depend on how you analyze them.  In no way would I prefer to have Wally Szczerbiak or Anderson Varejao on the floor instead of Mo Williams or LeBron James, but at this point in the season, it’s great to see the role players making a difference.  Now, we just have to keep it going…

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  • Lyon

    I am very happy with the way Wally has played this year. He seems to contribute even though his shot still isn’t there yet. This can only help in our quest to trade him and his contract for another piece to the puzzle.

  • http://www.chrisclem.com Chris

    Am I the only one that thinks maybe we shouldn’t trade wally at the deadline? If the team as whole is playing as good as we all think they can be, would it really be worth breaking up the chemistry?

  • http://farmersonly.com Jordan

    To Chris; Yes. If we can get a guy that can put in 20ppg for Wally, there’s no way you don’t pull the trigger in that situation.

  • mike

    from what i’ve seen so far, i wouldnt be surprised if wally isnt traded. unless some team just blows the Cavs away with an offer, i’d be more inclined to think the Eric Snow contract is more likely to get traded.

  • RandyOSU

    Cmon Jordon, get real-nobody will give us a 20ppg player for Wally. Please.

    We need another veteran big man (aka Joe Smith type) who can put the ball in the hole and hit the mid-range shot. Wally may bring that type of player closer to the trade deadline. keep your eye on Antonio McDyess, who would fill that bill perfectly. He’s available, the CAVS are interested, and he may not be as keen on returning to a team that traded him as people think. In that case we may have our guy without a trade and keep this roster intact.

    Antonio McDyess……….yes sir.

  • Victory

    Yea we probably will keep wally unless somebody blows us away wit a great offer. He hustling and dunking lol. He from ohio also so unless somebody blows us away wit a big man i’d say keep him if he continues this pace

  • Nicko

    Z is the greatest player that I never want on the court in the fourth quarter when games are decided.

  • CJG

    I think we should try to trade Wally if we can get something out of it. Maybe we can make someone “donate” a player to us, much like that trade for Pau Gasol that went down last year. A guy can dream right? Seriously though, I think every option should be explored.

  • Chris

    We can get a 20ppg scorer for Wally if a team is looking to move someone to get more cap room. It’s unlikely but possible if the contract $ matches up.

  • http://www.ballerblogger.com Brandon Hoffman

    How does ‘RockKing’ feel about James manning the four spot? Rock was very skeptical when I suggested James play more power forward before the season began.

    Cheers.

  • http://www.chrisclem.com Chris

    I doubt we can get a 20 ppg scorer for Wally, but of course, if that’s whats on the table I’d trade him in a heartbeat. I just don’t think a lateral move to get a Kenyon Martin type player would be worth it. Pau Gasol deals don’t come along every year, and even then, it looks like Marc Gasol could be pretty solid NBA player.

  • Tsunami

    Boobie has been a disappointment so far – and I think part of it is, he’s being thrust into point guard duties, and when he’s not playing PG, LeBron is not on the court. LeBron finds Boobie better than anyone.

    Of course he has had plenty of open looks that he has missed – I don’t expect that to continue.

  • bridgecrosser

    I like the team as it’s built but you unload Wally for a helpful piece NO QUESTIONS ASKED.

    It’s tough to assemble a really good team that’s high over the cap, so his contract is more of an asset to maintaining this team in the long run than he can be in the short term.

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