Mike Mayock is right about Ryan Tannehill and the Browns… sort of
March 30, 2012Final Four tickets still available, many at discounted prices
March 30, 2012The Cleveland Cavaliers (17-31, 11th in the East), losers of 5 straight and 8 of their last 9 since their impressive mini win streak against Denver, Oklahoma City, and Houston have now officially fallen behind Detroit in the standings and have Sacramento square in their sights.
The Cavaliers’ next opponent, the Milwaukee Bucks (23-27, 9th in the East) and in the middle of a chase of their own, trying to track down the New York Knicks for the 8th spot in the East. The last time these teams played each other was right after the Monta Ellis trade. Ellis didn’t play in that game, but the Bucks have gone 4-3 with Ellis in the starting lineup. However, they have lost 3 of their last 5 overall coming off a season high 6 game win streak. So it’s been an up and down fight for the Bucks as well.
Ellis was supposed to be the extra piece to push the Bucks into the playoffs, but Ellis has struggled adjusting to a new team and a very different system. With the Warriors, he was averaging 21.9 points, 6.0 assists, and 3.4 rebounds, but so far in Milwaukee he’s averaging just 15.1 points, 5.7 assists, and 2.7 rebounds. His 3pt% has dropped from .321 to .143 and his overall FG% is down from .433 to .410.
In addition to Ellis’s struggles, the Bucks will also be without Carlos Delfino, Ersan Ilyasova, and Kwame Brown due to injury. The Cavaliers have played Milwaukee pretty tough in their previous games this season, but the Cavaliers have especially struggled on defense. Brandon Jennings has been tough in two matchups and the Bucks have really had their way inside with the Cavaliers.
I’m not sure if much will change this time around. Delfino was huge for the Bucks against the Cavaliers last game, and his presence will be missed. But the Bucks still probably just have too much interior size and strength for the Cavaliers. Until Anderson Varejao comes back, the Cavaliers are really going to struggle with teams with any kind of size whatsoever.
Having said that, though, Milwaukee really is a middling NBA team right now. They’re not great offensively, they’re not great defensively, and outside of controlling the turnover battles, there’s not a ton of things Milwaukee really excels at as a team. This is precisely the type of team you typically like to try to end a losing streak against. Playing at home, this is a team the Cavaliers can beat.
But as with any game now, it’s not going to be easy. The Cavaliers are going to have to fight, scratch, and claw their way to any wins as long as Varejao and Daniel Gibson are out. The Cavaliers are thin in the frontcourt and thin in the backcourt. It’s been a long time since the Cavaliers’ starting unit all clicked together as one, and this would be a prime opponent for that to happen against. However, as we’ve seen time and time again, these are the types of teams the Cavaliers so frequently come out sluggish against.
Just once it would be nice to see the team come out focused and giving good energy against a mediocre team at home. If that happens, who knows, they might actually snap this losing streak. If they don’t, though, expect another ugly and barely watchable game.
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Image Credit: Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images
6 Comments
haven’t had a chance to watch the Ellis/Jennings combo yet. should be fun. also, should relegate the Bucks to no better than 6seed, no worse than 10seed status for the forseeable future as they are both inefficient scorers that lack defense.
Throughout his career, Ellis has NOT been an inefficient scorer. He’s been a very efficient scorer. This season seems like an aberration to me. He’s a 47% career shooter as a high-volume shooter.
Monte Ellis is without a doubt the most divisive player in the NBA. Whether you think he is a super creative scoring machine or high volume chucker says a lot about your basketball philosophies. Living in the Bay Area for 3 years now, his name never fails to start some kind of discussion
WELP
Don’t snap any losing streaks! Keep looking like a young team who is learning and coming together and keep losing. I’m in this for the long haul, give me as many ping pong balls as possible!
You’ve got nothing to worry about… blown out by almost 40 points at home. If this team isn’t purposefully tanking, then it’s hard not to get a little sick to your stomach.