Blue Jays, Indians discussing possible trade: MLB Rumors
November 19, 2015Fall movies, football stadiums and Los Campesinos: While We’re Waiting…
November 20, 2015Milwaukee Bucks (5-7) 100
Cleveland Cavaliers (9-3) 115
Box Score
The Cleveland Cavaliers hosted the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday seeking retribution for Saturday’s double-overtime loss that ended their eight-game winning streak. It was Hardwood Classics night at Quicken Loans Arena, which is apparently an excuse to celebrate the Miracle of Richfield and turn the arena into a 70s-themed Halloween party where no one wore costumes. Rumor has it that the team also turned the Q into the world’s biggest key party (though I can’t confirm). So play your favorite Aerosmith song, let your body hair grow unchecked, and let’s go behind the box score on this edition of Cavs Train, your favorite dancing/basketball analysis variety hour show from the 70s.
13 – Matthew Dellavedova started in place of the injured Mo Williams Thursday, and racked up 13 assists over the course of the evening, a career high. The bizarre thing was that Dellavedova didn’t seem to play exceptionally well, but that his assists came as a byproduct of running the offense and moving the ball. Dellavedova’s scoring slump continues, as he only scored 7 points and his first made field goal didn’t occur until 10:35 left in the fourth quarter. But with the entire Cavs backcourt wearing wool on the bench, the team needed Dellavedova to keep what is hopefully this season’s more robust offense in motion, which he did — and he was rewarded with 13 assists.
72.5 – The Cavs finished with 29 assists on 40 made field goals, for an astounding 72.5 assist percentage. Ten of those assists were secondary or “hockey” assists, meaning assist passes to the assister — or that there were two rapid-fire passes that produced a basket. Milwaukee’s defense was fairly stout, especially in the second half, but the Cavs whipped the ball around the perimeter with velocity, passing up open shots to create even more open shots (like on this possession). Sometimes they nearly passed it too much, allowing a Buck defender to recover on the backside. Anyway, if the ball has energy as LeBron James claims then it must have had some of that 70s sugar at halftime of tonight’s game, because it didn’t stop moving for the Cavs all night.
it's not 70s night unless they did a shit ton of blow at halftime
— Will Gibson (@wjcgibson) November 20, 2015
The Cavaliers’ best possession of the night occurred in fourth quarter, up 10 with a chance to put the Bucks away. In the clip below, we actually join our heroes halfway through the possession because it was too damn long to fit in one .gif. LeBron James goes down on the right block to set his second screen of the possession (part of his new and improved off-ball game). The ball eventually moves over to him, when he throws a flawless pocket pass to a cutting Anderson Varejao, who passes up a decent shot to give Kevin Love an open look, who gifts J.R. Smith with a shooter’s wet dream of a shot. Smith misses the shot, but James tips it to Love for an offensive rebound and an and-one that all but ended the game.
9 – Timofey Mozgov left the game at halftime with an apparent injury, which freed up more minutes for Anderson Varejao, who’s still struggling to find his role on a team that succeeded in his absence last season. The longest tenured Cavalier with hair from a bygone era and a workmanlike attitude, Varejao is a true throwback; so it’s only fitting that he would have his best game of the year on Hardwood Classics night. Varejao lent the Cavs nine points and 11 valuable minutes, converting all four of his field goal attempts. He selflessly looked for other Cavaliers at every opportunity and fearlessly shot 15-foot jumpers despite limited playing time over the past several weeks (only 3.5 minutes per game in the team’s last four). Watching him knock down jumpers off the pick-and-pop with Dellavedova, or convey the ball to an open shooter in the corner after the classic pocket pass from James off an Andy-LeBron pick-and-roll were triggered warm, fuzzy feelings. Though it will take time to find out how he’ll consistently contribute, Varejao will have a role in where the Cavs go this season. It was hard not to be a little sentimental watching him have a big night.
0 – After averaging 11.3 points per game in the fourth quarter in the Cavs’ previous four games (the most in the NBA over that span), LeBron James attempted zero field goals in the first 10 minutes of Thursday’s fourth quarter. Following the consecutive road losses and James’ comments on Wednesday that the Cavs weren’t playing hungry enough, seeing how the Cavs would respond would provide some diagnostic info on this team’s meddle. Whereas James was aloof, distant, and perplexing at the start of last season with his seemingly incongruous words and actions, this season he seems totally zoned in — embodying his hunger-based team-first talk by being an offensive chameleon and doing whatever the game requires of him — which tonight was being sporadically assertive and acting as a ball conduit through which the offense flowed. He finished with a ruthlessly efficient 27 points, nine rebounds, and six assists on 69.2-100-88.9 shooting.1 What do you think of that, LeBron?
22 & 15 – Kevin Love had another double-double, because THAT’S WHAT KEVIN LOVE DOES.
33 – The game’s leading scorer was Giannis Antetokounmpo, that frightening assembly of limbs that has no right to be as skilled with the ball as he is. At 6-11ish, Giannis showed great footwork, decent shooting range, and fierce rebounding skills in a stellar 12-of-15 shooting performance. Learn how to spell his name: because he’s going to be a star.
A Million and a Half – The number of times this woman’s teenage child asked her to stop ruining his or her life. “Mommmmmm, sit down, you’re embarrassing me. Mommmmm, why are you dancing so much because Khris Middleton fouled out — he’s only a mid-tier starting shooting guard.” That’s all for tonight’s edition of Cavs Train. Tune in this weekend when the Cavs play the Atlanta Hawks.
- That’s 69.2 shooting on 9-of-13 field goal attempts, 100 percent on 1-of-1 from three, and 88.9 percent on 8-of-9 from the free throw line. [↩]
7 Comments
To me, this is the ideal box score (well, except for Ky, Mo, and Shump not playing). Lebron with a near-30 point near-trip-dub. Love with a 20s and teens dub-dub. JR with a handful of points. Delly with a handful of assists. TT with a dub-dub. Champ hit a couple 3s. And Andy being Andy. That’s what makes this team potentially so dangerous – if everyone does what they’re supposed to do, if everyone plays the roles they’re supposed to fill on this squad…look out.
Loved, loved, loved and loved the Hardwood Classics uniform by far my favorite of the Cavaliers 100 uniforms. As for the game the Cavaliers as a team responded to not only LBJ/Blatt’s comments but also to the upstart Bucks who like to get frisky with the Cavaliers. But man oh man Mo misses the game and then Mozgov goes down with a shoulder injury. Hopefully both aren’t out longer. The Cavs are the anti-Warriors when it comes to health but I guess that stands to reason since the Cavs are a little longer in the tooth.
Watching these games makes me miss and appreciate the Cavs overdrive (KI) even more! I also enjoyed hearing Iman Shumpert sit in with Fred and AC during the second quarter. He was cheering and chirping at poor Michael Carter Williams over his hairstyle. Gotta get logo head back on the court though soon.
Shump on the broadcast was spectacular.
When he told Fred “We don’t talk about the Bucks here” I laughed out loud.
As you said him clowing MCW was the highlight of the night for me.
He was also a good insight into the Cavs ball movement. You could hear him seeing the plays unfolding and screaming for the right pass.
Mozgov out 10 days to two weeks and Mo not playing next game against Atlanta. Cavs will have their work cut out for them.