...a tradition of hope, passion, and misery
Tom Reed makes his first appearance on the WFNY Podcast to talk to me about his journey to the Plain Dealer.
A day after the Cavaliers blew a fourth quarter 20 point lead to the Pacers (then 48-29), the Cavs returned home to take on the 26-52 Detroit Pistons. The Cavs had lost five straight games to the Pistons, including all three match-ups this season. Not to spoil the surprise, but they didn’t get the job done on Wednesday either.
Coming out of the first half down 4 points, the Cavaliers closed the gap and took a 1 point lead into the fourth quarter. Kyrie Irving, after struggling a bit in the first half, scored 10 points and dished out 3 assists in the period. The teams traded baskets and the lead until Will Bynum hit 3 consecutive shots and put the Pistons up 4 with six minutes to play.
That’s when the Cavaliers employed a new defensive strategy.
Detroit’s rookie center Andre Drummond is having a good first season, but not from the free throw stripe. Entering the game, Drummond was hitting 34% of his free throws. At the six minute mark, Drummond had made 3 of his 5 free throws in the game. With the Pistons already in the bonus, Byron Scott decided to employ the hack-a-Drummond strategy until the two minute mark when an intentional foul would mean free throws plus possession. For most of the next four minutes, the Cavaliers grabbed Drummond as soon as the ball reached half court.
Did the strategy work? Well, in a way yes. Drummond made half of his remaining free throws, hitting 6 out of 12. In that time, the Cavaliers regained the lead. With a 2 point lead at the three minute mark the Cavs played normal defense and watched as Bynum drained a three. This sent the Cavs back to fouling Drummond. [Read more...]
The Cleveland sports scene has managed to take an otherwise unifying bond and turned it into a polarizing chasm of considerable proportions. As fans of the Browns, Indians and Cavaliers, Clevelanders experience every bump, every The, together—we celebrate the occasional win, and collectively grieve through the latest loss. But as the Browns offseason wraps up and the Indians’ regular season just begins, it is the Cavaliers who have provided the most hand-wringing and polarization.
While it can be reasonably assumed that all Cavalier fans have an identical ultimate goal, the avenue best taken can be debated. As the NBA Draft nears, fans can discuss who would be the best piece for Chris Grant to add to the puzzle. But as the losses pile up—many of which have been after 20-point leads—the Cavaliers are forcing fans to take sides, each one feeling that they are fighting for the greater good.
Let me just start off by saying that I have no idea if Byron Scott should be fired or not. I mean that too. I think compelling arguments can be made both ways from people with varying degrees of knowledge of the situation. I think it’s more important to leave that flag waving at the door because even as much as even beat writers are around the team and talking to players, they still don’t have as much perspective as Chris Grant and Dan Gilbert should have on the situation. With all that said, I think it’s important to lay out the whole situation to understand what analysis should take place.
First, let’s start with expectations. Byron Scott was never going to take this group to the playoffs in all likelihood. Sure, it might have been possible if everyone had stayed healthy and everything went just right, but let’s not pretend like that was ever an organizational goal this year. So just looking at the win-loss record isn’t a compelling argument to say Byron Scott needs to be fired or kept.
The NBA has become a league of timing and if you sign your free agents too early before your young core is ready to compete for the playoffs, it becomes a waste of resources and your team will probably peak too early and most likely short of its goals. (Larry Hughes, anyone?) This isn’t even to mention the implications in the draft lottery. I don’t think the Cavs are intentionally “tanking,” but this was always expected to be a development year for the team. Argue all you want that this is bad for the NBA and its fans. I’ll gladly listen to that argument and might even chime in, but let’s not pretend like we don’t get it. [Read more...]
Last week in The Diff, I brought you inside the numbers of the Sweet 16. With no more March and no more college basketball for Ohio sports fans, it’s time to move back to the pros. Although the current excitement surrounds the Tribe’s Opening Day win, I’m back for Cavs talk today.
During the Cleveland Cavaliers’ ongoing season-high eight-game losing streak, much of the media talk has been directed toward head coach Byron Scott’s future with the organization. I covered the beginning of the talk about 10 days ago. Anonymous players then shared their frustrations with the Akron Beacon Journal’s Jason Lloyd over the weekend. And our very own Scott threw his hat into the ring on Monday. But looming large in these murmurs is this largely unreported fact: The 2012-13 Cavaliers are currently the worst third-quarter and second-half team in the National Basketball Association. By far. [Read more...]
In the podcast I did with Craig over the weekend, we talked a bit about the Miami Heat winning streak and whether it’s actually as impressive as it seems. Now, don’t get me wrong, winning 27 straight games in the NBA is always impressive. I cannot emphasize this enough…Their run is amazing.
Yet, I still can’t help but feel underwhelmed by it when I look at the rest of the NBA. I think this is a one team league right now. We can debate whether that’s more about the dominance and greatness of Miami or more about the lackluster play of the rest of the Association. I personally think a team doing this in the late 80s/early 90s when every team had a star would have been more impressive. In this current climate where all the stars are migrating to a select few teams, it has created a situation where Miami can beat arguably 85% of the other teams without breaking a sweat.
But even on those teams who have been arms race winners (Clippers, Knicks, Lakers), only the Clippers are really a threat to Miami 1 . Instead, it’s the two home-grown teams (Thunder and Spurs) who appear to be the biggest threats to the Heat’s throne. [Read more...]
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While I had Andrew on the line, I couldn’t let him get away with just talking about music.
In addition to the music podcast, we spent a few minutes talking about the NBA, specifically the Miami Heat streak. We also talked about the Cavaliers and Byron Scott and losing big leads with inferior teams.
Any time your team is having a 22-47 season, it’s certain to elicit negative reactions from fans about the organization’s head coach. But it’s a very nuanced type of negativity when it deals with Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Byron Scott.
Multiple times this year — notably, after the team started 5-23 — fans have questioned whether he’s the right coach to lead the Cavs into their hopeful playoff seasons down the road. Many have questioned his rotations. Others have questioned his overall toughness. Some have recalled how previous New Jersey and New Orleans teams started to ignore him by the end of his reign.
Whatever your Byron Scott-related point of view du jour, it’s likely that you displayed it on Twitter as the Cavaliers suffered their worst loss of the season, 118-76, on Friday in Houston. This of course followed Cleveland’s loss despite a 27-point lead against Miami on Wednesday. Placed within the context of Scott’s 186 games with the organization, it’s just been another tough week on the job. [Read more...]
Kyrie Irving stood on on a small box which served as a riser, explaining that he — despite winning the NBA’s Rookie of the Year award just a few months earlier — did not anticipate the toll that a compressed season as a professional would take on his body. It was the team’s media day, taking place on an October afternoon, where spirits were high and expectations were married with curiosity. Irving acknowledged that he possessed an 190-pound frame that carried more baby fat that he would prefer; the NBA game coupled with his style of play forced him to add what weight he could so he took it upon himself to add five pounds of muscle in the offseason.
The ultimate bout of irony was that while Irving spoke of the bumps and bruises his body was forced to endure while bouncing off of opposing big men en route to a stellar campaign, he was doing so with a four-inch scar on his right hand — the souvenir from his time spent with the Olympic Select team in Las Vegas, Nevada where his run would cut short after a frustration-based slap of a padded wall resulted in surgery and a two-month absence from the game.
The Cleveland Cavaliers announced that further test results on the shoulder of All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving resulted in a left AC (acromioclavicular) sprain as a result from his collision with Toronto Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas in Sunday night’s loss. Irving will undergo a period of rest and treatment and is currently projected to miss the next three-to-four weeks of action.
Following the collision, which was deemed a foul, Irving shot both free throws one-handed, and went to the locker room and did not return.
“It feels like crap,” Irving said of his shoulder following the game. ”I have been hit that way a lot of times, but I have never had a feeling like this. It is what it is.”
There are five weeks of regular season play remaining as the Cavs wrap things up at home against the Miami Heat on April 15 and in Charlotte against the Bobcats on the April 17.
Irving, the reigning Rookie of the Year, was averaging 23 points and six assists this season, ranking 13th in PER (22.2). He missed time earlier this season with a fractured finger as well as a hyper-extended knee. At Monday’s practice, Cavaliers head coach Byron Scott affirmed his belief that Irving’s injuries are “freakish” and not chronic nor due to his style of play, adding that Irving — due to his age — still has physical development and growth ahead of him.
Veteran point guard Shaun Livingston is expected to start in Irving’s place with rookie guard Dion Waiters taking on the bulk of the scoring load.
[Related: Cavalier Film Room: Team Defense Fueling An Improbable Win]
The Cavaliers have a virus that has infiltrated nearly the entire team. It has caused nausea, heartburn, indigestion, upset stomach, diarrhea, a veritable Pepto-Bismol antagonist that has plagued the team for some time now.
No, I’m not talking about the flu that has stricken Tyler Zeller, Dion Waiters, Daniel Gibson, and trainer Max Benton among others. The sickness that I’m recalling is the third quarter basketball from the wine and gold.
For the third straight game, the young Cavaliers came out of the locker room at half utterly disinterested and nearly catatonic. The Grizzlies sprung a 10-0 run to open the half on the Cavs, and it gave them the lead for good in this game as a 3-point halftime lead was erased and replaced by a Memphis-controlled second half where the Cavs’ fourth quarter magic wasn’t enough this time to pardon their third quarter crimes.
When we last were together in the film room, we took a closer look at Kyrie Irving dotting I’s with the help of Double T. It’s been a while and there’s been plenty to talk about during this recent strong play from the Cavaliers. I’m going to keep it current this week, however, and break down some moments from the Cavs’ improbable comeback against the Jazz on Wednesday night. I could go into C.J. Miles’s 12-point fourth, Kyrie Irving’s late offensive surge, or Wayne Ellington’s strong performance. Instead, I’m going to credit the Cavaliers’ defense for getting the key stops and forcing some turnovers to give themselves a shot at the W. Without these critical stops, the offensive surge is just a comeback effort that would’ve come up short. Surprisingly enough too, Kyrie Irving played a starring role in the defensive lockdown. Let’s go to the film. [Read more...]
Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving, who had recently missed time due to a knee injury, is now listed as “doubtful” for Friday night’s contest against the Memphis Grizzlies due to an illness.
The Cavaleirs have been hit hard by the stomach virus this season, with shooting guard Dion Waiters and Tyler Zeller recently being hospitalized. Reserve guard Daniel Gibson missed time this week due to the flu; guard CJ Miles and forward Omri Casspi also missed time.
“”I don’t know if its the flu,” said Cavs coach Byron Scott said earlier this week. “Some type of virus . . . something with the stomach.”
On the season, Irving is averaging 23.5 points and 5.7 assists per game. He has previously missed time with a fractured finger in addition to the hyperextended right knee. Shaun Livingston would likely start in Irving’s place in the event that he could not suit up.
[Related: Amped defense allows Cavs to steal win from free-falling Jazz]
Following Mo Williams’ first game back from injury since December 22nd, the former Cleveland point guard had nothing but positive things to say about Cavalier Kyrie Irving.
“Kyrie is Kyrie. He’s a hell of a basketball player. He’s one the better point guards in the league. He’s up there with the elite. I’m a fan of Kyrie. It’s fun to see his growth in this league. He is going to be special…His potential is astronomical.”
It was a tough night for Mo Williams, who missed a point blank lay-up that would have given the Jazz the lead with less than five seconds left, and then missed his chance at redemption when his three pointer missed the mark as well with just a second left.
Williams was surprised to see his lay-up roll off the rim like it did.
“I’ve never seen a lay-up come out like that. I haven’t seen the reply but that was amazing. I don’t think I’ve ever missed a lay-up even (while) practicing. I’ve shot a trillion lay-ups in my life but I’ve never missed one like that how it went in and came out.”
[Related: WFNY Podcast]
Not tonight, Enes.
Following the Cavaliers’ loss to the New York Knicks, the defeated members of the Wine and Gold sat in front of their lockers, echoing the words of their head coach — we’re not good enough to merely flip a switch and expect to win. The league is tough, full of talented players who are perpetually out to prove their worth. To coast at any point in a contest is to allow changes in momentum, changes that are often never regained.
And then Wednesday happened.
The Cavaliers were lackadaisical. Their attempts to attack the rim were qualified as “going through the motions,” which directly led to multiple double-digit deficits and plenty of head scratching. Then following a third-quarter time out, Byron Scott, in his head coachly way, told his team that they were showing zero interest in their current habitat and that if they wanted to not be embarrassed in front of 13,000 Cleveland fans, that it was going to be a now-or-never approach to the game’s final 15 minutes.
Everyone saw it coming. The players and coaches of the Cleveland Cavaliers congregated at halftime of Monday night’s contest against the New York Knicks, having amassed a 22-point lead only to let it slowly slip away before the mid-way buzzer provided some relief. Having watched plenty of tape and read all of the glowing features with their opponent as the subject, everyoone knew what was in store for the remaining 24 minutes: a team forged with veterans, without their star small forward, was going to continue launching three-pointers.
Carmelo Anthony had collapsed like a pile of bricks at center court and would not return despite his team being down by a large margin. The ball, in turn, would be put in the hands of players like JR Smith and Steve Novak. As low-percentage as three-pointers may be, a quick three conversions and a 10-point lead dissipates. The only unknown was if this Cleveland team could stick to their game plan and come out with a victory.
The answer was a definitive no.
Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving is officially listed as ‘probable’ for Monday night’s contest against the New York Knicks. He had missed the previous three games due to a hyperextended right knee.
“Based on what I saw in practice, there’s a good chance he’ll play,” coach Byron Scott said from shootaround on Monday morning. “We will see how he feels after really going up and down and going a full scrimmage, and obviously that will determine whether he’s good to go or not. But from what I saw [Sunday], he’s good.”
The team has also listed rookies Dion Waiters and Tyler Zeller as ‘questionable’ for the game, both players sustaining an illness.
On the season, Irving has missed a combined 14 games due to his right knee and a fractured bone in his right index finger. He is averaging 24 points and six assists per game.
The Cavaliers have topped the Knicks 10 consecutive times at home. The last time these two teams matched up, Irving scored a career-high 41 points.
[Related: 2013 NBA Draft: Second tier fits for the Cavaliers]
Good news from Cavalier-land this afternoon: All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving practiced with his Cleveland teammates today and is hopeful to play in Monday night’s home game against the New York Knicks.
Various media outlets have reported on this news and the Cavaliers also appear to have sent out an injury update on the status of the soon-to-be-21-year-old. Irving has been out of action since Feb. 24 with a hyperextended/sore right knee.
Overall this season, Irving has played in 45 of the team’s 59 games. He previously missed 11 games from Nov. 21 through Dec. 8 because of a broken left index finger.
The Cavaliers are 4-10 without him on the season.
[Related: NBA News: Kyrie Irving to miss second consecutive game with sore knee]
While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.
Skepticism Sunday: “It’s happening already. There hasn’t been a practice or even an organized team activity, let alone a game that counts. The team can’t even officially meet as a whole, but already, it’s happening. It seems with each passing regime, many in the Cleveland Browns fan base and media become increasingly more skeptical and mistrusting of the next group that comes in. Their reasons are not unfounded.” [Ryan Alton/Draft Browns]
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Is drafting a guard the undoubted best move? “The best way for the Cleveland Browns to improve is for them to use the sixth pick in the draft to take Chance Warmack, offensive guard from Alabama and begin to complete the best offensive line in the NFL. When that happens, with a healthy Trent Richardson running behind that line, Brandon Weeden can be great. Or Colt McCoy. Or your grandmother, if she has a decent arm and half a brain.” [Brian Tarcy/The OBR]
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Looking for stars on defense: “As you know, the 2013 Ohio State Buckeyes have a lot of defensive starters to replace. With only four returning starters — including none on the defensive line — the defense this fall will have more question marks than Frank Gorshin’s Riddler suit. Among those queries will be the usual ruminations on which young players will step up, which freshmen are likely to see playing time, who among last year’s backups can make the leap, and whether or not the D can continue the evolution it began over the last quarter of 2012. But perhaps the biggest question of all is: where will the defensive leadership come from in 2013? The Buckeyes will be as green as the Ohio Stadium turf on the defensive side of the ball.” [Michael Citro/Eleven Warriors]
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This sounds familiar, eh? “Impossible as it may be, there is currently one small-market NBA team that may have the opportunity to replicate the Oklahoma City model. In the two and a half seasons since the end of the LeBron James era, the Cleveland Cavaliers have limped to a total record of 60-146 and have amassed four first round draft picks and currently have two more selections in the upcoming 2013 NBA draft (a likely lottery pick of their own and another from either the Heat or the Lakers). Stockpiling draft picks, sound familiar?” [Eric Palutsis/Pro Basketball Draft]
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Loved this back-and-forth roundtable over at CTB: “There have been some notable exceptions (there’s at least one nice drive and kick play a game, for example), but overall the on-court chemistry between Dion Waiters and Kyrie Irving has been severely lacking. Dion hasn’t really figured out any off-ball moved or cuts yet, and combined with the fact that Kyrie is occasionally a reluctant passer, what often results is a stunted isolation for Kyrie at the end of the shot clock, while Dion sulks thirty feet from the hoop. I would love for Byron Scott to initiate a lot more movement for the Cavaliers in general, and a lot of that should involve the backcourt.” [Dani/Cavs: The Blog]
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Looking at another LOOGY? “With the departures of relief pitchers Rafael Perez and Tony Sipp during the offseason, the Indians now have a huge opening in their bullpen for a lefty – preferably one who throws strikes and is not afraid of the later innings. Nick Hagadone would seem to fit the bill, for the most part. In parts of the last two seasons with the Tribe, the left-hander has shown the ability to strike people out and hold opposing bats at bay. The problem for Hagadone is that he has also shown the penchant for melting down.” [Craig Gifford/Did The Tribe Win Last Night?]
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Baseball stats in the spring, what could be bad? “If a team has a really great spring training, it’s not like they can carry some of those wins over to the regular season. Ultimately, spring records don’t matter – players are rusty and getting in shape and pitchers may be trying some new pitches. Teams will occasionally come from behind to win at the end of games, when minor leaguers not expected to be on the 25-man roster are on the field. Is there ever any correlation between your record during spring training, and how you perform during the regular season? I figured I’d take a look at the Indians during the past 10 seasons when it comes to spring vs. the regular season, as well as teams that made the playoffs over the past 10 seasons.” [Stephanie Liscio/It's Pronounced "Lajaway"]
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And finally, not Cleveland-related per se, but still related to stats. And maybe the opposite will occur to the Tribe in 2013? “There is a term used often in the sports analytic community called regression, or reversion to the mean, that contends that if a statistical phenomenon occurs, it is likely not to occur again and revert closer or back to the norm or average. In layman’s terms, it is a sophisticated way of saying things will even out. With this in mind, I took a look at MLB playoff teams since 2008 that improved their win totals by at least ten wins from one season to the next and then saw if they had a significant drop-off the next year, i.e. reverting back to the mean. What I found was of the 11 teams in this study, each one lost at least 5 more games the next season and 8 of the 11 failed to get back into the playoffs.” [Alex Burwasser/Bloomberg Sports' Stats Insights]
It’s now officially been 39 days since Chris Grant’s latest act of wizardry, rounding out an actually complete bench for the Cleveland Cavaliers thanks to the help of the Memphis Grizzlies.
Over these 39 days, the narrative has changed drastically for the 2012-13 Cavs season: Instead of a distraught and meaningless season ruined by Anderson Varejao’s injury, the youngins are playing their best basketball of the season. Optimism for the future is high and that is because of the significantly improved play of Dion Waiters/Tristan Thompson, the fan-friendly energy and success of the bench guys, and, of course, some occasional heroics from Kyrie Irving.
To gain a better understanding of what exactly the team has looked like during this 9-7 record and 16-game stretch, I present to you a table of statistics for the 13 players to log at least 1 minute in a Cavaliers uniform since Jan. 25:
| Name | GP | MPG | FGA/G | efg% | RPG | APG | PPG | NetRTG |
| Kyrie Irving | 13 | 34.0 | 17.5 | 52.0% | 3.8 | 5.5 | 22.5 | -3.8 |
| Tristan Thompson | 16 | 30.2 | 10.9 | 48.6% | 9.0 | 1.6 | 13.2 | -6.2 |
| Dion Waiters | 16 | 28.1 | 12.0 | 52.3% | 2.3 | 3.4 | 15.4 | -0.7 |
| Alonzo Gee | 16 | 27.7 | 6.7 | 49.5% | 2.9 | 1.3 | 7.9 | -4.5 |
| Tyler Zeller | 16 | 25.9 | 6.4 | 47.6% | 5.6 | 1.8 | 7.8 | 1.7 |
| Shaun Livingston | 16 | 22.0 | 5.1 | 56.1% | 2.2 | 4.1 | 7.2 | 4.6 |
| Wayne Ellington | 16 | 21.8 | 6.9 | 58.2% | 2.4 | 1.3 | 9.6 | 11.9 |
| Marreese Speights | 16 | 21.3 | 10.0 | 44.1% | 6.1 | 0.8 | 12.0 | 1.9 |
| CJ Miles | 14 | 18.5 | 8.4 | 59.3% | 2.7 | 1.2 | 11.2 | 8.4 |
| Luke Walton | 12 | 17.8 | 2.8 | 45.5% | 2.8 | 4.1 | 2.8 | 16.0 |
| Daniel Gibson | 4 | 10.4 | 2.8 | 40.9% | 0.8 | 0.5 | 2.5 | 19.0 |
| Kevin Jones | 4 | 8.9 | 3.5 | 35.7% | 2.8 | 0.3 | 2.8 | 18.5 |
| Omri Casspi | 3 | 4.4 | 1.3 | 0.0% | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -23.2 |
And here are some quick-hit notes on what I see in that table and elsewhere:
– Dion Waiters‘ efficiency has been the story of the stretch. In the 21-year-old rookie’s first 35 games of the season, he only had a 42.6% efficiency field goal percentage. So yeah, that’s a 10-percent jump. Is that enough proof yet? He could be really good.
– One of the knocks on Tristan Thompson‘s ceiling was that many doubted whether he could consistently average a double-double. Well, he’s at 14.9 points and 11.5 rebounds per 36 minutes overall since Andy has been out. He’s proving it too.
– As I mentioned before, one of the most notable aspects of the Cavs’ improvements when it comes to the noted Four Factors is their significant upgrade in turnover rate. Overall, here’s the A/TO breakdown: 1.33 before the trade (29th in the NBA), 1.85 since the trade (tied for best in the NBA).
– This shouldn’t be too surprising considering my stat about his Paul Millsap-esque splits prior to his arrival, but Marresse Speights has a very high usage rate in Cleveland. He only trails Irving with 16.9 FGA per 36 mins. He’s getting all the chances — and performing quite well.
– Net Rating, the final statistic in the table above, might be the one that’s not clear. It is the estimated +/- per 100 possessions for each player on the team. Obviously, one can quickly tell the large numbers for the bench — notably Ellington, Miles, Walton and Livingston. Again to clarify, +/- is not a perfect tool at all. It’s not that meaningful. But, just for fun, here are some +/- stats I noted after Tuesday’s game at Chicago:
Ellington is a +64 in his last 9 games
Walton is a +50 in his last 11 games
Miles is a +49 in his last 12 games
Livingston is a +43 in his last 14 games
[Related: Cool, calm and collected, Luke Walton leads Cavaliers’ crafty reserves]
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