May 23, 2013

NBA Rumor: Cavaliers discussed trade with Portland for LaMarcus Aldridge

April 24, 2013 by 63 Comments

The Cleveland Cavaliers recently entertained trade discussions with the Portaland Trailblazers that would net the wine and gold All-Star power forward LaMarcus Aldridge.

In a column aimed to chastise Cleveland for something being perpetuated by the media, Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowksi reports that the Cavs and Blazers discussed swapping quality for youth and upside.

“Privately, the Cleveland front office has pitched a fantasy of trading young players and picks to Portland for All-Star forward LaMarcus Aldridge,” writes Wojnarowski. “Only, that’s never going to happen. Cleveland is far higher on its two top-five picks, Tristan Thompson and Dion Waiters, than the rest of the NBA.”

Aldridge, 27, is coming off of his third-consecutive season of at least 21 points and eight rebounds per game and possesses a very efficient game. He is due to make over $30 million over the next two seasons, a contract that would tie up some of the team’s salary cap space into the 2015-16 season.

Thompson, garnering votes for NBA’s Most Improved Player in 2012-13, averaging 11.7 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. In his rookie season, Waiters averaged 14.7 points on 41.2 percent shooting. He was second on the team in per-game scoring.

[Related: Mike Brown Take Two? In The Right Situation, Yes]

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The Best Laid Plans and Fan Loyalty for the Indians and Cavaliers

April 14, 2013 by 11 Comments

Nick SwisherIt was Tuesday night. Carlos Carrasco and the Indians were getting pounded by the Bronx Bombers for the second straight evening, and the Cavaliers had blown a 20-point fourth quarter lead against the Pacers. It was a “woe is us” type of night on Twitter, and this writer’s body defensively put itself into sleep mode shortly before both games, missing the (live) pain of it all. 1 In that collective frustration where the Cavaliers got roped in with the Tribe in terms of amount of frustration associated with the loss, I was a little surprised.  To me, it was comical to compare the losses in terms of equal footing. The book on the Cavaliers’ season has already been sent to the publisher’s. The Indians still have a lot of pages to write on the 2013 campaign. It got me thinking about the constant see-saw of fans for these two organizations buying in and buying out of emotional investment.

[Read more...]

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  1. For those of you who don’t know me personally, this is a once in a blue moon thing. Missing games because I fell asleep is a very, very rare thing. Work, family plans, and hanging out with friends are all worked around game times in nearly all cases. [back]

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Cavalier Film Room: Crazy Cross Matchups

April 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment

WFNY Cavaliers Film RoomLast night, the Cavaliers fell to the New York Knicks 101-91, largely due to the stellar performances of New York’s 1-2 punch of Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith (31 points each). Rather than a traditional recap, I thought I’d take a stab at looking at some of the crazy cross-matchups that occurred in this game’s, primarily centered around Anthony playing the power forward position for the Knicks. [Read more...]

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Cavs snap skid, Tristan leads wine and gold past Celtics 97-91

April 6, 2013 by 5 Comments
Tristan Thompson finished with a career high 29 points and 17 boards.

Tristan Thompson finished with a career high 29 points and 17 boards.

Everyone take a deep breath. The losing streak is over. We can all relax. Well, at least a little bit.

Cavaliers bounced back from (possibly) their worst loss of the season, beating the Boston Celtics 97-91 and snapping their season-long 10-game losing streak. Tristan Thompson led everyone with 29 points and 17 boards (both career highs) and Alonzo Gee finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds, as the Cavs improved to 23-52. The Celtics were paced by Jeff Green’s 23 point, nine rebound, four assist evening and got 16 points and seven boards off the bench from someone named Shavlik Randolph. Boston, firmly rooted in the 7th seed in the East and playing without Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Rajon Rondo, saw their record fall to 39-37.

This wasn’t Cleveland’s most impressive win of the season, but it was possibly their most important. Following a week of coaching speculation and the debacle that was Wednesday’s loss to the Nets, it was nice to see the Cavs bounce back and win on the road in Boston. Yes, the Celtics were missing key players on Friday night, but when has that foretold a Cavalier victory? The Nets were without Joe Johnson on Wednesday night and the Cavs lost by roughly a billion. That they played hard and didn’t overlook a hobbled Celtic team is (sadly) itself a minor victory.

A win is a win. But a bounce-back win after a week of “have the Cavs quit on their coach” speculation is even better. The Cavs played a fantastic third period, holding the Celtics to just 16 points and ending the quarter on a 19-6 run that (coupled with their 8-0 run to start the fourth) put them in firm control of the ball game. Cleveland’s lead ballooned to as many as twelve during the fourth (82-68) and while the Celtics made their requisite run, the Cavs never let them get closer than four points. There would be no repeat of last week’s loss to the Celtics at the buzzer. The young Cavs kept up their defensive pressure in the final period (and Boston did their part by missing open treys and stumbling into some unforced turnovers) and Cleveland went 7-8 from the free throw line in fourth quarter to keep their hard earned victory.

Oh, that Kyrie Irving guy played too. It wasn’t Irving’s best night, as he finished with just 11 points on 4-20 shooting (though also eight assists and five boards), but it was enough. The young All-Star set up Tyler Zeller for an easy layup to increase Cleveland’s lead to 93-87 with two minutes to play and he followed it up thirty second later with his only basket of the fourth, a step back jumper to put the Cavs up 95-87 and essentially ice the game.  [Read more...]

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Dunks do not make a winner. Defense, however…

March 19, 2013 by 14 Comments

201303182046748174644-p2A bizarre thing occurred through the duration of Monday night’s telecast of the Cleveland Cavaliers and their home contest against the Indiana Pacers: The wonderful individuals at FOX Sports Ohio began tabulating how many dunks had been executed by each team. Dunks have become the go-to highlight for NBA fans; above-the-rim play is the reason why driveway-ready basketball hoops come with adjustable heights. But in the same, said shot type is worth two points. Kyrie Irving’s 416 field goals this season carry no less individual weight than any converted by Blake Griffin or LeBron James simply because Irving has only been credited with two dunks on the season.

Yet every time the Clippers come to town, someone — obviously fascinated by ”Lob City” — inquires as to who on the Cavaliers could replicate such a feat. And each time, Byron Scott is forced to say that outside of Alonzo Gee, his team is comprised of face-up players who thrive on ball movement and positioning rather than mid-air theatrics and exclamation point conversions. Nevertheless, as the Pacers recorded dunk after dunk — transition slams, a posterization of Tyler Zeller by All-Star forward Paul George — the ticker kept inching upward as if signaling that one team is better than the other simply because they had made physical contact with the rim more often than their opponent.

[Read more...]

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Defense remains an issue, Cavs fall to Spurs 119-113

March 17, 2013 by 5 Comments
This happened a lot.

This happened a lot.

Offensively, the Cavs were great. They scored 61 points in the first half, had 90 at the end of three periods and shot over 50% for the game. Unfortunately, those same stats could’ve also be used to describe the Spurs’ Saturday night.

The Spurs’ offense is incredible. They shot 61% in the first half, 57% for the game and they confused the young Cavaliers early and often. Every time the Cavs would get themselves a basket, the Spurs seemed to answer right away, usually with a much easier bucket. Lack of communication killed the Cavs; if San Antonio’s shooters weren’t wide open, they had two Cavaliers running at them, allowing someone (say… like Kawhi Leonard) to get easy put-back dunks. The Spurs are constantly moving and if you aren’t paying attention, they’ll make you pay (San Antonio had 32 assists on their 45 made field goals). There’s a reason why they’re first in the Western Conference with a record of 51-16.

And, late in the game, the Spurs made the Cavs pay.

Cleveland had hung around all game, didn’t wilt in the third period and were in it down the stretch until their defense failed them. The Cavs were down just two points with about four minutes to go when Duncan sealed Thompson, Manu Ginobili drove baselie and found Duncan for a layup. The next time down, Dion fell asleep and Duncan found Leonard for a backdoor layup. And unbelievably, the next time down, Boris freaking Diaw drove from the top of the arc right down the middle for an uncontested dunk. A two point deficit with four minutes left had turned into an eight point deficit with two minutes left.

That was that.

Wayne Ellington returned from a tweaked ankle to lead the Cavs with 21 points off the bench. Shaun Livingston led the starters with 16 points and five assists and Alonzo Gee and Dion Waiters each scored 15 for the Cavaliers, who fell to 22-44.  [Read more...]

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While We’re Waiting… Bounceback NBA Players, NFL Free Agent Tampering, And The Worst NBA Contracts

March 9, 2013 by 1 Comment

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.

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Leading off, Rob Mahoney at SI’s Point Forward take a look at some NBA players who had a rough start to the season but have bounced back. One of those players is Cavaliers rookie guard Dion Waiters, “Much of that can be attributed to a slightly more creative driving style, as Waiters no longer relies purely on the straight-line bludgeoning that became his early season trademark. He’s starting to fiddle with his speed, attempting to plot contingencies mid-drive and getting a better feel for when and how to set up his teammates. He’s nowhere near a finished product, but in his more recent form he’s at least a more constructive — or at least less destructive — player.” [Point Forward] [Read more...]

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Amped defense allows Cavs to steal win from free-falling Jazz

March 7, 2013 by 8 Comments
Not tonight, Enes.

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.

[Read more...]

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WFNY Stats & Info: Cavs stats since the Memphis trade

March 2, 2013 by 3 Comments

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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WFNY Stats & Info: Continued improvements by the Cavs

February 26, 2013 by 2 Comments

Despite Sunday night’s last-minute loss to the Miami Heat, the Cleveland Cavs are 13-15 (.464) since Dec. 22. That’s a tremendous sign of improvement for a franchise that previously was 45-131 (.256) in the last 2.5 seasons.

I’ve tackled this subject several times before — notably, in The Diff last Wednesday. But again, what are some fun stats around this recent stretch of improvement? Fortunately, Twitter has been abuzz with plenty of good facts over the past 24 hours.

For starters, let me share @ConradKaczmarek of Fear The Sword’s table about Dion Waiters’ shooting at the rim, a topic that WFNY covered in roundtable form back in December:

Another fun discovery from yesterday: The website www.vorped.com. In this site, one can look at very simple shot charts for players and teams, as organized by very simple splits. Let’s take a look at this recent table of shooting success via this site:

Entire Season
Zone PPS %FGA
Paint 0.99 46.6%
Other 2s 0.78 29.3%
3-Pointers 1.06 24.1%
Total 0.95 100%
Last 30 Days
Zone PPS %FGA
Paint 1.09 45.9%
Other 2s 0.88 32.9%
3-Pointers 1.11 21.2%
Total 1.02 100%
Prior to Last 30 Days
Zone PPS %FGA
Paint 0.97 46.8%
Other 2s 0.75 28.4%
3-Pointers 1.05 24.9%
Total 0.93 100%

 

Pretty cool to see that the Cavaliers are noticeably better at just about every shooting range in the last 30 days. Next, here’s an update on the Cavaliers’ efficiency metrics and turnover rate over various stretches this season. As you can see, there’s been steady, consistent improvements on the offensive side. The Cavs have the 3rd-best offense in the NBA since Feb. 2:

SPLIT OFF DEF DIFF TOR
first 24 games thru 12/14 96.6 105.4 -8.8 16.7%
next 6 games thru 12/26 99.9 106.7 -6.8 13.5%
next 9 games thru 1/13 101.5 108.3 -6.8 14.8%
next 8 games thru 2/1 104.5 109.3 -4.8 12.8%
last 9 games since 2/2 114.0 108.2 5.8 11.9%
Season (56 games) 101.6 107.0 -5.4 14.7%
NBA Average 102.6 102.6 0.0 15.3%

 

And finally on the Cavs stats front, I’ll pass it over to my friend Ed Manly at @LaughingCavs, who shares these PER splits before/after Jan. 14 for a number of rotation players for the Cavaliers:

Player Before 1/14 Since 1/14 DIFF
Miles 11.4 20.4 +9.0
Waiters 11.8 17.2 +5.4
Tristan 14.7 19.7 +5.0
Zeller 10.0 14.5 +4.5
Irving 21.8 23.4 +1.6
Gee 10.9 11.1 +0.2
Speights xx 17.7 xx
Ellington xx 14.4 xx

 

That’s a whole lot of improvement there too. And a much larger chunk of rotation players being above the established PER league-average mark of 15.0. PER splits aren’t normally searchable on any website, so it was quite helpful to see the table Ed had shared on Twitter.

[Related: Talent gives way to tiredness as Cavs collapse in Biscayne Bay]

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WFNY Stats & Info: Tristan Thompson’s improving blocked rate

February 21, 2013 by 3 Comments

I noticed this comment on my latest edition of The Diff from Wedensday. This one fellow believes that Cavaliers power forward Tristan Thompson is being blocked less often than last year.

So, I decided to look into his game log from this season, before/after Dec. 19, the game when center Anderson Varejao got hurt.

Type GP FGA/G BLKD/G BLKD%
Since 12/19 28 11.29 1.50 13.3%
Thru 12/18 26 7.42 1.27 17.1%

Verdict: Yes. Along with the better shooting percentages (or intuitively because of it?) Thompson also is getting blocked less often since Varejao’s been out. Still a pretty high number. But noticeably less.

For a bit of added context, according to HoopData, the average blocked percentage in the NBA this season is 6.1 percent. Among full-time regulars, I only spot three players that are clearly worse than Thompson this season at this category: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Reggie Evans and Austin Rivers. Yikes.

Also notable, ESPN stats guru Kevin Pelton mentioned rookie Thomas Robinson’s blocked percentage in his trade analysis today. He wrote: “He has had a tough time dealing with shot-blockers in the paint and is getting more than 10 percent of his shots rejected, per Hoopdata.com, one reason he’s shooting just 42.9 percent from the field.”

So yes, again, this isn’t exactly time to celebrate boisterously about Thompson’s blocked shot improvements as he’s still well below league-average. But improvements are improvements nonetheless.

[Related: The Diff: Cavalier notes on Tristan, turnovers, trades, etc]

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The Diff: Cavalier notes on Tristan, turnovers, trades, etc

February 20, 2013 by 8 Comments

Thanks so much to all of our WFNY readers (even my friend Terry Pluto) for sharing, liking and commenting on last week’s edition of The Diff about Michael Bourn. I’m heading back to basketball this week to share an assortment of thoughts as the team begins the second half tonight.

The Diff

Tristan Thompson’s progress

One of my favorite new Twitter friends is Ed Manly over at @laughingcavs. I only discovered his account and tremendous website after he responded to me about some Tristan Thompson stats-post Anderson Varejao’s injury. So it’s only fitting that the first time I reference him here at WFNY that it’s again about my favorite-ever Cavalier Canadian 1 . [Read more...]

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  1. For the record, I checked: The only other Canadian Cavalier I could find is Stewart Granger, the 24th pick in the 1983 Draft who played one season in Cleveland. [back]

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Cavalier Film Room: Dotted I’s And Double T’s

February 8, 2013 by 9 Comments

WFNY Cavaliers Film RoomWhen we last met in the film room, I sang the praise of a space cowboy named Marreese. This week, still feeling the exhilaration from Saturday night’s watershed win against OKC and the flattening of the Bobcats, I wanted to dig into Kyrie Irving’s fanastic Saturday night finish. More specifically, I wanted to dissect just how he set up the important dagger three pointer with the help of Tristan Thompson and the duo’s pick and roll game in the final few minutes. Without further ado, let’s hit the lights and get started. [Read more...]

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Irving, Waiters and Zeller on “Team Shaq”; Thompson on “Team Chuck”

February 7, 2013 by 8 Comments

In a bit of a surprise move, Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving went third overall in the BBVA Rising Stars draft, ultimately ending up on Shaquille O’Neal’s “Team Shaq.” Irving, the reigning NBA Rookie of the Year, was taken after the two players who are odds on favorites to win this year’s award in Portland’s Damian Lillard and New Orleans’ Anthony Davis.

Selected 12th and 13th, respectively, were Irving’s teammates Tristan Thompson and Dion Waiters. Thompson, who one night ago said that he would like to play with Irving, was drafted by Charles Barkley for “Team Chuck,” while Waiters was later paired with Irving.

Cavaliers center Tyler Zeller went undrafted and was a part of the four-man “blind draw” which ultimately landed him with Irving and Waiters on Team Shaq. Irving will also be joined by childhood friends Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Harrison Barnes.

Irving is the reigning Rising Stars MVP, finishing with 34 points on 12-of-13 shooting and making all eight of his 3-point attempts in 2012.

The rest of the rosters are as follows…

Team Shaq: Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving, Andre Drummond, Klay Thompson, Harrison Barnes, Chandler Parsons, Dion Waiters, Michael-Kidd Gilchrist, Tyler Zeller, Kemba Walker

Team Chuck: Anthony Davis, Kenneth Faried, Kawhi Leonard, Bradley Beal, Ricky Rubio, Tristan Thompson, Nikola Vucevic, Brandon Knight, Isaiah Thomas, Alexy Shved

[Related: I'm Kyrie: Irving makes history on 40-point night]

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Small goals paving the way for big wins in Cleveland

February 7, 2013 by 23 Comments

152062739_Bobcats_Cavs_Kyle061_0

The mountain has been turned into a series of considerably smaller molehills. While the Cleveland Cavaliers have a long way to go before they are even within eyesight of the top, each rest station along the way comes with its own intrinsic reward.

After being embarrassed by 18 points in Detroit late last week, the Cavaliers — the team as well as the front office —  had a series of meetings. There was a closed-door meeting with Byron Scott, his assistant coaches and all 15 players. Blunt objects were not thrown, but choice words most definitely were. From there, Scott and his coaches sat down to focus on the short and intermediate term. Long term talk is fantastic fuel for narrative, but it was obvious that young players needed something on which to hang their respective hats.

[Read more...]

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While We’re Waiting… Cavs’ Rising Stars, Ohio State Niners, and Mike Holmgren

February 2, 2013 by 5 Comments

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.

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Leading off, Brendan Bowers at Stepien Rules takes a closer look at the four Rising Stars Cavaliers from their high school days, “He’s a long-term stock. That line describing Tristan Thompson, true back in 2010 as a member of Findlay Prep, is still true three years later. Thompson has provided plenty of reasons to be bullish moving forward this season specifically, too, as he continues to develop his game. He’s not a combo forward anymore, though, but has shown the ability to also play some five.” [Stepien Rules]

There are four San Francisco 49ers in Sunday’s Super Bowl that played their college ball at Ohio State. Michael at Eleven Warriors goes down memory lane, “Donte Whitner, Alex Boone, Ted Ginn Jr., and Larry Grant are all part of the rich heritage of Ohio State football. Each player’s individual legacy is interwoven into the fabric of Ohio State football. Each is part of a larger, beautiful mosaic. In much the same way, a Geddy Lee bass line and a Neil Peart drum fill are both nice on their own, but together they form artistic brilliance.” [Eleven Warriors] [Read more...]

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The Diff: Franchise comparisons for the Cavaliers

January 23, 2013 by 26 Comments

Thanks to all for your really positive feedback about my first-ever edition of The Diff last week about Kyrie Irving’s potential. I’m back today with more talk about the Cavs. Hope you enjoy yet again.

The Diff

For weeks and weeks, one of my favorite NBA topics has been exploring and researching possible franchise comparisons for the Cavaliers and where they stand right now. I believe my mini-obsession with this topic started with Andrew’s excellent article last month titled “Is There Any Hope Beneath the Frustration for the Cavaliers?” This post really got my stats-focused brain a-churning. [Read more...]

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Halfway Home: Cavaliers’ Stats And Trends

January 20, 2013 by 5 Comments

The 10-32 Cleveland Cavaliers are one game past halfway through their second season of the Kyrie Irving era, and not a whole heck of a lot has gone right on the court in terms of generating wins and sustaining success. Let’s dig into some of the advanced metrics that might give us a clue as to what ails the Cavaliers. As I further researched the finer statistics, it became clear to me that the problems for the Cavs right now are both simple and correctable.

Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters

  • How much do the Cavaliers miss Anderson Varejao? Well, just wrap your minds around this statistic. Varejao leads the team in PER (22.0) with a slight edge over Kyrie Irving (21.9). However, those two are the only ones that make it over the generally accepted “league average” mark of 15.0 right now. Tristan Thompson’s PER is rapidly increasing and he is up to 14.9, while Dion Waiters and Omri Casspi come in at 12.6. Some shockingly low PERs include Alonzo Gee’s (11.0), Tyler Zeller’s (10.6), and Luke Walton 1 (8.1). [Read more...]

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  1. Why is Byron playing him so much again? [back]

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Cavaliers Film Room: Tyler Zeller’s Defensive Rebounding

January 18, 2013 by 3 Comments

WFNY Cavaliers Film RoomWhen we were last in the film room, I preached about the Cavaliers’ need to force turnovers, increase the pace, and run more as a recipe for success. Today, we’re going to look at how the Cavaliers’ rookie center Tyler Zeller has been faring in the absence of Anderson Varejao. It’s no secret that Anderson Varejao was the team’s most valuable rebounder and defender, but his knee injury leaves only one true center on the roster in Zeller. In this week’s games, the Cavaliers struggled with Demarcus Cousins, Dwight Howard, and Lamarcus Aldridge in the post and nearly gave away the Portland game on the glass. Get your mouthguard, because we’re going down low into the post. [Read more...]

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A glimmer of hope on a terrible road trip

January 17, 2013 by 15 Comments

Tristan and KyrieThe Cavaliers have played more games on the road so far this season than any other NBA team. Their record in those road games heading into last night’s game in Portland was 5-19. They had also lost the first three games of the current road trip, and had given up 237 points in those contests.

In other words, things weren’t looking very bright.

The Cavaliers came out hot however, and hung on to preserve a win against a playoff contending Portland team.

There was something in particular that gave me hope for things to come.

Kyrie Irving scored 31 points on 13 of 24 shooting. He added 5 assists and 4 steals to go with just 2 turnovers. It was a big rebound game for him having shot just 31.6% against the Kings on Sunday with 6 turnovers, 2 of them in crucial moments late in the fourth quarter.

Three of those assists were to Tristan Thompson. In two of those, Irving created an opening for Thompson with his dribble penetration and then dished off to Thompson for dunks. This combination, or chemistry, or whatever you want to call it is what Cleveland fans have been waiting to see. [Read more...]

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