-
LISTEN LIVE
Click Here to Listen Live!
Archived Rants
- May 2020
- April 2020
- August 2018
- November 2017
- August 2017
- July 2017
- June 2017
- April 2017
- January 2017
- November 2016
- October 2016
- September 2016
- August 2016
- June 2016
- May 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- February 2016
- January 2016
- December 2015
- November 2015
- October 2015
- September 2015
- August 2015
- July 2015
- June 2015
- May 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- November 2014
- October 2014
- September 2014
- August 2014
- July 2014
- June 2014
- May 2014
- April 2014
- March 2014
- February 2014
- January 2014
- December 2013
- November 2013
- October 2013
- September 2013
- August 2013
- June 2013
- May 2013
- March 2013
- November 2012
- October 2012
- July 2012
- June 2012
- May 2012
- February 2012
- July 2007
- August 2000
Categories
Tags
- Anderson Varejao
- Andrew Wiggins
- Anthony Bennett
- Brian Hoyer
- Browns
- Buckeyes
- Cavs
- Chicago Bulls
- Cleveland Browns
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Cleveland Indians
- Dan Gilbert
- David Blatt
- David Griffin
- dion waiters
- Golden State Warriors
- J.R. Smith
- J.T. Barrett
- Jabari Parker
- Jimmy Haslam
- Joel Embiid
- Johnny Manziel
- Josh Gordon
- Justin Gilbert
- Kenny Roda
- Kevin Love
- Kyrie Irving
- Lebron James
- Miami Heat
- Mike Brown
- Mike Pettine
- NBA
- NBA Draft
- NBA Finals
- NBA Playoffs
- NFL Draft
- Ohio State
- Ohio State Buckeyes
- OSU
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Ray Farmer
- Sam Amico
- Tribe
- Tristan Thompson
- Urban Meyer
Tag Archives: Kyrie Irving
CAVS THOUGHTS, ADJUSTMENTS and NOTES vs BULLS
After watching the game live at The Q and then going home and watching it a second time on TV (I love my DVR) here’s what jumped out at me from the Cavs 99-92 loss to the Bulls in Game #1 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals.
THOUGHT: I was surprised to see Mike Miller in the starting line up yesterday. I thought for sure it would be James Jones getting the start because he’s a little more athletic and plays slightly better defense. It turned out to be a horrible decision by David Blatt to start Miller as the man he guarded Mike Dunleavy went off in the first quarter scoring 13 points on 5 of 5 shooting. Miller did not score in the first stanza.
ADJUSTMENT: I would start James Jones in Game #2 and try him on Dunleavy. If that doesn’t work then switch and put Jones on Joakim Noah who is not as mobile, nor is he an outside threat that you’d have to chase all over the floor.
THOUGHT: Why did David Blatt have one of your best defenders in LeBron James guarding one of the Bulls worst offensive players in Joakim Noah? As I told Josh Weir, Cavs beat reporter from the Canton Repository yesterday before the game on my radio show, if LeBron is going to guard a “BIG” it should be Pau Gasol because he’s more mobile and prefers to step out and shoot the jumper. It also allows Timofey Mozgov to stay close to the basket to protect the rim and be in position to grab rebounds if he is guarding Noah instead. Sure enough Gasol killed the Cavs on the “Pick-n-Pop” to the tune of 21 points, his most points against eh Cavaliers this season. According to the Cavs players postgame, the game plan was to leave Gasol alone for the shots. WHAT?
ADJUSTMENT: Anyone who knows anything about Pau Gasol knows that his bread and butter, his favorite thing to do is “Pick-n-Pop” for that top of the key jumper or that wing jumper and the Cavs elected to give him that shot as part of their game plan? What the hell was David Blatt and his staff thinking? In Game #2, as I suggested before Game #1, if LeBron is going to guard a “BIG” put him on Gasol to take him out of his comfort zone and make him work for his shots. Don’t waste LeBron on Noah who’s got a bad knee and is their worst offensive player. This also allows Mozgov to clog the middle and challenge some of those drives that Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler got in Game #1.
THOUGHT: Twice in Game #1 I thought David Blatt waited too long to take a time out. I marked in my game notes at 8:26 of the first quarter the Cavs were down 8-2 and Blatt waited another possession and basket by the Bulls to take a TO. Then again after the Cavs had tied the game twice at 51-51 and 53-53 and had a chance to take the lead both times and failed, the Bulls went on a 10-0 run before Blatt called a time out. He should have done so after LeBron had a terrible stretch of settling for jumpers and turning it over. I would have called the TO when the Bulls took a 58-53 lead, instead Blatt waited until it was 63-53.
ADJUSTEMNT: David Blatt must realize that he is shorthanded as far as talent goes and needs to keep that in mind when he’s thinking his team will play out of a bad stretch and the Bulls are picking up momentum. He has to sense when that is and take a time out sooner rather than later.
THOUGHT: I tweeted out in the third quarter that LeBron James was settling for jump shots and wasn’t attacking the basket enough. He had just settled for, and missed 4 consecutive long jumpers and had a poor turnover because he wasn’t going to the basket. During this stretch the Cavaliers went from being tied 51-51 to trailing 70-55. He has to play more “BIG BOY BALL”!
ADJUSTMENT: LeBron can overpower any player on the Bulls roster and he can take anyone of them to the basket or post them up when he wants to. So he needs to do more of that, especially when the game is close or there’s a need to stop momentum that the Bulls may be gaining. Credit to James after the game during his press conference for admitting that even though he came close to a triple/double (19pts-15reb-9ast), that he did not play well in Game #1.
THOUGHT: Just like in the Boston series in three of the four games the Cavaliers had a horrible start. They fell behind 13-2, 18-5 and 25-11 in the first quarter of Game #1. I know there was a line up change and they’re missing two starters, but they have to at least keep it even until they get in the flow or make the changes necessary to get it going.
ADJUSTMENT: First off start James Jones or Tristan Thompson over mike Miller. Then one of the “Dynamic Duo” of LeBron and Kyrie have to be ultra-aggressive and take it upon themselves to get buckets or set their teammates up for easy buckets by being in attack mode and going to the basket and in a worst case scenario, at least get fouled and score at the line. James and Irving were a combined 3-10fg and only 1-1ft in the first quarter in Game #1 and that led to a season low first quarter total of just 15 points.
THOUGHT: I figured the Cavs would struggle somewhat offensively in Game #1 and they did only shooting 42% from the field and a dismal 26% from 3-point country, but I expected their defense to play much better. While they missed J.R. Smith’s offense in the game, they really missed his length and athleticism on defense guarding the perimeter.
ADJUSTMENT: Again I go back to taking LeBron off Joakim Noah and having him guard their perimeter players more. Also in spurts, matching up offense for defense play Shawn Marion and/or James Jones to be longer and take away those outside shots that the bulls want to take. Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor pointed out to me that the Bulls are one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the playoffs this year, so you’ve got to find a way to limit that until J.R. returns.
THOUGHT: The Cavs scored a total of two fast break points in the game, 2! That can’t happen against a Bulls team that is known for the half-court defense. You can’t let the Bulls set up on defense every time down the floor. The Cavaliers have to find a way to get some easy baskets in this series off the break.
ADJUSTMENT: Because Kevin Love is out and you need to send everybody to the boards to rebound, the Cavaliers need to play better defense to get some deflections and steals which will lead to some easy fast-break opportunities. Also, LeBron and Kyrie need to push the tempo, pick up the pace more whether it’s off rebounds, steals or even a made basket to try and score early on the Bulls before they can get set on defense.
NOTES:
LeBron James offensively had one good quarter in Game #1, the second quarter. In the second, he was 4-7fg for 8 points and 2 assists. The rest of the game he was 5-15fg for 11 points. In this ongoing chess match between Tom Thibodeau and LeBron, the Bulls head coach won game #1. Now it’s up to LBJ to counter in Game #2. LeBron scored only 19 points in Game #1 and his teams are now just (7-14) in playoff games when he scores fewer than 20 points in a game.
Derrick Rose scored 25 points in Game #1 and at times looked very good. But he was also the beneficiary of a couple of lucky shots that went in from long range to beat the shot clock buzzer. He also needed 26 shots to score those 25 points. Let’s see how D-Rose does coming back from only one days rest and after suffering a stinger to his shoulder late in the fourth quarter. Check out these numbers on Derrick Rose: on two days rest between games in the postseason so far Rose is averaging 24ppg and shooting 48% from the field and 48% from 3-point country. On only one days rest between games in the postseason this year Rose is averaging only 14ppg and is shooting 29% from the field and just 23% from beyond the arc. Game #2 happens on only one days rest.
The Bulls magic number is 92. Chicago this season is 29-1 when they hold their opponent to 92 points or less in a game.
According to Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal, David Blatt and the Cavs, prior to yesterday’s game, had never started the lineup of Irving, Miller, James, Shumpert and Mozgov before Game #1.
The Bulls were averaging 17.5 turnovers a game in the postseason going into yesterday’s Game #1 versus the Cavs. They turned it over just 10 times, a postseason low against the Cavaliers in Game #1 while also shooting 50% from the field and 55% from 3-point country. One of their more efficient offensive games in the playoffs so far.
KENNY’S KEY TO A CAVS SERIES WIN OVER CHICAGO
1 – TEAM WINDEX – With Kevin Love, one of the Cavs best rebounders out, the Cavaliers will have to send all 5 guys on the floor to the glass on the defensive end to clean up the Bulls misses and don’t give them many second chance opportunities. Plus, hope that Timofey Mozgov, LeBron James and Tristan Thompson get you some offensive boards for second chance baskets, because there are going to be a lot of missed shots in this series due to the defenses.
2 – VALUE THE BALL – The Bulls are known for their lockdown, aggressive, physical, half-court defense under Tom Thibodeau. Add to that the officials will probably let this be a very rough series if the Boston/Cavs match up was any indication. With that in mind, all Cavs players (especially Mozgov) must be strong with the ball at all times. Chicago will try and hip check the Cavs while playing their half-court “D”, play the passing lanes and double-team LeBron and Kyrie at times when they have the ball to force turnovers for easy run outs and fast break baskets. LeBron most of all, but other Cavs players must also be very careful of the cross-court pass. If you don’t zip it there and it’s a lazy pass with too much air under it, the Derrick Rose or Jimmy Butler will pick it off like a defensive back and take it to the house for an easy 2 points.
3 – DYNAMIC DUO AND WHO? – When the “Big 3” were healthy and scoring 60 or more points per game the Cavaliers were almost unbeatable. Without Kevin Love the rest of the way the “Big 3” is down to “Batman and Robin”! LeBron and Kyrie are going to have to average a minimum of 25 points per game each for the Cavs to have a chance to win in this series and then hope that someone else from the “Justice League” shows up to help them fight off the evil Bulls and the NBA headed up by “The Joker” Adam Silver. Who will that be? Iman Shumpert in a starting role? J.R. Smith when he comes back from suspension? “The Janitor” – Tristan Thompson as his minutes should increase in this series? Or maybe “All The King’s Men” – James Jones, Mike Miller, Shawn Marion and Kendrick Perkins! Realistically it’s going to have to be a combination of all of those guys to help make up for the loss of power forward Kevin Love’s 18 points per game and 9 rebounds per game he was averaging in the playoffs before he succumbed to an illegal arm bar by Ronda Rousey….err…..I mean Kelly Olynyk.
4 – CASH IN AT THE LINE – Points will be so hard to come by in this series with Chicago, so when you do get the chance to get some free ones, you got to make them. The Cavaliers as a team need to shoot at least 75% at the free throw line in this series.
5 – BLATTSKETBALL – David Blatt’s every move, every decision will be magnified in this series because the opponent is better and he’s coaching shorthanded with the loss of Love for the rest of the season, and Smith for the first two games. Who he decides to start, how long he plays him, how deep will his rotation will be, when does he call a time out, in-game adjustments, in-between game adjustments and offensive play calls after a time out are just some of things Blatt will have to be at the top of his coaching game for the Cavs to have a chance in this series. Hopefully he will rely on assistant coaches like Tyronn Lue, Larry Drew and others who have either played or coached in these situations before.
6 – BRING THE “D” – When offense is hard to come by in this series, and it will be at times, the Cavs must play team defense like they’ve never played before this season. Chase Mike Dunleavey off the 3-point line. Close the lanes so Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler won’t drive as much and if they do then Timofey Mozgov must be there to challenge their shots. Your shot doesn’t always travel, but defense does. Play “D” and you’ll be in every game with a chance to win it at the end and like the Cavs chances in a close game with finishers like LeBron James and Kyrie Irving.
7 – KEEP YOUR HEAD – Joakim Noah, Mike Dunleavey and who knows who else will try and muck up this series with hard fouls, taunts and some pushing and shoving. They’ll do this because they know they aren’t as talented as the Cavaliers and they’ll try and take the Cavs out of their game and get in their heads like Boston did last series. As dirty as it was, and it meant losing a player to a serious injury last series, the Cavs can’t afford to lose any other players to ejections or suspensions in this series. Cleveland must keep it’s cool, (maybe with the exception of Kendrick Perkins) and don’t do anything stupid that would jeopardize losing a game or affecting the series in a negative way.
PREDICTION: Even with the loss of Kevin Love for the remainder of the playoffs and without J.R. Smith in the first two games, the Cavs still have the best player in the world in LeBron James and one of the up and coming superstars in this league in Kyrie Irving, along with home court advantage. It wouldn’t surprise me if Cleveland lost one of the first two games, but then went on the road and stole one back from Chicago and that would set things up for a great Game #7 at “The Q” in which the Cavaliers will prevail over the Bulls and advance on to the Eastern Conference Finals.
PODCAST – RODA REPORT – NBA PLAYOFFS: CAVS SWEEP CELTICS BUT LOSE KEVIN LOVE TO INJURY
Here’s my breakdown of the Cavs 101-93 win over the Celtics in Game #4 of the NBA Playoffs at the Garden in Boston. A game in which they lost starting power forward Kevin Love to serious shoulder injury on a dirty play by the Celtics Kelly Olynyk in the first quarter and also lost J.R. Smith in the 3rd quarter as he was called for a “Flagrant 2 Foul” for swinging his elbow and hand back at Boston’s Jae Crowder and making contact in the facial area. Yes the Cavaliers came away with a 4-game sweep and advanced to the 2nd round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs, but now they must wait to see how long Kevin Love will be out due to that shoulder injury and if the NBA suspends Smith for a game or two because of his ejection.
I should be happy after a 4-game sweep of the Celtics, instead I’m pissed off and you can hear how pissed I am by – Listening Here –
Photo courtesy of Thomas Ondrey/The Plain Dealer
KENNY’S KEYS TO A CAVS VICTORY IN GAME #2 OVER BOSTON
- START FAST – In Game #1 the Cavs looked rusty and Kevin Love looked nervous playing in his first ever playoff game. That allowed the Celtics to get off early, make shots, take a 31-27 lead into the 2nd quarter and it gave them confidence. In Game #2 with the rust and nervous gone, the Cavs need to come out aggressive at both ends of the floor, move the ball and jump on Boston from the get go to take away that confidence and impose their will on a far less talented team.
- KEEP THE PEDAL TO THE METAL – Once the Cavaliers did take control in Game #1, leading Boston by 20 points they started settling for shots instead of continuing to run their offense and play solid defense. This allowed the Celtics to crawl back to within 6 points in the 2nd half. In Game #2 once the Cavs get up by double-digits they need to keep their foot on the gas and play the game and not the scoreboard. Do what got you the big lead instead of taking for granted you have the big lead and think you can take any shot you want to. Finish them!
- THE BIG 3 NEED TO BE BIG AGAIN – When LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love score 65 or more points in a game the Cavaliers are (21-4) this year. They had 69 points in Game #1. For the Cavs to win the championship this season, those three players have to carry this team to the title. Yes, they have other players on this team who need to contribute, but Cleveland will only go as far as the “BIG 3” takes them. But the “BIG 3” need to take good shots, as opposed to just shooting because of who they are. As Kyrie Irving said in his post-game interview after Game #1, “We have to hold each other accountable. It’s as simple as it can be. We got together, we are the BIG 3. We have other great players on this team, but we set the tone.”
- CHAIRMEN OF THE BOARDS – The Cavs have a huge advantage under the basket with Love, LeBron, Timofey Mozgov and Tristan Thompson. Those 4 players had 32 rebounds in Game #1, the Celtics as a team had 34. The Cavaliers not only outrebounded Boston in the first game of the series (46-34) but Cleveland dominated the offensive boards as well (15-7) which led to 18 second chance points. David Blatt’s team needs to continue to control the boards and in doing so it can limit Boston to one shot and it could lead to more fast break opportunities for the Cavs who only tallied 4 fast break points in Game #1.
- BALL MOVEMENT – For the most part in Game #1 we didn’t see a lot of the “Stankey Leg” offense by the Cavs. However, to get other players involved more in the offense better ball movement, consistent ball movement is a must. Work inside out. Move the ball side to side and make Boston’s defense work for the full 24 seconds of the shot clock. This will allow the “BIG 3” to still score their points, but it should also get Mozgov. J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert more involved in the offense, getting them open looks.
CAVS NEWS, NOTES AND NUMBERS FROM GAME #1 vs CELTICS 2015 NBA PLAYOFFS
Kyrie Irving continues to thrive on the big stage. With an All-Star Game MVP and a World Basketball Championship MVP to his credit, Irving racked up 30 points in his first NBA Playoff game. According to Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal, Kyrie is the 11th player in the last 20 years to score at least 30 points in his postseason debut, joining a list that includes four past MVP winners (LeBron James, Derrick Rose, Allen Iverson and Tim Duncan) and Anthony Davis, who scored 35 points in his playoff debut Saturday night. (Thanks Lloyd)
Kevin Love struggled early making just 2 of his first 11 shots, but made his final 3 field goal attempts and in his first NBA Playoff game finished with a double/double 19 points and 12 rebounds.
LeBron James in his 1st NBA Playoff game recorded a triple/double against the Washington Wizards in 2006 with 32pts-11rebs-11ast in a Cavs 97-86 win. The last player prior to LeBron to go for a triple/double in his Playoff debut was Magic Johnson in 1980. (Fun Fact – Other players on that Cavs team were Donyell Marshall, Eric Snow, Flip Murray, an injured Larry Hughes, Drew Gooden, Damon Jones, Anderson Varejao, Ira Newble, Sasha Pavlovic, Alan Henderson and Z.)
Also in that Washington series LeBron made his 1st and 2nd game winning shots of his NBA career with game winners in Game #3 and in Game #5.
The “BIG 3” combined for 69pts-21reb-13ast in the 113-100 win. When the “BIG 3” have scored 65 points or more in a game this season, the Cavaliers are now (21-4).
Even with J.R. Smith in foul trouble the Cavaliers starting backcourt dominated the Celtics outscoring them 39-17. Kyrie Irving finished with a game high 30 points while Smith netted 9. Avery Bradley and Marcus Smart shot just 7 of 16 from the floor for Boston.
The Cavs dominated the boards and should do so this entire series. Cleveland outrebounded Boston 46-34. Kevin Love had a game high 12 rebounds and Timofey Mozgov added 8. The Cavs had a 15-7 edge in offensive rebounds which led to 18 second chance points. Tristan Thompson led the way with 4 offensive boards coming off the bench.
Long distance continues to pay off for the Cavs as they made 13 of 31 shots from beyond the arc. The Cavaliers outscored Boston from 3-point country in Game #1 39 to 24. Like rebounding, 3-point shooting should be an area that the Cavs dominate in this series.
The “Bench Bunch” comes up big in Game #1. While most of the focus is always on the “BIG 3”, role players are crucial in playoff series and a number of those role players stepped up in the 113-100 win. The Cavs bench totaled 29pts-13reb-5ast led by Tristan Thompson’s 12 points and 7 rebounds. James jones hit 3 HUGE shots, including two 3-pointers and finished with 8 points. Iman Shumpert played 32 minutes because J.R. Smith was in foul trouble and scored 7 points and grabbed 6 boards. Matthew Dellavedova hit a beautiful spinning, twisting lay up for 2 points and Shawn Marion contributed with 2 big steals.