The Cavaliers NBA season ends without a playoff's' spot and not as Coach Brown expected, so what's next? Loss to Atlanta Hawks shuts Cleveland out of the playoffs
By Karl Kimbrough, Cleveland Urban News.Com Sportswriter (kimbrough@clevelandurbannews.com). Cleveland Urban News. Com and The Cleveland Urban News.Com Blog, Ohio's Leaders In Black Digital News . Tel: 216-659-0473
Cleveland Urban News.Com Sportswriter Karl Kimbrough |
Before the season began then new head Coach Mike Brown
said on a number of occasions that he felt his team would be in the
playoffs this year. But after concluding the season, Brown admitted that
he under estimated how much his team needed to grow to be a playoff
team. As he made that statement Brown could have been thinking about
the most important game of the season. This would be the April 4,
2014, game against the Atlanta Hawks. Why would he be thinking of
this game?
At
that point in the season there were only six games left to be played
and the Cavaliers were finally only two games out of the last playoff
spot in the Eastern Conference which was held by Atlanta. At that
time Cleveland had won five out of their last six games while the
Hawks had been playing their worst basketball of the season, losing
eight out of their last 10 games. If the Cavaliers could win this
game they would be only one game out of the playoffs with five
remaining and Atlanta had the more difficult schedule. After
struggling mightily the first half of their season Cleveland could
now make a recovery and achieve its goal, even with a 31-45 record
at the time.
At
this most important time the Cavaliers not only loss to the Hawks,
but were embarrassed 117-98, and the game really was not that close.
Atlanta led 39 to 23 after the first quarter and dominated the game
from the tip of the ball. How could this happen with so much to gain
and so much to lose. How? It is simple.
This Cleveland team is very immature and not ready to rise up to the intensity necessary to beat the Hawks. In other words, this team is not ready to win meaningful games. Why? They are still simply learning how to win, how to play together as an offensive and defensive unit with each player understanding, and how to use applicable talent to complement respective teammates abilities. As we break this game down, the Cavaliers began the game playing at a pace which was a step or two behind the Hawks on offense and defense.
This Cleveland team is very immature and not ready to rise up to the intensity necessary to beat the Hawks. In other words, this team is not ready to win meaningful games. Why? They are still simply learning how to win, how to play together as an offensive and defensive unit with each player understanding, and how to use applicable talent to complement respective teammates abilities. As we break this game down, the Cavaliers began the game playing at a pace which was a step or two behind the Hawks on offense and defense.
The
Hawks were comfortable playing at a faster pace than Cleveland. These
are the obvious aspects that were clearly the large differences in
these two teams, although they were close in records. Not only were
the Hawks comfortable in their pace, but they understood how to
create shots for each other. Their passes were quick and fluid, often
catching the Cavs on their heels and not ready to defend the play. It
was as if Cleveland was not prepared to play the Hawks, not sure of
what to expect from them. Offensively the Cavs could not get
comfortable and in a rhythm like Atlanta. They lacked the offensive
and defensive continuity that propelled the Hawks and made this win
easy for them. Cleveland also did not attack the Atlanta interior
defense then pass outside to keep them off balance. Atlanta's passes
and shots were open because Cleveland players were in man to man
defense, often three feet away.
Again
the failure to be aggressive and physical defensively feed the
opposing teams confidence so what ever shots they put up felt like
they were going in and eventually the basket seemed as big as an
ocean. Not only did key scorers like Jeff Teague score 20, but a
journey man player like Mike Scott came off the bench and scored 26
against the Cavaliers. This game was some what of a synopsis of all
of the problems that have plagued the Cleveland team all year.
Not
being able to win meaningful games at the crucial time of the season
again shows the immaturity of this Cavs team and how they are taking
baby steps in growth and development, rather than the large strides
Brown expected. From the beginning of training camp the young nucleus
of the Cavalier starting five struggled to play with each other, not
being in sink, not wanting to share the basketball. That nucleus of
young players was made up of Dion Waiters, Tristan Thompson and Kyrie
Irving. Whether they start together or not, this group will play over
30 minutes per game so they need to play in concert with one another, which
can be done if they are willing and truly want to win.
The Atlanta
Hawks are not much more talented than the Cavaliers, but they do know
how to use and blend their talents for the success of the team. In
order to maximize talent in the game of basketball, as a collective
unit each player must understand their individual importance as a
part of the collective unit. As should the other players that make up
that unit, and be willing to incorporate the abilities of all
players.
In
other words, each player must know his role and be willing to perform even when under duress. Each player must be confident in
themselves and their teammates ability to accomplish their role for
the success of the team. This will allow the basketball to move
quickly and freely for the best scoring opportunities. For example,
in a NBA Championship Game Michael Jordan, the player considered by
many to be the greatest player and scorer of all time told his
teammate Steve Kerr, “ Be ready (to shoot) I am coming to you.”
This was during a time out in the last seconds of the game and the
shot could win or loss the game. The fact that Kerr made the shot is
not what is key here. Kerr knew his role and so did Jordan who could
have taken the shot himself, but he understood that to win he needed
to use the players around him.
Dion
and Kyrie played the last seven games together as starters in
Cleveland's back court. This after Dion requested to come off the
bench earlier in the season. The Cavalier management will not speak
about it, but they needed to see if Dion and Kyrie could play
together successfully before they must make decisions this summer
about their roster.
The
success or failure of this basketball team lies in the hands of those
two players. Why? The offense and defense starts with the
guards. On defense they initiate the pressure on the opposing guards.
Ball pressure goes a long way towards getting stops on defense. It
also allows the team to play faster and more aggressively up and down
the court. Irving showed that he is willing to buy into sharing the
ball more by not dominating it in five of the teams last six games.
In fact, Irving deferred to Waiters in most of those games. His 43
point game against Charlotte had more to do with the other players
having a bad shooting day and Kyrie picking up the slack.
It
is not enough though for Kyrie to just defer, he must make his team
mates better, and he is apparently beginning to understand that better because after
game 76 in Orlando Irving said that team play is paramount
“ My job is to make my teammates better,' said Irving.
“ My job is to make my teammates better,' said Irving.
Irving said that "I just pressed to much,
but now coming back the way our team is playing, it's great for me, to
attack or make plays for my teammates, and that's my job to make
my team better.”
This comment came after Irving had been out for
eight games and saw his team win four out of eight without him and before
he came back in Orlando.
Hopefully
that experience humbled him a bit because he's been given the point
guard job without having to display leadership qualities. He knows
what his job is, but he still needs to learn to use his great
dribbling skills to create shots for others. Irving is not a point
guard who will navigate or probe a defense like former MVP point
guard Steve Nash with the intentions of drawing the defense to him
for a teammate to get an open shot. Instead, his primary goal has been
to dribble to free himself for a shot.
Waiters at times does the same
thing, and the ball tends to stay in his hands to long, taking other
teammates out of their rhythm. Teammates
such as Thompson, Tyler Zeller and others rely on those two guys to
get them the ball where they can score on a regular basis because
they can not create their own shot. If the guards do their jobs, a
better scoring balance and attitude will likely prevail.
This year's draft
will not fix this team, it has to come from the young nucleus, which
also includes Tyler Zeller, and Anthony Bennett. The other option
would be to trade Irving or Waiters and bring in a veteran guard.
The
small forward position needs to be addressed as well. Starter Luol
Deng misses to many games, is worn down, and will probably look for
another team in free agency. The Cavaliers have relied too heavily on
youth from the draft to build this team and need veteran leadership
to help Irving and Waiters if they are here next season.
Acting
General Manger David Griffin seemed to agree that veterans need to be
added.
“What I'd like to see us be in is targeted acquisition mode," said Griffin during a season ending news conference last week.(www.clevelandurbannews.com) / (www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com)
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