NBA Playoffs Season 2014-2015

[fairweatherfan]

LeBron's been incredible, but even he couldn't outscore the Warriors on his own if their offense was flowing.  Instead, the Cavs have now shut down two elite offenses in a row.  Makes me wonder just when David Blatt is finally going to get credit for any of this. 

[D.o.s.]

No one seriously wrote Blatt off as a bad coach except for people who don't understand how coaching works.

I know the new Trendy Thing™ to do is abhor isolation ball in favor of Spurs-esque ball movement, but there's a reason it's persisted for so long. It has it merits. The best teams are able to play in a variety of styles so as to counter whatever is thrown their way. The Spurs redefined the modern NBA with their incredible Finals performance, but pretty much no one remembers that they got to the Finals by eliminating the Thunder in Game 6 overtime by repeatedly feeding Duncan in the post and letting him go to work.

I very much agree. At some point you have to get baskets in the paint to give the defense a different look.

Seems like this is the Warriors' kryptonite as of right now. They have all the perimeter talent, but the Cavs have closed their shooting space, add to it that they were not in rhythm, that they're just not being able to score.

David Lee needs to play more in the 4th. He's their only capable inside presence.

I agree. David Lee, and well, Andrew Bogut needs to be used more on offense in the post. He was a legit low post threat in the past, now he is not used at all except for setting picks on offense.

The problem is that isn't Golden State's game.  They just don't know how to play that way.  Lee should have always been the 6th man on that team in THIS series.  He is that good offensively and the only guy on the Warriors with a legitimate post up game, something the Cavs don't defend nearly as well as the perimeter.  But again, the Warriors just don't play that way even though they should.

Yeah I'll agree with this. I also think that nerves are really playing on the Dubs: a game is a game is a game is a game, but they've been totally devoid of confidence for this entire series. It's like they've been listening to the broadcast and are starting to buy into Mark Jackson's "No one can stop the best player in the world" stuff.

[Endless Paradise]

The nerves can be explained by the very thing much of the blogosphere was dismissing as a legitimate concern: lack of experience on the big stage.

These Finals have been a reminder that analytics aren't the end-all, be-all to basketball and that there are very real, critical aspects of the game that cannot be quantified by any metric. As much as people might mock the idea of "intangibles," it's beyond stupid to suggest they don't play any role.

[D.o.s.]

I agree, but I think that very quickly shoots way too far in the other direction and you wind up with Charles Barkley-isms like "you can't win a title with a jump shooting team."

[Endless Paradise]

I agree, but I think that very quickly shoots way too far in the other direction and you wind up with Charles Barkley-isms like "you can't win a title with a jump shooting team."

Yes, this is true. Such is the hot take nature of discussing sports.

Also, if people check out the game flow, the amount of time Cleveland has held the lead in the Finals versus Golden State is absolutely insane: something like ~120 minutes for the Cavs versus ~30 for Golden State (per this guy). Golden State's getting outplayed far more than the final score margins have indicated; they've just gone on their patented offensive runs to make things seem a lot closer than they've been. Here's a key point: Golden State has trailed by double digits in every single game thus far.

If they lose this series, it'll be both one of the most astonishing and stunning choke jobs in NBA history and one of the greatest individual performances in NBA history.

[fairweatherfan]

No one seriously wrote Blatt off as a bad coach except for people who don't understand how coaching works.

This is inadvertently an example of what I'm talking about.  There's a pretty big gulf between "he's obviously not a bad coach" and "wait a minute, this guy is the primary architect of a dominant playoff defense in his first year in the league". 

Blatt's the 2nd most important thing the Cavs have going for them right now in my opinion, and I'm just surprised that this late in the playoffs the conversation still hasn't moved from non-negative faint praise to actual positive regard.  When he's mentioned at all, that is. 

[D.o.s.]

Sure, but I think he's getting a little bit of the Mike Woodson in New York luck: injuries have forced him into a lineup that is winning games, but it pretty clearly isn't the system that he would have used with a healthy team.

Blatt's a better coach than Woodson is, but he's been handed a relative blessing by only having an 8 player rotation.

[Moranis]

Sure, but I think he's getting a little bit of the Mike Woodson in New York luck: injuries have forced him into a lineup that is winning games, but it pretty clearly isn't the system that he would have used with a healthy team.

Blatt's a better coach than Woodson is, but he's been handed a relative blessing by only having an 8 player rotation.

He didn't have much more than that in the regular season.  What he has been handed is two 60 win teams that play the exact offensive style that perfectly fits the players he has on defense.  I've been saying this all series, the Cavs are an excellent perimeter defensive team because they have incredible athletes and instincts in that aspect.  They struggle with teams that have players that take it to the hole with authority or that have great post up games.  The Hawks and Warriors aren't those teams.  It is why Chicago had a real chance to beat them and why the Cavs got lucky avoiding the Wizards and Rockets.  This lineup against the Rockets would be getting killed.  And if you think James is tired at the end of the Warriors' games imagine if he actually had to guard a guy like Harden (and James is the only Cav that could effectively guard Harden). 

It is also why David Lee should be seeing a lot more time in this series.  He is still a pretty darn good interior scorer and as we saw in the 4th quarter, can be very effective in this series.  The Cavs have lucked into the perfect match-ups which have allowed them to thus far overcome all of the injuries.  I mean people forget that James is the only Cavs opening day starter on this team.  Blatt has done an excellent job creating a gameplan and managing the roster the hole season, but the Cavs sure were helped out in playing the Hawks and Warriors in the two series that matter the most. 

[D.o.s.]

Totally agree, but I would go out on a fairly hypothetical limb and say that if Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love weren't injured, the Cavaliers would be trailing in this series (and Dellevadova, in particular, would not have seen more than 4-5 minutes of floor time).

The problem with Lee is on the defensive end. The Warriors are having trouble with the LeBron iso as it is, but swapping out Green for Lee does nothing to alleviate that problem, and also ads to it, since he can't defend on post ups or in the switch, which is what the Dubs have been running against the pick and roll.

[hpantazo]

Totally agree, but I would go out on a fairly hypothetical limb and say that if Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love weren't injured, the Cavaliers would be trailing in this series (and Dellevadova, in particular, would not have seen more than 4-5 minutes of floor time).

The problem with Lee is on the defensive end. The Warriors are having trouble with the LeBron iso as it is, but swapping out Green for Lee does nothing to alleviate that problem, and also ads to it, since he can't defend on post ups or in the switch, which is what the Dubs have been running against the pick and roll.

Sure, but sometimes the best defense is a good offense. Also, giving Lee more playing time will save Green's fouls and energy so that he can be more aggressive and effective on Lebron when he's out there.

[SHAQATTACK]

Totally agree, but I would go out on a fairly hypothetical limb and say that if Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love weren't injured, the Cavaliers would be trailing in this series (and Dellevadova, in particular, would not have seen more than 4-5 minutes of floor time).

The problem with Lee is on the defensive end. The Warriors are having trouble with the LeBron iso as it is, but swapping out Green for Lee does nothing to alleviate that problem, and also ads to it, since he can't defend on post ups or in the switch, which is what the Dubs have been running against the pick and roll.

I think you hit upon the correct analysis ......the injuries or lack of scoring .....has forced LeBron to stay on the court the whole game .  Which is not a bad thing .....it actually helps ....if he can endure the long minutes.

He is the best player on the court.

The longer he is out there the game is NEVER decided .......long as he is healthy.

I ve been very unimpressed with the defense of LeBron..........I don't think you can just say we ll let him have his points .   Warriors need to use up many players as possible to keep him locked up .

[Who]

David Lee should be a replacement for Andrew Bogut. Not Draymond Green. Green and Lee should play together. Not instead of one another.

Playing Lee and Bogut together will clog up the Warriors offense. Hurt their spacing. Make it harder to get Klay Thompson and Steph Curry in advantageous positions. Lee playing one-on-one basketball against Tristan Thompson with the paint clogged up + with Steph and Klay finding it even harder to get dribble penetration is not a good game plan for Golden State. That will just keep the ball in front of a set Cavs halfcourt defense. Forcing an increased number of contested shots.

It hurts to lose Bogut's interior defense and replace him with a bad defender like David Lee but I think given how Golden State are struggling on offense and how well they have managed to maintain their defense while Bogut (or Ezeli) are not on the court, I think Lee is a net positive for them as an undersized offensive orientated high post center for GSW.

[Yoki_IsTheName]

Totally agree, but I would go out on a fairly hypothetical limb and say that if Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love weren't injured, the Cavaliers would be trailing in this series (and Dellevadova, in particular, would not have seen more than 4-5 minutes of floor time).

The problem with Lee is on the defensive end. The Warriors are having trouble with the LeBron iso as it is, but swapping out Green for Lee does nothing to alleviate that problem, and also ads to it, since he can't defend on post ups or in the switch, which is what the Dubs have been running against the pick and roll.

Yeah, but you don't swap any of the starting big man for Lee, you being him in favor of Festus Ezeli as the first big offthe bench.

He's going to give a different look. You don't even have to call a ton of post plays for Lee, but the fact that he's a threat from the inside can take away the tight defense the Cavs are putting on the Dubs' shooters. That thing where the Cleveland big hard shows to trap Curry on the pick and roll could be very dangerous with a finished like Lee rolling to the basket instead of popping.

[littleteapot]

SHAQATTACK hit the nail on the head - if Lebron is on the court you can never count his team out.

[Eddie20]

Kerr is failing to make adjustments.

1. Pick up the tempo -

The Cavs are just letting James and Dellavedova walk the ball up the court and go into their half court sets. What they need to do is apply fullcourt pressure, not a press, but fullcourt pressure on whoever is bringing up the ball up the court. The Cavs are getting into offense with around 18 seconds left on the clock, which is way too much. Instead, let them deal with the pressure and get into more loose offensive possessions that would probably result in worse shots and/or turnovers and generate more transition offense.

2. Make life easier for Curry-

The Cavs are destroying the high P&R by trapping Curry and forcing the ball out of his hands. Instead, the Warriors should scratch that and have Curry attack Dellavedova one on one/in space. This would allow Curry more time to react to a potential double since it'll have to come from distance and cause the Cavs to make an adjustment since Dellaveodva can't cover Curry in space.

When they do P&R I want to see Thomspon as the screener. This means that whoever is defending Thompson will have to decide whether to trap Curry and give Thompson a wide open shot or hedge loosely on Curry, which puts Dellavedova in danger of not being able to recover fast enough on Curry.