CLEVELAND, Ohio – How much has the Cleveland Cavaliers grown after being one of the league’s weakest teams over the past two seasons?
Exhibit Tuesday night is Exhibit A.
It was definitely a bad result. I mean, they lost to the New York Knicks. But defense was not the issue. How many times has the sentence been accurate in the last two years, when the Cavs pointed fingers and raised palms? What’s the over / under chance, Vegas? The turnaround at the end of the floor, which continued against the Knicks, is remarkable. Even Collin Sexton admits it.
“I felt like it was last year, or a year before, and we missed so many shots, we would probably have lost by 20, 25, 30,” Sexton said. “But tonight we just kept fighting, we kept playing hard, we kept scratching. We are definitely growing. I can see the growth just because I’ve been here for three years now. I know what type of team we have. And I’ve never played with a team like this. I’m excited. “
Sexton’s summary mimicked the one fullback that Darius Garland gave.
‘Remove the lid from the rim. That was our biggest problem. We could not take a chance, “said Garland. “We played good defense. Our defense brought us back into play. Defense was there. We let them turn the ball around. We just could not make a hit in the first half, and that’s what landed us in this hole and could not come back from it. ”
The Cavs reached 32-of-88 from the field and 7-of-32 from 3-point. It was their worst offensive performance after defending and burning the first three nights. It happens.
Guys not named Andre Drummond and JaVale McGee have missed a total of 40 of their 68 shot attempts. The Cavs led twice all night – 2-0 and 4-2. They made just four of their last 23 attempts in a repulsive first quarter that forced them to climb back all night. They got stuck in the transition and scored two quick points in the second half after running out to 14 in the first half. They returned to hero ball and started taking some low percentage shots when adversity struck. Hard to win like that, let alone compete.
As Sexton and Garland said, the outcome of a one-digit loss is astounding.
“I think we competed. I think we really scratched, ”said head coach JB Bickerstaff. “It was not a lack of effort that led to this. It was us who experienced something different. We have made shots up to this point. So we did not make shots tonight and we have to learn how to react if things do not go offensive. What is the next step? I think this is where we are growing and still growing. ”
Another sign of growth came moments after the loss. While Bickerstaff was gathering his thoughts and preparing for his Zoom meeting with reporters after the game, Drummond came out of the locker room for a practice session in court. Then came Sexton, Garland, Dante Exum and Thon Maker.
On a disappointing night, when the Cavs lost their first game of the season, Bickerstaff saw a beacon of hope.
‘It’s in the right direction. You have guys who care. You have guys who want to get better. The game is important to them, “said Bickerstaff. ‘It’s important and it’s special. It speaks of the character of our group. It does not go well with them. The fact that they work there speaks to them. ‘
Culture has been a popular word since Bickerstaff took over for John Beilein. It’s hard to define. But that late-night moment offers a window.
Sexton is 6-out-17. Garland was 6-out-18. Exum missed all five of its attempts. Drummond was 7-of-13 from the field, 0-out-1 from beyond the arc and 4-of-10 from the offense. Thon Maker did not play. He recorded six minutes throughout the season. But the quintet was not looking for a quick exit from Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Rather, an opportunity to fix what they consider to be their biggest obstacle for a 4-0 start.
“We are just workers. No matter who came up with the idea. We were just working there and that was it, ‘said Garland. “We just had a bad game in our opinions.”
“I missed a few shots I normally do, especially some of my drivers and a lot of 3s,” Sexton said. “I shoot the ball pretty well, and tonight I think I missed two corner-tries, and I was like, ‘Dang, I wish I could come back.’ ‘I shot a lot of them after the game. I’m ready to leave against Indiana on Thursday.
“I do not think it went wrong for us. We just did not make shots. We got a very open look in the first half, we just could not buy anything to go into. Did we lose nine? It was a really good game for us, just the fact that we shot it so badly. We still deleted. And on top of that, we gave up 95 points. It’s not bad tonight. ”
Ninety-five points. Forty-three percent shoot. Twenty-seven turnover. It’s usually good enough in defense. And the last two years it has been a deviation. Cleveland’s season-long defensive rating actually improved Tuesday night. The success, which was partly linked to the opponent, should not be lost, because the Cavs did not get the result they wanted against New York.
The Cavs had a better-than-expected start to the season, with three straight wins and beat the Joel Embiid-less Philadelphia 76ers Sunday. But given where they still are as a franchise, wins and losses may not be the only barometer of success. There must be other ways to define it. Growth, in any area, is one.
Bickerstaff said earlier this season that he does not like the phrase for player development. He regards his work as a teacher. It’s about making guys realize how basketball wins. It does not matter what the result is, every night.
“It’s about honesty,” Bickerstaff said. ‘Telling the truth to people is the most important thing to create that we are trying to create here.
“I think we will learn a lot. How do we take the next step and the next step is when things are not going your way, how do you react? What is plan B? We need to go back to the gym and continue to prepare ourselves and track down our plan B and execute our plan B. You obviously hate to accept the loss, but you want to learn from it and be placed in these positions so you can get better. ”
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