First and a long way to go
Posted June 7th, 2007 by Brian Windhorst
San Antonio — So the Spurs are pretty good. Here’s the scary part Cavs followers: in the 85-76 loss in Game 1, the Spurs played about average. They played good defense, Tony Parker was the fastest guy on the court, Tim Duncan was dominant, and Manu Ginobili hit a few shots. Then they called it a night. The word you’re looking for is: eek.
Let’s see…
–I respect Larry Hughes for trying, he’s scored the points in my book and all, but there’s a 0 percent change of him staying in front of Parker with that bad wheel. He managed OK on Michael Finley and some other players, but, honestly, Parker went through Hughes like the Nazis went through Paris. Bad metaphor? Oh, sorry. So Mike Brown simply must play Daniel Gibson and even Eric Snow (you know, the team’s best one-on-one defensive player) more on Parker. Neither of those guys can totally stop him either but they have a better chance. Of course, I expect Mike to get ripped by all the media for saying he’s not changing his lineup. He will change the minutes, though, guaranteed.
–Zydrunas Ilgauskas looked like a kid that accidentally jumped into the deep end of the pool. He was thrashing around and accomplishing nothing. Not all of it was his fault, Brown’s play calls gave him no chance at the rhythm, but he couldn’t even hold onto the ball tonight. He couldn’t even rebound, which he always does. The Cavs have to win the rebounding battle win have any chance in the series, tonight they got slaughtered and Ilgauskas was a big reason why. Yes, Brown benched him to go small for long stretches but part of that was he wasn’t getting anything done when he was out there.
–We now have enough data on LeBron James to know that he doesn’t usually play that well in Game 1s of playoff series. Usually he uses the first quarter to feel things out, but he was searching for three quarters tonight. The Spurs did a great job of cutting off his usual outlet passes, they knew all of his tendencies of where he goes when he’s trapped. Also, they did a great job of pressuring the ball, which helped keep the Cavs out of their offense and killed the shot clock. It was like moving up a level on a video game, they made everything harder. Nonetheless, the Cavs were still very much in this game until late in the third despite just about everyone — save for Gibson and Drew Gooden — playing below average. In other words, hold your water, the Cavs did some good things on offense in the fourth and moved bodies much better. They’ll come back, they always do, we’ll see if it’s good enough.
–Tim Duncan is so damn good, it’s amazing. In these playoffs, getting to see Jason Kidd work for six games was a reminder of why the guy is a Hall of Famer. Now watching Duncan will be great. He is so good at so many facets of the game, it’s hard to even describe it. How about from the high post when he fakes a bounce pass to Parker then turns and makes the off-balance jumper from 17 feet. That’s not Earl Boykins making that move, it’s a 7-footer.
–I really appreciated what the Spurs did in the third quarter. They got up seven once or twice but couldn’t extend the lead. They knew this was a chance to bury the Cavs if they could get an extra stop or two. So Ginobili starts pumping up the crowd on defense. Then, when Brown is forced to call a timeout to calm things down, the Spurs bring out David Robinson, George Gervin and Sean Elliott to be recognized. The crowd cheered throughout the timeout and didn’t let down. The Spurs do the little things right as well as the big things.
–Even with all the trouble Duncan and Parker, the Cavs gave up just 85 points tonight. They had no inside game, LeBron couldn’t make a shot, and they best strength (rebounding) was a weakness. They’ve still got a chance to make some serious noise and they know it. But it’s going to take some good adjustments and some moxie. Let’s see what happens.
June 8th, 2007 at 1:15 am
Wow… These spurs are stellar… I haven’t watched a lot of San Antonio basketball (or much western conference bball, excepting a few Nash or Kobe-centric games for that matter) this season.
As for the Hughes v. Parker matchup… I can’t help but wonder how much of Parker’s dominance was because Hughes is injured, and how much is because Parker’s that good. Either way, I’d have no problem with lots and lots of Snow on the floor for the remainder of this series.
Maybe I was just seeing things (or maybe I WASN’T seeing this all season long) but it looked liked Z was staying down low after cavs misses, and going after o-boards a lot harder than normal, during the first quarter or so, than I can remember him doing so, ever. I mean, I know the guy loves (and I love watching him) to play volleyball with himself around the rim… but the first quarter of tonight seemed different.
“Tim Duncan is so damn good, it’s amazing.”
Truth.
Against Detroit, we saw the lineup of Damon, Boobie, and Donyell to demand respect and/or actually shoot outside… Varejao (the Braziller Thriller) for some semblance of defense inside, and Lebron of course. There was quite a bit success when this combo was on the floor, regardless of the venue. However, against the spurs, I’d love to see the relative opposite lineup. ie Z, Gooden, Varejao (the Braziller Thriller), to overwhelm Duncan inside, and Boobie on the perimeter… and ‘Bron of course. Offensively, it’d be a relatively unflappable lineup, and defensively, it’d force Parker and Manu to knock down their range shots, with no love for TD whatsoever.
As an overall note, I think the cavs need a big game from the non-Lebrons in a hurry. It doesn’t need to be a win… just enough to make the spurs reconsider their defensive gameplan. Once they feel the need to change, Lebron can see to it that they feel that need continuously.
June 8th, 2007 at 4:15 am
check out this crap by bw’s friend bill simmons http://sports.espn.go.com/espn//page2/sto..
June 8th, 2007 at 5:04 am
Would Snow really be the answer on Parker, considering the trouble that he has had with quicker point guards for a couple of years now? I know he is probably the best one-on-one defender the Cavs have, but I simply don’t know that he can stay in front of Parker at this point in his career. Brown cannot have LeBron keep matching up with Parker. LBJ’s a great player, but to have the responsibility of stopping Parker on defense and then beating Bowen on offense is too much for even him, IMO.
June 8th, 2007 at 5:04 am
In my opinion, Larry Hughes should not be playing at all. He is a liability on offense and with his bad wheel, on defense too. Start Boobie, Please!!!!!
June 8th, 2007 at 5:55 am
All I can say is WOW. Though disappointing, the result can not be considered unexpected. The one complete shock to me was how utterly dominating the Spurs were on the glass. Rebouonds off missed free throws three different times? That’s just unacceptable.
It’s one thing when a team is better than you. It’s another when a team gives more effort. Rebounding is all effort, all hustle. If the Cavs don’t clean that aspect, and fast, this is going to be a fast series.
FTS
http://www.fearthesword.com
June 8th, 2007 at 6:02 am
Some questions for the blog and Brian;
1) With Parker going off, every cavs fan in the world was wondering why did Brown leave in Hughes for so many minutes. It is his responsibility to play the guys that give us the best chance to win. Heart isn’t going to cure a bum ankle. This is the Finals for pete’s sake! I am very curious to see the +/- with Hughes and Gibson on the court. Bad couching — period. While on the subject, Brown also grossly misused his timeouts in the Pistons series — wonder if it will happen again against the Spurs. Seems like he is in way over his head.
B) Is it just me or do the cavs seems lackadasical. In one play I remember a loose ball where Pav was much closer to it than any other Spur, but got outhustled for it. And Z looked like he pulled an all nighter with caffine. Donnie was limping around even on his fast break bucket. I wish they would take the energy of Gooden and clone it to the team. This is the FINALS — hello.
3) I remember the Cavs running Pav from the baseline around the elbo to create some defense shifts for Lebron and open a possible passing lane straight to the basket — didn’t happen tonight. And Z always pops up on the screen for that difficult 20 footer — why can’t he be more like Andy and jump towards the basket for a higher percerntage shot.
If this game, didn’t give you the craving for an offense coordinator I don’t know what will. Let’s Go CAVS.
June 8th, 2007 at 6:11 am
Well said Brian, the Spurs are the class of the league in terms of execution. They’re a very good basketball team and (if they weren’t playing the Cavs) would be very enjoyable to watch. That said, I thought the Cavs did some good things with Duncan defensively. The double teams came quickly (they only gave him one dribble) and they rotated well coming out of them. Unfortunately, they planned on somebody (hughes, lebron, whoever) handling Parker 1-on-1. That is obviously not going to happen. The Cavs need to keep him out of the lane. The big man needs to step out on the high screen, trap him occassionally, but keep him out of the lane. I’d rather them kill us with Bowen jumpers (ugly) than a drive and dish for a Duncan slam. Offensively, just shoot better, that’s what it is. The Spurs are good defensively, but we have to make open looks. First game jitters, let’s get it done Sunday.
June 8th, 2007 at 6:46 am
that game really didn’t concern me. what would concern me is if the cavs don’t make the right adjustments next game. there were a lot of wide open looks that didn’t go downs and the rebounding will probably not stay that atrocious. the spurs played a solid game but they can’t possibly expect to contain lebron all series. i expect these games to be much closer from here on out.
June 8th, 2007 at 6:51 am
Until we get a real center, somebody who
can actually move his feet and contest
the penetration to the middle we will not
win a championship. It,s not Goodens fault
that 1) He has to step out and defend Parker
on the pick and roll and 2)Get back and either rebound or double Duncan or 3)Make snap judgement about who he is going to guard. Z is the reason we lost yesterday.
He was horrible. How many times can you
give up the ball right under the basket.
And Hughes is horrible right now. Quick jumpers with nobody under the basket.
June 8th, 2007 at 7:15 am
I was actually pretty encouraged by all the youngsters–Pavlovic, Verajao, Gooden and Gibson weren’t intimidated and each played at least fairly well. At times, Gibson seems almost Parker-like in his ability to get shots off in traffic and under the basket. I think all of them are going to be much better players next year.
Three gripes:
First, it’s clear the Cavs aren’t going to get many calls against the Spurs until they earn it. They’ve got to keep driving straight to the hoop until the refs start calling some fouls.
Second, it’s time to stop giving Hughes so much credit. He has a sore foot, not a broken leg. I’ve had plantar fascaitis myself and it’s very sore, but it does loosen up with activity. Maybe that’s why Brown sticks with him so long, to keep the foot loose. But Hughes is just playing terribly, which he has done for two years now, and he’s hurting the team.
Finally, it’s time to stop spewing the “best on the ball defender” stuff about Snow. Snow is good against guys who post up. He also has a knack for making big defensive plays at key moments. But against quick guys, he’s terrible. He’s become a master of the “smart” foul because quick guys blow right by him.
I’d still rather see him out there over Hughes at this point, but Gibson has played great D every time I’ve watched him. He fouls a lot because he has very active hands, and he is small, but he’s the guy to go with against Parker.
June 8th, 2007 at 7:52 am
There really is no reason to knock Hughes right now. No, he doesn’t have a serious debilitating injury, but Mark Price described plantar fascaitis as “feeling like someone hammered a nail into your heel.” That sounds pretty bad to me. Hughes would have to be at the top of his game, mentally and physically, to have a chance at staying in front of Parker, and with a nagging injury like this that’s not possible. The point is we don’t have anyone who can slow him down one-on-one. He will get into the lane with ease unless there’s a help defender, a trap, or something. He creates for them, and the Cavs have to slow him down somehow. Yes, that will leave Finley, Bowen, et al with open jumpers, but again, I’ll take that over dunks and layups any day.
June 8th, 2007 at 8:33 am
How does Parker keep driving to the hoop without being knocked on his can HARD??
Z is now known as Butterfingers McFumble.
Coach Brown will single-handedly cost the Cavs this championship by not putting his ONE TRUE, PURE SHOOTER, Daniel Gibson, on the floor for 40-minutes. I’ll take my chances with his shot 10 out of 10 times, rather than the hope-and-prayers that Donyell, Sasha, Hughes (oh lord), Damon & Z hoist up. This team is sadly in need of accurate shooters, yet Brown won’t play his biggest asset. Such a shame.
June 8th, 2007 at 9:10 am
-The Cavs aren’t going to win at this stage if LeBron doesn’t bring his A-game.
-I am extremely excited about Boobie Gibson’s future
-Gooden showed once again he can make shots if he gets looks
-Z showed once again he can’t defend the Pick and Roll to save his life
-I thought the officiating was unfair towards the Cavs - especially in the first half
-I saw Z lose the ball about 5 times and yet he wasn’t credited with any turnovers
-Mike Brown played Z almost the entire 3rd quarter even though he couldn’t hit a shot and couldn’t defend the Parker/Duncan pick and roll
-ESPN should change their name to WE HATE EVERYTHING CLEVELAND
June 8th, 2007 at 9:18 am
Parker is so quick they can’t catch him to
knock him down. As hard as this may seem have to try to take ball out of his hands
but I am afraid we don’t have personnel to
do it. On offensive side all the pressing and trapping is causing us to be late in the clock. Must run and pass over quickly
or this series is over.
June 8th, 2007 at 9:21 am
espn = Every Spinster and Pundit of the
National media.
June 8th, 2007 at 9:45 am
Combined minutes of Cleveland’s best unit that would give the Spurs the most trouble if they ever played together at the same time (Gibson, LeBron, Pavlovic, Gooden, Varejao): 6.
June 8th, 2007 at 9:53 am
Wow, AC…that is a very telling stat you put together. SIX MINUTES??!! And you are absolutely correct, that IS the Cavs’ best lineup. Why can the average fan see this, but the coaching staff remains locked in on losers like Hughes & Marshall, and a weak pushover like Z? All of our bigmen are useless near the basket. Did anyone ever teach the concept of “go up STRONG for the DUNK?”
June 8th, 2007 at 9:56 am
It would be nice to see someone knock Bill Simmons down a few pegs. His cute, sarcastic comments are beyond old, particularly coming from a guy who’s never worn a jock.
I don’t read him anymore. Anyone who doesn’t like college football and has an encyclopedic knowledge of every crap, pop-culture TV show doesn’t merit my time.
June 8th, 2007 at 10:03 am
I use to think Mike Brown and Danny Ferry were stupid,but after watching last nights game I’ve come to the conclusion that they are insane. I really feel sorry for Lebron. He has to spend at least three more years playing with garbage(everyone on the team but Gibson) His talent is being wasted and mismanaged. GET OUT OF CLEVELAND LEBRON BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE!!!!!
June 8th, 2007 at 11:27 am
Come on now, why would you say something like that? How far away is this team from competing? I would argue one more piece and an offensive coordinator to complement Mike Brown’s defensive schemes and mindset. This team has most of it’s major pieces under the age of 25. Again, 25 years old! Eric, I’m guessing you’re not from Cleveland or a Cleveland fan, and if you are, I think you have some serious self esteem/image issues if you’re urging the city’s biggest asset to leave.
June 8th, 2007 at 11:42 am
Hey, where were all you whiners and complainers a week ago? Nowhere. And now you’re dropping dimes of knowledge about what the Cavs and LeBron need to do? Look, you’re entitled to your opinion. But I’m also allowed to criticize and ridicule you for it.
A few notes for the uninformed.
- Z had a terrible game last night, but he also blocked a Tim Duncan lay-up. This is no small feat, and Z’s post defense on Duncan was passable. The Cavaliers would not be in the Finals if it wasn’t for Z. You can’t ignore those games where he plays well, and then kill him when he doesn’t.
- Larry Hughes does not have plantar fasciitis. He has a tear in his plantar fascia. It’s different, and I’m sure it still hurts like hell. That being said, Larry was hoisting ill-advised jumpers before the injury. He’s still a liability at the offensive end, and that’s where the Cavs are struggling most right now.
- Which means Gibson needs more minutes. They need to see if he can contribute with more time and a bigger role in the offense. The offense certainly can’t be any worse. But don’t be surprised if the Spurs find a way to make his life hard.
- Some good new takes at FearTheSword.com, and a brand new look.
Go Cavs. Rise Up. Haterz Gotta Hate.
Mike C.
June 8th, 2007 at 1:02 pm
Danny Ferry Drafted Daneil Gibson! BEST PICK OF THE 2006 DRAFT!! STOP HATING!
June 8th, 2007 at 2:10 pm
You can keep disrespectfully plugging your Cavaliers blogs on this blog, but here’s the truth: if we actually wanted to read those blogs, we’d be reading them instead of this one.
June 8th, 2007 at 4:17 pm
I completely agree on your analysis of the rebounding. If the Cavs can outrebound the Spurs, like they did to the Pistons in the last game of that series, and like the Jazz did to the Spurs in one of those games, they have a chance. San Antonio’s defensive weak spot is that they can be outhustled at times on the glass, and this greatly compromises their defense. But the Spurs have obviously trained well and made rebounding a focus for this series.
June 8th, 2007 at 5:58 pm
I understand why Brown is intent on starting Hughes– he doesn’t want a major shake up this late in the season. But once Hughes has done his ceremonial first couple of possessions, Boobie should play the next 46-47 minutes. Then, let Hughes give Sasha a breather. We were negative 17(!) with Hughes in the lineup!! I really think the other issues (Z, Lebron, rebounding, etc) will take care of themselves.
June 8th, 2007 at 9:47 pm
As a West fan who has had to watch our team play the Spurs all season, it seemed like the Spurs were playing about half speed — certainly not at the same level they were playing against Phoenix. They went up by almost 20 without trying and then didn’t even seemed worried when Cleveland made a mini run at the end. I think SA is still mad that a phantom foul on Dirk cost them a championship last year (they wouldn’t have choked like Dallas did after the Mavs had a chance to go up 3-0 on the Heat with a minute left).
Ask Phoenix what it’s like when SA really gets into a series — remember Nash on the bench in game one with a bloody nose as time ran out or Horry hip-checking Nash into the scorers table in a close game. San Antonio plays old school, championship basketball. They aren’t worried about ESPN highlight films or Kobie-esk stats. They are like the old Celtics or Lakers. They just want rings.
I see a lot of San Antonio in Cleveland’s players, too (anyone else notice that two former Popovich assistants have had teams in the finals the last two years?). I think this will be a great learning experience for L’bron, Boobie and crew. A few years from now people could be refrerring to them like they talk about San Antonio now — a team that’s always playing in June.
They’ll have to prove it first, though — anyone seen Dallas or Miami lately?
June 9th, 2007 at 12:19 am
Snow is way too slow to play Parker, forget about that. Snow is useful against strong guards who post up, but Parker would blow by him.
Hughes has been a really bad player for quite some time now, injuries or no. And it’s weird to blame stuff on injuries with him when he’s, like, always injured.
June 9th, 2007 at 6:26 am
I cannot stand all this whining, its the same people whining in the piston series. Let up a little fellas, its only one game, and some of you did not think that we were going to be here, and now we are here and you are still whining. Just sit back and enjoy this series, we will win the CHAMPIONSHIP, its going to be hard but we will do it. Sure coach brown, makes bad decision lets just know he will make adjustments, and larry mins. will be reduce. Start cheering and be happy, and stop whining.
June 9th, 2007 at 7:00 am
Somebody needs to remind Brown of what he said to the Cleveland fans during the ECF postgame:
“I’m in it to win it.”
When the problem is obvious but you refuse to consider a better option, you’re not “in it to win it,” you’re sacrificing your best shot out of loyalty, harmony or whatever other irrelevant team concept.
Now is not the time to toe the company line. And the Cavs are not the 80’s Lakers with a gimpy Byron Scott. Or the 80’s Celtics with a gimpy Dennis Johnson. We are the 2007 Cavs with a gimpy Larry Hughes.
It’s the NBA Championship. You may never get here again. Now is the time to pull out all the stops.
It will probably occur to our assistant/head coach sometime during the first quarter when we’re down double digits.
How about you nudge him on the shoulder Brian and remind him of what he said.
June 9th, 2007 at 9:02 am
Great point was made Sat. a.m. on WKNR:
LeBron’s weak, pathetic supporting cast is HIS OWN FAULT. The Cavs front office panicked when LeBron hinted that he might LEAVE CLEVELAND. So they felt urgency to go out and get supporting pieces, even if quality was not available.
Thus, we are stuck with useless Damon Jones, Donyell Marshall, Larry Hughes and a wildly-overpaid, slowing center: Z.
LeBron should’ve assured the team he was going nowhere, and worked WITH them to find and sign the RIGHT role players.
LEBRON: always remember, YOU created this roster mess, because of your implied threat to bolt. It will now backfire on you for years to come, sadly, my friend.
June 9th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
That’s crazy talk, Nick.
June 9th, 2007 at 1:14 pm
Nick,
This seems like revisionist history. The Cavs re-signed Z and signed Hughes, Jones, and Marshall the same summer they lost Boozer. (I think I have that right.)
I don’t remember any stories of LeBron “hinting” he might leave. There were many, many rumors about more lucrative endorsement contracts should he play in NY, Chicago, or the like, but that’s about it.
LeBron did lobby for Z to be re-signed, so I suppose you could put that one on him, at least partially. It’s also worth noting that the Cavs were absolutely atrocious from 3-pt. range the year(s) prior to Jones and Marshall getting signed. Jones was coming off a season in which he hit 43% of his treys, while Marshall was near there.
June 9th, 2007 at 2:00 pm
You are all a bunch of bozos. When Duncan
Rasheed Ginobli Chauncey Nash and all retire
the Cavs will rip off 5 championships. It,s
just not their time yet. We are one shot blocking butt cracking big man away.
June 9th, 2007 at 9:24 pm
I think the Cavs and Spurs will play better in G2 of the Finals. The Spurs played one of their worst games in the playoffs this year–the eight day layoff did affect their offensive sets. The Cavs will challenge the Spurs more than three quarters in G2. However, the most underrated NBA stars, T. Duncan and T. Parker, must be contained if the Cavs want to steal G2. T. Duncan, arguably the greatest power forward in NBA history, will continue to be aggressive on offense and defense. LBJ can help to contain Parker, however he will be exhausted if he tries to guard Parker for three quarters–this will hurt LBJ’s offensive production. Parker moves around the court like R. Hamilton–only with the ball in his hands. The Cav can not expect Finley (only two points in G1), Horry and Barry to have another bad game. LBJ will haved a better game, but he can not beat the Spurs by himself because they have three and half stars (including M. Finley).
June 10th, 2007 at 9:42 am
Guys, it’s no “revisioninst history.” LeBron’s departure was MUCH talked-about, with his thinly-veiled threats that the Cavs better “show him a commitment” crap. Thus, we have LARRY FREAKIN’ HUGHES. LeBron is in his 4th year with the Cavs, Damon & Donyell in their 2nd of 4-yr. contracts. Their signings, as well as that no-talent guard now with Philly, and Hughes, and Z’s contract, have crippled this franchise.
Paxson pulled a miracle by finding an idiot taker for the Baby-Maker. Who will clean up Ferry’s atrocious mess now? He has no wiggle-room, and is stuck with a benchfull of brick-throwers. Tragic. Don’t think for a MINUTE that some of those signings weren’t precipitated by fear of LeBron’s leaving (which he FAILED to alleviate). So buddy, suck it up and enjoy your “supporting cast.”
June 10th, 2007 at 7:06 pm
Why would Brown ever put Snow in? Snow is slooooow. I’m watching game 2 right now. Just started the 2nd quarter. The Cavs haven’t done a single thing right yet. Down by 15 points during the 1st quarter? Z has had a terrible 2 games, LeBron doesn’t seem to be able to handle all this “prime time” pressure. What has hughes done? The Cavs can’t pass, can’t shoot, no way defend, still shoot lousy from the free throw line. Guess it’s time to sit back and start waiting for the Browns improvement. The Tribe is in first and half of their team is playing below way below their ability. Watch out when they all get on the same page. I think the Cavs are done. Not being pesimistic just being real. LeBron is definately good but he needs some help. Oh, by the way the Cavs are now down by 22 with 4:30 left in the half.