Category: Cavaliers

There has been a great deal written about the Cavs, their effort, and their coach recently. The subject has been analyzed and organized in different ways. Much of it has revolved around Coach Scott and how the Cavs effort reflects on him as a coach and a motivator. I would like to start the Cleveland Wins two part series on this topic with a controversial yet, I think, appropriate beginning. That will be to focus more on the players than the coach or the organization. In the current NBA, whether we like to admit it or not, the players dictate the tone and quality of the team and the coaches are sometimes bystanders in the process. I believe that is as relevant to the Cavs as it is to any other NBA team.

Now let’s put the disclaimers on this blog right away. This is not an attempt to “absolve” Coach Scott from any responsibility. This is not a shot at Kyrie. This blog hardly considers Anderson Varejao at all and that is intentional. It is, however, an attempt to better define the current Cavalier’s mental approach using the players as the focal point.

Tristan Thompson has emerged as the leader of this young Cavs team. He has been the one player to display the mental toughness necessary to carry the team forward in the future. Other players may gain that toughness and sense of accountability, but TT has it now …… in spades. No other player has even come close.

Kyrie Irving is the best player on the Cavaliers and that remains unquestioned. He shines above all other players except the greatest in the game today. But, despite his honest efforts to become a leader, it has been more bestowed on him rather than ingrained in him. The same was true of another player that left a few years ago. That player has clearly evolved beyond his play here and I believe, one day, Kyrie will as well. I just want it to be in Cleveland and not somewhere else. In that other era, no other player could really step up and become the leader of the Cavaliers when they needed one. Maybe this time is different.

In order to be the true leader of a franchise (this does not translate to mean best player), you have to possess a few key qualities. First and foremost, you need to be talented and the players around you must see that and believe that. It is sad to say that the players need to see that and believe that in order for you to be that leader but such is today’s NBA. Second, you need to play with intensity and provide few excuses. Third, if it is appropriate, you need to reflect the spirit, determination and lessons of your coach on the floor. Fourth, you need to BE THERE! In other words, you need to be on the court more than off the court. Fifth, you need at all times to hold yourself accountable for your actions and that your actions on the court reflect your words off the court. Sixth, and not least important, when you say the “right things” to the press and others after a win or loss, you need to BELIEVE them and they need to be ingrained inside you. Seventh, with the game on the line, you need to be even more intense and focused than your enormous intensity and focus for the rest of the game. Eighth, once you have established a track record for 1-7, you need to hold your teammates accountable as well for 1-7. They may never believe it like you do, but they might just follow. That is what makes you a leader in today’s NBA.

Think of the words, actions, and play of TT through this tough and painful season for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Compare what he has done and said to the 8 characteristics listed above. I think you will agree that he is emerging in all 8 categories and already there in most of them. It has been one of the only shining lights in an otherwise dark and difficult year.

He has always been a player considered one of potential over NBA production. No one will ever confuse him with Kevin Garnet or Tim Duncan in their prime. In the draft previews one key scout who often gives his observations anonymously said that he would love to work with TT for a few years and see where he could go. He described him as a player with endless motor, superior athleticism, and a desire to be great. At the beginning of the season, no one could see his supposed “progress” from his hard off season work. However, almost as if a light bulb turned on in his head, early into the season he could see where he was going and we could too. Since that has happened, the characteristics of a true leader have begun to emerge with the culmination in a monster performance against Boston. Yes I know about all the players missing from Boston. But that does not minimize Tristan’s performance. And the leadership key comes from what he said leading up to that game and what he said after that game. He believes what he says and now says it with conviction and purpose. And then he goes out and backs it up on the court.

Now don’t get me wrong, TT had many games before that one where he did not back up his words with actions and had recently been in a kind of a funk like the rest of the team. However, when his conviction came back in the press and in the game, his role as a leader became clear. Go back and look at some Tristan interviews as a rookie and early in 2012-13 seasons. He said many of the right things, but you could just see in his face that he was struggling with believing them. His tone was more uncertain. His demeanor less firm and convincing. Kyrie definitely has that problem right now and always has had it. That player that left was similar. But TT no longer is struggling with believing. His tone and demeanor has changed. TT has it now! Thank goodness someone does.

The Cavaliers fans and organization should rejoice in that and look with more anticipation at what the combination of Kyrie and Tristan can do going forward. Maybe some fans can actually get off the “why did they pick him fourth” second guessing train. Maybe, just maybe, we picked up Jordan and Pippen in the same draft. Maybe, just maybe, Dion and Tyler can follow and develop the same steely resolve that TT now has all the time and Kyrie has closing games. If so, this season will not be an entire loss and a leader will have emerged. And that leader is Tristan Thompson!

Oklahoma State did not play well at all against Oregon, but I thought it was important to at least mention their 2 NBA prospects Marcus Smart and Markel Brown.

I guess I don’t see the infatuation with Marcus Smart and him being a top 3 pick in this draft. Again, I did not do a great job of scouting players all year long and as a result may only have a few games, or 1 in this case to pass judgement. So with that, what I deem are his strengths, weaknesses and an overview of his NBA potential and how or if he would fit on the Cavs.

Strengths: Solid ball handling but not an ankle breaker, very good passer but not flashy, great ability to dictate the pace of the game, exceptional size for a PG, physical player, very good defender, excellent rebounder for a guard

Weaknesses: Below average shooter either off the dribble or in catch and shoot situations, not an elite athlete by any means (this includes not being super fast or quick nor a great leaper)

Bottom Line: There is of course no obvious fit for Marcus Smart on the Cavs, at least not right now. You can see by his strengths and weaknesses that he is a solid all around player without any glaring weaknesses and as a result is a safe pick for any team in need of a PG. With his great rebounding and ever developing passing ability (only played true PG spot this year) he has the opportunity to be one of the few players that can put up triple doubles as a PG. As a result, the Jason Kidd comparisons are obvious, but to my knowledge there has only been one Jason Kidd. The only reason this is even a thought is that NBA teams continue to operate an offense with two PGs on the floor at the same time. His size combined with his experience playing the SG position until college make this possible.

NBA Comparison: Jason Kidd/Rajon Rondo hybrid – odds are he will never develop the shooting ability Jason Kidd did but with a similar build and ability to dictate the pace of the game it is a good comparison. Smart will be closer to Rondo than Kidd in terms of driving ability and shooting.

Markel Brown

Real quick on Markel Brown. He obviously has the ability to knock down shots and be a spark of the bench in the NBA. I suppose if he was there for the Cavs 2nd pick in the 2nd round I would consider it. Brown doesn’t lack confidence at all and is fearless from the perimeter. He also has explosive leaping ability which combined with a large wingspan to go along with his 6’3″ size allows him to dunk on larger players. For your enjoyment: Markel Brown dunk. I consider him in the Jordan Crawford mold as a player.

I would stay away from both of these players in general for the Cavs. There are better options out there.

Other than what I have read and different videos (yes I still see value in YouTube videos even though they don’t show the whole picture) I have seen, last night’s UNLV tournament game marked the first time I was able to see Anthony Bennett in a full game. Everyone should keep in mind that this kid just turned 20 this month and is a Freshman looking to be a top 5-8 draft pick, if not higher in 2013.

The game itself was difficult to watch from a fan’s perspective. I often found myself yelling at the screen to get Bennett the ball while he constantly fought for position and UNLV’s guards chucked up shot after shot on the way to a glorious 32% shooting as a team, or cringing as they blew the game by missing key free throws down the stretch. Apparently the UNLV coach doesn’t understand the concept of beating a zone by high posting your big man who can handle the ball and pass. Anyways, on to Bennett who will now be referred to as AB for the majority of this post :).

Cal did a very nice job defensively on Bennett even though the majority of the time they would have been called for a defensive technical in the NBA, but that is the nature of college basketball. AB did a nice job moving around the floor on the offensive end, shifting from low post position, to the high post, to the 3 point line setting numerous screens for teammates while rarely touching the ball for the first 10 minutes of the game. One thing I did like is that despite his lack of touches, AB didn’t force the action on offense and showed decent effort on the defensive end.

It is tough to picture Bennett playing the SF position in the NBA simply because of how he is forced to play in college. With that said, he has great ball handling for a 4 and probably just good ball handling for a 3. He demonstrated this by taking the ball the length of the floor with very good pace, hesitation and one handed “crossover” to avoid defenders. Sadly he already has a better handle than Alonzo Gee, but that isn’t saying much.

AB did get out of position a bit on the defensive side of the ball, but I didn’t see anything that would say to me he can’t tighten that up at the next level. He guards the 4 and 5 spots and does a pretty decent job of it. For a guy that has the leaping ability he does, you would think he would be more of a shot blocker, but he really isn’t. Again showing his youth, he is a little slow getting back on defense in transition. This could be due to some frustration of not getting the ball on offense, but I am speculating. There is basis for this if you think of how the Pistons and Cavs to a degree would try and get Ben Wallace engaged on defense by getting him easy buckets on offense. There is no such thing as an easy bucket for AB.

Bottom Line: AB is an explosive leaper and dunker, but is only 6’7″ and at 250 pounds will have a tough time translating to anything but PF in the NBA. That may be his best position though, because his shooting form and range is very good which makes him a great stretch 4 option. His wingspan is 7’1″ which makes his height less of an issue, but he has to learn to use his weight to his full advantage. From a Cavs standpoint, he really resembles Maurice Speights to me in that he likes the face up and mid range games as well as the low post game. The biggest difference between the two is that Speights isn’t nearly the leaper/dunker that Anthony Bennett is. With that in mind, if the Cavs do not re-sign Speights, they would have a place for AB, but he did not impress in his tournament game. Victor Oladipo, Otto Porter or maybe even Shabazz Muhammad (will get to him later) could be better options depending on where we pick in this draft.

I hate having to talk about players from the cesspool that is Michigan, but they really have some high level NBA talent I wouldn’t mind the Cavs drafting. Glenn Robinson III is one of those players.

It has been a very tough season to judge what type of player Glenn Robinson III will become. He was arguably the most talented player going into the season on a team that already had an experienced and aggressive shooter in Tim Hardaway Jr. and ended up with the Big Ten player of the year in Trey Burke. As a result, Robinson was efficient but extremely passive and seemed to disappear for long periods of time during games.

Strengths: Dynamic leaper/dunker, great length for a SF, high basketball IQ, smooth dribbler, great form on shot either off the bounce and in catch and shoot situations, above average passer, great transition player, young, NBA pedigree, extremely unselfish

Weaknesses: Needs to add strength, at 6’6″ he would be slightly undersized for the top SF in the NBA, extremely unselfish, range could be better

Bottom Line: Extremely unselfish is in both his strengths and weaknesses for this reason: For a team looking for a star, that quality is bad. For a team like the Cavs who have a star at PG in Kyrie Irving and an aggressive shooter/scorer in Dion Waiters, unselfish play and the willingness to be the “glue” guy on a team is perfect. This is probably only possible if the Cavs trade down (depending on where they end up) or the Lakers make the playoffs, but with 4 young starters seemingly in place everywhere but SF, GR3 could be the missing piece we are looking for.

Stats: 33.2 MPG, 10.7 PPG, 55.3 FG%, 62.9% 2pt FG%, 32.3 3p%, 5.3 RPG, 1.1 APG, 1 SPG, .3 BPG, .8 TOs

The NCAA Tournament is under way. It is the most exciting point of every college basketball season and perhaps the most exciting time in all of sports. No other event contains the level of excitement packed in a shorter time period as the tournament. Great basketball, upsets and buzzer beaters have become the norm. Each year seems to be better than the last.

So this year, I am not only going to enjoy the the pageantry that is the tournament, but I also plan to keep a close eye on NBA draft prospects, specifically players that will fit the Cavaliers next season and beyond. Some players I will be watching for the first time, and others, like Victor Oladipo, Trey Burke and Cody Zeller I will be watching to see how they perform on the grandest stage of college basketball. Stay tuned for regular updates. With the Cavs final record and placement in the standings uncertain, there are many high quality players to watch in the coming weeks.