WiggyRuss
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What the Cavaliers offense can learn from the title run
pretty interesting and good article....just goes to show you- now that Griffin has had a couple seasons to put HIS team together- and the guys are learning how best to play with eachother- we should continue to see the Cavs offense get more and more efficient. Very good points about (i) the Cavs great depth, (ii) keeping LeBron healthy and rested, (iii) Love sacrificing for the betterment of the team and starting to take a larger load, (iv) Kyrie taking that next step from All Star to being one of the very best.
Having LeBron James play with four shooters allows him to utilize his vision and put tremendous stress on the defense. The Cavs best lineups in the playoffs was often James with Channing Frye, Iman Shumpert, Richard Jefferson and Matthew Dellavedova. That lineup had a +36 Net rating in 77 minutes of play during the playoffs.
By subbing James out early and utilizing him as a power forward in a spaced out lineup, it allows Irving and Love to get into a rhythm offensively with the rest of the starters. Contending with the James-less starters to close out quarters keeps the opposing starters in the game deep into the quarter, as they are still a formidable duo to contend with. But when the subsequent quarter starts, teams simply did not have the depth to deal with James and the bench mob. The absence of Dellavedova will likely be felt, but the key to the success of those lineups was James functioning as the initiator of the offense with spacing around him.
That type of look could be replicated by inserting Mike Dunleavy Jr. into the bench mob lineup in place of Dellavedova. Mo Williams is another option if he is healthy. The most important part to making those lineups work however is Frye, due to his ability to space the floor.
Love also possess great vision for his position, meaning he can be relied upon to make the right play with the ball and be an offensive hub. That ability carries more significance at the center position.
Part of why the Cavs traded for Love was because they knew he was capable of carrying a larger load as James ages. With James preserving himself in order to try and make a seventh straight NBA Finals, next year is the perfect time to start utilizing Love more in the regular season.
The sacrifices Love has made over the past two seasons have helped the Cavs play at their highest level possible. While maximizing him more in the regular season may not yield the best production possible with this roster, it’ll help reduce the load on everybody and keep the team in good shape to compete in the post-season.
Irving represents the future of the Cavaliers, both as the eventual face of the franchise, and as the bulk of the internal growth they can expect from their current roster. In a regular season that carries little significance for the Cavs, nurturing Irving and helping him cement himself in the conversation of best point guard in the NBA will be a top priority. After having to go through four coaches in five years and multiple offensive and defensive systems, it appears he will finally have stability in his career. He has erased questions of whether or not you can win with him, now all that is left is answering the question of what is next.
pretty interesting and good article....just goes to show you- now that Griffin has had a couple seasons to put HIS team together- and the guys are learning how best to play with eachother- we should continue to see the Cavs offense get more and more efficient. Very good points about (i) the Cavs great depth, (ii) keeping LeBron healthy and rested, (iii) Love sacrificing for the betterment of the team and starting to take a larger load, (iv) Kyrie taking that next step from All Star to being one of the very best.
Having LeBron James play with four shooters allows him to utilize his vision and put tremendous stress on the defense. The Cavs best lineups in the playoffs was often James with Channing Frye, Iman Shumpert, Richard Jefferson and Matthew Dellavedova. That lineup had a +36 Net rating in 77 minutes of play during the playoffs.
By subbing James out early and utilizing him as a power forward in a spaced out lineup, it allows Irving and Love to get into a rhythm offensively with the rest of the starters. Contending with the James-less starters to close out quarters keeps the opposing starters in the game deep into the quarter, as they are still a formidable duo to contend with. But when the subsequent quarter starts, teams simply did not have the depth to deal with James and the bench mob. The absence of Dellavedova will likely be felt, but the key to the success of those lineups was James functioning as the initiator of the offense with spacing around him.
That type of look could be replicated by inserting Mike Dunleavy Jr. into the bench mob lineup in place of Dellavedova. Mo Williams is another option if he is healthy. The most important part to making those lineups work however is Frye, due to his ability to space the floor.
Love also possess great vision for his position, meaning he can be relied upon to make the right play with the ball and be an offensive hub. That ability carries more significance at the center position.
Part of why the Cavs traded for Love was because they knew he was capable of carrying a larger load as James ages. With James preserving himself in order to try and make a seventh straight NBA Finals, next year is the perfect time to start utilizing Love more in the regular season.
The sacrifices Love has made over the past two seasons have helped the Cavs play at their highest level possible. While maximizing him more in the regular season may not yield the best production possible with this roster, it’ll help reduce the load on everybody and keep the team in good shape to compete in the post-season.
Irving represents the future of the Cavaliers, both as the eventual face of the franchise, and as the bulk of the internal growth they can expect from their current roster. In a regular season that carries little significance for the Cavs, nurturing Irving and helping him cement himself in the conversation of best point guard in the NBA will be a top priority. After having to go through four coaches in five years and multiple offensive and defensive systems, it appears he will finally have stability in his career. He has erased questions of whether or not you can win with him, now all that is left is answering the question of what is next.
