This crowd rises to its being.
What Carl slammed it?
Oh? Carle left wing reball, perfect handlift block the shot at the rim? How with the left hand head of fowl. Hello and welcome to the Chase Down Pod. The Chase Down is presented by Fubo, the official streaming partner of the Calves. Watch over three hundred and fifty channels of live sports and TV, including fan Duel Sports Network without cable. There is no cost and there is no commitment. Try for free at FuboTV dot com Slash Calves. There's also no Justin Rowan. We got a sick boy, a sick
lad with us. You know. It goes to show the Calves finally lose a game and he ducks the smoke. Just kidding. He's actually super bummed because he he loves being on after losses. He loves a body to dissect. But no, have no fear. I'm not here alone. You don't have to hear me drone for forty straight minutes. We've got host of lockdown Calves and the inside shot on substack. Danny Cunningham, How you doing, buddy.
I'm well man, Thanks for having me. How are you doing?
Oh? You know, doing fine and dandy going through you know, doing bedtime solo night. So we're just blasting from thing to thing to thing, but you know, we're feeling good. And I was thinking, Danny. I was thinking, because yesterday we had an afternoon mattin a loss, and those are always a little weird because you just kind of have to sit with the rest of the day, you know,
And I was thinking that. You know, so I started out like, you know, fine with the loss overall, but then I thought about it more and I was getting grumpy, and I realized that I am functionally like the president of a homeowner's association in a nice neighborhood. You know, I'm looking, I'm really my problems aren't too serious, but
to me they feel serious. You know, it's been such a weird year where like you just have no sense there's so little to poke at that like a loss like that where they had the game well in hand and then you know, blow it down the stretch does feel kind of jarring.
It feels so strange to even talk about losses, and like doing it on my own podcasts, like how do I approach this? Because the end listen, it's not as if during this sixteen game winning streak can't sit here next like every single game that they wondering that streak was perfect basketball. I think they actually had one of their worst weeks of the season and they went four to oh in that week, which is an incredible and
remarkable thing. I think really does speak to their greatness that they were able to find ways to win games that they didn't necessarily play their best. But the way I look at it is they had a really bad shooting day.
That's gonna happen.
It doesn't happen to them very often because they're such a good shooting team and Orlando, a team that's a pretty awful shooting team, had one of its best shooting days of the season, and though that combination just sunk them for an afternoon, Like, I don't think that that loss is anything that is repeatable.
I don't think it's anything to be worried about.
It think, hey, sometimes when you play these two games, a game like that's going to happen, and for this team to be where they're at at fifty six and eleven, the fact that they haven't had many of those is kind of incredible to.
Yeah, I mean, they are now a lowly forty eight and one after heading into the fourth quarter with the leads. You know, I was really by the way talk about, you know, the small tragedies, I was really excited for that one to be like, didn't lose a game all year, heading into the playoffs with the lead in the fourth quarter, I was excited for them to have that stat in
their back pocket. So, you know, I don't know, it is one of those things where there's been so few losses, there's been so few poor like straight up just poor performances, that it is hard to kind of analyze what's real and what's not. You know, was this just a shooting variance loss in your opinion, or do you think there was some stuff for the Cavs to pull out of it?
I mean, I never I think it's never one thing, right, Like, if you look can any of the other ten games they've lost incredible, if you look at those, like, it's never just one thing that necessarily goes wrong, And anytime a team loses a game, you can't point to one thing.
I think that the shooting variance is the biggest part of that because look at some of the shots that the Calves are able to generate on Sunday, like Sam Merril had how many three pointers where he could have kind of checked for wind inside of rocket arena And those are shots that you're going to expect se him to make. He's been shooting almost fifty percent on threes from February first onward, like he's been awesome lately, just
didn't have a great day. Donovan Mitchell goes three or fourteen from three, you expect Donovan to shoot the basketball better than that. Like, I think the shooting variance is
the biggest thing. I thought the turnover is certainly the ones at the end of the third quarter where Ty loses the ball twice Donovan loses it once, Like that was I thought a really big swing because Sam had one of those threes it was in the right corner that if that goes in, the Calves are up by eleven with two minutes left in the third quarter.
Instead, that doesn't go in, there's a foul.
The magic split the free throws and then create three quick turnovers and the game's tied. Like, I think that is the ultimate sliding doors moment, if you will, of that game. But I think the shooting is probably the biggest thing that just went wrong, not to say they were perfect.
The ball movement could have been better.
They haven't played necessarily their best offensive basketball this season. Last month I think they're fifteenth in March in offense. But overall, it's just like, you know, if they make a few shots that we're used to seeing them make that they've made all season long, they win that game by ten to fifteen points, and no one even thinks twice about it.
Yeah, I do think it is worth kind of keying in on that turnover Leyden kind of stretch, because I do think they win the game without it. You know, a ten er run when you're kind of in firm control of the game does And you know, I do think if you're Orlando, you went from we're just hanging on to we think we can, we think we got this now? Who can hang? You know? And they've just
had the season from hell. I mean after the forty point drubbing, I kind of compared their arc to where this team was a year ago, where you have your really fun breakout and then you know, the year after you just have a dump truck of bad luck. Everyone's hurt. Even when they're playing, they're not hole and all that stuff, and you know so, I but like there's still a team that with a lot of pride, especially coming out of that out of that first round series last year.
And I do think that is kind of where the game changed. I think mostly gets a lot of credit for springing in out of nowhere full court press that I certainly was not ready for, and it certainly didn't seem the Calves were either. I got to ask, we have seen more often than not that when the Calves have trouble, when they are knocked out of their rhythm. You know, Justin I'll represent my dear sweet co host
who's laid up right now and saying that. You know, the national media always points to long wings being what bother the Calves, and Justin has always kind of persisted that, no, it's ball pressure. The Calves don't like it when people are up in their grill and how does Orlando turn this game? It's ball pressure? And like, how much of that do you think is kind of one of these flaws that the team just isn't super well built to handle.
How much of that is just Avan not being there to be an outlet and a release valve when that pressure comes, Like how much do you index on that because I still am not sure.
So I think it kind of depends where the ball pressure is.
Like I view the ninety four feet ball pressure type of a thing is something that's not super concerning when the postseason arrives, because you know, and it's happened.
I can count probably four of their.
Losses, the one on Sunday, the one against Indiana, and both of them against Atlanta where you saw that right where it is into pressure.
Yeahertainly the loss. I think that.
Exact loss, that exact loss, so fiet I.
Don't think the one in Cleveland where they scored I think it was one hundred and thirty two points in a loss necessarily counts against Houston, but the one in Houston does, and that gave me more so point two. Well, Darius Carlin missed five free throws, which he's never done in any other game as a professional basketball player.
That's not going to happen again.
So like there are all these little things, but you look at the one at home against Indiana, both losses to Atlanta around Thanksgiving, like he kind of felt like that was part of the problem there. And I actually equate struggling with that maybe a little bit more to a focus type of thing. And I just don't know that necessarily, for a full forty eight minutes of all eighty two regular season teams, players are able to stay
completely focused. And I think that when the postseason arrives that becomes a non issue.
So I just don't know that that's necessarily the thing.
Now, if you want to point to how certain guys like upper tier perimeter defenders can handle maybe Derry Garland, maybe Donovan Mitchell in postseason, I think that is a conversation, particularly when you look at Drew Holliday with the Boston Celtics and the numbers that he has defending Darius Garland at times in Garland's career, Like that could be maybe the thing, But I don't view it as oh man, Anthony Black really got into tide Rome in the third
quarter of a game in March. The Calves might be in trouble dealing with ball pressure there. Like I think that to me is maybe more of a focused thing. Maybe it's more of a Hey, it was a one o'clock Sunday game. It was the intensity level at a playoff level. No, it wasn't like I think that those things matter when you're having that conversation.
Yeah, I think that's fair. I think I think it's a little bit of column A, a little bit of Columby. I do think these small guards would much rather, you know, you hang back and play a conservative defense because they are one just faster, they can get to the spot better than your big can and a drop coverage like
they're going to get to that spot. He hit their float to range, and when you're backpedaling against the calves, you're just kind of toast because of how well Darius and Donovan changed directions, to say nothing of the other supplementary pieces on this team. Whereas when you are kind of in their grow, when you're pushing them back one, it gets a little harder for them to let their tempo kind of control the game. You're kind of imposing
your tempo on them. And then also they're just smaller, so it's a little bit harder for them to hit that. You know, that guy in the short role, when you're making the past thirty three feet from the basket as opposed to twenty feet from the basket, you know they're Jared Allen's catching it at the top the three point arc and has to make three dribbles on the way to the hoop before he makes a decision instead of you know, one step and then either a pass or
a floater. So, like, I do think there's something to it. I do think it's the first thing that teams will try against them. I just am not sure you know how to your point, like, I think you're still going to have to have the right personnel to do it, and really, like not to oversimplify it always is going to come down to just how good are you add like, how many different kind of looks can you throw at
this team? Because I don't think, you know, I don't think seven games of ball pressure is necessarily the answer.
No, And I think that's a hard thing for opponents to keep up for seven games too, because you know, we look at this as a because it is a thing that has affected the calves. It's the lens that we view it through. But how how repeatable is that To do that seven times in two weeks for forty eight minutes, Like that's a really difficult thing to do, especially when the entire game is at a much more
intense level. In the postason because the regular season just I mean, the effort level is obviously really high from every team every single night, and that's something that probably doesn't get talked about enough. But the intensity level isn't at the same in the regular season it is in the postseason. It becomes harder to defend full court in
the in the postseason than it doesn't it. You know, the defense in the half court, I think becomes tougher in the post, and I think that actually makes it tougher to pick up full court because you're having to expend so much energy on every single possession that sometimes defensively, it might make sense to save that energy and just defend in the half court because you're gonna have to do more there.
Anyways, Yeah, it's it's an interesting conundrum, you know, for this team, and in some ways it does make me think any that as much as I don't relish the idea of an Orlando first round series because they're so physical, because they're so tough, and you know, and for a team this good, really just you know, there's a bit of like, let's just get through this first. You know, Round or two is unscathed as humanly possible. Part of the reason I'm not crazy excited about playing Giannis in
the second round. Do you think that this is a this is actually kind of an iron like a wetstone almost kind of match up for the Calves where if you do play them in the first round and you do figure out how to get your off going to the way it was earlier in the seat in this season series where the Calves put up one hundred and twenty points plus in the first two games, if you can prove that, hey, we you know, your ball pressure actually doesn't mean anything to us, We're going to get
buckets on you, you think that's more valuable, even if the series is a little more physical and hard fought than playing a team like I don't know, like the Bulls or the Hawks.
I mean, at the end of the day, like in I think that we learned this during the run from twenty fifteen to twenty eighteen, where we would just routinely see this franchise sweep through the first round, and you want to be able to conserve that energy for second, third, fourth round playoff games, like you don't want to spend more time in the first round than you have to.
I actually look at the Orlando matchup as Yes, maybe that series would be a little bit more physical, but I look at it as the Magic just don't have an answer to what the Caves present from a math perspective, like the Calves are going to shoot way more threes in the Magic. They're going to make way more threes than the Magic. So Yesterday's game FO Orlando was the ninth time this season they've shot forty percent or better from three in a single game. Like that's just not
something that ever happens. That they are the worst three point shooting team in basketball. They're not going to be able to keep up with the Cavs offensively. I think it would be a really short series because an average performance from the Cavs on offense is a ten to fifteen point victory over the Magic's average performance. Like that's just the way that I view that. Yes, it would be more physical. I think it would be a good hump for the Cavs to get over really just to
prove how much different they are. And I understand that the Magic, as you mentioned, have had a season from health, like they've not had their full allotment of key players. Jalen Suggs is not going to come back this year, like they are a team that is going to look different if they make the playoffs then they did in the four to five matchup that we all watched seven
games of last year. But I do think that getting past that team, particularly in a quick fashion, which I would expect to happen, I think that would be a really good sign for this team, just like even if it's internally feeling we are so much different than we were last year, Like if they can look in the mirror and say that after a first round series win in four or five games as opposed to seven games that it was last year, I think that could be a good thing for them.
I think so too, And I do think that the kind of the personnel that Orlando presents do help you solve teams like you know, they're going to play a very similar style to you know, in terms of their ability to switch, in terms of their ability to close out on your three point shooters and keep you from
getting your attempts up against teams like Boston. You know, I'm not as worried about New York and Milwaukee on the floor, obviously, but like you know, like I do think there is some value in having a get the offense going in a tough defensive series kind of thing, and like to some extent it is like a bit of a proof of concept, And no matter what data we see and no matter what tape we see, I do think every Cavs fan is going to have that lingering concern in the back of their mind of like,
when the pressure gets ratcheted up and when the scout gets good and teams are really locked in, is this Cavs offense going to score at the level they've been scoring in the regular season or at least in the neighborhood. Because we're two years in to pretty precipitous dropoffs from their regular season average in the postseason, I would continue to argue that last year probably deserves a little bit
more grace than that. I'm not sure any team played two tougher matchups on the other side of the floor than Orlando than Boston and very shorthanded versus Boston, mind you, but like, we still haven't seen this team just go for a four or five game series put up one hundred and fifteen, one hundred and twenty five, one hundred and twenty Like it's been a race to one hundred for this team in the playoffs. So I do think
there's something I don't know. I kind of go both ways, because like, it would kind of be nice just to play Atlanta and just be like, all right, let's just let's just score, let's just play it, let's just play our basketball, let's let's play. Let's get a taste of what focused playoff basketball looks like without any risk of of of you know, bits and starts in an accidentally long series.
Right, So I do think it would be to a good thing for the Caves to play the Magic because they get that test on the one end of the floor where you know, we're going to see exactly what their elite, elite, elite level offense looks like against a really good defense, and the Magic are still a top
five defense. They haven't necessarily played like a top five defense since you know, the turn of the calendar to their best since yes, he has very much changed that team, I think, on both ends of the floor, like he's
been a big, big absence for them. But I think that this would be an opportunity for the Caves to get a taste at playing a really, really good defense without necessarily being totally threatened on the other end of the floor, Like Orlando is twenty eighth in offense, They're not a team that's going to be able to win race to for the most part, one hundred and ten points.
Like maybe it's not the first to.
One hundred and twenty five points the way that some regular season games have been for the Calves, and the Calves have been since February first, the best defense in basketball. So that conversation is very much different now than it was maybe in November or January when.
They were not playing great defensively.
But I think that you look at this and say, Okay, maybe that defense in Orlando is going to find a way to slow down the Calves a little bit.
But there's maybe they're not scoring one hundred.
And twenty five points a night in the playoffs, but they're scoring one hundred and seventeen points a night, and like that, I think against an Orlando offense, which is a tough watch at times, I think, to put it nicely, I think that would be more than enough and I think that would be a confidence builder as saying, Okay, we might not see a tougher defense in the Eastern Conference than what we see in the first round against Orlando, then they can say, and we figure that out, so
now we can figure out anything else for us the way, whether it's against Milwaukee, Boston, Indie, Detroit, whoever, they could see the rest of the way in the Eastern Conference playoffs and then now in the finals. Like, Okay, C's defense is really really good too, but you worry about that if and when you get there.
Yeah, I think that's fair. And I would rather see them conquer on the offensive end rather than you know, like, I don't know if I would learn as much from a first round series against Chicago where they, you know, locked down on defense and held Chicago to nothing as much as I would learn if the if they were able to score on an Orlando, Right, I do think
there is something better to be learned there. Speaking of the race to one hundred, Danny, how many times have the Cavs scored less than one hundred points this year?
Oh?
Man, it can't be many. I mean it has to be what's three? One it happened against one, just the game against Indy and that's.
The one against it they lost. They've had a they've five of their six losses. Are are their lowest scoring outings. They they so like it just goes to show. They have two losses this year, sorry three elt Nope, bad counting whatever. They don't have a ton of losses when they score over one hundred and ten.
I don't have a ton of losses period.
No, they sure don't. But yeah, yeah, five of their five of their eleven are are are in their are in their very worst offensive outings. Really, they've only had one, two, three, four, five, six, seven games with less than one ten. So you know, I do think like that is where I will start. That's and that is going to be the standard I kind of expect for the postseason. Like, it's so weird to have this team that's kind of been this electric on offense and still me having some of these questions
on offense. I guess I should ask, like, do you share my concerns? Do you have that little needle of doubt in the back of your mind of like, are they gonna are they gonna, you know, tighten up a little bit? Is the machine not gonna look so sexy in the postseason?
No, because I think that they would have to tighten up so much, Like I don't know that I would have a lot offensive rating, right, I don't know that I would expect them to have a postseason offensive rating of one hundred and twenty two, which is what it's around right now for the regular season, Like that might be a little.
High, but I think that if they take.
A step back offensively, they're still the best offensive team in basketball.
Like they have.
I think they're they are the leaders in offensive rating by more than two points per one hundred possessions in denversus number two offense, Like that is a pretty significant
gap when you look at things. So if they take a step back and you factor in, okay, well, most other teams are going to take a step back too, Like even if the step back that the Calves might take on offense in the postseason is bigger, they've built up enough of a buffer that it's like, okay, yeah, well they're like eight out of ten offensive game is better than the nine or ten out of ten offensive
game for how many other teams in basketball? Like, I think that matters as part of this conversation too, And so much of this is for shooting, Like if the Cavs shoot thirty two percent or better, they've lost from three point range. They've lost four times this year. They've only lost if they shoot thirty two percent or better. They have four losses on the season. I would expect them from three point range to be able to shoot
thirty two percent or better most nights. Like they're just when they hit their shots, they're really really hard to beat. And I know that is as simple as it gets with basketball, to make or miss league. We've all heard that before. But when the Cap shots ball well, they don't lose. Like that's just who this team is.
Yeah, And I do think their high defensive ceiling and them showing that over this last month is important to that because you know, the difference between dropping from a one oh eight one ten offensive rating to like one hundred is pretty brutal, but one twenty to like one oh one twelve, one thirteen, one fourteen isn't so bad if your defensive rating is also kind of moving commensurate
with your offense. Like if your if your defense is locking down twenty percent more, but your offense is getting locked down twenty percent more, you're still in really really good shape and you know you're in a position to do your best work, and Danny only you can do your best work. Zoom AA CampaignOn can help you do the rest, like automatically taking notes, answering meeting questions, and helping you respond your coworkers. Available at no additional cost
with eligible paid plans. Were happy with zoom Ai companion Danny. It's been a wild year and a really amazing year, including one ty Jerome who was yapping' with Palo Bancaro. What did you think of that exchange? I thought it was fun. I feel like the national scene got to see just how much our boy likes to talk.
Right, I mean, that's who Tie has been all year. I think that that swagger, if you will, is a part of his game. And I don't know that Ti Drome is the player that Tidrome has become this year without that type of edge that he's he's found the way to play with on a regular basis, Like that is part of who he is. He's somebody that is going to talk every single night. And you know, you got to give him credit the play that he's had
on the floor. And I will be the first to raise my hand and say I did not factor in Ti Drome having this amount of success this year to what I thought the Calves would be like, for me looking at this team before the season, he was kind of an afterthought. I don't necessarily know how much organizationally the Calves expected him to contribute. I certainly don't think they expected him to be a guy that's flirting with
fifty forty ninety splits. And I haven't looked at what his free throw percentages after he missed a few free throws on Sunday. But he's had an incredible year and I think that he kind.
Of dropped eighty eight points.
I know, that's tough. That's tough.
I th that was what I thought about when he missed because he missed three three throws on Sunday, that was immediately what I thought of, Like, man, that's especially for somebody who doesn't get to the line a ton, those three misses are are pretty penal.
But I think that he brings an edge that the Calves kind of need.
You need somebody on the floor that plays on a nightly basis, that has that sort of attitude. And I think he's been awesome for them in every way, imaginable and better than anyone could have expected.
Yeah, I saw some I saw some discourse, you know, in our in our podcast discord and a few other spots that they didn't love the tie. Minutes after that kind of verbal scuffle, Uh, you know, thought he played
a little out of control, and I do. I will kind of say, I feel like the tie out of control and tie playing the way he's played all year kind of exists on a racer's edge, you know, Like I feel like sometimes that to me, I felt like that was playing the result a little bit, Like, Yeah, he kind of had a rough second half, missed the three free throws, had a couple a couple of really
rough turnovers. But I also think like he's been making a really really high degree of difficulty decisions all year, and like I think, like, you know, if he's able to loop that crazy cross court pass over to the left wing, then we're talking about what a great pass I was have he If he finishes a couple of those crazy floaters, then we're really happy. I mean, the
free throws, I just don't know what you say. He's miss free throws, which you know we see Larious Garland miss free throws with that, Do you think it was playing the result? Do you think or do you think that was an opportunity where you know, if you're coaching the team, maybe you give a little more Isaacle Coro run or or something like that, just to change the rhythm, you know, when the games kind of slipping away from you.
No, because I think that, and we just got done talking about the ball pressure that Orlando was able to present to the Cavs, I think that they needed a little bit more additional, you know, ball handling on the floor. And that's why I think Tye is kind of given that longer leash there even on a night when he maybe doesn't have his best stuff, and that's going to happen over the course of eighty two games.
Like I don't think he should be faulted for.
Not having his best game of the season on Sunday, but I thought that the shooting that he provides, the ball handling, and I know that it wasn't all great and Tye plays One of the things that I really really enjoy about his game is that he plays the
game at a much different speed than anybody else. And part of the reason why I've always really loved Darius Garland's game from the time that he first got to Cleveland is it felt like he have the ability to play slow, right, Like he could kind of slow things down and still find his spots and use a change of pace that can be really hard for other guys to get to. And it feels like Tie doesn't necessarily always play at that change of pace, but he plays at that change of.
Pace far more frequently than anybody that I can think.
Of slow and he can play slower.
Right, yes exactly.
I mean, how many guys get into the paint slower than Ti Jrome does And it works so perfectly because defenses are not used to it, Like it's such a hard thing to defend because we think about athleticism being oh, this guy is just bigger, stronger, faster. Sometimes athleticism can be about changing speed and changing directions. And when you think about changing speed, you think about going from fast
to fast. Tie goes from sometimes fast too slow, too slower, And I think that is just as difficult as a change to defend against as going from fast to faster. And I think that's one of the beautiful parts of his game.
Yeah, I mean, you won't find a bigger Tige your own fan than me. I really do think he should have legitimate six Man of the year consideration. I think most of the stats when you look at the per thirty six is right next to Peyton Pritchard, Who's going to win it. Apparently all you got to do to win six Man of the Year is play in Boston. Uh uh, you know with Brogen winned it a couple of years ago. Any any really Niche award, We gave it. We gave the point of Marcus smart out of control,
these these Boston media. But you know, I I do. I do think that he was a guy who I was, you know, more than happy to see uh get them minutes he got, even if the results were a little
up and down in the in the second half. And like I also would argue, like for those that wanted more Corman, it's like Cas did great on Franz Wagner and Paolo Bankero, like even without Evan, And I thought with that, no Evan Okora was going to be really really needed to throw on a Pallo or Franz just because you just you need a lot of warm bodies to throw at them. I felt like they did great on those guys, and I don't think that Paola or Franz really ever got comfortable on the offensive end of
the ball. So it was a rare game. Normally, I feel like when I see, you know, losses always bring out rotation criticisms. For me, I just didn't really see it in this one. I thought, I thought the Tristan minutes were a little tough, but I mean they won those minutes, right, So I don't know. I just don't know how to feel.
Even the first half minutes for a corps, I think the Calves were a minus in those minutes. Those minutes did not go well. He might have been like a minus thirteen to seven minutes. And of course that was when Orlando went on its run, and that's not Isaaca Korro's faulton After the game, Kenny Atkinson said that that was him not playing in the second half is sort
of a victim of circumstance things. So if you remember, Tristan was at the scorers table to check in for Jared Allen with about three minutes left in the third quarter, and the next whistle was Jared Allen got fouled and had to go to the free throw lines. Of course, you can't check in for a guy the shooting free throw, so Jared ended up playing a longer stint, which means
Tristan didn't get on the floor until later. And then instead of having Isaac mccuorro come in and maybe play some deanweight at the five minutes early in the fourth quarter, the Calves didn't do that because Tristan's run hadn't been very long yet, and then they were ready to go
back to Jared Allen. So that's kind of the reason too that you look at is Okay, maybe that's why Isaac coccuero wasn't on the floor in the second half, and you no, I think that with what he would have been tasked doing, I don't know that that's where the Calves needed the help.
Like I think they needed help to make shots.
And Isaac is certainly pre shoulder injury, was shooting the leather off the basketball.
Hasn't been as good since.
Injuring that right shoulder, and that's a really difficult thing to come back from in the middle of the season. But they needed more offense, and I just don't know that you're looking at Isaac mcuorro to provide that in that spot.
Now, I'm with you, I mean, I really think you know, if you're looking for a bit more space, a little more shooting, a little bit more creation, you're going to play and Sam Merril the majority of those minutes. And that's what Kenny did. You know, Sam has a nightmare shooting game. He go misses first six threes, and sometimes you just have games like that where things just aren't falling. And you know, it is always important to say, like, people don't like it when we do the open three
point stats, but they matter. And the Cavs shot five of fourteen on wide open threes. They shot four of eighteen on slightly contested threes. So you know, nine of thirty two on open or on wide open or somewhat open shots is like, that's just a tough hill to climb. You know, they didn't. I thought Orlando did do a lot of interesting stuff. And like one thing I will say is this was a game where you miss Evan on the offensive end of the floor.
One hundred percent. I thought that they missed his playmaking more than anything on offense. Like, I think a big part of his success this year has obviously been he's been more aggressive and seeking out his own shot.
He's been more aggressive going to the basket.
He's been far less hesitant, I think beyond the arc shooting the basketball.
But what he's been good at.
His entire career I think has been the playmaking thing, and that's probably been a little bit underrated from him. But in watching that game, especially as you talk about with the ball pressure, it's like, Okay, well, how would this offense look different if Evan's making a few plays
and finding open shooters? How would things look different for you know, Donovan Mitchell in particular, who spends a lot of time on the floor with Evan mobile, Like, how would that have changed his game that he had on Sunday?
I thought they missed him.
And it's easy to say this in a game where they lose, giving up one hundred and eight points, like it was not a bad defensive effort by any stretch of the imagination. But I thought it was clear they missed him a ton on offense. And I don't want to say they don't miss the defensive player of the
year on defense because that wouldn't be entirely true. But they played well enough on that end of the floor be like, eh, you could take the day off defensively and you didn't necessarily feel it a ton and then offensive was like I would have liked that there.
Well, yeah, I feel like the thing with Evan on offense is because everything else in the machine is worked so well. This year, it's felt like his offensive growth has been the straw that breaks the camel back a lot in a lot of these games. You know, you look at that Memphis game where he hits three straight threes, and you just felt like the game was over right away, Like he hit those three threes and I'm like, all right,
we're done. We're done here he's bullying Zachy off the floor, and you know, that's been so much of what he's done has been that extra piece to push them over the top, and very rarely has he had to be the guy that's raising the floor for the offense. But Orlando made a scheme change in this game. Jared Allen just had a parade of free runs in the pick and roll in that first half, and they were crashing
down hard. They were taking advantage of the fact that the Cows weren't hitting, because again the Cows regenerating a lot of open looks, but they were crashing down hard. Darius had five turnovers, Donovan had three. I'll bet five or six of those were in the second half of just them trying to hit a pocket pass to Jared in Orlando crashing in and forcing and hitting him early.
And if you're able to get Evan the ball, you know, on those on those kind of slips at the top of the arc or running an inverted pick and roll or whatever it may be, there are things that you know, as good as Jared's gotten with the ball, you still don't want him taking five or six dribbles in a possession. You know, you want one dribble, you know, step step, lay up or floater or pass, like that's just that's
just where Jared's game is. And I felt like that with no Evian on the floor or Lander just kind of said, Hey, whatever you want to do, we're just not going to give you those two steps, We're going to make you. We're going to make you beat us
in another way. And I feel like that's part of why the Cabs offense short circuit is because the thing that was so successful went away and then it's it's like, okay, well now what because running off ball stuff, no one chases harder than Orlando off ball and no one's more physical, blowing up screens than Orlando, And I do think like that is where Evan raises the floor of the offense as much as he raises the ceiling, because he can just do different stuff that you that you just don't
get to do when he's not on the.
Floor, right, And I think that having another guy that can too go and get his own stuff, like go and get his own basket too, and that's been a big I think a big plus of adding DeAndre Hunter is having somebody else that's a little bit bigger, that has that wingspan that can kind of create for himself. Like I think he's been really awesome in that area. But I think that they missed Evan's playmaking. They missed
him getting downhill to the basket, being aggressive. And I don't know that Orlando can make the same adjustments they made after that first quarter where the Caps scored thirty eight points if Evan Mobley's on the floor, Like, I think that that game really speaks to his importance side
on that end. And to your point about the turnovers, Darius and Donovan combined to have eight turnovers on Sunday, Seven of them came in the second half, so it was a big adjustment that Orlando made, And I don't know that the Magic deserves all of the credit for that. Like I think some of that was a little bit of a lack of maybe attention to detail on offense.
But it's something that just Evan mobile. He solves a lot of problems for this team, like he really truly does.
Yeah, they're one and three and their last four without Evan. In games Evan has played, they're on a seventy three win pace, And if he had played all eighty two, and that doesn't include the Miami game, he left in the first quarter. So, like, I mean, clearly they miss him. Are you at the point now where you would say he is their most important player, like the guy who is most crucial for them to do what they want to do? Obviously it's hard in tight margins here, right.
I think it kind of depends on the matchup, you know. I was having a conversation with somebody about this a little bit earlier today, And I think for the Calves to win the finals in a I think they're gonna
have to get through Boston in the Eastern Conference. Like I really truly feel strongly that's gonna be the Eastern Conference Finals, and I think for the Calves to win that series, Donovan Mitchell probably has to be the best player in that series for the Calves because of how well he's played against Boston, just because of the some of the defensive stuff against Darius, and I think some of the numbers with Evan against Porzingis have also not
been great. I think that has to be Donovan Mitchell series and say they get past that.
And okay, so he's waiting for them on the other end.
That's the series. I think Evan needs to be the best player in the Caves. Like I just think it kind of depends. It's a matchup dependent thing. Like he is obviously vital to winning I think any series in the postseason, but I think like his importance level varies maybe a little bit depending on who the opponent is to and just how things look stylistically.
I think it goes to speak to how well these top four dudes fit together that that is the answer, Because I think you're right. I was getting ready to just say it's Evan, but I think I think you already swayed me off of that to say that it is what I'm here for. Thanks buddy. I do think it is going to be inherently matchup based, and I do think it's reflective of how these dudes paper over
each other's weaknesses. You know, you could, you could certainly make the case that it's Evan, But to your point, if you're in Boston and you don't have Donovan Mitchell for a game, and you're like, A, who's gonna just create a bucket for us? Because that's not Darius isn't a great bucket generator on his own. Evan is not a great bucket generator on his own. Jared is not
a great bucket generator on his own. All great scorers, all great, very helpful players, but they're not just the you know, the ISO star that Donovan can be, especially against that Boston team, and you know, with with if Darius wasn't in the game, we'd probably be like, can someone get us into the offense? You know, so it's
just like everyone covers up. You know. I don't think any of those four guys, and certainly at the top three, I don't think any of the those three have like horrific, glaring, like five alarm fire weaknesses, but they do have things that maybe they're like a B minus at and the playoffs require playoffs require a lot of A pluses, you know, and so the fact that these four I do think it is so core to their identity that all of these guys can have all these different A plus elements
to their game. And there's been a lot of talk about depth in the postseason and top end depth, you know, which is a bit of an oxymoron, but I do think it's a real thing where like having you know, That's why I think Boston won the title last year because they had four or five guys who could literally take over a half with their play. And I think the Calves are right there with that top end depth. They have enough guys who can get to an A plus and whatever the game needs them to have that
you know, they they can. They have that high ceiling, so they.
They have the ability to, you know, And I think this is one of the best parts about this team is that on how many games can you look at and in big games and just be like, you know what, Jared Allen was one of the biggest reasons why the Cavs won this game, Like you can, I can think of the OKAC game in Cleveland that they won that game because Jared Allen had twenty five points and however many rebounds he had in that game, like he was spectacular,
or how many games did they win because Donovan Mitchell was just a flat out superstar, Like you look at the game they just won in Boston a few weeks ago.
That was absolutely part of it.
Darius Garland has games like that, Evan Mobley has games like that, like they just the top end depth, I think is a great way to look at it, because there.
Are not many teams in the NBA that have the luxury.
Of the fourth best player on the team is somebody that is as good as Jared Allen and also as unselfish as Jared Allen, Like if I think that, and he won't do this because this is not who Jared Allen is. And that's part of the reason why the Calves work. Like Jared is a good enough player to be like I should get the ball more like I should be scoring twenty two to twenty five points a game.
But that's not who Jared Allen is. And that's part of the thing that makes this team so special is that he is that talented and doesn't necessarily require some of the maintenance that maybe other guys of his caliber in other situations might I.
Was really thinking, like I was thinking that by the end of Jared's tenure, he might be my favorite CAV ever, just in terms of his complete, unique perspective, his general demeanor, what a good duty is. Like, you know, I will always remember that that poster where he tried to do that I'm me, I'm him, and then he breaks out laughing because he can't even hold on. It's trying to be a hard ass for more than five minutes or
for more than five seconds. It's just immediately a collapse. Yeah, they really do have it all, And like I do think it really and maybe I'm over into on last year's title because that's what we do, right. We always try to learn maybe too many lessons from the most recent success. But I do think, like I don't really think it matters that much how good the middle class of your roster is. If you don't have three or four guys or you have a Yo Kicch or something
like that who can just consistently be supernova. But if you don't have at least two dudes who can take over a game for stretches, who can dominate a quarter or two quarters, then I just think you're dead in the water. And I think so much of what we've seen from this season, and like, yeah, you have to give Tie his flowers, you have to give guys like Max Struce their flowers, and even Keras and Niang before
they were traded their flowers. But I do think so much of their success is built around the ecosystem that the the team provide. Like it's just not, like I've said it a lot this year, I just don't think it's that hard to play your best basketball for the Cleveland Cavaliers this year.
No, I couldn't agree with that more. And I think a big part of that too, is this team when they're playing their best, and even sometimes when they're not playing their best, Like think to the buzzer beater that DeAndre Hunter hit just before halftime on Sunday, and how fun.
I'm so mad that that wiped out by the loss.
Right, But like they have moments like that, and it seems like this team just genuinely enjoys.
Playing basketball together.
And I think that's a really rare and special thing that should probably be a little bit like celebrated more than it is by the public, by fans just like this is so special because you don't often see this and it doesn't last forever. But the way that this team genuinely seems to love and Karen enjoy playing basketball with each other is a really really cool thing to watch on a regular basis too.
Yeah, I'll tell you what. I spent my whole life hearing people complain that the NBA players don't care, are only out for themselves, don't play defense, don't try hard, And so I imagine everyone I grew up with must love this Cavaliers team, and the in the in the entire country must be falling in love with this Cavaliers team. Oh wait, no, they're just complaining about something else. That's because, for whatever reason, this is a sport. He goes that
that voice the most bad faith complaints. But yeah, it's been it's been an amazing season. It's been a lot of fun. Even after a loss. They almost it almost does wake you up to how fun the year is. We're like, oh wait, I have to feel I felt like this like twenty plus times last year. You you know, like it does really, you know, we've been very spoiled and I did want before we said goodbye, I did want to just take a look into the next week for the Cavs because attorneys in town BA Baby Calves
are going on the road. We've got a five game road trip at LA at Sacramento, at Phoenix, at Utah, at Portland. Four of those five games very late, starting at ten o'clock Eastern time or later. Before we dive in, I'm going to give my forever precursor. If things aren't going well, or maybe they're not going the way you want them to, and you, as a fan, are finding yourself getting a little grumpy drawing big conclusions, I just
want to remind you you're sleepy. You're staying up till one thirty in the morning watching basketball and then probably taking an hour to wind down after the game, so you're really going to bed at like two thirty, and then you're waking up at seven point thirty to go work out, get ready to go to work, and then you're just not sleeping enough, so you're grumpy. So just remind yourself, dude, am I really mad? Or am I just tired? All right, preamble over, Danny, what do you
expect from this West Coast trip? You know, on one hand, this team has bounced back unbelievably well from losses, but on the other it's just a grueling margin. This is about as grueling of a trip as they're going to have, right.
So I think that Tuesday's game is the one I'm most interested in because one it is the one right after a loss, and two it comes against a really good defense. The Clippers are third in defensive rating entering games on Monday for the entire season. Like that is how they have built the record that they have. That is why they're in the playoff picture out West is
because they're a really good defensive team. After that, I kind of think this could serve as a get right trip for the Cavs offense because you look at Yes, Sacramento is on the second edge of a back to back. The Kings will be rested that the Cavs won't be, but they're a below average defense. The Blazers have been a better defense lately, but they're still sixteenth for this season. Phoenix has the worst vibes in the NBA and one
of the worst defenses too. Gee imagine that, and then Utah is the second worst defense in basketball.
Like I think that if the Caves are the wheels off on that campaign.
Oh my goodness, I.
Heard Walker Kestler took like six threes in the game. I was like, Oh my god, it's just.
It is they have they have a goal out there, and that goal is not to beat the Calves next Sunday, but they the.
Casas is walking through these doors.
Danny, what a callback. Oh my goodness.
But the Calves have been fifteenth in offense in the month of March, and that's not who they are as a basketball team. I think they're in a little bit of a shooting malaise, if you will, and I think that going against some of the defenses that they're going to see over the next week and change is something that could serve as a bit of an antidote towards their their shooting struggles.
As of late.
And I would expect by the time they return home next week that they will look much more like the team that has been number one in offense virtually the entire season than what we've seen lately.
All Right, Danny, before we go, I just got because we're probably not going to have you back on before the end of the season, because there ain't that much season left. I got to ask you, what's this team's final record.
The final regular season record. I think they are going to go sixty eight and fourteen. I think that they will lose three more games this year. I don't know that they will necessarily play everybody in some of those losses. I think that we could see some games down the stretch where the Cavs value being a little bit rested and healthy for the postseason as opposed to going all
out to win every single regular season game. I think they're going to get to sixty eight wins and set a new franchise record for the best regular season in Cavs history.
Brother, I think I'm right there with you. I got to say, I was really really hoping for seventy. Seventy just felt like such a special number to reach. And obviously it's not out of question. They could only lose one more game, but they've had, you know, they've had enough insane win streaks this season that I'm not counting it out. But I do think sixty eight feels like
a really good number. You know, fourteen losses over a basketball season is bananas, and it would be one of the greatest seasons in the history of the sport, which reflects how good this team is. So you know, I think I think it's a very reasonable prediction and and and very fair and would still put them. Well, now here's the other question is do they hold off Okay, see for the number one overall record in the league.
I think sixty eight wins would would do that.
I think that's ok.
He's probably gonna win sixty six if I had to bet. And I think the craziest thing about what you.
Just said is I said I think they're gonna win sixty eight games in euro That's pretty reasonable for prediction there.
Yeah, we're being we're being measured and cautious observers of the game. All right, Danny, before I before we go go ahead and plug your stuff. You do unbelievable work and really really appreciate it having you on.
Well, I appreciate that you can find me every day wherever you get your podcasts over at locked on Calves coming your way just about every single day at.
This point, weekends included.
And you can find everything I write about the Cleveland Cavaliers at my subsect.
The inside Shot.
Links for that and everything I do can be found on my social media at really cunning him on Twitter or Danny Cunningham on Blue Sky.
All right, thank you so much. Go subscribe to Danny Cunningham substack. It is unbelievable. It's some of the best writing that you're going to see covering this team. It's really really nice to get that extra perspective on top of the pods. Also highly recommend your beginning of the week whip around pods with Beat reporters or people who
cover each individual team. I think those are some of my most informational and kind of quick, quick digestive snapshots of what the Cavs week is going to look like. So thank you so much for coming on, Danny, and really appreciate you, and I really appreciate you listeners and viewers of the Chase Down. If you'd like to support the podcasts, go ahead subscribe on Subscribe resubscribe and help
cook those books. If you're watching on YouTube, go ahead and to hit the subscribe button on the Calves official YouTube channel. Go ahead and like this video if you if you're feeling if you're feeling kind, my deepest, deepest and best wishes go to my poor sick co host. We love you. So much justin get better. Thank you so much for watching and listening and as always go get