The Spin: Cavs Don't Cross Finish Line As OKC Steals Home Opener

Spencer Davies highlights five observations from the Cleveland Cavaliers' home-opening 108-105 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Cleveland Cavaliers shockingly fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder 108-105 in their home opener on Friday night. Spencer Davies highlights five observations from the game.

Not All Seven-Footers Are Alike

Most of the public was champing at the bit to watch Evan Mobley and Chet Holmgren duke it out on Friday night, and neither disappointed. Holmgren played up to every bit of hype he had when he was in high school and college at Gonzaga. That long and lanky second overall pick has some serious game to him on both ends. 

It was interesting to see the stylistic differences between Holmgren and Mobley despite having similar frames.

Mobley was more of a putback, catch-and-go-up, lower-your-shoulder guy on the offensive end with points exclusively in the paint, while Holmgren did his damage with a feathery jumper beyond the arc and handles that got him past smaller defenders off the bounce.

Defensively, each made life miserable for the opposing squad; Holmgren got the upper hand for me though just based on his performance with much less experience and the natural timing ability he showed on his vertical contests and swats.

Oct 27, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley (4) looks to shoot beside Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren (7) in the third quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse / David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

It was a tale of two halves for sure, with Holmgren hitting early and Mobley responding.

“I feel like I started slow, missed a few shots. We weren't shooting the best in the first half. We shot like eight percent, like 33 percent from the field. So as a team, it just wasn't really flowing for us,” Mobley said after the loss. “But second half, I came back and really just wanted to keep being aggressive the whole game regardless of what happened in the first. I feel like he's a great player as well — great at defense and very long — so I see a bright future for him as well."

“It was great to see two bigs kinda going at it back and forth in the paint and doing their thing,” Donovan Mitchell added.

Mitchell went to bat for both his teammate and a gem of a young talent in Holmgren.

“Ev is always gonna be dominant,” Mitchell said. “I didn't know he had 15 rebounds. In a night where to start the game you don't feel like he's making a lot of shots, they kinda weren't going his way, and to come out going 5-for-12, 50 percent from the field, 15 boards, two blocks — he's able to impact the game in so many different ways for us. That's big time of him.

“Chet, that's my first time getting to see him really play. He's a talented guy. Obviously the seven blocked shots stand out. I think he's gonna have to continue to put a little more muscle on his frame, and I don't mean that as disrespect. It's just he's already good at what does. I think as he continues to fill out — I don't know if his body will allow him to fill all the way — but just continue to put that NBA muscle on him, I think he'll be a really good player."

Lid On The Rim

The Cavs did not shy away from their new identity of faster play and spacing the floor. Cleveland was active with the hands and got a number of opportunities in the open court as a result. But there were two problems. One was the Thunder’s transition defense, while the other was the Cavs just not being able to cash in on shots.

"Sometimes the ball doesn't go in. It happens,” said Max Strus, whose jumper seemingly vanished after a record-setting night in Brooklyn. “But no, we generated good offense, still found a way to be in the game, still played pretty good defense. We were solid all throughout it.

“We're not gonna have many nights like that, so if we make a couple more shots it'll just be easier. That's on me, that's on everybody and you can put the blame on me for all that as long as you want."

Cleveland made a paltry three of its first 22 perimeter attempts. However, the team trusted its process and continued to fire away. It eventually worked out as the game of shooting typically does. Nine of their next 23 triples fell, including some clutch ones in the fourth quarter.

“We want our guys taking open shots," Bickerstaff said. "These are guys who make shots. It's not like it was guys who were out of pocket or doing things that weren't in their nature or within their skill set. You’ve got wide-open shots, you’ve gotta take them. Obviously as the season goes on, those guys will shoot their average and we'll make our open ones.

“But you can't tell guys to stop taking open shots. I do think we have opportunities to put more pressure on the rim. That's where our offense needs to start.”

Picking Up Your Teammates

After Isaac Okoro was inadvertently rocked by Jalen Williams’ elbow on a rebound attempt, play continued and a whistle wasn’t blown until Holmgren tripped over Okoro’s fallen body.

There’s a stark difference between bad calls and keeping players safe. On this night, the officiating crew failed in that moment. Okoro was face down in the middle of the key and play wasn’t stopped for some reason after a head injury kept a person down for the entirety of a possession. Even worse, Okoro was somehow whistled for a foul on Holmgren when he was laying in the paint.

“That's a tough play,” Bickerstaff said. “They called a foul on him because he's ‘illegal,' but he's lying on the ground because he got busted in the face with an opponent's elbow. Typically if there's a play to the head, they have the ability to stop the game. He took a shot to the head and they allowed play to continue. And then they called a foul on him when he's lying on the ground. That's a tough one.”

Fans at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse were incensed, but the call ignited the arena and got Mitchell and Caris LeVert going in the third quarter. It turned out to be a rallying point for Cleveland, who took its first lead of the game since the 3:28 mark in the first quarter.

“These dudes, they care about one another, they want to play for one another. You hate for it to happen like that, but the guys responded,” Bickerstaff said.

Okoro later returned and was still able to perform. Judging by the postgame media session in the locker room, there were no abrasions or bruises, so we’ll see how he responds Saturday.

On a positive note, Okoro went on a personal 7-0 run to answer Oklahoma City’s rapid seven-zip start. He’s been quite aggressive in all areas, whether it’s the open floor (with or without the ball), out of the corner in the half-court or even having the confidence to let it fly from deep. This up-tempo style clearly suits him.

Your Friendly Neighborhood SpidaMan

On a night where Darius Garland was missing due to a hamstring injury, Mitchell answered the bell as he always does. He dropped 43 points (15-for-27) and willed the Cavs to a comeback and a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter. Spida did it with threes and most notably, his strength to get to the cup.

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN...

THAT'S 4⃣0⃣ FOR @spidadmitchell! #LeEmKnow pic.twitter.com/vIrrhC1hyW

— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) October 28, 2023

Mitchell’s ability to make others around him better makes him a great leader.

Opportunity Missed

The Cavs were up by nine points with 1:56 remaining in the game after Mobley had a thunderous putback off the glass on a Mitchell miss. Against a younger Oklahoma City team, that should have been enough to put the Thunder away.

It’s about taking care of the basketball and making sure you know your defensive assignments. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander never stopped playing, nor did Holmgren or Luguentz Dort. Because of that, Cleveland let a home-opening victory go.