The Spin: Cavs Share Wealth Vs. Nuggets In Third Straight Victory
The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Denver Nuggets 121-109 on Sunday night to make it three wins in a row. Spencer Davies highlights five observations from the game.
No Hesitation
The Cavs did not waste any motion and were decisive on the majority of their offensive possessions on Sunday. There was cutting, curling on handoffs, diving to the basket, utilizing the pocket and perpetual movement going on. No second guesses, no half-in-half-out trips. Just efficient, attack-first plays with their pace dictating the game.
“I hate to oversimplify it, but in the NBA, if you just throw the ball to the open man, good things are probably going to happen for you,” Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said after the win. “And as easy as that sounds, it's something that you have to continue to work on. But with the amount of guys and the threats that we have here and what they're capable of, if you just throw the ball to the open man, it's as easy as you can make it.
“And then, the defenses have to make tough decisions. Now, do I rotate? How do we change the coverage? What adjustments do we make? So our thing is just keep throwing the ball to the open man and make it as simple as we can.”
Any time there was a catch with even a sliver of room, the shot was going up. Cleveland knocked down 11 of 27 threes on the night, mostly quick-trigger looks off handoffs and drive-and-kicks.
Sam Merrill seemingly took every chance to shoot the rock, attempting a team-high nine and hitting a team-best three in 24 minutes. Max Strus knocked down a couple of long-rangers, as did Darius Garland, Dean Wade (one wild falling out-of-bounds) and Georges Niang (more on him later).
“When you know you're going to get the ball and you're going to get a shot, your shot preparation is key,” Bickerstaff said. “And I think that's what guys are starting to understand is, ‘I know where my spots are, I know that Player A can make the pass to me, so I can get to my spot. And when I get to my spot, I'm going to get the ball.’
“And I think that's where the trust is being built. These are not like, ‘Oh no,’ or ‘Oh wow’ shots, right? These are shots we've executed. We've moved the ball where we’re in position and we're ready to shoot it.”
A Plus-What?!
In 29 crucial minutes of action, Jarrett Allen registered a plus-42 on the stat sheet. An insane, telling figure.
“That's an amazing number. I haven't seen a plus-42 in 29 minutes. That's a heck of a number,” Bickerstaff said. “We normally say that plus-minus is for agents to negotiate contracts, but that's a heck of a number.”
Based on the first-half box score, some may not have seen the impact Allen was having on the game. Trust that his contributions were enormous. Making it as tough as one could make things on Nikola Jokic, he held his ground and boxed out. He even played a part in keeping him in foul trouble for most of the night.
According to NBA.com’s matchup data, the MVP center went 2-for-5 from the field and turned it over twice in the minutes Allen guarded him. What’s it take to slow a player of that caliber down?
“Energy. He can do it all,” Allen said. They say I took him out of the game. But he still almost had a triple-double. It’s amazing how much effort you can give against him and him still have a good game. A testament to him. Have to be locked in on every single play and every single possession.”
In the third quarter, Allen shook off a tough first half from the field with 13 points. For three, four, five possessions straight, the Cavs were destroying Denver’s interior by looking for him on lobs, and he was finding so much success behind defenders.
“Those are never me. That’s just the whole team moving the ball, making the right passes and being in the right place at the right time,” Allen said.
“For him, the pick-and-roll game, they changed a little bit how they were covering it and went into a deeper drop, and that allowed him to get the ball in the pocket and he's good with both hands in that pocket,” Bickerstaff added. "And I thought Darius and all the guards, the guys that were attacking, once they saw that big back in that space for Jarrett, they just kept getting him the ball.”
Nov 19, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Craig Porter (9) drives against Denver Nuggets guard Reggie Jackson (7) and center Nikola Jokic (15) in the fourth quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Game Ball
Donovan Mitchell made sure to save the game ball for Craig Porter Jr. on his career night. He dropped 21 points and threw in four rebounds and four dimes to boot in 25 minutes.
“I mean, no telling, I might get another career-high soon, so I might have to get rid of that thing,” Porter joked in the press room, noting that even he couldn’t have expected this kind of performance against the defending-NBA-champion Nuggets this early in his career.
“Honestly, it's crazy," Porter said. "Them being the team they are and having the accolades they have, doing that, it's surprising to me even up to this point. But at the end of the day, I've just gotta go out there and just keep doing what I'm doing. And I understand I'm here for a reason, so I just try to make that known.”
Remember when we asked about Porter being a rookie in my last column? Same question! The 23-year-old started his minutes off with a missed floater and a turnover. It didn’t shake his confidence one bit, even facing off with the champs. He bounced back right away, picking his spots unfazed. He’s getting to the line, attacking with big bodies in the paint and, honestly, he’s just hooping.
“I just try to live in the paint,” Porter said. “Layups are the easiest thing to do in the game of basketball, so I just try to get as many layups or my teammates as many layups as possible. Once you get those and you've got guys trying to help, you just find people that are open on the outside and it just makes the game easier for everybody.”
“Honestly, it was more about summer league and training camp than it was just a moment In these small periods of time,” Bickerstaff said of his trust in Porter. “He is a very mature basketball player and he just has a game. He's not hunting or searching to figure out who he is. He knows exactly who he is. He knows how to get to his spots and when and how to be aggressive. So you just have belief in trust in a guy who always seems to be composed and never over his skis. And that's how Craig has been for us since he's gotten here.”
Finding A Rhythm
For a few games now, we’ve seen Evan Mobley get to his spots and his teammates are looking for him with great success. He’s also found his way attacking off the dribble, showcasing good ball control and an ability to shoot over either shoulder in close-range situations. Oh, and don’t look now, but Mobley’s middie has been coming around in that elbow area.
Allen's threat as a roller has truly helped get Mobley good looks often as well.
"I always say, as much gravity as I can bring, just pass Evan the ball. He is going to finish it," Allen said. "He is going to find the right pass. My job is to roll and create, have everybody come to me. I hit him on the drop-off toward the end of the game and we are working on that to try to make it the best we can.”
Defensively, Mobley just makes some plays you may not think are possible. There’s no reason Christian Braun shouldn’t have finished a dunk with momentum going toward the rim. Somehow, Mobley got his right hand cleanly on the leather and stuffed the dunk attempt.
He had a number of solid possessions denying the ball for Denver's top guys as well too, and he's pushing off rebounds by bringing the rock up the floor. It's unlocking a lot for this team.
Minivan Gaining Traction
Niang has knocked down a pair of triples in three of the last four games. He’s been helping against bulkier guys too defensively with his sturdier frame.
He’s been a key cog for the bench bunch and has even played down a position in some cases when Cleveland has needed him to.
