The Cleveland Cavaliers missed a steal in Game 1 against the Detroit Pistons.
Let’s take a look at today’s winners and losers.
Loser – Mistake
Cleveland committed 20 turnovers tonight and gave up 31 points. This is probably the quickest way to guarantee yourself failure down the road.
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The ball was especially slippery for James Harden and Donovan Mitchell, who combined for 10 turnovers but only nine assists. Harden is the main culprit, coughing seven times tonight and 43 times throughout the playoffs so far.
Harden feels like the Cavaliers’ offensive stabilizer. Even more so when Mitchell struggled in the first round. But he has to be more careful with the ball or these ugly mistakes will seal their fate. There is no way around this problem.
As for Mitchell, the Cavaliers are waiting for him to rejuvenate. He’s been dormant since Game 2 against the Raptors — they can’t afford to let their star player end the game with more turnovers than assists. Cleveland is in dire need of some efficient playmaking, and neither Mitchell nor Harden is ringing that signal at this point.
Winner – Max Strus
You can only tolerate so many record-breaking moments in the NBA playoffs. If you’re not sure what I’m talking about, imagine a perfect drive-and-kick opportunity that turns into a Dean Wade pump fake that resets the offense.
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This is a record scratch.
The Cavaliers have loved Wade is on the floor with the core four, and his defensive versatility takes them from mediocre to elite. But Wade’s inability to shoot a lot or create off the dribble severely limits his ceiling on the big stage. Strus doesn’t have this problem.
You won’t get the same defensive effort from Struss, but the Cavaliers offense has access to more options when he’s on the court. That’s because he’s a shooter who puts pressure on defenders to follow him. The Cavaliers’ guard coverage is very effective, and Strus is a threat to the three-pointer.
Struss scored 19 points on 7-for-13 shooting tonight (4-for-8 from three-point range). He also contributed 5 rebounds. We know Strus is an inconsistent shooter and will likely struggle in his next game. Still, the Cavaliers can reasonably expect Struss to improve their offensive efficiency at all stages of the playoff series. Tonight was one of them. They should take advantage of this.
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Losers – Rotation
There’s a reason most teams trim their rotations once the playoffs begin. As the margin for error shrinks, you’re not going to find more than eight or nine guys who can last on the field.
The Cavaliers play 11 players tonight. It’s hard to explain.
Of course, Sam Merrill played just seven minutes before leaving the game with a hamstring injury. Therefore, a spot was cleared in the rotation for Keon Ellis to get his first start in four games. Also, Jarrett Allen found himself in foul trouble, so Thomas Bryant was benched for a few penalty points.
But the problem isn’t that Bryant and Ellis have to play crunch time minutes. Kenny Atkinson has chosen to dig deeper into his bench rather than simply add more responsibility to his star player. Again, there’s a reason most teams choose the latter in the playoffs. You’d rather lose the game by letting your best player decide the game than start the fourth quarter with three substitutes.
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Seriously, the Cavaliers started the fourth quarter with Kobe, Ellis and Dennis Schroder on the court. But it didn’t go well, and all momentum for a third-quarter rebound was gone.
No one played more than 36 minutes for Cleveland tonight. Allen, the protagonist of Game 7, only played 18 minutes and suffered 4 fouls. Did we know that a foul out does not mean a suspension? Why not trust the academy product to commit two fouls instead of playing just eight more minutes than Kobe?
Instead, Cunningham played 43 minutes for Detroit. Tobias Harris played 39 games. There is value in relying on the best players. The Cavs need to keep doing that.