CLEVELAND, Ohio – Scribbles in my notebook as the Cavs have lost back-to-back games to Atlanta:
1. The easy way to dismiss the last two games is with “You can’t win them all.” The Cavs were coming close, having a 17-1 record heading into the last two games with Atlanta. I’m not going to pound on a team with a new coach and a 17-3 record.
2. But the losses to Atlanta showed a few things of concern. The Hawks are young, athletic and long, as they love to say in the NBA. The long part has to do with four starters at 6-foot-8 or taller. The youth highlights Atlanta’s physical ability to run and jump. Their athleticism made the Cavs look slow and it led to them being outrebounded by a combined total of 104-84 in the two games.
3. What’s happening here? After the 135-124 loss on Wednesday, Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson delivered his “stinker” line. It was about how the Cavs hadn’t had a stinker all year, and that was a stinker. He added, “We got what we deserved.” That’s especially true because the Cavs bolted to a 30-11 lead to open the game before their home crowd.
4. But I like how Atkinson challenged his team to show “character … stick your nose in there and get some stops.” He didn’t like the lack of physicality, or their inability to keep up with Atlanta’s quick pace.
In the last two games, Cavs Coach Kenny Atkinson has watched his team give up 37 and 39 points in the third quarter. David Petkiewicz, cleveland.com
5. That Wednesday game indeed was a stinker. The Cavs acted as if they had control thanks to a 19-point lead in the first quarter. They assumed they were going to keep shooting 65% and the Hawks would remain the young team that arrived in town with a 7-11 record. Then Atlanta nearly ran the Cavs off the court in the second half, scoring 76 points after intermission.
6. That set up Friday’s game. Same two teams, only this time the game was in Atlanta. The Cavs grabbed a 16-8 lead to open the game. By halftime, they were behind 52-50. Then came the dreaded third quarter, where they allowed 39 points.
7. You can look at Friday’s box score and say, “If Donovan Mitchell is going to shoot 5 of 23 from the field, the Cavs are going to lose.” That’s probably true. But Mitchell did have 11 rebounds (second on the team) and six assists (most on the team). Mitchell’s jumper looked very flat, almost as if it was coming off the palm of his hand rather than his fingertips. He also missed some relatively easy layups.
8. But Mitchell had 30 points (along with seven assists and four rebounds) in Wednesday’s loss. What has made the Cavs the NBA’s hottest team in the first 20 games of the season is they haven’t needed to rely on Mitchell to turn in powerhouse performances every night.
Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell had his worst shooting night of the season, making only 5 of 23 shots in Friday’s loss to Atlanta. David Petkiewicz, cleveland.com
9. At least in his Friday press conference, Atkinson basically wrote off the second loss to the Hawks due to the shots not falling. The Cavs shot 41% from the field, 29% on 3-pointers. This from a team that entered the game shooting 52% from the field, 42% on 3-pointers – both the best in the NBA. At one point this season, Atkinson admitted it was “almost crazy” how well the Cavs were shooting night after night. He was right. He also knew there would be nights when those same shots would bang off the rim.
10. But the Cavs shot a respectable 46% from the field (but only 31% on 3-pointers) in Wednesday’s loss. They scored 124 points. But they gave up 136. If you score 124 points, you should win.
11. What’s the point of all these scribbles about the two Atlanta games? The Cavs’ next step is to learn how to win some games ugly. When facing a quicker and younger opponent that wants to run, they will need to slow them down. Pound the ball inside.
12. Evan Mobley showed how the Cavs could punish Atlanta. He scored 46 points in the two games, shooting 53% from the field. He was brilliant vs. the Hawks as he also had 12 rebounds in each game.
Evan Mobley was Cleveland’s best player in the two losses to Atlanta. He averaged 23 points and 12 rebounds. David Petkiewicz, cleveland.com
13. But where was Jarrett Allen? He scored 17 points shooting 6 of 7 from the field. That was in Wednesday’s game. In Friday’s loss, he played 25 minutes, taking three shots (and making them all). He scored six points and had five rebounds. It is fair to criticize Allen for being passive in Friday’s loss, seemingly wandering on the edge of the action. But in a game where Mitchell is shooting 5 of 23 … and bench players Sam Merrill, Georges Niang, Ty Jerome and Caris LeVert combined to shoot 8 of 25 … why not make an effort to get the ball to Allen? Challenge Allen to be more involved in the offense. Also, push Mobley to do even more. Atlanta’s defense was vulnerable inside.
14. In the 3-pointer obsessed NBA, why keep looking inside rather than firing away from the 3-point line? The analytics types will chant, “Three points are better than two.” I’ll counter with, “Two points are better than none … especially in a game where the 3-pointers aren’t going in.” Of course you always take open 3-pointers, but don’t forget the big men. Throwing the ball inside also can slow down the pace of the game, which is how Atlanta was hurting the Cavs.
15. Atkinson thought the defense was better in Friday’s loss – compared to Wednesday’s. But he admitted, “except in the third quarter.” In the two Atlanta games, the Cavs gave up 39 and 37 points in the third quarter. Somebody was making halftime adjustments that worked, and it wasn’t Cleveland.
16. The Hawks did a good defensive job of crowding Ty Jerome, who entered the week as one of the NBA’s hottest shooters coming off the bench. In the two games before Atlanta, Jerome scored a combined 55 points. In the two Atlanta games, he shot a respectable 6 of 15, scoring 15 points in 42 minutes. Not bad, but he wasn’t the same scoring spark. It’s a safe guess life will be harder for him as he becomes more of a focal point of opponents’ scouting reports.
17. Like Mobley, Darius Garland was terrific in both Atlanta games. He’s playing with extraordinary confidence and poise. He scored 48 points in the two games, shooting 18 of 33 from the field in 66 minutes.
18. None of this is reason for alarm. The Cavs are a good team with room to grow. Atkinson is the right coach at the right time. But the Cavs do need to develop more grit, as former Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff called it. They shouldn’t be dominated on the boards, as happened in the last two games. Nor should they seem lazy at times getting back in defense. Atlanta shot 49% in the two games vs. the Cavs. There will be games when it’s hard to score, and the Cavs need to find other ways to win. They have the players to defend and rebound better than they’ve shown lately.
Hear me talk
I will be at the Willoughby Hills Library on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. It’s free. You can register here.