Raptors vs Cavaliers – A Cleveland perspective
By Brian Boake
An in-depth look at the Raptors next, and toughest, match-up of the playoffs, from a Cavaliers expert.
Your Scribe gets to pose questions about a playoff opponent for an unprecedented third time – I could get used to this.
Our expert is Jared Mueller, the Editor of FanSided’s Cleveland Cavaliers website, https://kingjamesgospel.com/
My queries are in italics, Jared’s responses in bold. Thanks much, Jared!
The Cavaliers are shooting 46.2% from beyond the arc in 8 playoff games, yet were 36.2% in the regular season. What’s caused this explosion in efficiency, and who in particular has become a threat?
For the Cavs, the ball movement offense has caused this explosion of great shooting. One night it is J.R. Smith. The next it is Kyrie Irving. Channing Frye had a great game in Game 3 against the Hawks. Kevin Love has found the balance of playing inside when the match-up works while stretching the defense from the corners and top of the key to balance things out. Love’s consistency from the outside allows for the ball movement to be rewarded. The options the Cavs have from deep is scary for most teams.
Who has been the most pleasant surprise for the Cavs in the playoffs?
Head Coach Tyronn Lue. Suprised? Lue has made great adjustments, has had great inbound plays and been very creative in his rotations. As a rookie head coach, taking over a team mid-season and facing a ton of pressure, Lue has responded perfectly. Cavs fans are mostly surprised by what they have seen from Lue and are curious to see what he has in store after the long break between series.
Cleveland appears to be doing very nicely without a traditional centre. Yet I’ll wager they haven’t faced big men of the calibre of the Raptors 1-2 punch: Jonas Valanciunas and Bismack Biyombo. Will the Cavaliers respond to Toronto’s centres in some fashion?
The Cavs will primarily use Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love at center (US spelling). Tristan doesn’t have the height many centers do but plays the position with great leverage, lower body strength and his rebounding prowess is well known. Center is his best position. Love, and Frye, are used to help stretch the floor which almost took Andre Drummond out of the series against the Pistons. They can help pull the two Raptors big men out of the middle. If Valanciunas is able to play, Timofey Mozgov might get dusted off to save some wear and tear on the Cavs other bigs.
Will Tristan Thompson ever learn how to score beyond offensive-rebound putbacks?
Thompson has gotten better over the years, no longer getting stripped easily. He still isn’t overly proficient but now he focuses on getting the ball out and restarting the offense. With the kind of talent the Cavs have on the offensive end, it is the best idea for Tristan. He has improved in many areas over the year but is unlikely to become a stud in this area. The Cavs are okay with who Tristan is on both ends of the court.
Iman Shumpert is a player I’ve had little use for over the years, but he may force me to change my mind. Are people in Cleveland happy with him, and what is he doing right?
Shumpert has been the ultimate tease. He has great athletic upside, with huge dunks to prove it, and has been a stellar defender. His jumper vacillates from hitting nothing but net to complete air balls. His $10 million contract greatly impacts how he is seen in Cleveland. When things are going well, he is a fun luxury. When he is busy hurting himself while dribbling, he is a joke. How he plays defense against Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan will likely decide how you feel about him.
Who’s your “X-factor” for the Cavs?
Kyrie Irving is the X-factor but totally on the defensive end. The Cavs will have a great offense no matter what. How Irving defends Lowry could decide whether the series is over in 4 or 5 games or the Raptors are pushing for the upset. Irving’s energy and effort have hit their highest level in the Hawks series and we expect that to continue. It rolls over to his offense but against the Raptors, his defense could decide how the series goes.