Your Editor has asked some Cavaliers questions of his counterpart in Cleveland. Here’s the dialogue.
A new playoff series for the Toronto Raptors means a new opportunity to reach out to my colleagues in the FanSided network. Let’s hear from Quenton Albertie of http://kingjamesgospel.com/. My questions are in italics, Quenton’s response in bold.
[BB] How aware do you think Cavaliers fans are of the changes in the Raptors’ roster since the early part of the season (when Toronto was beaten those 3 games)? I’m thinking specifically of the additions of Serge Ibaka and P.J. Tucker.
[QA] Because of Ibaka’s notoriety in the league and the fact that the Cleveland Cavaliers were targeting PJ Tucker before the trade deadline, I think that most of the team’s fans are aware of those additions. We expect the Raptors to be better, considering the amount of defensive plays Ibaka will make compared to Patterson and the addition of Tucker who, in place of Terrence Ross, gives the Raptors a second unit player with the girth and defensive mindset needed to have an impact on James’ ability to score.
The Cavaliers didn’t finish the season with much momentum. Are the defensive issues which seemed to have bothered the team a thing of the past, or did they crop up in the Indiana series?
The defensive issues are still there, Brian, and I doubt they’ll ever truly leave. The Cleveland Cavaliers biggest problem in the regular season was containing the perimeter penetration and with Kyrie Irving and Deron Williams guaranteed to play significant minutes, the Raptors guards are going to be big in the series. That is, unless Lue decides to hide them on other players, like the Cavs did against the Indiana Pacers at times. The biggest differences in the defense now are that the increased practice times seems to have allowed the Cavs to play defense on a string, with the team working together and being more aware of where and when to make defensive switches, and James’ energy level on defense is way higher now than it was in the regular season.
LeBron seems to play any position he wants. Is he the true coach of the team, or does Tyronn Lue have control?
Tyronn Lue definitely has control. Lue controls the lineups, he makes the adjustments, he creates the schemes, he draws the plays and he’s the commander in the locker room. LeBron will always be vocal and because he’s one of the two greatest players ever, he naturally gets the respect from other players and coaches that make him look like a player-coach because his opinion and insight are invaluable. He’s like a Bill Russell in that regard. However, I don’t think LeBron has any control over the starting lineups and things of that nature. As for playing every position on the court — he’s a great point-forward that now can spot-up and shoot like a shooting guard and has the size and post play to be a big man. In this small-ball era, one where Draymond Green can play center, James is a player who can truly play the 1 through 5.
I suggested in one of my analyses that Channing Frye has little defensive impact. How true was that statement?
Frye is a slow-footed player and can be exposed when he has to cover other stretch-bigs or rotate to contest shots on the perimeter. However, in the post he does a great job of using his length to alter shots and plays with a much stronger base than people would expect. He’s not impossible to back down but he’s not getting thrown around down there either. He’s made a few nice defensive plays in the paint. Still, his lack of mobility is concerning as he’s not a player that will stop anyone from blowing past him.
If the Raptors go big (with Valanciunas at 5 and Ibaka at 4), how will the Cavaliers counter?
Tristan Thompson has the mobility to match up with Ibaka and strength to battle with JV. Kevin Love will have more trouble than Thompson because of his lack of mobility and strength. This is a series where I think the little-known Edy Tavares could get some minutes against Valanciunas because of their size. The counter for the Raptors going big will be the Cavs going small. Despite the fact that they’ll be at a disadvantage in the paint, they’ll be playing the type of up-and-down game that lessens JV’s potential to even be on the court. With the spacing the Cavs will have, the dribble-penetration and ball movement could come at a pace that forces the Raptors to put some quicker player on the floor anyways. With the shooting the Cavs will have, putting three three-point threats in the frontcourt (Powell/Tucker, Patterson/Tucker, Ibaka/Patterson) could help the Raptors keep up with the Cavs offensively. So, in my opinion, going small is the best way to handle the Raptors going big,
Thanks, Quenton!
