The Cavs Report : Game 23 vs Miami Heat

The Cavs loss to the Miami Heat last night was, in a word, frustrating.

It was game that the Cavaliers by all means could have won. But the Cavs made dumb mistakes that cost them the game. As I usually say after a game like this, forget the stats; for the most part. Forget the double digit point totals put up by Irving, Gee, Jamison, and Andy. Let’s focus on three things the Cavs struggled with; rebounding, ball security and defense.

The Cavs finished with 43 rebounds for the game. But they could have done much more. I watched go up for the ball and slap it. It was almost like watching a volleyball match. They need to learn to bring the ball in. Of course when they did possess the ball, the didn’t do much better. Passes were bouncing off players hands and sometimes the Cavs just werent ready for the passes. The first quarter was especially bad in that department.

But the big killer was defensive assignments. I watched so many blown defensive plays that I wanted to tear my hair out. The Heat were able to take whatever shot they pleased. And you cannot let them do that. You have to make them take shots they arent comfortable with.

Hopefully we see a better performance tonight against the Clippers. But I expect to see a better defensive effort. I also expect to see better control of the ball. If you can control those things, you have a good chance of winning ball games.