Cavs Vs Bulls: 5 Things We Learned in Season Opener

The Cleveland Cavaliers faced off with the Chicago Bulls to kickoff the NBA Season. The Cavs are almost universally expected to win the Eastern Conference while the Chicago Bulls are expected to be one, maybe only, tough foe in the East. The Cavs lost 97 – 95 as they couldn’t get a good shot off in the last 10 seconds.

We at KJG will be bringing you thoughts, not recaps, after every game this season. It will be important to realize that these are thoughts on one game. This is especially true after the first game of the season. We can make statements about one game but analysis of the team or specific players should be held off until the Cavs are at least 20 games into the season.

Without Kyrie Irving and Iman Shumpert for at least a little while, plus LeBron James‘ back injury and Tristan Thompson just joining the team, true analysis might have to wait for a few months. In the end, all that matters is how the team is playing when the NBA Playoffs come around.

That said, here are 5 Things We Learned in the Season Opener:

1. Mo Williams and Richard Jefferson are big additions

Williams started in place of Kyrie and played 37 minutes. Mo scored 19 points, shooting 7 for 15 and hitting 3 of 7 from deep. He also had 7 assists, 4 rebounds and 1 steal. His defense is a big concern but when Irving returns he will be a great backup and give the Cavs a ton of versatility.

Jefferson played almost 17 minutes and put in 10 points. He has lost most, if not all, of his athleticism but is a crafty veteran. He was efficient, 4 for 7, and a clear upgrade over Shawn Marion and Mike Miller from last year.

2. Cavs offense created space and passing was crisp but shots were not falling

The Cavs got up 94 shots, were moving the ball all over the court and getting open shots. Those shots didn’t fall tonight for the Cavs. Overall the team shot 40% from the field buoyed by some good shooting late in the game. The Cavs were only 9 of 29, 31%, from behind the arc.

With the talent the Cavs have on the floor, the shooting should drastically improve as the season goes on. Shooting, much like offense in both football and baseball, is the last thing to come around in the NBA. Kevin Love is likely to shoot better than 6 – 17, hopefully J.R. Smith doesn’t continue his NBA Finals shooting, he was 3 – 10 tonight.

The Cavs were also only 10 for 17 from the free throw line. That is a clear sign that the Cavs shots were just off tonight.

3. Team speed is a concern

While the Cavs have a ton of talent, without Irving and Shumpert, the team is short on team speed. Basically LeBron and Thompson are the lone players who play at high speed levels for their positions. Jared Cunningham, who actually got 3 minutes of court time in the 1st half, also has good speed but is unlikely to get many minutes.

The Cavs struggled against the faster Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals and could struggle against faster teams. Team speed also creates issues for the Cavs defensively which can lead to foul trouble.

4. Rotations and minutes will be interesting early in the season

With players out injured, injury concerns/history with others and a few new players, HC David Blatt will be using trial and error to figure things out. Cunningham got his early minutes, James Jones played less than 4 minutes and Anderson Varejao got 11 minutes.

Timofey Mozgov, coming off of his knee surgery and reporting continued concerns with it, only played 20 minutes and wasn’t in late in the game. Matthew Dellavedova also got late game minutes instead of J.R. Smith. This is a continuation from last year but could/should change as the season goes on.

5. Comeback and end result is a net positive for the Cavs

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While the Cavs lost the game, the net was positive. The Cavs came back very easily against the team that is expected to be their toughest test. The Bulls were not impressive in their win but the Cavs showed they have the firepower to stay in games even when they aren’t playing well. This game meant far more for the home team Bulls than the Cavs and it was still close.

Along with the comeback, Thompson was impressive with 12 rebounds in just under 25 minutes and LeBron was other worldly as usual, besides the last minute shot getting blocked. Love also physically looked good. Instead of shuffling of his feet while he ran, Love was up and down the court with ease.

All and all, not a bad start for the Cavs, even if it came with a loss at the end.

What did you learn from Cavs Vs Bulls tonight?

Next: Improved Continuity Gives Reason for Cavs Hope