Cleveland Cavaliers vs Indiana Pacers Game 2: What We Learned

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Apr 17, 2017; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving (2) defends Indiana Pacers forward Thaddeus Young (21) during the first quarter in game two of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Defense isn’t always the Cavs’ issue

Many people will point to the Pacers 111 points on 52% shooting as evidence that the Cavs’ defense is still a mess. However, that isn’t necessarily the case.

The lineup of Kyrie Irving, Shumpert, LeBron James, Kevin Love, and Tristan Thompson posted a defensive rating of 79.8 in the 17 minutes they played together. That is a solid defensive rating for this team. Other bench lineups that played sparingly posted similar low ratings.

The reason why the field goal percentage and the score was so high was the inability of the Cavs’ offense. Cleveland’s offense turned the ball over 19 times leading to 17 Indiana points off of turnovers.

The Cavs did their best to make this a half-court game, but that isn’t possible when you turn the ball over that many times.

After the game Coach Lue told the media that it was the offenses fault, not the defenses fault for the Pacers comeback. He was right.

The defense is starting to come around. Even if it is taking longer than just flipping a switch.