A back-to-basics style by John Beilein should be embraced by Cavs players

Right at the outset of training camp, new Cleveland Cavaliers head coach John Beilein’s back-to-basics approach was reportedly on display, and that should be embraced by the players.

The season is just at its beginning for the Cleveland Cavaliers, as they had their first official team practice of training camp heading into the new 2019-20 season on Tuesday.

In that practice, it was reportedly evident that new Cleveland head coach John Beilein‘s back-to-basics approach was already on display, and with the way the Cavaliers are expected to have plenty of growing pains this season, Beilein’s approach should be embraced by Cleveland’s players.

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Beilein’s coaching style, which has worked at really every other level of basketball, and as one can see from his latest stops at the college level, from him collectively winning 63.7% of his games combined while at Canisius, Richmond, West Virginia and most recently, Michigan (per Sports Reference), is in large part based on being detail-oriented.

That relates to having the proper technique especially when it comes to shooting and passing, and just having the right habits.

As was mentioned previously, that sort of thing was reportedly showcased already during the first official day of Cleveland Cavaliers training camp by Beilein, per Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor.

Fedor touched on how in Cleveland practices, there’s been a “Beilein ball” of which was sent to the Cavaliers by NBA ball manufacturer Spalding (per Cleveland’s request) already taking foothold, and Fedor also noted that Cleveland drafted rookies, along with rookie two-way big Dean Wade and rookie training camp invitee big Marques Bolden, have shot and passed in drills (it’s only used in shooting and passing drills) with the ball previously.

"“A few of Cleveland’s rookies, including Darius Garland who smiled when discussing the topic Monday afternoon, were already introduced to the ball that has a thick black stripe arounds its circumference to illustrate the rotation. It’s supposed to help players get the location of their hands correct on shots and passes. Garland, Dylan Windler, Kevin Porter Jr., Dean Wade and Marques Bolden were allowed to arrive 10 days before training camp, per NBA rules, giving them a head start.”"

Fedor also touched on how earlier on in his coaching days, Beilein “drew the stripe on himself, with a black magic marker.”

Fedor would then also highlight how once that seemed to gain traction, “Beilein approached a company, The Rock, and they created the Beilein ball, which can be purchased as a training tool on KBACoach.com.”

In addition to the shooting style and reportedly along with specific passing and cutting emphasis, Fedor would also note how Beilein makes his players “earn their status,” in getting significant minutes, and even veterans and recent high draft picks, such as guard Collin Sexton.

Along with that, Fedor would also hit on how Beilein stressed the Mikan Drill in relation to bigs in the offseason.

"“Credited to George Mikan and Ray Meyer, this particular youth basketball drill is intended to develop rhythm, timing for rebounding and scoring in the paint. It’s a great way to improve finishing and feel around the basket — a drill that ex-Cavalier Kyrie Irving used to become one of the game’s best finishers.”"

Moreover, with the way the Cavaliers, though injuries to the likes of Kevin Love (who appeared in only 22 games last season, per NBA.com, mostly due to reported toe surgery) and others of course factored into it, had just a 19-63 record, ranked just 25th in offensive rating and had the league’s second-worst effective field goal shooting clip (per NBA.com), they should fully embrace Beilein’s back-to-basics style.

The Cleveland Cavaliers brought in Beilein because of that style likely proving him to be the “culture driver” they were looking for in their head coaching search, and with the way his offense will seemingly feature more ball and man movement and will still prioritize three-point shooting, spacing and a detail-oriented approach, again, players on Cleveland should be fans of Beilein’s style.

It should fit key young pieces in Darius Garland (who shot 47.8% from three-point land in his short stint at Vanderbilt, per Sports Reference), Sexton, who vastly improved as a shooter throughout last season and is a tireless worker, and I’d imagine the other rookies such as Dylan Windler, Kevin Porter Jr. and Wade, and considering that Cleveland’s best player, Kevin Love, seems to be a big fan of Beilein’s detail-oriented and ultra-emphasis-on-fundamentals style, the veterans should fully embrace it, too, as Beilein’s won in a big way everywhere he’s been in his career.

Here’s what Love had to say in relation to that style, where he even mentioned some of that “change the culture” mindset, per the Akron Beacon Journal/Ohio.com (and h/t the ABJ/Ohio.com’s Marla Ridenour).

I understand that Beilein is now going to be coaching professional players; this is no longer Big Ten basketball at Michigan.

That being said, his style is one that could really pay off in the coming years, where though I believe the Cleveland Cavaliers will still have Love around, and they’ll still have some other older veterans I would assume, the team’s primary focus is going to be on player development, anyhow.

So this sort of style from Beilein is one that should greatly help Sexton, Garland (who was reportedly not a participant due to foot soreness in Tuesday’s practice, per Fedor), Porter, Windler (who could be reportedly be prevented from live action for potentially up to six weeks due to lower leg discomfort as of Friday, per the Cavaliers), Cedi Osman, who needs to be more consistent, and likely other young pieces even more so.

Being detail-oriented and developing the right habits, even if that means altering the look of basketballs, falls right in line with the “culture driving” mindset Cavs general manager Koby Altman has harped on when it comes to Cleveland in the near future with Beilein as their head coach.

Quite frankly, if Love, a player that is an NBA champion, five-time All-Star and career 18.3-point scorer and 11.3 per game-rebounder (per Basketball Reference) is fully behind Beilein’s style, the other players should fully be bought in, too.