King James Gospel
Fansided

Cavs: Three reasons to tune into game vs. Bucks on Monday

By Robbie DiPaola

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (Photo by Harry Aaron/Getty Images)
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (Photo by Harry Aaron/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 3
Next
Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland Cavaliers head coach John Beilein (Photo by Kathryn Riley/Getty Images) /

After their 2019-20 home-opening win this past Saturday against the Indiana Pacers, the Cleveland Cavaliers are back on the road to take on the Milwaukee Bucks. Here are a few reasons why you should tune in.

With the Cleveland Cavaliers getting their first win under head coach John Beilein on Saturday against the Indiana Pacers, the Wine and Gold will look to build off that victory, but face a team picked by many to reach the NBA Finals.

This, of course, is because the Milwaukee Bucks are led by their MVP candidate in Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Antetokounmpo has plenty of talent surrounding him in fellow All-Star Khris Middleton at small forward, and the Bucks also have veterans Eric Bledsoe and Wesley Matthews in the starting lineup at the guard spots.

But for now, let’s focus on Antetokounmpo. Cleveland (like every other team in the NBA) will try to devise a strategy to slow down Giannis. A reason to watch will be to see how the Cavaliers plan on slowing down Antetokounmpo.

Seeing how the Cavs deal with Antetokounmpo at both ends

The best option for Antetokounmpo one-on-one is going to be Cavs big man Tristan Thompson, who is a physical presence underneath and can offer the most resistance around the rim. Cleveland star 4 Kevin Love does have the height to match up with Giannis, but will have trouble staying in front of the more athletic Antetokounmpo.

However, while the Cavaliers will have their hands full with trying to stop Giannis on offense, they will also have to deal with him on the other end of the floor.

When Cleveland made their run on Saturday to separate from Indiana, Love and Thompson were vital in the offensive game plan, and they combined to have 46 points and 26 rebounds. Love also had nine assists, too (per ESPN).

While the Pacers do have an up-and-coming big man in Myles Turner, he is not near the level of Antetokounmpo.

One key for the Cavaliers will be to draw Antetokounmpo, who averaged 1.5 blocks per game last season (per NBA.com), away from the basket.

By doing this, there could be more room to operate in the paint, which could lead to layups and dunks by using sharp cuts to the rim.

5 man Brook Lopez is another stout shot blocker inside for the Bucks, but he doesn’t have close to the impact Antetokounmpo has when it comes to athleticism and sudden quickness to recover, and again, if the Cavs can get Giannis more away from the basket, that could greatly help their offense.

Cleveland was at their best on Saturday when the ball was hopping from side to side and not sticking in one area of the floor.

This ball movement will once again be essential here against Milwaukee because if they can get Antetokounmpo out of position with quick passes, the easy shots could be there from time to time for the Cavaliers.