Cavs two studs and two duds from Monday’s win over Clippers

Cavs two duds: Bench depth and second halves

There weren’t a lot of duds to pick from in this game. The Cavs had an efficient outing, shooting 48% from the field, and 50% from deep. On top of that they won the rebounding battle and got to the line 15 more times than the Clippers. But, this was a game that makes you a little nervous with the Cavaliers bench.

Yes it was great to get LeVert back, and he will undoubtedly contribute more as he gets more minutes. Kevin Love had 13 points. Unfortunately, he was only 4-of-11 from the field. Outside of those guys, the rest of the Cavs bench had zero points, seven rebounds, four assists, two steals, a block and a turnover. That is horrible production from the bench. Cedi Osman saw his minutes dwindle to eight, while Dylan Windler and Brandon Goodwin played 12 minutes each.

With so many injuries it’s hard to blame head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, as he doesn’t have a lot to work with. However, the most damning stat of all may be that outside of Love and LeVert, the Cavs bench took just two shots. Both taken by Windler, who was coming off a G League assignment stint and has not been involved in the rotation.

From there, Rajon Rondo is out along with Jarrett Allen, and Monday night Dean Wade was missed as well. With that being said, someone on the bench needs to start taking shots and hopefully making shots.

The other dud from the game I need to briefly mention is the second half and the second halves of games. While this last one wasn’t necessarily a great example, it’s becoming a worrying trend.

Offensively, the Cavaliers are atrocious in the second half, and even more so in recent weeks. They seem to hit a lull after halftime because they are 27th in the league in second half scoring now, with only 51.4 points per half.

To put that in perspective, that is only slightly above the New York Knicks, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Pistons. I don’t know what Bickerstaff needs to do to light a fire under the team at half, but it would help if he comes up with an idea quickly.

To part on a better note, the Cavs are fifth in the NBA in scoring defense in the second half. They only allow 51.1 points per half. So, if you read this part of the article and were wondering the whole time where the Cavaliers were getting wins, the answer is on defense, my friends.

In the end, it’s a big win for the Wine and Gold, but they better gear up for Joel Embiid and James Harden, as the Sixers come to town on Wednesday night.