One stud, two duds for the Cavs from Sunday’s L to Knicks

Cavs stud: Forcing turnovers

There wasn’t a lot to cheer for last night on the offensive end of the court. Cleveland was an atrocious 23% (8-of-35) from three-point range, which was somehow better than New York’s 17% (5-of-29) clip. On top of that, the Cavaliers shot under 40% from the field, which is unlike them in recent games.

However, one thing the Cavaliers did well last night was force turnovers. While they did commit 17 turnovers themselves, they forced the Knicks into 20. On the season the Knicks rank seventh in the NBA, committing only 14 turnovers per game.

With Evan Mobley protecting the rim, even without Jarrett Allen in there again on Sunday, it allowed the Cavaliers perimeter defenders to be more aggressive. Mobley himself still had a whopping four blocks on Sunday night, which allowed guys like Cedi Osman (3 steals) and Lamar Stevens (2 steals) to get into passing lanes and pressure ball-handlers on the outside. Obviously, this helps the Cavs get out on the break and score easy points in transition.

After only scoring 81 points last night, a season-low, the Cavs will need to find some other ways to get their offensive flow going again. Hopefully they do so in upcoming games this week, where being at home should help still still young group, considering how it has thus far.