1 stud, 2 duds for Cavs from Thursday’s loss to Pacers
Cavs duds: Three-point defense and defensive effort on the road
It’s become pretty clear that the Cavaliers are a team that is playing at it’s best when they are in Cleveland. Outside of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse this year, the Cavaliers are 6-10. In all 10 of those losses the Cavaliers gave up more than 100 points and were outplayed in the second halves. For whatever reason, the Cavaliers just don’t seem to have the same intensity on the road versus at home.
I would also say that the nature of the road losses is becoming a bit of a problem as well. In the Cavs’ first three road losses of the year, they lost by a combined 12 points. However, in their last four road losses, they’ve lost by a combined 32 points. By the time the playoffs come around, we better hope J.B. Bickerstaff and company can find their groove on the road. Or else it could be another long offseason full of questions.
Despite all of that, you really don’t have much of a chance to win when your opponent shoots 61% from the three-point line. Not only did the Pacers hit pretty much everything they shot, but two of their biggest offensive playmakers in Hield and Haliburton combined for 11 threes! Sometimes there’s not much you can do when a team is hot like Indiana was last night. But, the Cavs still need to find a better way to defend shooters on the perimeter.
With the NFL and College Football seasons coming to a close, it’s finally time to focus in on basketball. Unfortunately, this isn’t a great time to be a Cavalier fan, as the Wine and Gold have dropped three straight after winning five in a row.
The Cavaliers currently sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference, dangerously close to losing their firm grasp on homecourt advantage. On Saturday, the Cavalier will travel to Chicago to take on Zach LaVine and the Chicago Bulls.
Cavs News: Outraced in Indy, Garland's hand, LeBron return. dark. Next
With only one game left in the 2022 part of the current season for the Cavaliers, let’s hope they can wrap up what was a wildly surprising 2022 on a good note. However, on top of that, the Cavaliers just need to get back in the win column, so no matter how they can do that, is fine with me.