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2023-24 Playoff Series #1 | Game #5 | Magic @ Cavs | April 30, 2024

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  • One could say after tonight’s game, Mobley’s balls dropped like the Times Square ball on New Year’s Eve
  • Mitchell’s field goal at 8:32 in the fourth quarter was his first field goal since 3:10 in the second quarter.
  • For all the talk of Mitchell’s second half disappearance, Mitchell was the Cavs leading scorer in the fourth quarter with 14 points. He was only 2-for-6 from the field but managed to go 9-for-10 from the free-throw line.
  • The fourth quarter was unlike any other game this series: It was competitive. There were thirteen total lead changes, and you see both teams knew what this game meant.
  • Being in the moment, as a Cavaliers fan, it felt like the franchise’s future was hanging in the balance. Every shot and every loose ball felt like it was one step closer to remaining relevant or going back to being irrelevant.
  • The Cavs second half strategy on Banchero needs to be talked about. He only had 12 points on 9 shots but exploded in the second half for 27 (!) points on 15 shots including 16 points in the fourth quarter. How did it happen?
  • By JB Bickerstaff playing the same…damn..coverage…every…time..down..the..court.
  • The Cavs decided they would single up Banchero, let him go one-on-one and deal with the results. Well, those results almost cost the Cavs the game. Banchero was the best player on the floor, and was hitting tough shot, after tough shot to keep the Magic around.
  • You can play single coverage on Banchero but you can’t do the same thing every time down the court. The Magic went to it in the second half and late because they were milking the matchups.
  • But if you want to play single coverage, mix it up! Show an occasional double, get the ball out of Banchero’s hands. Show different looks to make him think instead of him knowing what to expect coverage wise. Create chaos and make it harder for the offense to decipher what they’re seeing.
  • Strus’s three-pointer after 7 straight Banchero points felt like a lifeline. The Cavs were down one under four minutes and trying to keep pace with Banchero. It wasn’t just one Cav, but all Cavs chipped in to match Banchero’s 7 straight with 9 points in five possessions.
  • Strus also made plays when it counted to give the Cavs the lead back after Banchero stole it. The only thing better than Strus creating offense was Mobley FINISHING the offense.
  • When the Cavs needed it most, the Cavs scored on three straight under two-minute possessions, and held the Magic in back-to-back defensive possessions. Well, Mobley did not only once but twice by himself.
  • Late game execution has always been the hot button issue. They executed the way they needed to execute to win the game. Stealing each of these possessions gave them enough breathing room and put them up 4 with :41 seconds to go.
  • Can we talk about the Garland find to help the Cavs go up four points? That is the Garland we know and love.
  • A quick Franz Wagner out of a timeout cut the Cavs lead to two, and a missed Mitchell jumpshot gave the Magic one last possession to either tie or win the game.
  • The only problem is the Magic tested the wrong guy. In one of the biggest plays of his career, Mobley made an incredible recovery for the block. Big time players make big time plays, and Mobley was a big-time player when they needed him most.
 
Well, a big win with many positives and still some concerns:

- DG having a 1st quarter reminiscent of 2 years ago…pushing the pace, making quick decisions, making shots from the outside and at the rim
- Max Strus finally doing something offensively , especially in the 2nd half
- Evan rising to the occasion in JA’s absence with excellent rebounding , some big buckets especially late in the 4th quarter and one enormous block necessitated by Mitchell missing a wide open 15 footer seconds earlier
- Mitchell looking better physically with some spring in his legs with a dunk and rebounding; and while not disappearing in the 2nd half per usual , his 3 point shooting was atrocious (1 for 7) and some mind-boggling turnover (5)
- Marcus Morris with excellent minutes indicating he should have been playing more
- despite no JA, JBB finally giving Niang no minutes
- Sam Merrill continuing to audition for SNL’s Not Ready For Prime Time Players; can‘t get going, can’t get open, forcing shots and suggesting he may be a one-trick pony
- Cavs had to really dig deep and gut this one out at home; not sure they can win one in Orlando.
- Magic have something special in Banchero moving forward; while Isaacs hasn’t had stupendous numbers and has a difficult time staying on the court, his length and athleticism are impressive and his 3 point shot especially from the corner isn’t bad
 
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Chef’s kiss!
 
Pierre Pan said:
Well, a big win with many positives and still some concerns:

- DG having a 1st quarter reminiscent of 2 years ago…pushing the pace, making quick decisions, making shots from the outside and at the rim
- Max Strus finally doing something offensively , especially in the 2nd half
- Evan rising to the occasion in JA’s absence with excellent rebounding , some big buckets especially late in the 4th quarter and one enormous block necessitated by Mitchell missing a wide open 15 footer seconds earlier
- Mitchell looking better physically with some spring in his legs with a dunk and rebounding; and while not disappearing in the 2nd half per usual , his 3 point shooting was atrocious (1 for 7) and some mind-boggling turnover (5)
- Marcus Morris with excellent minutes indicating he should have been playing more
- despite no JA, JBB finally giving Niang no minutes
- Sam Merrill continuing to audition for SNL’s Not Ready For Prime Time Players; can‘t get going, can’t get open, forcing shots and suggesting he may be a one-trick pony
- Cavs had to really dig deep and gut this one out at home; not sure they can win one in Orlando.
- Magic have something special in Banchero moving forward; while Isaacs hasn’t had stupendous numbers and has a difficult time staying on the court, his length and athleticism are impressive and his 3 point shoot especially from the corner isn’t bad
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a recipe for disaster before the game started, ended up being one of their best wins of the season.

Very glad that JBB stuck with Morris the entire game and didn't chance it, even as Sam saw some time (and some good looks) on the floor.

Really was happy to see Max finally hit some 3s. Took 10, hit 4.

1st quarter DG was great. Also liked his playmaking throughout the game. Turning down a Donny long shot to get the better shot from Mobley (what he needs to do).

early on, Evan struggled protecting the rim but those blocks were critical.

Cavs continue to get SHIT officiating in this series. Ingles was allowed to shove people off the ball with immunity yet when DG lets Suggs know his physicality won't be allowed, it's a foul. Again, all this talk about "physicality" and bullying is mostly enabled by the refs. Way that players like Wendell Carter cheat when the refs aren't looking makes me wish Joel Embiid was on this team to take that flagrant.
 
Windy on WKNR:

-Last night was a massive win and that block was the biggest moment in Evan Mobley's career. Its a huge confidence booster to Mobley. Its their biggest win since 2018. JB figured some stuff out too.

-The Cavs did not play well last night but this is playoff basketball. You have to figure out your way through it. The Cavs didn't have their best stuff but still won.

-The late scratch of Jarrett Allen was surprising as he had not heard that. He had to believe it was impossible for Allen to play. When Windy heard that it was an extreme setback but it forced JB to spread the floor with his lineups. He had no choice. Look what happened? The first 7 Cavs baskets were in the paint because they have the floor spread out. The Magic had to spread their D out too.

-Marcus Morris was a desperate move but his 2 3s were big. At the end of the game the spreading of the floor was there because there werent 2 big men. They have to take that under advisement for Friday night.

-Darius Garland came out awesome and his first quarter performance put everyone at ease. He only had 6 points after that.

-It was not a good Donovan game as he had 5 fouls and 4 turnovers. He was -11 when he was on the court. He had some big buckets at the end but you don't walk away thinking Donovan has the Magic by the throat. He questions how healthy he is. The Cavs need a better game from him to finish the series.

-The Cavs backcourt won this game vs. the Magic backcourt despite Caris doing nothing. The big swing in the game was Max Strus. That is the type of player the Cavs needed. The Cavs third quarters are not good but Strus came out in that quarter with a couple 3s and a steal to keep the Cavs afloat. Strus and Mobley uplifted the Cavs after Garland's first quarter.

-The Magic are good at home but the Cavs were up by 10 at half in game 4. If you are a Cavs season ticket holder, keep your Sunday afternoon open. The Cavs are still due to have a good 3 point shooting game which could definitley happen Friday night. The Cavs have it within them to win but how do you attack the Magic if Allen comes back? The Cavs had 37 3 point attempts last night and the Magic can't cope with that. If the Cavs get to 100 points they will win and they need to generate those shots.
 
MattyIce8 said:
Reading some of the postgame stuff, I would not be surprised in Mitchell is out on Friday…
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Might as well give him four days to get ready for Game 7. We're not going to win down there.

I wonder if the Cavs players realized that with Allen out and Mitchell playing hurt their only chance was for others to step up and shoot the ball. Go out swinging, IOW. So Garland and Strus got a lot more involved in the offense. Even Okoro took 10 shots - he only took 13 in the first three games.

Morris took nine shots. Mitchell found a way to score 28 against the league's best second half defense even without a 3-point shot; he used his experience to draw fouls. He made nine free throws against a season average of five. If your shot is not falling, get them to foul you.
 
Whatever happens the rest of the way, I love this team and this season. I still think Orlando is the better team, but if Gary Harris' hammy keeps him out the rest of the series and Allen can go in Game 7, we have a chance, especially with Morris in for Niang. Morris is nothing special, but at least we're playing 5-on-5 when he's in.

The Cavs need to figure out some way to deal with Banchero's mid-range shot, however. He's deadly in that 15-18 foot range and you can't stop him from getting there and he's too tall for Okoro, LeVert, Strus, or Morris to effectively contest it. They may have to try and have a another player steal the ball when he's backing his man into the paint, but that opens up a 3-pointer so it's risky.

The Cavs made him work hard to get those shots and I think he got tired after scoring 39 points and missed a couple.
 
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