2023 NBA Playoffs 1st Round: Cavs vs. Knicks

[bleedwineandgold03]

Knicks in 6, maybe 7.

They’re a much more well-rounded team, with better perimeter shooting and defense.

Our great equalizer in Mitchell is nullified by theirs in Brunson, who outplayed him head-to-head in last year’s playoffs.

They have playoff experience we lack, especially at the coaching position in a COY winner in Thibs.

For a team that plays at a slow, grind-it-out pace ideal for the playoffs, we’re horrible at late-game execution; Garland’s consistency in final possession floundering and Bickerstaff’s complete inability to draw up an ATO play will really be magnified here.

Top it off with our poor road record and the most Cleveland thing possible in losing to the team we poached Mitchell from, I just don’t see the Cavs pulling this off.

Dammm so much optimism lol the games have to be played first and you don’t know what can happen.

 

[Jscc]

Knicks in 6, maybe 7.

They’re a much more well-rounded team, with better perimeter shooting and defense.

Our great equalizer in Mitchell is nullified by theirs in Brunson, who outplayed him head-to-head in last year’s playoffs.

They have playoff experience we lack, especially at the coaching position in a COY winner in Thibs.

For a team that plays at a slow, grind-it-out pace ideal for the playoffs, we’re horrible at late-game execution; Garland’s consistency in final possession floundering and Bickerstaff’s complete inability to draw up an ATO play will really be magnified here.

Top it off with our poor road record and the most Cleveland thing possible in losing to the team we poached Mitchell from, I just don’t see the Cavs pulling this off.

The coaching playoff experience, late-game execution, ATOs, and road record stuff is all valid, but the Brunson thing is silly. Brunson's not going to have Doncic and he's not going to have a Bogdanovic or Gobert to switch on all game. If he tries that on adrenaline-surging Mobley and JA, he's going to quickly learn the difference.

I also expect DG to have the yips in the first game or two, but he will settle in and hopefully play Robinson off the floor to crack that paint open.

 

[cabs]

Hard trap Brunson and Quickly, make Barrett beat you

 

[JMoneyYourHoney]

Brunson's not going to have Doncic[\spoiler]

Brunson took 2 from the #1 Jazz with Doncic sitting.

Seriously this series shouldn’t even be expected to be close; the Knicks have an advantage in nearly every facet of the game.

 

[Kepler]

just need lamar stevens or somebody to wedgie julius randle and he's neutralized in the series

 

[Peacedog]

Knicks in 6, maybe 7.

They’re a much more well-rounded team, with better perimeter shooting and defense.

Our great equalizer in Mitchell is nullified by theirs in Brunson, who outplayed him head-to-head in last year’s playoffs.

They have playoff experience we lack, especially at the coaching position in a COY winner in Thibs.

For a team that plays at a slow, grind-it-out pace ideal for the playoffs, we’re horrible at late-game execution; Garland’s consistency in final possession floundering and Bickerstaff’s complete inability to draw up an ATO play will really be magnified here.

Top it off with our poor road record and the most Cleveland thing possible in losing to the team we poached Mitchell from, I just don’t see the Cavs pulling this off.

Right. The 18th rated defensive team is certainly "more rounded" than the top rated defensive team. Makes total sense.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

Knicks in 6, maybe 7.

They’re a much more well-rounded team, with better perimeter shooting and defense.

Our great equalizer in Mitchell is nullified by theirs in Brunson, who outplayed him head-to-head in last year’s playoffs.

They have playoff experience we lack, especially at the coaching position in a COY winner in Thibs.

For a team that plays at a slow, grind-it-out pace ideal for the playoffs, we’re horrible at late-game execution; Garland’s consistency in final possession floundering and Bickerstaff’s complete inability to draw up an ATO play will really be magnified here.

Top it off with our poor road record and the most Cleveland thing possible in losing to the team we poached Mitchell from, I just don’t see the Cavs pulling this off.

The Knicks have better defense?

As for perimeter shooting, the Cavs are 36.8% on 3's while the Knicks are 35.4%.

Agree there are legitimate questions about late-game execution and inbounding the ball. We also have a losing road record while the Knicks are excellent on the road.

As for playoff experience, the Knicks have made the playoffs once in the last 10 years and were eliminated 4-1 in the first round. Randle and Barrett were the only starters that are still on the team. Brunson has started 18 playoff games and come off the bench in seven more.

This could go either way. Randle may be out or less than 100%. Okoro is questionable.

Okoro’s playoff status remains uncertain. He has missed the last five games. Not having him for the series against New York -- if it comes down to that -- would be a crushing blow, taking some bite out of the league’s No. 1 defense. - Chris Fedor

 

[Nphan]

Have a feeling JBB is going to get exposed something serious. The problems like late game execution, in bounding the ball and Garland folding under pressure will callapse this team. JBB never fixed these issues and we win 1 game at home. Hate to doubt this team but I have no faith in JBB to get us passed any playoffs team right now.

 

[foucault87]

The thing with the playoffs is that talent at the top matters more than 4-10. Barring a team having a prime LeBron level player, the team with 4 of the top 5 players in a series usually wins.

In our case, without randle we have 4 of the top 5 including the top 3...with randle we still have the top 3 spots. The trio of Neto, Diatke, and Ropez will lead us to victory.

But in all seriousness, we should be favored in this series. Yes, most of our core has limited to no playoff experience. Our best player otoh is arguably one of the 5 best playoff players in the east based on his prior track record. I think this will be a fun series. As much as I roast him, JBB has shown me enough we should be able to beat the Knicks, especially if Randle comes back.

Moreover, I'm just excited for the Cavs to be a playoff team again and for the first time in my life being aware of basketball, without a certain Kid from Akron

 

[Mr. Orange]

So much negativity here.

We won 51 games, made the playoffs with HC advantage and have a f’n squad. The next week is the time for optimism, not pessimism.

We want a tough series to test our players and coaches. And you can’t have a more intense cauldron than MSG. This is perfect. We should be favored but NYK have been playing well and aren’t a great matchup for us, especially if Okoro is out. But I expect him to play.

Playoff Don, playoff Mobley, playoff…JBB. Let’s go

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

Have a feeling JBB is going to get exposed something serious. The problems like late game execution, in bounding the ball and Garland folding under pressure will callapse this team. JBB never fixed these issues and we win 1 game at home. Hate to doubt this team but I have no faith in JBB to get us passed any playoffs team right now.

This is going to be a huge test for Bickerstaff. For a lot of teams their rotation is set. The starting lineup is set, the bench rotation is set, and everyone knows their roles. For the Cavaliers, however, there are some huge questions.

The top four are set, but who is the 5th starter? Normally it's Okoro but his availability is uncertain. What if he can't go? Young players are quick healers but this injury (bone bruise) has no time frame, according to Fedor's podcast. Sometimes it goes away sooner, sometimes it doesn't.

Also, who comes off the bench? LeVert is locked in, but what about Rubio? He is playing like crap and the last two games against the Knicks he was -26 and -8 in 9 minutes. Fedor pointed out that his body still can't do some of the things he could do before the ACL injury and that historically players don't get back to normal until their second season. It's clear Rubio is not close to himself. Should he be used at all?

Danny Green poured in 21 points the last game, although it was against Orlando's bench. Green has started 159 playoff games and is shooting 39% on 3's in the playoffs. Would he be a better choice than Cedi or Stevens at the 3?

What about Wade? He's still not hitting his 3's coming off a shoulder injury, but he provides defense and is a bigger body on the glass. The Knicks destroyed the Cavs 48-33 on the glass last game, including 16-3 in offensive boards. They will try to bully the Cavs physically and a guy like Wade could be better on the defensive glass than Green or Cedi.

Bickerstaff has a lot of decisions to make about who plays in what positions, how many minutes, and what matcups he wants. He needs to make the right ones because the first two games are at home and if we lose those we are in trouble. He doesn't have the luxury of figuring it out as the series goes along.

 

[cliffdawg]

I see the JBB haters can’t wait to call him out on a potential lost to a Knicks Coach who lost to a Hawks team 4 games to 1 , 2 years ago and who Coach got fired this year But I’m suppose to be shaking in my boots worrying that this Coach is going to totally run circles around JBB, can we play the game’s first…..

 

[tristan+kyrie=$]

my fiancée and I just purchased tickets to game 1! Let’s go Cavs !

 

[Douglar]

Here’s my short reviews of the 4 matchups this season:

Oct 30 @CLE: LeVert and Osman had a contest to see who could shoot worse. LeVert won by a hair. But a strong performance by Love and the starters not named Caris overwhelmed the Knicks. Sometimes I forget how good Kev looked at the start to the season. Tom Thibodeau on the loss: “Cleveland is playing great basketball”

Dec 4th @Nyc: Cavs started Diakite instead of Allen which didn’t work. Knicks won the battle of the bench and never looked back because Garland couldn't shoot the Cavs back into the game.

Jan 24th @CLE: Kevin was starting his mid season fade and Rubio was super rusty. Cavs starters played their guts out trying to erase the bench deficit but fell just short.

Apr 2nd @ Nyc: Knicks were without Randle, but Brunson went supernova. DM couldn't help the team catch up because LeVert and Stevens were making sure that Cavs didn't get too far above 50% shooting from the floor.

I think the Cavs will win the series in 5 as long as:

• The Cavs "Core Four" stay healthy
• LeVert shoots better than 33%. Seems easy enough until you look at his box scores against the Knicks
• Someone not named Donovan or Darius needs to hit a couple threes each game. Could be Caris, Danny or Isaac. Doesn't matter. Cavs just need to make the defense pay for packing the paint.
• Rubio keeps building on his recent momentum. Cavs need him to control the tempo and prevent turnovers when the starting guards sit. He's been looking better each game lately.
• Either Wade or Cedi emerges to play "replacement level" minutes at forward. I don't know who JBB will play, but as long as the 8th man can play 12 non-embarrassing minutes, the team should be able to avoid big deficits.

The outside shooting probably the most important. If the Cavs get just a little outside shooting from someone outside the primary scorers, they will control the games.

 

[PIP]

As of right now The Burner is calling this Cavs in 4….