After another blow-out loss to Indiana tonight, we here at Mesa have to ask a very simple question:
What the hell is Byron Scott doing?
All summer, Scott preached two points over and over. One, that the Cavs were going to run. Two, that the Cavs were going to defend.
Thirteen games into the season, the team ranks in the bottom half of the league in pace—95.7 possessions per 48 minutes, good for #17 in the NBA—and far worse than that in defensive efficiency—106.7 points allowed per 100 possessions, #23 overall.
Our usual source for advanced stat box scores hasn’t updated with tonight’s games yet, so I can’t specifically tell you whether the Cavs were above or below those season averages tonight. But when you spend most of a game down by 20+ points, it sort of doesn’t matter. (The Cavs did manage to hold the Pacers to 43.8%FG, but any positives there were negated by the fact that Indy made 12 of 27 three-pointers.)
Obviously, the Cavs are not the most talented team in the league. But neither of these two elements of the game require a high level of talent to indulge. That was why they made so much damn sense to institute with this transitional roster.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem that Scott’s message is getting through to the team. At least, not yet. There are 69 games left in the season, so there’s still plenty of time for progress. But it’s discouraging to note that, to date, the two core principles of the new coaching regime are so sorely lacking. If they can’t right the ship in either area—especially on the defensive front—this is going to be a very long season.
-T
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