The folks who brought you Cavs: The Blog bring you Cavs: the Podcast. Here you’ll find the most in-depth Cavs analysis in our audacious game recaps. We boast an insightful, clever, and civil commentariat – the best you’ll ever come across.

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The Cavs&#39; coaching search saga is over! Exactly one month after the wine and gold fired J.B. Bickerstaff. In his place: Kenny Atkinson, who was primarily hired over James Borrego so that Cleveland wouldn&#39;t have a second coach with the same initials. The 57 year old Atkinson brings four seasons of head coaching experience in Brooklyn from 2016-2020, resigning the year that Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving came to town. He has been an assistant coach to Steve Kerr in Golden State for the last three seasons, and won a championship ring with them in 2022. The season before that he was on Ty Lue&#39;s staff in L.A. Atkinson reportedly won the backing of Dan Gilbert and will join the team before the Wednesday night draft.To process all this, Nate Smith, Eli Kim, and Chris Francis rotated through the CtB podcast Studios in late June fashion (casually). The trio discussed the hiring, why the Cavs passed on other candidates, and who Atkinson may add to the fill out the Cavs&#39; staff. The crew then dug into as chaotic an NBA draft as any of us have ever seen, with no clear cut number one, or even clear cut top five. It&#39;s safe to say that anything could happen Wednesday night (... and Thursday afternoon) as the now two day event unfolds with the Cavs holding onto the 20th pick. The gents broke down who they liked, who they didn&#39;t, and some of their theories around old wings, stiff centers, and stupid names. Top that all off with a random tour of Boston, some novel picks, and some gushing over the Guardians, and you&#39;ve got a pretty good podcast. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

306: Kenny and Kel'El

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Whelp. It&#39;s time to put a coda on the 2024 Cavalier post-season, and all in all, your favorite Cavs: the Blog bloggers were at peace with it. Without Donovan Mitchell, Jarrett Allen, and Caris LeVert, the Cavs dropped games 3, 4, and 5 to the Celtics, but I think all of us here at Cavs: the Blog felt proud of the way the Cavs fought to the end and never gave up in their final series of the season. To take stock of it all, Chris Francis, Elijah Kim, and Nate Smith booked some time in the CtB podcast studios and broke down the series and the players and what went right and what went wrong in the post-season. As is tradition, the post-season was yet another referendum on J.B. Bickerstaff&#39;s coaching tenure with the Cavaliers. After a respectful period of time breaking down the series, the gents put their pig noses and ears on and started gorging on some puerile slop that dripped down into the hog trough <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5497268/2024/05/15/cavaliers-donovan-mitchell-darius-garland-jb-bickerstaff-future/" rel="nofollow">from the Athletic</a>&#39;s Shams Charania, Jason Lloyd, and Joe Vardon no less than 30 minutes after the Cavs were drummed out of the playoffs. The Cavs went through all the rumors around all the guys: Donovan Mitchell&#39;s dissatisfaction with his teammates, Darius Garland&#39;s purported need of a scenery change, Jarrett Allen&#39;s ribs, J.B.&#39;s ineffectiveness, Mobley&#39;s desire not to be drafted by Cleveland, and most importantly whether Spida was inclined to sign a contract extension. The CtB boars wallowed into all the muck and mud and garbage and came to conclusions on L.B.J., J.B., D.M., both D.G.s, and J.A - some more concrete than others. It was a fun and cathartic 90 as the gents even got to pitching some cool Akron haunts, some Cinci legends, and a trip down vinyl lane. We think you&#39;ll find it to be an entertaining season coda with just enough delicious slop to keep coming back for more. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

305: Slop Season

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After a truly epic series against Orlando, we can all thank Elijah Kim for the Cavs winning this series. Eli&#39;s live presence for three games of this series clearly tipped the scales for the wine and gold. Eli and Chris Francis got &#34;live&#34; in the podcast booth to break down the series and to look ahead to the Boston series. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

304: "We'll do it Live!"

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Forgive me as I channel one of Ohio&#39;s greatest bands: the venerable Guided By Voices, to name this podcast. 1999&#39;s Do the Collapse was likely the Band&#39;s most commercially appealing album, which for many of their critics and fans, made it not their best, as Rick Ocasek&#39;s &#34;glossy production was a departure from the band&#39;s lo fi roots. Meanwhile, the Cleveland Cavaliers, some of whom weren&#39;t even alive when GBV frontman Bob Pollard released those songs, are facing their own identity crisis.After taking a commanding 2-0 series, lead, the Cavs have collapsed the past two games in Orlando during the third quarter. Notable issues have been an absence of players understanding their roles, understanding what made them successful, an utter lack of confidence by the team in their leadership, an an inability to deal with success or adversity productively. To break down whether the Cavs need to lo-fi it up, or glam it up by launching threes, Nate Smith, Elijah Kim, and Chris Fancis hopped into the CtB independent label studios. After a good bit of cathartic bitching, our Indie Rock trio tried to focus on the now, which is what the Cavs should be doing: no talk of this season, or the summer, or even the series. What do the Cavs have to do to win game 5? Everyone agreed that Darius Garland needs to be shooting more, especially from deep, and that Evan Mobley needs to be shooting a lot less from anywhere other than dunks and threes. So really it&#39;s a mix of the glitz and the grind that needs to happen for Cleveland.What other adjustments in terms of personnel? Well, we all want to fire Georges Niang into the sun, and play a whole lot more Sam Merrill and Max Strus at the four. Do the Cavs have what it takes to hold serve and win this series? Decisions are split, so you&#39;ll have to tune in to find out who thinks they have the juice. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

303: Do the Collapse

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To recap a tumultuous couple weeks in Cavsdom, Nate Smith, Chris Francis, and Elijah Kim donned their best jurists suits and shuffled into the podcast booth. First up? Breaking down the Cavs worst loss of the season, a 121-84 debacle Sunday against the Miami Heat. Then the guys adjudicated the 115-92 get-right victory against the Charlotte Hornets, Monday night.  Has the Cavs&#39; season all come down to injuries? Is the Cavs&#39; perpetual injury misfortune worthy of an inquest? Can this coach get this team out of the first round of the playoffs? Will that be enough to keep his job? Who do the Cavs even want to play in the playoffs? Which teams scare you? Have the Cavs done enough to keep Donovan Mitchell? Do the Cavs need to move Darius Garland? Why isn&#39;t CPJ playing more? Was Dune 2 worth seeing in the theater? The jurists judge all these things and more in this week&#39;s Cav&#39;s the Podcast. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

302: Pod Juries and Injuries

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Chris Francis and Elijah Kim traversed to the CtB Podcast resort studios to touch base after a long winter slumber that saw the Cavs wrap up their best stretch of basketball in the post-LeBron era. The Cavs finally get out of their post-All-Star Break slump to collect an ugly win against the Washington Wizards 114-105, which saw the Cavs come thru in the clutch after a stinky first half. The Korean Brotherhood quick caps the Wizards game, and touch on the Cavs&#39; trade deadline, and the NBA landscape post-ASB in a tight one hour episode. Last but not least, Eli pitches his Cavs&#39; game day fits while Chris plugs for some late-night Chinese food in the Queen City... Go Cavs! Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

301: Out of Hibernation

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Our 300th Cavs: the Podcast episode celebrates the exploits of unexpected star of the last two Cavs games, Sam Merrill, who has posted 48 points across the last two games on blistering 13-24 shooting from deep. Wednesday&#39;s game against the Jazz proved that Monday&#39;s was no fluke, as the Cavs&#39; bench mob swarmed the Jazz, led by Caris LeVert and Sam Merrill combining for 48 points.To celebrate, Chris Francis and Elijah Kim took over the podcast studio for a technically deficient Nate Smith, and gushed about the Cavs win. Merrill&#39;s blistering shooting, the Cavs&#39; sudden proclivity for the three ball, the Cavs inspired play without their stars were all topics for the guys. Then they got into some trade slop and some retrospective of 300 episodes! Merry Christmas, Cavs fans! Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

300: Sam, I Am

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Full of righteous indignation, Nate Smith and Chris Francis trudged into the podcast booth to write a sternly worded letter (podcast) to the Cavalier organization with one conclusion: this team isn&#39;t going anywhere with J.B. Bickerstaff as its head coach. The gents detailed their list of grievances: a near decade long inability to coach NBA offense from this millennium, an insistence on giving minutes to and removing competition from players who he seems to like but simply aren&#39;t good, a maddening inability to make good tactical and strategic decisions, a penchant for running guys into the ground and playing short rotations, and most damning of late - an inability to get consistent effort from his players. The last one may not be his fault. Eventually, everyone gets tired of the voice in the locker room, and sometimes teams just need a new one. That seems to be the consensus in the podcast booth and the fan base at large as even the most ride-or-die Cavs fans are turning on him. I hope it doesn&#39;t affect <a href="https://www.cleveland.com/community/2022/10/jb-bickerstaff-and-family-open-new-fairview-park-crumbl-at-westgate-shopping-center-photos.html" rel="nofollow">J.B.&#39;s cookies</a>.Nate and Chris discussed the interim and longer term options for Cleveland, and whether Koby deserves to stay too. They discussed the future of Donovan Mitchell in a Cavs uniform, the struggles of Darius Garland, re-litigate the Lauri Markkanen trade, and try to find some solace in their pod-ending pitches. There isn&#39;t a lot of positivity here, but there is entertainment and humor in vitriol. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

299: The Cookies Crumbl

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What a difference a week makes. After a moribund loss to the Kings last Sunday, the Cavs bounced back in a big way, winning three straight. To be fair, two of those wins were against two of the worst teams in the Association: Portland and Detroit, but it all becomes moot when you win against the defending Champions without killing the poor soul doing the Man vs. Nuggets challenge.Cleveland delivered a convincing victory against Denver Sunday, and most importantly, Jarrett Allen looked healthy and explosive again. JA outplayed Jokic with a 15-5-5 night, and sent Jokic to the bench in the early third. Jarrett was clearing getting under the big man’s skin, and after scoring on Jokic four straight times to start the third, Allen drew two consecutive offensive fouls – one of them flagrant – which earned the Joker five fouls and a seat on the pine. It was great to see JA back to his old self and the big-to-big game was in full effect, starting out with Evan and Allen in a 4-5 pick and roll.Elated about the win streak and Kevin Love’s and LeBron James’ return to Cleveland this week, Nate, Chris, and Eli piled in the podcast booth to gush over the win and take stock of the week. First up, Max Strus who came into Sunday night’s game leading the NBA in on-off differential, and has been a very solid starter all week. Add to that Mobley who’s averaged 16/11/4 over the last week with two stocks. Darius Garland has similarly turned a corner too, shooting over 40% from deep over the last five games, and is hopefully getting his turnovers down.The guys discussed the key to the Cavs turning the corner, and many theories were floated. Did the Cavs just need to beat up on some scrubs to get their confidence back? Is it just Garland (26/3/6 Sunday) and Allen getting health? Have the Cavs been winning because Craig Porter Junior and Dean Wade have been supplanting Garland? CPJ was a monster, Sunday: 21/4/4 on an array of moves to the basket and pull-ups. Add three stocks and one turnover in 25 minutes, and Craig looks like a keeper. Meanwhile, Dean Wade quietly put up a double digit rebounding night, and the Cavs killed Denver on the glass. Everyone seems to be doing their part to rebound, and its showing. Dean wade though has been a huge key: he gobbles up rebounds and hits corner threes. The guys discussed whether Okoro should be in the rotation when he returns, whether that rotation should include Niang, and if Ice can play the four.Finally, the guys looked ahead to the coming week, which features some Cleveland royalty returning to the shores of Lake Erie. A regular 2015 reunion might be in the offing with TT, LeBron, and Kev all in town within a day of each other. The guys roasted Nate about his wife’s Kevin Love obsession, gave us their favorite thanksgiving food, and picked their MVPs for the week. All-in-all, we have a lot to be thankful for. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

298: Turning the Corners

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After a listless performance against the Knicks in Cleveland on Tuesday, the Cavs went into MSG with a bit of a cloud hanging over their heads Wednesday. What ensued was some of the ugliest basketball since the late 90s, and one of the most anachronistic games you&#39;ll see all year. The Cavs and Knicks traded rocks all night, with both teams struggling to score and the game coming down to rebounds, loose balls, and defense.Fortunately, the wine and gold won enough of those battles to win the game, and come away with an improbable victory despite still missing starters Garland and Allen. The Cavs held New York to 35% from the field, but helped New York by turning it over 18 times.Fortunately, Spida Mitchell led the way with 30, including 24 in the first half, while Caris LeVert added 19. Georges &#34;Rolling Donuts&#34; Niang, a surprise starter grabbed 10 rebounds and shared the night&#39;s Junkyard Dog award with Tristan Thompson.Elijah Kim, Chris Francis, and Nate Smith hopped in the podcast booth to explicate the game, and analyze the Cavs and their recent play, the NBA as a whole, and what lies ahead for the team. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

297: Rolling Donuts, Launching Rocks

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In the early 80s, NBC and Marvel dropped a Saturday morning series called &#34;Spider Man and his Amazing Friends,&#34; which added obscure mutant &#34;Firestar&#34; and less obscure but no less conventional &#34;Ice Man&#34; to Peter Parker&#39;s retinue. Similarly, our own Spida Mitchell was helped by some unexpected friends, &#34;Ice Man&#34; Okoro, and Max &#34;Firestarter&#34; Strus. Saturday morning cartoon fanboys, Elijah Kim and Chris Francis swung into the podcast booth to help us make sense of it all. The Korean takeover of the CtB podcast studios (Chris&#39;s words, not mine) breaks down the game, the surprising come-from-behind victory, and what lies ahead for Cleveland. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

296: Spida and His Amazing Friends

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The Cavs lost a squeaker, Tuesday, 107-108 to the Hawks. To review, Nate, Chris, Eli, and Eli&#39;s bespoke keyboard made a trip to the podcast both. They broke down the game, and what went wrong (the first half and the starters&#39; minutes) what went right (the Cavs&#39; developmental players and the second half), and what improvements we&#39;re hoping to see in the coming weeks (rebounding and playing guys in appropriate positions). Then, the guys went around the association and picked against the Vegas lines for wins totals this season. Who is going to underachieve? Who is going to overachieve? Where do the Cavs fall on that spectrum? The CtB brain trust went through every team in the league, and even managed to get some of the new coaches names right. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

The Keys to Success

295: The Keys to Success

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David Wood makes his return the CtB podcast studios, as he joins Nate Smith to give insta-reactions to the Damian Lillard/Bucks trade. The good news? Both guys come out on the side of &#34;this helps the Cavs.&#34; The guys break down the impacts for Portland, Phoenix, Milwaukee, and Cleveland and then rank the East in oh so casual fashion. After, they muse about which city Harden end up playing for, give some random NBA predictions, and wonder how they&#39;ll watch Cavs games and Ganley Kia commercials this year.The guys end up with some lawnmower talk, regale each other with tales of summer, and discuss cocktail recipes. It&#39;s a casual slide into Cavs season and a preview of things to come in the next few weeks as we ramp up for the NBA. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

Baby Dame & David Wood

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Chris Francis and Nate Smith hop back in the podcast booth to cover some much needed business for the Cavs. First up? Breaking down Darius Garland&#39;s recent interview with Chris Fedor. Then we embarked on yet another review of free agency. Are the Cavs done? Or are they holding out a roster spot or two for an end of the summer free agent? Nate and Chris pitched the guys they&#39;d like to see, and then they delve into a little Cavalier trade slop centered around Jarrett Allen.Next up, a long overdue Summer League wrap-up. Chris and Nate broke down all the the main guys&#39; summer performances and their odds of contributing to the Cavs&#39; varsity squad this coming season. Emoni Bates was top of mind as the whole CtB staff was impressed with Emoni&#39;s game and improvement over two weeks in Vegas. Isaiah Mobley, Sam &#34;the elder statesman&#34; Merrill, Craig Porter Junior, and Sharife Cooper all got good grades while the reviews were controversially mixed with some upside on Diop, Travers, and Nance the Younger.We laughed at the Donovan Mitchell click-bait that spread through Cavs&#39; online discourse last week, concluding - among other things - that a year was a long way away.Finally, we pitched some pizza recommendations, including the jarring juxtaposition mentioned in our title (Nate says it&#39;s a revelation, but you&#39;ve got to check out the ingredients that go with it). All-in-all, it&#39;s a fun midsummer catch-up with your favorite Cavs: the Blog bloggers! Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

Kimchi and Pesto

293: Kimchi and Pesto

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Eli Kim and Chris Francis analyze the off-season so far for the Cleveland Cavaliers including the draft and free agency. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

292: Free Agency Isn't Free

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Our silent mourning for the 2023 Cavalier Season over, Nate Smith, Elijah Kim, and Chris Francis broke our vow and shuffled into the the podcast booth to break down this wild ride that was the Cavs&#39; season. The guys look over the year everyone had and try to figure out who&#39;s going to stay, who&#39;s going to go, and who the Cavs should bring in. Who would fit well under the Cavs idiosyncratic coach? Who improved? Who didn&#39;t? What do the next few years look like. The erstwhile podcasters take stock of it all.[Editor&#39;s note, this podcast was recorded last Wednesday night, but due to some technical issues wasn&#39;t able to post till today. Content, aside from some commentary on games in progress is all still very topical.] Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

291: Cavilyear in Review

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Nate and Chris (unsuccessfully?) channel their inner Bob Marleys as they break down a Game 4 and preview Game 5. What do the Cavs need to do to win? Who is coming up short, and who needs to keep doing what they&#39;re doing?The guys try not to delve into negativity or the blame game, but don&#39;t succeed too well as they discuss lineups, substitution patterns, tactics, and whether the Knicks are good or not.Having hashed the Cavs to death, the guys break down playoff series around the league. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

290: Don't Worry About a Thing

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Chris, Eli, and I cracked the seal on the podcast booth - dusty from almost two months of disuse - and talked Cavs and the Association till we were loooong in the tooth. First we reviewed our (very prescient) pre-season predictions about the Cavs&#39; win/loss record, then took our victory laps about things we were right about and things that surprised us. Next up, we reviewed the last two Cavs&#39; games which were meaningless in terms of standings, but might inform some rotations and tactics in the playoffs. Forgive us for stealing from Soundgarden, but instead of looking California and feeling Minnesota like most of the NBA is before tonight&#39;s Lakers/Wolves matchup, we dove deep on the Cavs&#39; season and the pending matchup between the Knicks and the Cavs.The Cavs are one of the weakest defensive rebounding teams, and New York is one of the best offensive rebounding teams. That discussion loomed large as we all picked a close series, with a lot of x-factors in play: rebounding, officiating, rotations, shooting, health (Okoro&#39;s and Randle&#39;s), RJ Barrett, Evan Mobley, Young Thibs, Old Thibs, and home court advantage. There was a lot to unpack, but one thing was clear: we all wanted to see less Lamar and more Dean and Cedi, as the Cavs&#39; simply must improve their three-point proclivity in the playoffs. It all led to one question with surprising answers: how many games does J.B. Bickerstaff have to win to keep his job?After that the guys went through the other play-in and playoff series, handed out their post-season awards, and by the time we were done, it was midnight.Finally, Thanks to our friends at FOCO (Forever Collectibles) for sending us some Cavs gear and this unique Bobblehead featuring Donovan Mitchell in the City Edition Jersey (title photo)! For any sports fan looking for unique collectibles, check these guys out! <a href="https://twitter.com/cavsthetweets/status/1636744913361551365?s=46&t=OSMDysb6Gu07qAfJAd8rpQ" rel="nofollow">https://twitter.com/cavsthetweets/status/1636744913361551365?s=46&amp;t=OSMDysb6Gu07qAfJAd8rpQ</a> <a href="https://foco.vegb.net/c/3993555/1595336/10075" rel="nofollow">https://foco.vegb.net/c/3993555/1595336/10075</a> Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

289: Lookin New York City, Feelin Northeast Ohio

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&#34;What are you doing, Dave?&#34; With three weeks since our last podcast and a trade deadline, an All-Star weekend, and a franchise legend&#39;s exodus to discuss, Nate, Eli, and Chris had had a lot to cover. To help us out Tom Pestak joined us int the podcast booth from cold storage. The CtB neural net leveraged machine learning to create based hot takes to cover all the Cavs and NBA news of the last few weeks.First up, an all-star game that left us all pining for more competitive contests of yore. Then we waded into the Kevin Love departure. ChrisBOT, NateGPT, and ELI 3000 sputtered over stats and fury as they ranted and raged over the poor handling of the situation from a teambuilding, reputation, basketball, and historical standpoints. The takes were firy, and the CPUs were heating up until Nate&#39;s head started leaking fluid like an android in a Ridley Scott film. Tom countered by taking on the Analytics movement as a whole and what it&#39;s done to the game of basketball, mainly to get keep Nate from drifting even further off baseline.Next up, the CtB server farm picked the winners and losers from the trade deadline, went through the Cavs schedule and what we&#39;ll see coming out of the All-Star break, and fomented another CtB civil war over Caris LeVert. Things got wild as the topics drifted away from basketball and the guys got into tech, construction, video games, Cavs lore, Ayesha Curry, and Olive Garden commercials. Steven Hawking made an appearance, and we all laughed at Skip Bayless. Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

288: CtBGPT

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Channeling a little Bob Dylan with this one. The Cavs&#39; ability to manipulate gravitational parabolas led to a game that was way too close at the end, and we all know that managing close games is not John Blair Bickerstaff&#39;s specialty. There was a lot of teeth gnashing post-game about the Cavs&#39; inability to close yet again, when they were lost in the rain in Juarez, when it&#39;s Easter time too: two brutal turnovers and a trio of Heat offensive rebounds lowlighted the last 150 seconds of the fourth. Nate, Chris, and Eli slogged into the podcast booth to sing Tom Thumb&#39;s Blues after this one, and a big early conversation was whether Donovan Mitchell (16/3/9, four steals +2) put on any airs when walking down Rue Morgue Avenue. Mitchell shot 3-13 this game from downtown on a bevy of jab-step and pull-up Js that really played into the Heat defense. Chris liked the shot selection, while Nate felt like they were bailing out Miami&#39;s matchup zone, and not moving defenders to set up passing lanes and offensive rebounds. Speaking of rebounds: Miami won that battle 45-39, with the nine offensive rebounds gouging Cleveland. They got some ugly women there, and they&#39;ll really make a mess out of you.If you see J.B. Bickerstaff, please tell him thanks a lot. After Darius Garland went out at the 3:00 mark of the third quarter with foul trouble, Caris LeVert came in and played the next 12 straight minutes, and after a brilliant chase-down block of Victor Oladipo near the end of that stretch, Caris moaned, I cannot move, my fingers are all in a knot / I don&#39;t have the strength to get up and take another shot. Caris was mercifully subbed out, but re-appeared just three minutes later and played 18 minutes in the second half to middling efficiency. At the very least though, he&#39;s doing better than Vic Oladipo who has zero lift anymore after all the injuries, and who when interviewed after the game noted, my best friend, my doctor won&#39;t even say what it is I&#39;ve got.I hate to be Sweet Melinda, who the peasants call the Goddess of Gloom, and yeah Ispeaks good English as I invites you up into her room.  But, much of this game came down to three point shooting: the Heat took good ones when they were open and in the flow of the offense (against a yet again overhelping Cavs&#39; D), and finished 14-31 from deep to the Cavs&#39; 11-40. Additionally the Cavs the free throw disparity was galling too, as the Cavs were in the bonus at the 9:40 mark of the 2nd quarter and got just a pair of freebies out of it, as they repeatedly settled for the three point chucks I described earlier. Jimmy Butler (23/1/5) was lookin to get silly as he grifted his way into 15 free throw attempts, including a galling early three point foul where he basically kicked Garland to sweep the leg and ended up at the free throw line. J.B. finished a game with a challenge in his pocket yet again, and this would&#39;ve been a prime one to use it on, but J.B. saved it for the end and then didn&#39;t&#39; use it. Maybe coach Bickerstaff just thought to himself about the challenge, &#34;You better go back to from where you came. Because the cops don&#39;t need you and man, they expect the same.&#34;Now, all the authorities, they just stand around and boast about how Eric Spoelstra blackmailed official David Guthrie into leaving his post: giving the Heat a 18-25 to 6-12 free throw advantage.And you&#39;d think J.B. Bickerstaff would have been picking up Angel, Ricky Rubio, who just arrived from the coast a few games ago, but despite Ricky&#39;s 8/5/5 line, 2-4 from deep, and +6 in 17 minutes, J.B. played Okoro and a two center lineup in key moments of crunch time and ended up with an Ice turnover when Isaac stepped out of bounds and a Darius Garland miscue when he forced the ball into a packed paint for another turnover.Then on one of the most half-assed OOB plays you&#39;ll ever see in the Association, the Cavs almost turned it over again when the Heat deflected the ball into the back court and Mitchell was forced to retrieve then kick to Mobley in the left corner for a brick at 1:23. Rubio would&#39;ve looked a lot better in that corner. Man, J.B. looked so fine at first when he took over for Beilein, but after moments like these, John Blair&#39;s left looking just like a ghost.As you might be able to tell, after this one, Chris Francis started out on burgundy, but soon hit the harder stuff. This might have been one of our most liquid podcasts in a year or so. A big point of contention was LeVerts&#39;s negativity don&#39;t pull you through (14/5/3, -19), which is a hell of a shift when Mobley puts up a 19/6/4 +16 line. As the author of #CarisLeVertAgenda, Chris was particularly despondent about the pairing of LeVert and Rubio, who don&#39;t seem to play well together, and the maddening lack of shooting on the bench lines. A blood feud between Eli and Chris ensued over what grade to give Caris this game.Chris and the guys pulled up a whole lot of lineup data to prove the point that the Cavs&#39; aren&#39;t optimizing their lineups, and that the Cavs&#39; should make every night Turkish Heritage Night, so Cedi Osman can play second halves. Because after an 0-fer seven minute stretch in the first half, Cedi, despite leading his team this season in net rating and being second in the association off the bench in that stat, has to think the coach won&#39;t, &#34;stand behind me when the game got rough.&#34; Chris pled for J.B. to go do some research on stats.nba.com. But when it comes to Cedi, J.B.&#39;s so kind and careful not to go to him too soon. Bick takes your voice and leaves you howling at the moon.Finally, the pod got very long in the tooth in the second hour when we wallowed in some trade slop. While not looking at a lot of options for the Cavs, the guys went through, I kid you not, every roster in the NBA to examine who where the buyers and sellers and who have the worst contracts in the NBA. Up on Housing Project Hill, it&#39;s either fortune or fame. You must pick up one or the other, though neither of them are to be what they claim. (I&#39;m looking at you Ben Simmons, Evan Fournier, Trae Young, DeAndre Hunter, and Gordon Hayward. A whole lot of teams want a king&#39;s ransom and multiple first rounders for role players, as the Minnesota Rudy Gobert trade broke the Association. But as we get closer a lot of teams will figure out &#34;the joke was on me, there was nobody even there to bluff.&#34; A lot of orgs will be left holding the bag with flawed rosters and even more flawed contracts.The Cavs take on the the No. 2 team in the West, the Grizzlies, Thursday, and, despite big wins against the Ty Lue&#39;s JV squad, the Wine and Gold haven&#39;t won a game against a healthy team since December. After the Grizz, the Cavs have five games in seven nights, part of a seven game in 10 night stretch before the all-star break. Something has to change, because the Cavs have been a .500 team or worse since their early season win streak, and right now they possess zero ability to win close games. The question remains, can J.B. coach himself out of this hole? If he doesn&#39;t the Cavs may have to make a coaching move before Donovan Mitchell decides.&#34;I&#39;m goin&#39; back to New York City, I do believe I&#39;ve had enough.&#34; Advertising Inquiries: <a href='https://redcircle.com/brands'>https://redcircle.com/brands</a> Privacy & Opt-Out: <a href='https://redcircle.com/privacy'>https://redcircle.com/privacy</a>

287: When Gravity Fails & Negativity Don't Pull You Through

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