2014-5 Cavs: Greatest offense ever?
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It's not genuine at all and there isn't anything wrong with it either. Why should LeBron relinquish his power when Blatt isn't his guy and he wants to get his guy in here? He's doing what he should do to make this happen.ElUno20 said:
I see your point. I guess at the heart of it for me is this it's a waste of time. Lebron isn't some regular star player. He's not melo or john wall. He's lebron james. Creating this drawn out, passive aggressive, bs garbage through 2 sentences responses with the media is an enormous waste of time. He has Cleveland by the balls. If he doesnt want blatt, just have him fired now and move on. Dragging it on and being a dick in hopes to build character or make blatt prove himself is childish and unprofessional. Especially for a 2 time champion who knows the level of team unity and focus required to win it all.
Woj says a big deal going down:
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552264565543927808
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552264565543927808
link to tweet
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552264565543927808
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552264565543927808
link to tweet
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552265022727270400
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552262250309095424
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552264565543927808
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552264565543927808
link to tweet
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552264565543927808
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552264565543927808
link to tweet
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552265022727270400
https://twitter.com/wojyahoonba/status/552262250309095424
I can't wait for the videos of Waiters trying to tell Westbrook/Durant that he's open.DeJesus Built My Hotrod said:
Hell, it may take fewer games for Westbrook and Waiters to square off. If Waiters gets some of his or KD's shots, this may be almost as bad as the Harden deal. Well, not really. But it will be bad...Luis Taint said:
I am listening to Marc Spears and he likes Waiters to OKC. Not me. Waiters shooting has declined each season he has been in the league and he is an abysmal defender. And the guy has a poor reputation. It may work out but I don't like this trade for OKC.
DeJesus Built My Hotrod said:
Reggie Jackson is probably going to leave OKC; Waiters is just "Reggie insurance." Reggie wants to start (not going to happen with Russ around) and he's an abysmal defender, too.
DeJesus Built My Hotrod said:
No real downside. If you can sort him out, you got a talented layer for free. If you cant, he's your 5th guard.
BigSoxFan said:
I don't know - have you looked at Waiters' numbers? He is pretty bad. And if he is the source of locker room tension, then its not a good deal for OKC.
DeJesus Built My Hotrod said:
Have you looked at Reggie Jackson's numbers from this year? Or Jeremy Lamb's? Neither of those guys is consistently contributing. And Reggie has insinuated that he doesn't want to be in OKC, not exactly an attitude that contributes to good feelings in the locker room.
BigSoxFan said:
His field goal percentage is down to 42%; his three-point shooting is down from 34% to 26%. When Westbrook was out with his hand injury, Reggie didn't look that hot as a starter. Westbrook has his flaws, but no one was more relieved than me to see Russ back on the court.
Also that pick means the Cavs now have the ammo to go get another front court player, say Brandan Wright and hell Brandon Bass if they want him for instance.
Can this be true?
http://espn.go.com/blog/cleveland-cavaliers/post/_/id/292/waiters-cavs-farewell-an-odd-scene
PHILADELPHIA -- During Cleveland Cavaliers general manager David Griffin's impromptu, 10-minute news conference Sunday morning there was a line by the GM that, in retrospect, was either incredibly prescient or incredibly misleading.
"Unfortunately," Griffin said, "our timing doesn't always match the timing of everybody else. So, until the trade deadline, people don't typically have a lot of reason to do anything at a specific time."
Less than 36 hours later, the Cavs pulled off a blockbuster three-team trade, shipping out Dion Waiters and a couple of bench players in Lou Amundson and Alex Kirk to receive Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith from the New York Knicks and a future first-round pick from the Oklahoma City Thunder.
[...]
I tend to believe Griffin's honesty on the timing part, because if he had known that a deal was so imminent, there's no way word doesn't get passed on from the Cavs' front office to the coaching staff Monday evening in Philadelphia to make sure Waiters stays back at the hotel while the swap is cemented.
[...]
Instead, Waiters was left to chat with reporters before the game about how many tickets he had secured for friends and family coming to see him play in his home city ("Too many to count," Waiters said). And he was left to go out on the court in his Cavs uniform and warm-up gear and wave to his people in the stands before the national anthem. And he was even left to be announced last in the starting lineup -- his first start since the third game of the season -- as a solid contingent of the Philly faithful cheered for their hometown son.
[...]
The timing was so off kilter, there was just 1:30 left on the clock before tipoff when word finally made its way to the Cavs' bench about what was going down. Waiters, Amundson and Kirk were unceremoniously whisked off the court and back to the injury-free locker room, where they couldn't possibly tweak an ankle or pull a hammy to mess things up.
[...]
"I didn't see them," said Kevin Love. "I was on the floor when it happened. I'm usually the first one out to go get a feel for the ball, so I didn't get a chance to say anything to them."
[...]
If anything, the timing was just right to excuse a disaster of a defeat to the previously 4-28 Philadelphia 76ers (including 0-14 at home), as the Cavs might have suited up just nine guys but managed to waste a 28-point, 19-rebound game by Love while blowing a 17-point, third-quarter lead by giving up a whopping 35 points in the fourth quarter.
[...]
http://espn.go.com/blog/cleveland-cavaliers/post/_/id/292/waiters-cavs-farewell-an-odd-scene
PHILADELPHIA -- During Cleveland Cavaliers general manager David Griffin's impromptu, 10-minute news conference Sunday morning there was a line by the GM that, in retrospect, was either incredibly prescient or incredibly misleading.
"Unfortunately," Griffin said, "our timing doesn't always match the timing of everybody else. So, until the trade deadline, people don't typically have a lot of reason to do anything at a specific time."
Less than 36 hours later, the Cavs pulled off a blockbuster three-team trade, shipping out Dion Waiters and a couple of bench players in Lou Amundson and Alex Kirk to receive Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith from the New York Knicks and a future first-round pick from the Oklahoma City Thunder.
[...]
I tend to believe Griffin's honesty on the timing part, because if he had known that a deal was so imminent, there's no way word doesn't get passed on from the Cavs' front office to the coaching staff Monday evening in Philadelphia to make sure Waiters stays back at the hotel while the swap is cemented.
[...]
Instead, Waiters was left to chat with reporters before the game about how many tickets he had secured for friends and family coming to see him play in his home city ("Too many to count," Waiters said). And he was left to go out on the court in his Cavs uniform and warm-up gear and wave to his people in the stands before the national anthem. And he was even left to be announced last in the starting lineup -- his first start since the third game of the season -- as a solid contingent of the Philly faithful cheered for their hometown son.
[...]
The timing was so off kilter, there was just 1:30 left on the clock before tipoff when word finally made its way to the Cavs' bench about what was going down. Waiters, Amundson and Kirk were unceremoniously whisked off the court and back to the injury-free locker room, where they couldn't possibly tweak an ankle or pull a hammy to mess things up.
[...]
"I didn't see them," said Kevin Love. "I was on the floor when it happened. I'm usually the first one out to go get a feel for the ball, so I didn't get a chance to say anything to them."
[...]
If anything, the timing was just right to excuse a disaster of a defeat to the previously 4-28 Philadelphia 76ers (including 0-14 at home), as the Cavs might have suited up just nine guys but managed to waste a 28-point, 19-rebound game by Love while blowing a 17-point, third-quarter lead by giving up a whopping 35 points in the fourth quarter.
[...]
Waiters and Smith both average 10 ppg, shoot 40% from the floor, don't play defense, and take at least three shots a game that makes their respective coaches want to strangle them The Cavs are really just substituting a slug for a snail with that trade. Shumpert is an overrated player who got some hype in NY because he could actually play defense, which of course is a rarity for a Knicks player these days. His career FG% is under 40% and I have no idea if you can play him in a playoff game. Doesn't move the needle one bit for Cleveland imo.
Waiters couldn't even start at Syracuse, and Cleveland drafted him ahead of Damian Lillard, Harrison Barnes, and Andre Drummond.
Waiters couldn't even start at Syracuse, and Cleveland drafted him ahead of Damian Lillard, Harrison Barnes, and Andre Drummond.
I think it's a very good trade for the Cavs. Smith is basically a better version of Waiters, in particular he's a much better catch and shoot guy. They needed wing Defense and wing depth which Shumpert should bring, plus a 1st likely next year that helps them get what should eventually they hope be a cheap rotation player. They can eat JR Smith's option year since they wouldn't have the cap space anyway.Kliq said:
Plus Shumpert is a league average three point shooter, which Waiters assuredly wasn't. So, essentially Cleveland unloaded a guy that couldn't shoot and didn't play defense and replaced him with an average shooter that does. If they can turn that draft pick into a C then they've clearly won.
Waiters was having a shit year, but sank 37% of his threes last season. He could shoot a little bit, just that he slumped this season. Shumpert is an okay shooter, but he is only really an average defender (an improvement for Cleveland, though) and offensivley he just isn't that big of a contributor. He so far has accumaled ZERO offensive win shares, and his PER has dipped below the league average to just 12.1. He doesn't get to the line, and he commits an unhealthy amount of turnovers.
Considering what Cleveland gave up, I do think they could win the trade, I just don't think Smith/Shumpert are going to supply that much of a change for Cleveland.
Considering what Cleveland gave up, I do think they could win the trade, I just don't think Smith/Shumpert are going to supply that much of a change for Cleveland.
When your starting lineup features LBJ, Love, and Irving you're not worrying about offensive win shares. You're worrying that the other guys on the floor are playing defense and providing spacing. In this regard Shumpert is a giant upgrade on Waiters.
Kliq said:
Over the full season last year, he was 5th among SGs in DRPM. He's definitely capable of playing very good defense.
This really is a team trading their trash for another team's trash. At least Cleveland picks up two wing players and a first rounder. The Knicks seem like the winners for simply subtracting their garbage without having to take any back
Mozgov trade to the Cavs is close. If they tank in the playoffs it won't be for lack of personnel moves.
ifmanis5 said:
Giving up two firsts, which sounds like a lot, but I'll reserve judgment until we hear about the protections.
They're decently protected.
Memphis' 1st round pick to Cleveland protected for selections 1-5 and 15-30 in 2015, 1-5 and 15-30 in 2016, 1-5 in 2017 and 1-5 in 2018 and unprotected in 2019
Oklahoma City's 1st round pick to Cleveland protected for selections 1-18 in 2015, 1-15 in 2016 and 1-15 in 2017; if Oklahoma City has not conveyed a 1st round pick to Cleveland by 2017, then Oklahoma City will instead convey its 2018 2nd round pick and 2019 2nd round pick to Cleveland
Still pretty funny that Mozgov netted more picks than Rondo.
Memphis' 1st round pick to Cleveland protected for selections 1-5 and 15-30 in 2015, 1-5 and 15-30 in 2016, 1-5 in 2017 and 1-5 in 2018 and unprotected in 2019
Oklahoma City's 1st round pick to Cleveland protected for selections 1-18 in 2015, 1-15 in 2016 and 1-15 in 2017; if Oklahoma City has not conveyed a 1st round pick to Cleveland by 2017, then Oklahoma City will instead convey its 2018 2nd round pick and 2019 2nd round pick to Cleveland
Still pretty funny that Mozgov netted more picks than Rondo.
And that he was the deal breaker/maker for the Melo deal.Grin&MartyBarret said:
But yeah, shows you quality bigs can be a premium. Denver must be high on Nurkic since Javale is a non-factor.
Cleveland will send Denver two picks that it controls via Memphis and Oklahoma City, league source tells Yahoo. No other players in deal.
edit: sorry, late to the party...
edit: sorry, late to the party...
I think they are both high on Nurkic and they won't to blow their roster up a bit with a rebuild. Mozzy is a good complimentary piece, but the Nuggets don't need complimentary pieces at this point, and as you and others have pionted out, 2 firsts is a damn good return for a reserve/rotational player.ifmanis5 said:
I just don't understand how Cleveland didn't know they needed to make these moves back in the offseason. Did they really think it would be no problem with Kyrie, Lebron, Love and Waiters all expecting the offense to be run through them? Did they really think that having no one to protect the rim behind a very shaky perimeter defense would be fine?
I feel really bad for Clevelanders. But Dan Gilbert doesn't deserve a championship simply out of the good luck to win the lottery so many times and because Lebron is from northern Ohio.
I feel really bad for Clevelanders. But Dan Gilbert doesn't deserve a championship simply out of the good luck to win the lottery so many times and because Lebron is from northern Ohio.