Michael Arace: Cleveland Cavaliers get that weak stuff outta here, throw the hammer down
Cleveland Cavaliers general manager Koby Altman has drawn some heat for mistakes that he has made (John Beilein?). He has been questioned about some of his roster moves (traded Larry Nance Jr. for what?). And he has been prone to hand out happy pills (“The future is really, really bright!”).
What is becoming clear in Altman’s fifth season is that he had a plan, he has largely stuck to it and there is progress. The Cavs are not only one of the biggest surprises of 2021-22, they are one of the league’s feel-good stories. There is life beyond the King.
In LeBron James' two stints spanning 11 seasons in Cleveland, the Cavs made the playoffs nine times, appeared in the NBA Finals six times and won the Larry O’Brien Trophy once, in 2016 (when the Warriors blew a 3-1 lead).
The Cavs went 97-215 in four seasons after The Decision. LBJ came back to break the 52-year curse, then went off to LA. The Cavs went 60-150 over their next three seasons, including 22-50 in 2020-21.
Cleveland Cavaliers have exceeded expectations this season
What could fans expect this season? Vegas projected the Cavs to make a modest improvement, into the range of 27 victories. The most bullish prognosticators pegged them for 30.
Look at them now.
Saturday night, the Cavs beat visiting Sacramento 117-103 to improve their record to 16-12. Their goal this season is to get into the play-in tournament with a seed in the Nos. 7-10 range in the Eastern Conference. They can have greater aspirations.
The Cavs are in fifth place in the East, three games in back of conference-leading Milwaukee, the defending champions.
If you’ve been watching the Cavs, in October you were saying, “Hey, this team is fun to watch,” and by the time Thanksgiving rolled around you were saying, “Dang, this team throws the hammer down.”
Yes, the Cavs, relentless as they are, have snuck up on a lot of teams. Maybe that'll change over the final two-thirds of the season. Probably, they're just this good, and they're only going to get better.
It was the plan.
How the Cleveland Cavaliers were assembled
Altman flipped Kyrie Irving in a three-way trade to get the pick he used to draft shooting guard Collin Sexton No. 8 overall in 2017. Altman had three first-round picks in 2019 and took point guard Darius Garland No. 5 overall. Altman took small forward Isaac Okoro No. 5 overall in 2020.
He got in on the James Harden blockbuster and got third-year center Jarrett Allen out of Brooklyn in January.
Such was the plan: Commit to a sustainable building project through the draft, take your lumps, stay patient. After an injury ravaged, COVID-infected, disappointing 2020-21 season, Altman said, “The next step is to supplement the young talent to get them to the next level.”
Some Cavs fans were scratching their heads last summer. Altman drafted center/power forward Evan Mobley No. 3 overall, traded beloved Nance, acquired power forward Lauri Markkanen (with a four-year, $67 million contract) and extended Allen (for five years and $100 million).
Can your cap handle all those bigs? Markkanen is a nice player, but he’s no Nance. How will Markkanen coexist with Mobley and Allen? Are there enough minutes at the 4 and the 5?
How bigger is better for the Cleveland Cavaliers
Coach B.J. Bickerstaff is using the instruments like George Szell. The big kids, it turns out, are incredibly harmonious.
The Cavs’ usual starting lineup has 6-foot-11 Markkanen at small forward, 6-11 Mobley at power forward and 6-10 Allen at center. The average age of the starters is 22. It’s even younger when Sexton, the team's leading scorer, is in there, but he’s expected to miss the rest of the season as he recovers from knee surgery.
Right now, Mobley (averaging 14 points and 5.4 rebounds) has to be the front-runner for Rookie of the Year. Allen (17.3, 11.2) looks like an All-Star. So does Garland (19.0, 7.6 assists), who has turned into a first-class floor general. Garland looks a lot like Irving, but on a round earth, and without the baggage.
How defense has improved for the Cleveland Cavaliers
Defensively, the Cavs are one of the best teams in the league. Their length is daunting, their motors are always running and they do not foul.
Offensively, they’re a joy. They can play above the rim (oh my, Mobley), they can stretch the floor (Markkanen helps) and they’re an improved 3-point-shooting team (they have five players converting at 35% or better from beyond the arc).
With veterans Cedi Osman, 26, Kevin Love, 33, and newly acquired Ricky Rubio among those coming off the bench, little is lost of their orchestration or effectiveness.
Bickerstaff preaches sharing the ball — whoever is open is the scorer — and the Cavs are a high-assist team by definition. When players buy into this concept, there is a certain esprit de corps that gives basketball a unique beauty. It is there with this team.
You can see it when they beat down quality opponents: Recently, they defeated Dallas, Miami and Washington, in a row, all on the road, by a combined differential of 59 points.
You can hear it in Austin Carr’s voice when they throw the hammer down.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Young Cleveland Cavaliers are one of biggest surprises of NBA season
