The Cleveland Cavaliers fumbled a prime opportunity to steal Game 1 on the road. They crumbled at the end, blowing a 22-point lead in history fashion.
Let’s go over today’s winners and losers.
LOSER – Big Jim Harden
James Harden just had perhaps the worst individual defensive performance in NBA Playoff history. Seriously, it was historically bad. Harden was targeted eight times in isolation during the fourth quarter, something that has only happened 30 times in the history of the NBA’s tracking data (including regular-season
games since 2013).
Harden gave up more points per possession in those situations than anyone, ever.
The Knicks had an absolute feast courtesy of Harden.
Jalen Brunson hunted him in a switch that came far too easily from the Cavs. I can blame Kenny Atkinson for that. It’s inexplicable that the Cavs allowed this to happen as many times as it did without an adjustment.
Still, you have to do more than swipe at the ball and get torched any time you turn your hips.
Harden had no chance in these isolations. He’s an upright defender who can only hold his own when someone tries to outmuscle him. A game that’s predicated on craft and shiftiness is going to beat him every time. Brunson took advantage of that and delivered on a massive comeback.
That wasn’t all, however. Harden finished with more turnovers than made field goals for the sixth time this postseason. An unimaginable stat that has contributed to some of Cleveland’s ugliest losses. The margin for error is too tight for Harden to play like this.
Even a 22-point cushion wasn’t enough to cover it up.
LOSER – Prevent Offense
The Cavs, as I’m sure you’ve heard, had a 22-point lead with 7 minutes remaining. That’s bordering on garbage time. But this is the Eastern Conference Finals. And… we’re in an era of parity and three-point variance. You can’t take your foot off the gas.
Those days are gone. You have to sprint through the finish line or risk a collapse. You saw what happened when the Cavs tried to jog.
As much as we crushed Harden for his defense — an equally bad thing occurred on the other end of the floor.
Cleveland’s offense, which diced the Knicks all night long for quality looks, abruptly went away from everything that was working.
No more ball movement.
The bigs? Forget ‘em.
Let’s not even bother going into the paint, actually
What if we just dribbled for an entire possession? That would waste a lot of time.
Let’s dribble for two full possessions.
What if we dribble for every possession?
Can we just dribble for the final seven minutes? Will they end the game if we keep dribbling?
The Cavs played ‘prevent’ offense down the stretch. Grinding themselves to a halt by trying to burn the clock. Each possession waned until the final seconds of the shot clock, which then only left the Cavs with an opportunity to run one action before hoisting a shot.
That’s how you blow a 22-point lead.
Donovan Mitchell and Harden deserve blame for this. Kenny Atkinson, as well. There’s no excuse for making a mistake that has burned many teams before them. This team has overcome enough obstacles to understand what works and what doesn’t. In no world does this team win games by letting go of the rope and drastically changing their approach in the final minutes.
WINNER – Defending the KAT action
Alright, let’s talk about some positives.
I truly believe the Cavs did lots of great things in this game. After all, that lead didn’t appear out of thin air. The Cavs played lights out through three quarters, looking like the more focused and physical team. We know that didn’t last — but there’s one thing that remains a win for Cleveland.
The Cavs neutralized point-KAT.
New York had found success using Karl-Anthony Towns as an offensive hub. They’d set him up above the arch, forcing opposing rim protectors to vacate the paint and defend him outside as he poses too much of a shooting threat to leave alone. After successfully drawing out the big — KAT would set up shop and allow his teammates to screen for each other. Someone would slip to the rim or cause a breakdown, and KAT would handle the rest with his playmaking.
This has led to the Knicks posting some absurd scoring games in the playoffs with KAT dishing out over 7 assists per game.
However, the Cavs are especially equipped to handle this.
Evan Mobley defended Towns and got all up into his airspace. He didn’t allow KAT to put the ball on the floor and made it difficult for him to access passing lanes.
Meanwhile, Jarrett Allen ignored Josh Hart in the corner and instead roamed the paint to clean up any slippage from the backcourt. Allen was the safety, ensuring no one could get into the paint without seeing a shot blocker.
This dynamic sets Cleveland apart as they are the only team New York has played that has two rim-protecting bigs who can handle KAT as an offensive hub. As a result, KAT finished with just 13 points on 14 shots to go with 7 turnovers to only 5 assists.
This is a winning formula for the Cavs. It’s something that gave New York fits, and they can replicate it on any given night.
