 |
| AP Photo/Tony Dejak |
David Blatt: B+
Although technically this wasn't Blatt's first ever playoff game, it was his first ever NBA playoff game. For the trials and tribulations that he went through during the regular season, Blatt handled his NBA playoff debut very well. He did a good job with his rotations about as well as he could, going 10-deep but not relying too heavily on guys like Matthew Dellavedova. Don't be shocked by LeBron James and Kyrie Irving playing 40-plus minutes, as the number of days off in between cancel out playing them that many minutes.
It is known that Blatt is the lesser of the two coaches in this series, but so far he went toe-to-toe with Brad Stevens (who was also making his playoff debut) in the first game. The one thing that impressed me with Blatt in Game 1 was him taking J.R. Smith out early in the second half after he struggled with both shooting and foul trouble. Instead of sticking with Smith, Blatt got him out of there before he could get too frustrated and shoot the Cavs out of the game trying to find a rhythm.
Above all else, he won! By 13! We saw what happened the last time the Cavs played a super-hyped up game and it wasn't pretty. He weathered the storm after a slow start to the game and didn't show any panic in that situation.
Kyrie Irving: A+
Could you have asked for a better start to Irving's playoff debut than what he did yesterday? Depending on how realistic you are, the answer is no. Just think about this: since 1977, only 14 players have scored at least 30 points in their playoff debut. That's a good list to be a part of! Irving showed no signs of nervousness in yesterday's game, hitting his first five three-pointers and giving Celtics guards hell every time he had the ball.
Irving's performance was nothing less than what we expected -- he's always had the knack for showing up in big games. But what made this game so impressive was that he didn't do anything different in yesterday's game than what he did in the regular season. He attacked the rim with a controlled fury, drew a foul on a mid-range pull-up and brought out the hesitation three-pointer that he has won many games. By not shying away from his game, it's hard to say that he went "bonkers" in this game, boding well for the rest of the playoffs.
Of course, you could look at the assist total and knock a few points off his debut. But I quite frankly don't care about how many assists Irving has, as long as it's not zero. I've accepted the fact that Irving is a scoring guard and doesn't need assists to be successful as a player. With that being said, I give Irving a perfect score in his playoff debut.
Kevin Love: B+
Personally, I thought Love played an excellent game yesterday. He was a beast on the boards -- both defensively AND offensively -- and found his passing ability that has been lacking in the half-court for most of the season.
Unlike Irving, you could see the nerves on Love to start the game. He began the game by missing nine-of-his-first-11 shots, showing no confidence in his jumper. But once the butterflies left his stomach, Love started to show his skill set on the offense end. In the second half, Love scored in a variety of ways; he hit a three-pointer, a hook shot in the post and a lay-up off of an offensive rebound. Oh, and he got to the line eight times, showcasing his aggressiveness on the offensive end.
All of that was lacking from Love in the regular season. We saw glimpses of Love's talents, but never in a constant way. LeBron kept going to Love in the yesterday's game, trying to keep his spirits up after a slow start.
Is that just a one-game sample? Or will we continue to see Love involved in the offense like he was in Game 1? Either way, there were way more positives than negatives in Love's first career playoff game.
Tristan Thompson: A+++ B+
Outside of Irving, there isn't a player I genuinely like on the Cavs more than Thompson. He's the ultimate hustle guy and always looks like he's having good time no matter what he's doing. He's also super corny (which makes him great) and has found his niche that has made him into an excellent role player.
Thompson continued his success off the bench by doing what he does better than 99 percent of the league: offensive rebounding. He had four offensive rebounds, but it was his presence that helped add extra possessions for the Cavaliers on offense. Love was able to grab three offensive rebounds as a result of Thompson just being on the court.
As far as defense goes, Thompson did struggle a bit trying to guard Kelly Olynyk. It was only one quarter, but Thompson looked lost trying to guard Olynyk, leaving him open for multiple three-pointers and failing to contain him on a dribble-drive. Outside of Olynyk though, Thompson did an OK job on the defensive end.
Overall, I'm excited to see how Thompson's game progresses throughout the rest of the playoffs.
Matthew Dellavedova: B-
He only played nine minutes and he didn't stink! He actually hit a shot inside of the arc, something he didn't do too well at during the regular season. Dellavedova didn't do anything wrong, which is exactly what you want out of your back-up point guard.
LeBron talked about Dellavedova's performance and how Dellavedova impact in his limited minutes was pivotal. In those nine minutes on the court, the Cavs out-scored the Celtics by 10 points, telling us all we need to know about Dellavedova's performance yesterday.
Of course, don't expect anything more from him. Dellavedova might hit a three here, but that's about it. But for his first playoff game, you could call it a success for him.
No comments:
Post a Comment