Cleveland Cavaliers vs. New York Knicks

I think we are seeing a vast improvement in team play on both offense and defense. The ball movement tonight and for the last three games has been solid. Tonight against the Knicks, the Cavaliers had 29 assists against 14 turnovers. Of course when guys are hitting their open looks, the assists rise, but we had very few forced shots tonight. I don't get too upset with forced shots once the shot clock is around 5 but the selection tonight was fine. Ricky is starting to figure out when to pass and when to shoot and it was nice to see him and Z play a little two-man game tonight. Lebron was solid on both ends of the floor as was Boozer. I thought Z did a nice job, but there was a stretch in the 3rd quarter where we had to either punish the Knicks for going small, or get him out of the game because defensively, he does not match up well with Kurt Thomas.

In terms of our off-season acquisitions I was pleased with both Ollie and Newble. Anyone guarded by Newble had to work extra hard to get off a shot. Sure Houston made a few over Ira, but due to pressure he also missed badly a couple of times and if Ira is going to give that kind of effort off the bench, Silas will be happy. On the offensive end, Newble and Ollie both shot poorly, but they made up for it with hustle rebounds which allowed us to reset the clock and run another play. Bremer has shown signs of a deep threat for us, but his shot is still inconsistent and I do not like him as a point guard so we'll need him.

I am really happy with the big men on the second unit. I don’t think Mihm or Diop are ready for prime time, but against most Eastern Conference benches they have the capability of dominating. Silas seems to have coaxed Mihm to develop his toughness which is the primary trait he was lacking. I do hate to see him rebounding one-handed, but let's work on one thing at a time. Diop is becoming a force in the paint and developing a little touch from the outside which will force teams to play him a little more honestly in the high post.

CavsTalk