There's no question that Game 1 of the Cavaliers-Celtics series was painful to watch. I mean, how many times will you see LeBron James, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen combine for just 16 points in an entire game? The only one that was on last night was Kevin Garnett (28 points), but that was mainly due to Cleveland's bad defense, especially on the last couple of possessions. Take a look at the last two times KG scored -- first to tie the game then to give his team the lead -- and then we'll discuss.
On the first play, that was definitely a nice, clutch 20-footer from Garnett. But why in the world did Joe Smith stay and double Ray Allen off of the pick and roll, when Ray hadn't scored a single point all night? Wouldn't it have made more sense to let Allen go, and get back on KG? Now LeBron started to rotate over, but decided he didn't want to leave Pierce alone at the three-point line, which is understandable. I just don't get the decision to leave the one guy who has been scoring consistently all night, just to double someone who's gone scoreless to that point in the game.
The second play was more of a personnel issue for the Cavs than anything else, as Mike Brown was going offense-defense by trading out Ben Wallace and Joe Smith every possession down the stretch. The only problem was, after the Cavs tied the game at 72, Doc Rivers didn't call a timeout, which left Joe Smith isolated on KG. Bad match-up, no double team, and an easy bucket for Garnett which was essentially the game winner.
With Pierce and Allen having such atrocious games offensively, this may have been Cleveland's best and only chance to steal a game in Boston. But because of their bad defense down the stretch, they let this game -- and possibly the series -- completely slip away.
[via X's & O's of Basketball]
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Reader Comments ( Page 1 of 1)
1. the king will rise to the occasion next game. Mark it down in stone. Cavs win game two!
Posted at 5:43PM on May 7th 2008 by Trent