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Cleveland Cavaliers: Punched in the Stomach, but not Knocked Out

By Kristopher Grimes

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Have you ever been punched in the stomach? You know the feeling. The quick shot of pain, the immediate loss of breath, and the reaction to fall over into the fetal position. Well, that was the feeling the Cleveland Cavaliers had after Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Thursday night. Steve Kerr “lied” to the media about any lineup changes and caught LeBron James and David Blatt off guard. He benched Andrew Bogut and started Guard/Forward Andre Iguodala in his place for a “small ball” lineup.

At first the lineup didn’t provide much of a problem as the Cavaliers opened up a 7-0 lead, but then Steve Kerr called a timeout and readjusted. Before the Cavs knew it, Golden State began playing their style of game.

It took the breath right out of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and with a shallow bench the quicker pace took its toll. After battling back to bring the lead back within six going into the fourth quarter, LeBron sat the first two minutes of the final period and the Golden State’s offense delivered the swift punch to the stomach. The Cavaliers quickly found themselves down 10, out of breath, and pushed into the fetal position. The end result was a 103-82 beatdown, and the feeling amongst Cleveland fans that this Finals series is over.

However, the Cleveland Cavs haven’t been knocked out, just merely had the breath knocked out of them. The series is far from over, and Cleveland still have reason to believe in their chances.

The series is tied 2-2, and it’s become three-game series. Yes Golden State delivered a punch to the stomach on Thursday night, and they are coming home, but that doesn’t mean they’ll win. With the way the Finals are scheduled, the teams both got 2 days of rest. This benefits the Cleveland Cavaliers perhaps more than the Golden State Warriors. Guys, such as LBJ and Matthew Dellavedova have exhausted themselves with their efforts in games 2, 3, & 4. Dellavedova was cramping after Game 3, and LeBron suffered a big gash on his head after a fall in Game 4. The 2 days of rest will give these guys some rest and the chance to go all out in Game 5, which they will need to keep up with the new “small ball” lineup of Golden State. The extra day of rest also allows David Blatt and Tyronn Lue to counter Kerr’s move. Kerr may have shown the ace in his hand early, and the Cavaliers coaching staff has the opportunity to conjure up new defensive strategies, and implement new offensive schemes. Once again the Cavaliers suffered a punch to the stomach in Game 4, but have time to recover with the two days of rest.

So why else should the Cavaliers feel good about their chances in this series?

J.R. Smith

(5) looks to pass against the Houston Rockets during the first quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Schwane-USA TODAY Sports” width=”300″ height=”375″ /> Jan 7, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith (5) looks to pass against the Houston Rockets during the first quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Schwane-USA TODAY Sports

In Game 4 the team shot a horrific 17 percent (4-27) from 3-point land. For a team that’s used to shooting closer to 40 percent in theses playoffs, the odds of that happening again are slim. Guys like J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert haven’t had much offensively in the first 4 games, but both players are capable of scoring in bunches. J.R.  is a streaky shooter, but one has to believe that his shot will start falling. When it does it’ll really spread the floor and open it up for LeBron James to create, score, and change the pace of the game.

The pace of Game 4 was highly in favor of Golden State, and the Cavaliers have a way to change the pace of the game down. The counter action of Kerr’s going with smaller lineups is that it leaves Timofey Mozgov as a man among boys in terms of size. His 28 points and 10 boards in Game 4 could be a sign of things to come for the Russian big man. The Cavaliers will look to use him early and often, posting him up and going right at Draymond Green, Iguodala, or David Lee who will be defending him. If either of those three players get into foul trouble, the small ball lineup that Kerr uses will suffer a huge blow. They may have to go back to Festus Ezeli or Bogut and that will slow down their pace of play.

Finally the last and greatest reason not to give up hope. The Cleveland Cavaliers still have the best player in the world on their team.

He’s the biggest game changer, and if he comes out to impose his will, the game will be in favor of the Cavaliers. Think about this, if the Cavaliers had gotten LeBron’s usual average of 40 points a game he had in the first three games, the Cavaliers would have only lost by 1.

So despite everything that Golden State seemed to do in Game 4, the only thing they really did was force LeBron into an off night. Sure, you can credit Iguodala with great defense, and the effectiveness of the Warriors double teams, but LeBron can overcome those things if his teammates start knocking down their shots. Look for LeBron to rebound in Game 5, and begin to take his matchup against Iguodala personally.

So as much as the national media, analysts, and even fans believe that this series could be over, the Cavaliers have a lot of positives on their side. The Cavaliers have had the opportunity to catch their breath, regroup, and come back strong for Game 5 with the extra days of rest. The players will be recharged, the 3-point shooting shouldn’t be as atrocious, Mozgov has the potential to be a difference maker against the Warriors new small ball lineup, and LeBron James will come out with a new game plan to counter the double teams and the defense from Iguodala. This team has so much fight left in them that they aren’t going to go down without swinging their own punches along the way. It’s a best of 3 series now, and the Cavaliers have to win two or lose two in order to be eliminated. Game 4 was a punch to the stomach, but it was far from a knockout.

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