Cavaliers Win in Solid Fashion Against Dallas

The Cavaliers must have been concerned as many of us were, in their performance on Friday night in Charlotte, because they looked like a completely different team one night later.

On Saturday night, the Cavaliers defeated the visiting Dallas Mavericks, 111-95. They did it by correcting a number of the things that were led to their defeat on Friday night. They moved the ball on offense, and were far more active on defense and in the paint. The division leading Mavericks came into the game with a 11-4 record, so it’s not as if the Cavs “got healthy” on some weaker competition. The Cavaliers pretty much led from the opening tip and stayed aggressive the entire game to keep or extend that lead.

It was as solid of an effort as I have seen from the Cavs this season. They’ll need an even better game on Wednesday, as the Phoenix Suns and their NBA-best record roll into town. Here were some keys to Saturday night’s impressive win.

IT’S A SMALL WORLD

Shelving his normal rotation of Zydrunas Ilgauskas coming off the bench with six minutes gone in the first quarter to spell Shaq, coach Mike Brown instead kept Shaquille O’Neal on the floor a bit longer and had Anderson Varejao sub-out JJ Hickson. Varejao then stayed in the game when O’Neal came off the floor a few minutes later. Iglauskas, whose next game will give him the all-time Cavaliers record in games played, never even saw the floor. Instead, Brown seemed to react to Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle’s decision to opt for a quicker, smaller lineup, by going small himself. The results were impressive as the Cavaliers had probably their best offensive effort of the season, moving the ball very well and creating a number of quick open looks. The result was their best shooting performance of the season, going 57.8% from the field, and 69.2% from three-point range.

GO WEST YOUNG MAN!

Obviously agreeing with my thoughts that the Cavaliers were missing Delonte West’s presence in previous weeks (no really, I am sure the coach reads my blog all the time looking for coaching suggestions…..no….really), Mike Brown gave Delonte the most extensive number of minutes of the season. In 28 minutes, West had a double-double, with 10 points and assists. He also added four defensive rebounds. West looked as comfortable as I have seen him all season.

Aside from his offensive production, one of the most impressive things I noticed was his West’s performance. The Mavericks Jason Terry had been on fire early in the game from three-point range and looked to be enroute to the kind of game the Bobcats Gerald Wallace had against the Cavs the previous night. However, when West came in and was put on Terry, he virtually shut him down. West is arguably the Cavaliers best defender against active guards as he has guard-speed, but enough length to also contest most shots. Unofficially, I don’t think Terrr had more than 6 of his 28 points, with West guarding him.

PAINT BY NUMBERS  

In a game that the Cavaliers looked almost dominant, there was no area they were more dominant than in the paint. Of their 111 points, 54 of them came in the paint, while they held the Mavericks to just 27 points near the basket. A smaller, more active lineup was part of the reason, as it allowed them to be more aggressive on the offensive boards. The Cavaliers had 16 second chance points on 10 offensive rebounds.

The Cavs also had 29 defensive rebounds as well. Anderson Varejao had one of “those nights” where he played like a hungry wolf, and the basketball was his kill. He attacked the basket on both ends of the floor, and finished with 15 points and nine rebounds (five off those on the offense).

Jamario Moon also had  a very productive night, with 13 points, nine rebound, with seven of those on defense.

HUMAN VICTORY CIGAR

A few seasons ago, in the most recent championship season of the Detroit Pistons, their first round draft picks, Darko Milicic became known as their Human Victory Cigar. Milicic would only see the floor when the outcome of the game was in-hand.

Well it appears that Mike Brown has found himself his own version of the victory cigar in Darnell Jackson. Oddly enough, it was Jackson who came off the bench last season for meaningful minutes, while fellow rookie, JJ Hickson struggled for playing time. This season, Hickson is starting, and Jackson has only seen the floor at the end of games where the only thing standing between the Cavaliers and a victory, are a few minutes left on the clock.

Maybe things will change as the season progresses, but for now I like seeing Jackson on the floor because it means the Cavaliers has pretty much put another win in the books. Let that man have a ceeee-gar!

Tags: Darnell Jackson, Delonte West, Jamario Moon, Mike Brown, Shaquille O'Neal, Zydrunas Iglauskas