Cavs still undefeated on a historic 9-0 run and still counting
224 sats \ 9 comments \ @gnilma 7 Nov Stacker_Sports
Oh my, the Cavs are red hot. They remain the only undefeated team this season with the Thunder getting their first lost from the Nuggets tonight. A historic first for the Cavs, starting the season with a 9-0 record. Although one might argue that they did not play against any contending teams (except for maybe the Knicks) during the run, but a 9-0 start is still a great start.
How many more will they win? Who will hand them their first loss? They are playing the Warriors on Friday; will chef Curry cook up a big L for the Cavs or will they remain undefeated?
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100 sats \ 8 replies \ @Undisciplined 8 Nov
I think the Warriors are better, so I'll pick Friday for their streak to end.
What do you see that's working so well for the Cavs? It looks like they're getting a lot more out of Mobley this season and the Garland/Mitchell backcourt has more chemistry.
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166 sats \ 2 replies \ @gnilma OP 9 Nov
Damn, tough start. Looks like I'll lose my bet...
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21 sats \ 1 reply \ @Undisciplined 9 Nov
Wow! I might have to admit defeat on my Cavs skepticism.
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7 sats \ 0 replies \ @gnilma OP 9 Nov
10-0 and going. Probably going to win next 5 games too. Going 15-0 until they get their first loss from the Celtics?
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143 sats \ 4 replies \ @gnilma OP 8 Nov
I agree that the Warriors will end the Cavs' winning streak. The new Splash Brother Hield is red hot and no joke; and chef Curry is still cooking. The Warriors have been playing quite well lately, so I also pick them to end the Cavs' winning streak. Saw some pretty tasty odds for a Warrior win last night (2.5 for Warrior win vs 1.55 for Cavs win), so I put some money where my mouth.
I think there are a few reasons for the Cavs' success.
  • New coach Atkinson empowering Mobley by running a lot of offense through him or just simply give him the go ahead / confidence to go aggressive on the attack.
  • Garland playing well with Mitchell. There was always the talk of them two not able to play together and it was going to be either Mitchell or Garland, but it seems they found a way. To be fair, they didn't really played much together last season due to injuries, so it was probably hasty to make that judgement. It looked like the off-ball guy between the 2 just runs to the corner and started taking more corner 3's.
  • Allen is still playing well, continuing from his success last year. Still a walking double double.
  • They've been shooting well with the 3's, and in this era of NBA, when your 3's fall, it helps a lot.
  • They've been playing with a lot more pace compared to last year. Running the floor and pushing the offense, not allowing opponents' defense to set.
  • Their roster is deep with a very strong bench. To back up their big 4, there's LeVert, Jerome, Merrill, Niang, all able to play meaningful minute and contribute. I looked it up and their bench scoring average this season is 40.6, which is quite good.
  • Their defense is still solid. With 3 mobile bigs in Wade, Allen and Mobley guarding the interior, while able to switch out to block shots. I wouldn't call their guards excellent defenders, but they do play defense and it's sufficient.
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21 sats \ 3 replies \ @Undisciplined 8 Nov
I don't know if there's anything to this, but I thought Allen looked a bit leaner this season and he seems to be playing with more energy than last season.
Mitchell always profiled as a plus defender, but like Russ he never really developed it.
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15 sats \ 2 replies \ @gnilma OP 8 Nov
I think Allen already had one of his best seasons last season, but he's continuing that trend, which is good to see.
I don't know. I felt Westbrook has better defense than Mitchell due to his athleticism and style of play (high energy, playing hard), especially during his earlier years in Westbrook's career. I had always seen Mitchell as a scoring machine and don't really mind him not being an elite defender.
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21 sats \ 1 reply \ @Undisciplined 8 Nov
It's different reasons for the two of them, Westbrook just lacks defensive awareness. I think people expected more from Mitchell because he's really quick and for his height he has good length and strength.
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17 sats \ 0 replies \ @gnilma OP 8 Nov
Agree
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