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Episode 95: Mitchell’s Debut & Cav’s Hot Start
15 Plays2 years ago
Alex and Corey talk through the Cavs first 3 regular season games and Donovan Mitchell's streak of 30+ point games.
Twitter: @CavsPickandRoll
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Transcript
Introduction to the Cavs Pick and Roll Podcast
00:00:15
Speaker
Hey, Cavs fans. Welcome to another episode of the Cavs Pick and Roll Podcast,
Season Excitement and Win Predictions
00:00:19
Speaker
the podcast for diehard fans by diehard fans. I'm Alex and I'm here with Corey. Hey, I am excited, Alex, because we have been waiting since last April to talk real Cavs basketball again. And we're finally here. Couple games into the regular season. Cannot wait to talk some Cavs basketball.
00:00:41
Speaker
Yeah, going looking pretty good so far. We got a squad, man. We got a squad this season. I love it. We're tough, man. We're tough. And they've been fun. They've been fun to watch so far and a couple things going on. But I think it's going to be a fun season. And maybe before we start recapping any of the games and just giving our opinions,
00:01:02
Speaker
You know, one thing we kind of forgot to do maybe in the last episode, which I'm kind of disappointed in, but we never gave a prediction.
Win Predictions Debate
00:01:09
Speaker
Like, how many wins you think they're going to get this year, Alex? I can't believe we missed that. How do we do that? Yeah. I mean, I haven't really looked through their schedule, you know, and kind of the win this one. They play the same teams they do every year. I mean, they play the same teams they do every year. Yeah, that's true. Some teams have some different players, but, you know, you want to just throw a number out there and we'll just see if it sticks. Ooh.
00:01:31
Speaker
I'm gonna say, I'm gonna go 48. 48? Yeah. Not even 50? Wow. I feel like you said like low 40s. I don't know. I thought maybe you picked like 40 last year. I feel like we'll be riddled with injuries, Cory. Oh God. Something in our history tells me this.
00:01:51
Speaker
Stop recording right now. Start the episode over, man. I'm gonna go 53 wins. I'm gonna go 53. I think they're
Live Commentary on Wizards Game
00:02:03
Speaker
gonna get up there this year. It's pretty high. You need a lot of things to go your way, but I'm going 53 this year. I mean, the NBA's tough. The East is tough. Yeah, I mean, a lot of teams got better.
00:02:20
Speaker
So I know we got a lot better, but at the same time, I, you know, yeah, like you said, the East got better. So that's why I'm not going too high.
00:02:30
Speaker
Yeah, call me optimistic, I guess, but we'll see, but now our numbers are officially out there, so we don't have to worry about that anymore. All right. Let's talk some CAS basketball. Let's talk some games as of this recording. Yeah, we got a game going on right now that we're watching. Yeah, we're watching the game right now. We're watching the Wizards game. It's in overtime right now. We were trying to hold off to record until that game finished, and then over time, it's like, all right, let's just start.
00:02:58
Speaker
We'll kind of watch it. So we'll get to that game, Alex. Let's go back a little bit, though. First game was up in Toronto. And the Cavs ended up- Lebranto. Yes. The Cavs ended up, unfortunately, dropping that game. And also, there
Cavs vs. Raptors Recap and Player Injuries
00:03:18
Speaker
was kind of a, I don't know if I want to call it a freak injury, but just not a typical NBA injury, the Garland injury.
00:03:25
Speaker
Yeah. You want to recap what happened there? You know, I missed that part and I just saw like some highlight clips of it, but Trent was like swiping at the ball and missed the ball and kind of went across Garland's face and looked like he got a finger in the eye. Yeah. It all happened really fast.
00:03:47
Speaker
Yeah, he's wearing sunglasses at the game tonight. Yeah. Because, you know, the game's in Cleveland and stuff. And yeah, just unfortunate because, you know, Garland is your point guard right now. You don't have Rubio. So, you know, kind of a man down. And I do feel like Alex, if Garland was there that game, I mean, the Cavs had their chances. They were in that game. But I feel like if Garland, you know, didn't have that injury, I felt like that was a very winnable game.
00:04:15
Speaker
I'm just unfortunate. And now, you know, he's gonna miss a couple games. The latest I heard is he's predicted to come back this upcoming weekend.
Mitchell's Impressive Debut
00:04:25
Speaker
So he's gonna miss, what, two more games, I think, and then he should be back. So luckily it wasn't nothing too, too serious. You know, he was missing significant time, but just, man, the first game, like within the first, you know, what was it, first half or whatever, I think it happened. To lose Garland like that, that just kind of stunk.
00:04:43
Speaker
Yeah, it's definitely going to slow down just getting our new backcourt to mesh and work on our lineups and rotations and everything. I think this is kind of like why we're struggling in this game against the Wizards, because we don't have a starting point guard, man. No, we don't. We don't. And Mitchell, they got Mitchell out there trying to run point. Unfortunately, they had a couple bad turnovers at the end, and that's why we're in OT. But yeah.
00:05:13
Speaker
So let's talk about what happened to all of that game though. Donovan Mitchell did make his Cavalier debut, man, what a game. 31 points, nine assists, two rebounds, 35 minutes logged, tight game, Cavs drop it, but what do you think about Donovan Mitchell from what you saw so
Cavs' Triumph Over Bulls
00:05:33
Speaker
far? Oh man, Donovan Mitchell, he's a beast, he was going off. I was surprised, like I knew Donovan Mitchell was really good, but I wasn't expecting
00:05:44
Speaker
You know, just how good that he is. I mean, that dude, he can, he can get to the hoop. He can shoot it. Oh man. He's, he's got the whole package. It's a, it's awesome. It is. I've been very impressed as well.
00:05:59
Speaker
Again, you know he's a good player, but he's out in Utah. I mean, how often are you watching Utah basketball games, right? Exactly, exactly. And what I've been probably most impressed with to be honest with you is his shooting. I knew he was fast. I knew he can create his own shot and had handles and stuff, but I didn't realize how strong of a shooter he was. And man, he's just been lighting it up. And that's what you need. And that's what you brought him here for, is to do that.
00:06:25
Speaker
And, man, he's gonna be a great addition for this team. Someone that can go get you a bucket, you know, whenever you need it. And, man, just excellent, excellent debut for him. Along with Mitchell, you know who else kind of stood out to me a little bit? I have to kind of chuckle a little bit. Chetty is doing his best. He's doing his best, man. He was the second highest scorer in that game. I know.
Historical Context of Cavs vs. Bulls
00:06:55
Speaker
17 points from Jettie. He's doing his best to prove Cory wrong, isn't he, man? Jesus. In a way, it's like he's the second highest score. That's why we lost the game. They got them officials in their pocket, man. That was killing me at the end. That last four minutes of the game, I don't know how many times Allen and Mobley just got straight up mugged.
00:07:18
Speaker
The ball ripped out of their hands. They're down on the court. No call. It happened like three or four times. It's like, oh, yeah. That was ridiculous. That was rough to watch too. And again, I do. I feel like if Garland was there, you would just have another even balance, you know, ball handler slash scorer to create things and just keep things even keeled out there.
00:07:41
Speaker
God, it just it sucks to see that kind of slip away. And I think I mentioned on the last episode, like Toronto is already just on my hate list. Like, I know he's not there, but I just hate Kyle Lowry, you know, and I still see his face when I see Toronto. And I think Scotty Barnes on how he won the rookie of the year last year and should have been Mobley and
00:07:59
Speaker
It's just I don't like the Raptors and I hate losing. I hated losing that first game to them because I'm not very impressed with
LeVert's Role in the Lineup
00:08:07
Speaker
the Raptors, even though they made some noise last year. I feel like that was kind of a fluky thing. And yeah, it was just it was just upsetting to lose to them. But it was because they were being way over aggressive on defense and they just weren't getting the I mean, the kids just weren't getting any calls going their way.
00:08:26
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. So, but I mean, the Cavs, I mean, overall, I thought the Cavs looked fine for what it was. I mean, obviously when you lose someone like Garland, that's gonna, it's gonna shift things a little bit. You know, it's their first time playing together in an actual real, you know, regular season NBA game. But I thought, you know, you know, Jared Allen played, played fine. I thought, you know, double, double, again, he should be a double, double machine this year, 13 points, 10 rebounds.
00:08:53
Speaker
Mobily had 14 points, six rebounds. I laughed when I saw the first bucket of the game was Mobily for three. So that was kind of interesting. Yeah, so
Mobley's Growth and Impact
00:09:07
Speaker
I mean, just one of those games. Kevin Love, eight points, nothing too crazy.
00:09:12
Speaker
but the curl didn't do anything. So it's one of those that kind of slipped through. In our last episode, I talked about how I was gonna be in Toronto and I might be able to go this game, but I had the dates mixed up. I'm going this upcoming Wednesday, not last Wednesday, so.
00:09:29
Speaker
Well, you can go to a Raptors game. Did not get a chance to go. You can go to a Raptors game, still wearing your Cavs gear, even though they're probably playing magic or something. Yeah, they're playing the Sixers. You should just go. They're playing the Sixers, and that's why you did it. The Cavs are playing Orlando that night. That was a lucky guess. Yeah. You should just go to that game, wear a Cavs gear, and just boo them. Boo both teams while you're there.
00:09:57
Speaker
Just constantly boo, never cheer for either team. Boo for both sides, yeah. That would be great. That's funny. Nothing really too else from that game, I thought. Again, first game of the season, I was most impressed with Mitchell and
Team Depth and Strategy
00:10:17
Speaker
I have been the most impressed with Mitchell so far and just what he's been able to do.
00:10:21
Speaker
And then we shift to the Bulls game. That was a little bit more fun, Alex. Oh man, yeah. We just annihilated the Bulls. That was a great game. Everybody was going off, man. Like hitting threes, Kevin Love. Holy cow, he was lights out. He was showing that sixth man of the year fire shooting a five out of six from three point land.
00:10:49
Speaker
15 points. He was a plus 27 on the plus minus. That was crazy. I think, was that the game that Chetty was plus 41? I want to say, I saw a stat. I kid you not. You're right. I saw a stat that he was plus 41. And I just, again, I just laugh. I just chuckle. You know what I mean? It's like. Dang. Plus 41. Plus 41. 15 points,
Performance Recap: Cavs vs. Wizards
00:11:16
Speaker
four assists, two rebounds.
00:11:18
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, hey, I mean, he did a lot of nice things last year, and I poked fun at him when the Mitchell trade went down and said, how is Cheddy not part of that trade? That was the time to trade, you know, the cash in on his trade value. And part of me just wanted to see the Rook kind of stick around in that deal, right? Just to see what we had there. But, you know, if Cheddy can replicate what he did last season,
00:11:44
Speaker
and same thing with love come off the bench like you just said like those two have so far it's early but those two have picked up where they left off last year and that's what makes me even more excited too when I don't know exactly when a couple more months from now when we get Rubio back with those guys as well because the three of them worked I thought really well together
00:12:04
Speaker
last year and hey, I mean, Cheddy, Cheddy's doing his thing and I can't hate, I'll chuckle, but I can't hate. Yeah. Speaking of that deal,
Key Players' Contributions
00:12:17
Speaker
I saw a comment about that both marketing and Sexton were killing it out in Utah. Have you seen anything? I saw what marketing was. I didn't see anything on Sexton. I saw something on marketing, but I didn't see anything on Sexton. We should look up
00:12:33
Speaker
Yeah, I haven't looked up any stats or anything. I just saw somebody comment about it. And I was like, I haven't either. And I mean, yeah, I mean, that's fine. I mean, I wish them the best, you know? I mean, those were two. I like both of them when they were here, you know what I mean? And, you know, Utah, Utah
00:12:50
Speaker
Utah still made out in that trade, man. All those draft picks that we talked about, and they got two very serviceable players that can play right now, starter minutes for you. And again, heck, if Abaji turns into something, it's gonna look like a very good trade for Utah. Yeah, it is. Three rotational players, that speeds up your, the freak is it called, man?
00:13:15
Speaker
The camps just did it. You're rebuilding. Your rebuild, yeah. It speeds up your rebuild. What's funny, I mean, the Jazz, they're 2-0 right now. Oh, I believe it. They're playing the Pelicans in their in overtime right now as well, and Markinen has 31 points, 12 rebounds. Fancy. Damn. Just unleashing them out there.
Upcoming Games Preview
00:13:36
Speaker
I mean, Utah is going to look at that trade two, three years from now and probably be in a very good spot.
00:13:42
Speaker
you know, as long as, you know, nothing crazy happens. Sex is not playing too well, though. He's two for ten. Eight points. Yeah.
00:13:54
Speaker
Well, back to the Chicago game. It's funny, they got down kind of early big, and I was a little bit nervous because this was also Zach Levine's debut back. Remember, he had that season ending injury last year. I mean, I don't root for other players from other teams, but Zach Levine was always a guy I liked. He was always a guy that I kind of hoped the Cavs would somehow.
00:14:18
Speaker
Get at some point to kind of play the role that Mitchell is playing right now Mitchell's better So i'm i'm glad the way it worked out, but it was cool seeing Levine out there Yeah, he had a good showing in the slam dunk contest. That's probably why you like him And he's just he he yeah, I mean he's crazy athletic but he can get a bucket too You know what I mean? And the Cavs kind of got down a little bit early in that game and I was like, oh boy
00:14:43
Speaker
You know, and, uh, but then once, once the Cavs, you know, regain the lead, they, they never looked back, you know, the rest of the game and the Bulls, you know, kind of got back into it at certain times, but the Cavs just kept
Episode Conclusion and Listener Engagement
00:14:56
Speaker
slamming the door on him. And like you said, everybody was just kind of going off. And, uh, even, even Robin Lopez, man, shouting out Robin Lopez, I'm telling you, man, I'm going to tell you, you're, you're going to become a Lopez fan, uh, drop 12 points out there, making all sorts of moves down low and stuff.
00:15:12
Speaker
He played for the Bulls at some point, and I thought he had a good showing. Like you said, Kevin Love was on fire. Chetty with 15. Back to Mitchell, 32 points, nine rebounds, eight assists, almost a triple double there. I mean, just an all-around great team effort against the Bulls. Yeah.
00:15:39
Speaker
I mean, it was such a, it was a blowout. They emptied the benches with still four or five minutes left of game time. Right. So yeah, so like Isaiah Mobley went in, Stevens went in, Dean Wade went in, they all played like the last four or five minutes.
00:15:56
Speaker
Right, right. And I saw that that was a 32 point win. And that was now the largest margin of defeat for the Bulls against the Cavs. Previous record was 30 points, probably during during the championship years or something like that. But yeah, that's pretty cool. Set a new record.
00:16:20
Speaker
And also Mitchell set a record at that point. First player to debut, you know, back to back 30 point outings. So just kind of, you know, all good stuff all around right there. Speaking of Cavs versus Bulls, does it irk anybody else that they have the Jordan Jumpman logo on the Cavs black jerseys? I really don't like that. Yeah.
00:16:45
Speaker
You know what I'm saying? I know what you're saying. Like arch nemesis Michael Jordan and now he's imprinted on our uniforms. Feels like a slap in the face. Maybe it's just me. Right. At least they didn't put him shooting over Elo though. Oh man, the silhouette. Just for the Cavs uniforms, yeah, would do that. Right. Everybody else is just regular jump man, but for the Cavs it's over Elo. Jordan would do that. He seems a little petty sometimes in some of those interviews.
00:17:16
Speaker
Yeah, it was cool. It was cool whooping the balls too because if you recall
00:17:24
Speaker
Last year first game of the season was against the Bulls and that was the first game after all their deals You know where they had ball Levine Vucic like that was the first time with that group playing together Yeah, I'm Alex Caruso, you know, and they if you recall they they whooped us. Yeah pretty bad it was kind of embarrassing so it's pretty cool to whoop them and You know
00:17:53
Speaker
Bulls will be one of those teams that, you know, you're going to see them a couple of times this year, maybe even same in the playoffs. So it's always good to get a win against, you know, a team in your own division and all that good stuff. So yeah.
00:18:06
Speaker
I will say I wanted to get your opinion before we transition to this Wizards game, which did end, unfortunately, Alex. Hey, don't tell me. I don't know. All right. All right. I'll let you keep watching it. We are up by five at this point, though. Keep the dream alive, Alex. Keep the dream alive. I don't want to know spoilers.
00:18:26
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. So I wanted to get your opinion. So Lavert has been starting at small forward, Akuro coming off the bench. Lavert had a good showing, I thought, in that Bulls game, had 14 points, eight assists, four rebounds. And it wasn't too shabby in the first game, had 10 points, a couple rebounds as well. But any take so far on Lavert at the small forward? You think that was the right call?
00:18:54
Speaker
Yeah, I think he's been fitting in really well. He's a really good offensive weapon and he plays really well on defense too. I mean, he's all around or just a really great player and I think he'll fit anywhere we want to use him. So I have no concern if he's in the starting group or if he's coming off the bench. I think either way, I mean, I'm just glad he's on our team. Okay.
00:19:21
Speaker
Yeah, no, I like Lavert, and I get that he's probably on a short leash with a lot of Cavs fans, kind of like how... Sexton was, right, last year? You think so? I mean, I think so. He wasn't with the team very long last year, and he just didn't have time to gel. Right, and he had the injuries, so he kind of had a hard time fitting in.
00:19:46
Speaker
And, um, I think just a lot of cast fans, you know, there was kind of like that, that you could already see the divide happening. You can already just see the hate for him. And there's probably still some of that now. I don't, I don't know. Um, but I'm hoping that again, with the full season, a full healthy season, hopefully, uh, with playing with these guys, I'm hoping he's going to shine because
00:20:06
Speaker
Um, man, he can score. He could do things, you know, so I think he's a nice piece. I'm glad that he's still around even after we traded for Mitchell, you know, I would have thought that he would have been one of the players in play and any kind of deal that was going to bring you back somebody like that.
00:20:21
Speaker
And yeah, I think it was the right call. I will say, you know, I'm rooting for a curl. We all want to see that third year leap. But to be honest with you, it's very, very early. But these first couple of games, I haven't been too impressed. And like in this Bulls game, you know, curl played 27 minutes, he got one rebound and had two points.
00:20:42
Speaker
Yeah, and yeah, he's out there to be more of a defensive specialist, I guess, but and and, you know, the Bulls have tough guards. You got Levine, you got DeRozan, you know, you got Caruso that can do things. So, you know, he he's they're going to they're going to put him on the tougher defenders. But it's just still I feel like it was the right decision to put Libert in. Well, that's still be the case 30 games from now, 50 games from now, we'll see. But I wanted to see what your take was. And it sounds like we're.
00:21:11
Speaker
as of right now on the same page. Yeah, I mean, he seems like he's been playing more aggressive. I've seen him go take the ball to the hoop a bit more often than in the past, but he's still kind of... I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. He's just kind of waiting in the shadows or something. He just needs to step up. He just needs to figure it out.
00:21:36
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, he's kind of a deceiving player in a way. I mean, he's got a decent mid range too. And again, what's nice is, is he doesn't need to be, you know, the first or second option. Heck, he doesn't even need to be the third option when you got Mobley out there. And if Kevin Love is going to be on fire, I'm sorry, not even Kevin Love. If Chetty's going to be out there, you know, I mean, you know, Laverg could be your fourth or fifth option. And he just, you know, he just goes under the radar when that happens, right? And he can just pull up or get to the rim and, you know, knock down a three every once in a while. So.
00:22:06
Speaker
I like Lavert, I like his game, I just hope that it works out and it pays off in the long run with him being in that spot. Yeah, you think he'll... So you think he'll stay in that spot even when Garland comes back?
00:22:22
Speaker
Yes, oh yeah, totally. I don't think that plays any factor with, because I mean, you know, small forward versus point guard. Yeah. I don't see that playing any kind of factor. I think it changes the makeup of the lineup though. So I think it could affect. Yeah, it's the only. Because it's an extra scenario. When you bring in Garland, I mean, that's another player that's, you know, is gonna get, you know, 20 shots or something. Yeah, 20. So you're not gonna want revert with, I don't know. That's just one way to look at it. I guess it depends.
00:22:52
Speaker
Yeah. The only scenario I can see where it would make sense moving Lavert out is if he's obviously really struggling or if the second unit starts to struggle, right? Like, you know, say there's an injury that plays a factor and all of a sudden you don't have, I mean, you know, Kevin Love and Osman gave you 30 that night. Oh, throw in 12 more from Robin Lopez, six from NATO. I mean, your bench gave you, you know, 40 plus almost 50 points that night.
00:23:21
Speaker
You know, when, when they do stuff like that, you're good. But if for some reason something happens and the bench starts to have some dry spells, you know, maybe that's where you explore. But, um, I think for right now you keep him there and he's, he's in a good spot. So.
00:23:38
Speaker
What's your take on, any takes on Mobley yet? I mean, I feel like he's a little bit, I'm watching Mitchell so much that Mobley feels a little overshadowed in a way, but. Yeah, he's been playing really well. He plays very efficiently. Like he's in an efficient score. He's put on a little muscle, you can tell. He's boxing out a little better. He seems to be grabbing rebounds at a higher rate already within the first three games, I think.
00:24:08
Speaker
Right. And yeah, I mean, he's playing really well. I think, like you said, it is just kind of getting overshadowed by Mitchell.
00:24:17
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. And that's not a bad thing by any means. I mean, he played so great last year and he just, he's just picking up where he picked off, you know, picked up, uh, or ended last year, I should say. You know what I mean? So, um, but I do agree. And he does feel like he put on a little bit more muscle. And, uh, again, he's not somebody that has to be, you know, aggressive 24 seven every time he touches the ball out there, which is a great luxury to have.
00:24:42
Speaker
And I think Mopoli is going to be fine. And I'm excited to see his growth this year. And I would love to see him in the All-Star voting conversation and, you know, maybe even defensive, you know, him or Alan for like defensive player of the year conversation and stuff like that. Like, sky's the limit, right? Sky's the limit.
00:25:05
Speaker
I think it'll be tough just because there's this this team is just so stacked and there's so many guys that the touches are going to get spread around so much that you're not going to have Mobley you know 20 points 20 rebounds very often just because you got Allen also trying to get that and you got you know Mitchell taking his 30 shots and Garland taking his 30 shots and I don't know I just don't it's going to be difficult for for players on this team to get
00:25:33
Speaker
those all-star stats when they've got to share the ball. To get their shine? Yeah. To get their shine. Well, Mitchell's getting his shine, man. He is. Garland's been out, though. Yeah, that's true. Those numbers will come down a little bit when Garland's out there, I think. It feels kind of already... In a way, it's weird with Garland going out, but now it kind of feels...
00:25:55
Speaker
exciting, like you're watching this team, what they did against the Bulls annihilated them, right? We're gonna get to this Wizards game here in a second. And it's like, that's without Garland. Like, until Garland gets back, you know what I mean? And it's like, I'm already giddy about getting Garland back because we
00:26:12
Speaker
you know, sure without a real point guard out there, you're going to have some, some, you know, turnovers and things like that. Um, but man, when Garland comes back and like this team's just going to get even more lethal. And then, you know, just thinking about Rubio being back at some point and if he could do it at last year, it's just.
00:26:30
Speaker
And you can already just see all the fun that there should be this year. If we had Garland that last five minutes of that first game against the Raptors, I think we would have sealed that game. And this game against the Wizards, if we had Garland out there distributing, we wouldn't have had some of those turnovers there at the end. And I think we would have put this one away without going into overtime. So I think Garland is going to be a big impact on this team.
00:27:01
Speaker
Yes, yes, definitely. Better be. Got a pretty big contract.
00:27:06
Speaker
There we go. Keys to the city. Keys to the city. That's right. So let's talk about this Wizards game. What's funny is, Alex, this is kind of embarrassing but also funny. So I have all the box scores up from the first three games like you did. And I saw one of the scores of the game not realizing that I was looking at the wrong game and I thought the Cavs lost.
00:27:36
Speaker
The Wizards game, I was I was all, man, like, are you kidding me? And then I realized that once well, once the Cavs sent me a notification through the app, I was like, oh, they won. They they they won an overtime 117 to 107 outscored the Wizards 14 to four in overtime. So they must have they must have crushed them. And I didn't get to see that because we were we started the episode. But man, I'm glad to see that they pulled off that win.
00:28:04
Speaker
And yeah, just like going like we were talking about with no garland, there was a couple of turnovers at the end. Mitchell's trying to run point and had a couple of turnovers. He played 45 minutes tonight. I'm not crazy about the minutes. He's logging. I will say that.
00:28:18
Speaker
But without Garland out there, you know, bigger staffs kind of his hand is forced. I did see that the game plan is to always have at least Garland or Mitchell out on the floor at all times. So they'll stagger them. But man, 45 minutes tonight. I'm a little surprised. Cows get the win. Cows get the win. That's the most important thing.
00:28:40
Speaker
I'm a little surprised we're gonna play Neto a little more out there. I mean, he's looked really good these past three games. You know what? Yeah, I should have said something because Neto has done so far what we need him to do. He's got a little bit of craftiness to him. He can go get a bucket, you know? I mean, he's getting to the rim and finishing down there sometimes. You know, again, under the radar player.
00:29:08
Speaker
He seems serviceable and he's doing what he needs to. Yeah, like tonight, this game goes in overtime. Mitchell plays 45 minutes and Neto couldn't even get to the double digit mark. He played eight minutes tonight. Yeah. I mean, you don't even need Neto out there to score. You just need him out there to bring some energy. He just needed to run it. Bring the ball up the court. Yeah. Yeah. Get him running. Yeah. Distribute. Run the offense. Yeah. Run the offense.
00:29:31
Speaker
But the Cavs get the win, Mitchell, another 30 point outing, 37 points, Alex. And I did see during when I was still watching the game before we started recording, I did see that now is another record, first three games, a 30 or more points. He set a new record for that as well.
00:29:54
Speaker
And just what an unbelievable start. What's his average right now? His average has got to be like 34 points or something like that. Just a heck of a three game debut here from Mitchell. So we had 31, 32, and then 37. Yeah, don't ask me to do math. 100 points in three games. Yeah, that's crazy. Just absolutely crazy.
00:30:22
Speaker
Yeah, man. He was playing point. It's funny. If you look at the box score, Alex, they have dash PG after him. I don't know if you're looking at it, but that's funny, actually. This game was fun. It was back and forth, and the cows kind of broke away for a while. They let the Wizards back into it. It goes to overtime, and then they just demolish them in overtime.
00:30:49
Speaker
I got a shout out Jared Allen. There was a block he had on Purzingis. Oh man. Purzingis was driving to the rim and that would have been like a momentum shift thing because that was towards the end of the game when the Wizards were trying to get back into it and he just blocked him at the rim and it was awesome.
00:31:06
Speaker
clean, no foul, nothing like that. And Alan's just, he's just still a beast. 14 rebounds, 15 points, man. Gotta love Jared Allen. Oh man, Porzinga's ate that one. I mean, he went up with it and Alan was right there with his hands up and it was just all a ball right back in Porzinga's face. Yeah, it was awesome. It was great, it was great. And you know,
00:31:34
Speaker
Look who, look, there's somebody else in the box score that I'm looking at right now that puts a smile on my face. Dean Wade, 21 points, 12 points, I'm sorry, 21 minutes, 12 points, couple rebounds, couple assists. And again, Dean Wade, just another one of those guys just kind of, you know, coming in, making an impact. Dean Wade's been playing great. Yeah, I mean, all three games so far, Dean Wade's been,
00:31:59
Speaker
been quietly. He's been solid. Really good, yeah. He's really scrappy and I wish he would have got more minutes against the Bulls than he did. He only got some garbage time but I mean that first game he got 22 minutes and he played really well and this game against the Wizards he played really well again. They just need to keep using him.
00:32:22
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, definitely. I mean, they gave them that contract and we talked about a couple episodes ago and that happened. You know, bigger staff said, you know, we've invested in you. And I remember saying, you know, whatever episode that was, you know, you're Dean Wade's going to be a part of the rotation, you know, and not that he wasn't in years past, but it felt like in years past, it was, he was part of the rotation when there was injuries. There's no injuries right now, not to our bigs or anything like that. And, um, you know,
00:32:52
Speaker
There is, you know, and that's, I expect him to play, you know, for the most part 15 or so minutes, maybe a little bit more, maybe some nights it's a little bit less for whatever reason, but I expect him to be part of the rotation.
00:33:04
Speaker
And yeah, he's gonna be able to make an impact because again, there's so many offensive weapons on this team. You're gonna forget about Dean Wade sitting over there in the corner, right? But Dean Wade, he can stroke that three. He can stroke that three all night. He can stroke that three too. He was the highest plus minus on the team tonight with plus 19. Nice, nice. Yeah.
00:33:27
Speaker
And there's your boy, Cheddy again. 16 points. I know. Where did Cheddy come from? He was knocking down threes too. I don't know, man. Maybe all that international play he did over the summer. Just like marketing, man. Yeah.
00:33:42
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, we've always seen flashes with him. It's just up until last year, until he got moved to that bench roll, we just didn't see consistency. So last year, we saw the most consistency we've seen out of Chetty. And hopefully, again, that continues this year. And so far, the first three games into the season, that's continued. So again,
00:34:07
Speaker
Hey, that's what we need. So you need those scoring punches off the bench. Can't have a love a little bit quieter of a night. 5.7 rebounds, 14 minutes, but you know, that's fine. That's what Dean Widd kind of offsets that. You know what I mean? I think it just depends who we're playing. It helps when, yeah, yeah, yeah. Depends on the matchups. Did you see, I'm gonna go back to Robin Lopez again. Oh boy.
00:34:36
Speaker
0.6 rebounds did you did you see the crazy circus shot that he made you might not have I don't know I Want to say it was like third quarter. Did you see it? Where he like grabbed the rebound and the ball got knocked out his hand and like rolled around his back and then he
00:34:56
Speaker
Is that what you're talking about? I must have missed that one. Now I'm talking about a different one. So he got the ball down low. His back is to the basket completely.
00:35:08
Speaker
It was almost like the chair got pulled out from under him, like he was just kind of falling backwards. And he didn't even get a chance to look up. He was literally facing the opposite basketball hoop, right? And he just kind of flipped it up there over his head. Went off, backboard, goes in, and pretty sure he got the foul call, too. It was awesome. That was amazing. Yeah, it was great. When you go look up highlights of the game, you'll see that, and it was awesome. Nice. Freaking Robin Lopez, man.
00:35:38
Speaker
He's a character. Yes. Fun game tonight. Glad they got the win. The Cavs are now two and one. Off to a good start. Off to a very good start, Alex. Got their schedule up because I wanted to see who they play next. I want to say they play against Orlando next. Maybe I lost it.
00:36:01
Speaker
Yeah, they do. They got the magic on Wednesday. They got the Celtics on Friday. That should be a good game. And I don't know if it'll stick, but I thought I heard that was the game Garland's gonna come back. That'd be awesome if he came back for that game. For Boston. That'll be a high octane game right there.
00:36:23
Speaker
freaking Marcus Smart Screw. No, I mean, I want Garland back for that game. I don't like the Celtics either. There's not a lot of other teams I like, I don't think, but. You say to every other NBA team court. Yeah, pretty much. I wonder if that's a, I wonder, screw them all, man. I wonder if that's a, I bet you that's the first nationally televised game I bet.
00:36:46
Speaker
wouldn't be surprised. TV and streaming. TV options. This will get Alex fired up. TV options for the game against the Celtics.
00:37:01
Speaker
Bally Sports, Ohio. Boo. Have at it, Alex. Do your thing. Boo. Basterds. $20 a month for their stupid streaming app. Screw those guys. Oh, did you see that the mayor of Cleveland tweeted about it? He's like, I wish we still had Fox Sports, Ohio.
00:37:19
Speaker
He's like, can we please bring back Fox Sports Ohio? And then I loved it was you, it put a smile on my face. It was you like, we will never pay you. We will never download your app. This was a reply back to Valley Sports. We will never download your app. We will never pay you $20.
00:37:38
Speaker
I was like, aw, man, can't the mayor retweet that just one time? You know, like, that have been awesome, but yeah. I thought that was pretty cool. Can we get Fox Sports back? Yeah, I'm kind of disappointed, man. It's Bally Sports, which again, none of us watch. NBA League Pass, which again, even if you had it, you can't watch the Cavs. And then there's NBC Sports Boston.
00:38:06
Speaker
I gotta say, Alex, I'm pretty shocked that this isn't a nationally televised game, to be honest with you. Yeah. Kinda disappointing. Kinda disappointing. The next game against Boston is the televised on ESPN. Yeah, I think that's a new one. I heard that game wasn't originally nationally televised, and now it is, I think. I thought I saw it was against the Celtics, but... Yeah.
00:38:30
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. So good stuff, man, with the Cavs. Off to a good start. And I think we're gonna wrap up this episode, the podcast for diehard Cavs fans. And Alex, you wanna let them know where they can follow us and connect with us. Follow us on Twitter, at Cavs pick and roll, where you'll see me bash Bally Sports repeatedly. Shoot us an email, cavspickandrollatgmail.com. Wherever you're listening, click like, click subscribe. Leave us a rating or review, we'd appreciate it.
00:38:59
Speaker
Alright, there it is, CASFANS. We will talk to you again soon. Peace out, CASFANS.