November 21, 2023 • 39 mins
Tim Alcorn is joined by Cayleigh Griffin of Bally Sports Ohio and Philadelphia 76ers play-by-play announcer Tom McGinnis to look ahead to the Cavs-Sixers game on Tuesday night.
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Speaker 1 (00:10):
Welcome to Calves HQ presented by Betway. Thank you for
joining us on the Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse. Here
are your hosts, Tim Alcorn and Jim Jones.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
From the Cavaliers production studios at Rock and Mortgage Field
House in downtown Cleveland. Hi again, everybody, and welcome to
Calves HQ. Tim Elcorn with you this week. Jim Chones
has this show off, so I'll be flying solo, but
you know what, I have the helping hands of the
Dynamic Duo Senior producer Kurt McLaughlin technical director Marty Allen,
(00:46):
so we'll get you through this. And boy, what a
fun night to bring you Calves HQ presented by Betway.
Calves coming off that big win last night at home,
they knock out the defending world champion Denver Nuggets one
twenty one to one oh nine. Cavs now with a
modest three game winning streak and they've won four of
(01:06):
their last five. Tough stretch coming up though, back to
back back to backs Tuesday and Wednesday in Philly and
then home to Miami and then Saturday and Sunday two
straight home games with the Lakers and Toronto. Well on
this week's edition of Cavs HQUBE. We're gonna have some
fun conversations. Kaylie Griffin from Bally Sports. We'll drop by
(01:29):
and pay us a visit, and then with the game
tomorrow night in Philly, we'll talk to their radio play
by play man Tom McGuinness. So stay with us. Cavs
HQB presented by Betway, continues after this on the Medical
Mutual Cavaliers Audio verse four on o'clock.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
Wait, just heaves it at the basket and hit it.
Speaker 2 (01:54):
See wait, what's literally falling into his teammates?
Speaker 1 (01:59):
Just it at the hoop?
Speaker 2 (02:02):
Swish, heaven turns Baptis Strews.
Speaker 4 (02:04):
What don powel?
Speaker 3 (02:06):
Oh what a feed by? Strews stolen my order?
Speaker 4 (02:09):
Oh by he climbed the.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
Ladder at the half court line, powe with two hands
at the other end.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Oh my, I'm starting to have an infatuation with Craig
Porter Junior. This young man is special. He is and
quite a performance on Sunday night and the Cavaliers one
twenty one to one oh nine win over the Denver Nuggets.
And now the Cavs hit the road. It's a quick
one game road trip Tuesday night, they'll be in Philly
(02:41):
to take on the seventy six ers. That's an end
season tournament matchup presented by Betway. After that big win
over the defending champs last night, JB. Bickerstaff met with
the media and he was a happy head coach.
Speaker 5 (02:53):
We did a great job executing a game plan. I
thought Jared Allen was phenomenal taking the challenge. You know,
Garden one of the best players in our game, most
versatile players in our game. He accepted the challenge. You know,
he was physical, he was intelligent, made him work for everything.
And then as a group offensively, I thought we did
a great job of just sharing the ball, playing together
(03:17):
and taking what was there. I think we found, you know,
the pick and roll game, how it was working and
how we could create advantages, and then everybody got involved
from there.
Speaker 6 (03:25):
As well as as much of a mental game as
it is a physical game. And to show that Jared
could get into the head of Nicola Jokic, who's, as
you're saying, one of the better players in the league.
And you also have players like Craig Porter Junior who
have that mentality to just stay focused. What is it
like to know that you have a younger squad, but
a more mature squad in the same way.
Speaker 5 (03:43):
I mean, it's comforting you know that you got guys
out there that you can trust. You know, it's it's
important as a group that they trust each other. And
I think that's what that maturity leads to. That maturity
leads to guys understanding their position, their roles, where they're
going to be on the floor, how they you know,
protect one another on both sides of the floor, how
they put each other in positions of strength offensively. So
(04:07):
I think, you know, the maturity is a huge thing,
and that's where the growth starts. You have guys who
understand and that's the foundation.
Speaker 6 (04:15):
Great games for Darius Garland and also got his backup
man in Craig Porter Jr. Doing his thing. How did
you grade there for performances today?
Speaker 5 (04:23):
I think both of them did a great job of
just taking what was there. You know, again, the pick
and roll game was really really good for us. It
created a lot of opportunities for both those guys. But
I thought they both were attack minded and it wasn't
just on the offensive end of the floor. I think
when you're the point guard of the league, guard and
you're at the front of the defense all the time.
(04:43):
You know, the people behind you, they see you and
they carry your energy. So if you're not getting after it,
you know, it's it can bring the group down. But
I thought both of them did a great job being
the head of the snake defensively putting pressure on guys,
you know, defeating screens and those types of things.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
Sam Amiko, who's are TV seem like tail and two
halves for Jared at least statistically.
Speaker 5 (05:05):
What do you think, you know.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
What did he contribute there, particularly in.
Speaker 5 (05:08):
The second half, what the cod was, I mean the
pick and roll game. You know, they changed a little
bit how they were covering it and went into a
deeper drop and that allowed him to get the ball
in the pocket. And you know he's good with both
hands in that pocket. And I thought Darius and all
the guards, the guys that were attacking, you know, once
they saw that big back in that space for Jared,
(05:29):
they just kept getting them the ball. So you know,
we've got a group of guys again that you know,
are learning and figuring out the game, but mostly how
they can help each other. And the simplest thing, you
know that we try to get across the guys just
throw the ball to the open man. And tonight and
that second half, Jared was the open man quite a bit.
Speaker 7 (05:47):
How much stock do you put in plus minus?
Speaker 5 (05:50):
That's an amazing number. I haven't seen a plus forty
two in you know, twenty nine minutes. That's a heck
of a number. You know, we normally say the plus
minuses for agents to negotiate contracts. But that's a heck
of a number.
Speaker 7 (06:05):
And I know it's only two games, but Craig Porter
had quite a weekend. And then you've got depth at
the guard spot when everybody's healthy, which is another matter,
I guess, but has he has he shown you enough
to where you feel like you can trust him and
play him, like even if you have healthy bodies?
Speaker 5 (06:25):
Yeah, I mean obviously, like that position is kind of
crowded when you are healthy and guys are playing, you know,
but what it gives you an opportunity is like you
don't have to stretch guys out right, like you can
play guys, you know a reasonable amount of minutes because
you have a guy that you can put in and
you know, what we've been testing is how he plays
alongside Darius so We've been able to see that these
(06:46):
past couple games, so now he could kind of play
either guard spot with those guys. So you know, again
we do have a lot of guards and wings when
we are healthy. But I mean, he's proven that he's
capable and he can help us.
Speaker 8 (06:58):
Spencer Davis Kasnsider, you kind of the words take what
they give you. But the decisiveness when the guys had
the ball in their hands, it seemed like they were
really quick processing tonight. How vital is that when you're
trying to get an offense to work together the way
it did tonight.
Speaker 5 (07:12):
I Megan, I hate to oversimplify it, but like in
the NBA, if you just throw the ball to the
open man, good things are probably going to happen for you.
And you know, as easy as that sounds like, it's
something that you have to continue to work on. But
you know, with the amount of guys and the threats
that we have here and what they're capable of, if
you just throw the ball to the open man, it's
(07:34):
as easy as you can make it, and then the
defenses have to make tough decisions from you know, now
do I rotate? You know, how do we change a coverage,
what adjustments do we make so you know, our thing
is just keep throwing the ball to the open man
and make it as simple as we can.
Speaker 8 (07:47):
Specifically, the shooters like as soon as they got the ball,
they were throwing it up like that's something too. I
think that has improved as the season's gone along.
Speaker 4 (07:54):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (07:54):
I mean, when you know you're going to get the
ball and you're going to get a shot, your shot
preparation is key. And I think that's what guys are
starting to understand, is like, you know, I know where
my spots are. I know that you know Player A
can make the pass to me, so you know I
can get to my spot, and when I get to
my spot, I'm going to get the ball. And I
think you know that's where the trust is being built.
(08:15):
It's like these are not like oh no or oh
wow shots right, these are shots we've executed. We moved
the ball, you know, we're in position uh and we're
ready to shoot it.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Jivy Wo was to play tonight against your issue.
Speaker 5 (08:27):
I mean, we just wanted to make it as difficult
as we possibly could. You know, he's so dynamic when
he touches the ball that we just tried our best
and not let him touch it. We tried to front
him all over the floor, deny him as much as
we possibly can, and just make it difficult.
Speaker 3 (08:42):
So that was JB.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Bickerstaff, and now JB turns his attention to tomorrow night's
matchup against the Philadelphia seventy six ers. Again, that's an
in season tournament game presented by bet Way. More to come.
When we come back. Kaylee Griffith, who does a great
job for Bally's Sports, will join us. We'll talk Caves
basketball with Kaylee, so stay with us. Cav's HQ presented
(09:06):
by Betway, continues after this on The Medical Mutual Cavaliers
audiovers Garland four on o'clock three, one o'clock lost the ball,
got it back, left in the lane, up and under
scoop that scorn DG. That looks crudely nice order left
of the lane, driving on.
Speaker 3 (09:26):
Stru strews lock the shot.
Speaker 2 (09:29):
Oooh my goodness, Struce left of the lane. Struce at
the other end. Struce comes down the lane. Drive scores
come back. Screwce on the loose straight border, junior around them,
oldly screen order left in the lane bank scores.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
I love this kid.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Oh, I never know what Marty Allen and Kurt McLaughlin
are gonna cook up. On the other side of the
window with the highlight montage as we welcome you back,
It's Cav's HQUE present by Bett way All along the
Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse, Tim Melicorn with you. Great
to have you with us and great to have joining
us on this week's edition of Cavs HQ. Kaylie Griffith
(10:13):
from Bally Sports does a marvelous job with the pregame
and postgame duties. Just a terrific reporter and a terrific
representative of the Cavaliers organization. And Kaylee, those highlights that
Kurt and Marty put together from last night's big win
over Denver here at Rocket Mortgage field House before we
(10:33):
delve into the overall picture of this Cavaliers basketball team. Boy,
how sweet of a win was that last night and
how big of a win to get the defending champs
here at Rocket Mortgage field House.
Speaker 4 (10:45):
Tim arguably the biggest win of the season and maybe
the most complete game we've seen from the Cavs this year.
And I don't know if I want to say was unexpected,
but a little bit without Donovan, Mitchell, karaslover tied Jerome
and Isaacacorro. You know, this team has has been preaching
that they just need to find some consistency and unfortunately
they've had to deal with the injury bugs so much.
So you come in defending champs are in town. Yes
(11:08):
they don't have Jamal Murray, but overall pretty healthy and
they've been riding really well and holding tight without Jamal
Murray in the mixt thing, you just didn't think that
that one was going to be as big and as
dominant as a victory as it was. But man, they
were clicking on all cylinders. The defense stepped up in
a big way. They essentially took Jokis out of the game,
(11:28):
and all the areas that Denver dominates it in terms
of assists and points in the pate, the Cavaliers got
the best of them in all of those categories. So
what a huge win, something this team could certainly build on.
And it's a big win going into the stretch of
games that they have because it doesn't really get any
easier after this.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
Cally, before we move on from last night's game, I
want to ask you, because all sorts of folks talking
about this today, and it deserves to be talked about.
Jared Allen's performance plus forty two in the plus minus
category and just battling Nikola jokicch as best he could,
and he did it in a Yeoman's like effort last night.
(12:09):
As you're watching that game and studying the game the
way I know you do, your thoughts on what Jared
did last night, I.
Speaker 4 (12:16):
Mean, how often do you see a plus forty two after?
Speaker 2 (12:19):
Right?
Speaker 9 (12:19):
Frairly?
Speaker 4 (12:20):
Ever, I mean JB said it too, He's like, I
don't know if I've ever seen that in my entire career.
So a hot tip to Jared Allen. This was going
to be a monster test for him regardless, a monster
test for the entire defense. You know, it doesn't fall
entirely on Ja in terms of needing to slow him down,
but he took on the challenge in more ways than one.
He frustrated Jokic in so many ways to pick up
(12:42):
that flagrant one down the stretch in that third quarter
to force that fifth ball. You could see that Jokic
was having such a hard time finding ways to be
successful around Jared Allen, and that's exactly what this team
requires of ja He is their defensive anchors. They rely
on him down there, and it was so great to
see him embrace that matchup the way he did. Because
(13:04):
Jokic is one of, if not you know, the best
player in the NBA and in the world right now.
He can do a little bit of everything. You knew
you couldn't take him completely out of the game, but
the Cavaliers and Jared Allen in particular, did such a
good job of limiting him in more ways than one.
So I had tip to Jared Allen of course going
down this stretch. He's got a lot of battles coming up.
(13:26):
He's got to Ellen de next game, bam At of
Bio after that, Anthony Davis following that. So to knock
off Jokic and the Nuggets was a huge win for
this team, but for Jared Allen in particular, I think
to show what he can do defensively and plus worys
you like you said, out of this world. I've never
seen it before. A lot of people around this organization,
(13:47):
I haven't seen it before. So if Jared Allen just
this phenomenal.
Speaker 2 (13:50):
Performance, and I think people tend to overlook the fact
that as you mentioned he's the lynchpin of the defense.
I mean, Evan Mobley is certainly elite defender, third and
NBA Defensive Player of the Year voting last year, and
first team All Defensive Team. But I think Jared Allen
anchors the defense.
Speaker 4 (14:10):
Would you agree with that, no question, and the entire
team does. When Jared missed those first few games, I
mean he missed all training camp as well, the team
continued to say, we're going to really know what we
are defensively when we get Jared Allen back because he
is our leader in there. And again, no question. Evan
Mobley in your two. Like you said, he was named
to the All Defensive Team, one of the best in
(14:32):
the NBA when it comes to defending players. But Jared
Allen has a little more experienced. He's that guy inside
and he just has a knack for finding ways to
allow this defense to flourish. And for him to embrace
that matchup last night with Jokic to help.
Speaker 9 (14:47):
Lead this group.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
He's the spark for this defense and he did again
an incredible job. A hat tip to JA plus forty two.
You can't there's no words unbelievable.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
Yeah, it was an incredible performance. Again, we're talking with
Kaylee Griffin from Bally Sports as he joins us here
on Cavs HQ presented by Bentway Kelly. The Calves of one,
three in a row, four out of five. What are
you seeing that this calvs team is doing to kind
of get on this nice little run.
Speaker 4 (15:16):
Well, Consistency has been the word that I think everyone
is preached around this team, and you know, when it
comes to lineups, they still haven't had that consistency. But
it feels like everyone is really buying in to their
roles now. And you know, it takes a second you
think that you bring back the majority of the core,
but you're adding some really key pieces. Max Druce, who's
a starter. He goes in a big addition this offseason
(15:38):
and he's had to kind of find his role. In
the beginning of the season, he was playing a little
bit more in terms of Jared Allen being out, Darius
Garland missing a few games, so Max had to play
a little bit more of the two. Now he's sliding
over and more into the three. Say, with George Niang
off the bench, you know Sam Merrill being thrown into
the mix last night, I have about Craig Porter. We can
(15:59):
go on and on about his performances as of late,
especially having to step in with tide Rome missing so
much time to the ankle injury. But consistency, you know,
while they haven't completely found that yet with the roster,
it feels like guys are really embracing their roles now.
And I think defensively, you know, this is a team
that would have had the best defense in the NBA
season ago. They had some bumps in the road in
(16:20):
terms of their defense to start, but over the last
stretch of four or five games, it feels like the
defense has picked up in a huge way. They're all
embracing their roles individually and as a team, and when
this team plays defense, they're.
Speaker 9 (16:33):
One of the best.
Speaker 2 (16:34):
Terrific stuff. Kelly Griffin our guests on Cavs HQ presented
by Betway. We're going to take a quick time out.
We've got a lot more ground to cover, so stay
with us. We're coming back after this the Medical Mutual
Cavaliers Audio vers.
Speaker 10 (16:54):
Earlier this month, the Cleveland Cavaliers held their eighth annual
Trees for Three event in partnership with the Davy Tree
Expert Company. Leaders and volunteers from the Calves Davy Tree,
City of Garfield Heights and Cleveland Metroparks gather to recognize
the distribution and planting of nearly five hundred trees as
a result of the four hundred and eighty six three
pointers made at Rocket Morgan Fieldhouse by the Calves in
(17:16):
the twenty twenty two to twenty three regular season. Four
hundred and eighty six trees will be planted by the
end of November Calves in the Community. This is brought
to you by Discount Drug March. We'll be back with
the second half of Calves HQ, presented by Betway right
after this on the Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audiovers.
Speaker 3 (17:39):
This is Calves HQ and the Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audiovers
everything you need to know about the Calves and the NBA.
Here again are Tim Alcorn and Jim Chones.
Speaker 2 (17:50):
Welcome you back to Calves HQ. Jim with the week off,
but you've got me yours truly Tim Alcorn and again
a special guest as Kallie Griffin from Sports joins us
this week as we talk Cavalier basketball. Calves Off tonight
and then Wow back to back, followed by a back
to back Tuesday night in Philly. Wednesday night, Cavaliers back
(18:14):
home to take on the Miami Heat, and then a
couple of days off, and then another back to back
Saturday and Sunday. Lebron and the Lakers will be here
on Saturday, and then on Sunday at Rock and Mortgage
Field House, it will be the Toronto Raptors in town.
So a busy week ahead for the Cavaliers. Kaylie, great
to have you with us. And let's look at this
Cavs team overall. As I mentioned before, we took the
(18:37):
break there three out of four, four of their last five.
But how do you size this team up as we
now go into this tough stretch with two back to
backs here in the next six days.
Speaker 4 (18:49):
I think we're still learning a little bit about this team,
and I think it's safe to say that it's okay
to say that after thirteen games because of the amount
of injuries that this team has had to deal with.
So I mean, team just played the Trailblazers and the
Pistons and not quite the injury bug that those teams have,
but hey, they've been missing at least two guys every
single game this season. And a lot of those matchups
(19:11):
have the cabs of been without a starter. So we're
learning about this group as a whole. But I think
things they're progressing in a really positive way because, like
we saw last night, all hands on deck and every
player stepped up in a big way. Like we mentioned before,
we talked about a little bit, players are understanding their roles,
Max Struce, George Nang, They're finding their groove within this system,
(19:33):
and we're learning a lot about some of the young
players as well. Craig Porter Junior in particular. You know,
he's a five year college player. He comes in first
time under the big lights on the NBA stage, and
he hasn't missed a beat. If anything, he has thrived
under this pressure. So I think we're learning that this
Cavaliers team really is deep what we hoped for at
(19:54):
the beginning of the season, and as they continue to
understand the system that's being built under had coach JB. Bickerstaff,
they're just continuing to find their groove and we're seeing
it come to right now.
Speaker 2 (20:05):
Kaylee. We talked about him briefly before the first segment ended,
and then of course you just brought him up again.
But let's delve a little bit deeper into Max Struce.
I think Max has been better than advertised, and there
were high expectations when the Cavs made the sign in
trade with Miami. Talk a little bit about what you've
seen from Max Struce.
Speaker 4 (20:25):
No question, Max Strus has been just a phenomenal addition.
And you knew seeing him in Miami in the finals
a season ago, being a starter on that team, he
fit right into that system. But he really did fit
into that Miami Heat system. So I think there were
questions of what it would look like once he got
out of Miami. I think any question has been answered
(20:47):
now that he's been in Cleveland for this stretch of
thirteen games. He has been so incredible. One he can
shoot the ball, we can see and score, but he's
not just a shooter. And I think he's been trying
to break out of that mold that people just describe
him as that we've seen his athleticism. He doesn't want
to be called sneaky athletic anymore. He wants to be
just known as an athletic player. He's shown that on
(21:07):
a nightly basis. But I think before last night's game,
the four games before that, he had led the team
in a different category every night. One night it was rebounds,
one night it was assists, one night it was three
point shooting, and then the next night it was steals.
If that doesn't show you the versatility of this guy,
I don't know what does. He's not just a score,
he's not just a shooter. He can do a little
(21:29):
bit of everything. And how fortunate are the Cavs to
have that player slotted right into their starting five. Max
has been incredible to start the season. You can rely
on him in so many different ways. He can play
a number of different positions and it's been just phenomenal
to watch him grow and flourish so far with this team.
Speaker 2 (21:48):
Yeah, there's no doubt about that. Again, we're talking with
Kaylee Griffins. He's from Bally Sports. It's great to have
her on keVs HQ and Kaylee, we mentioned that stretch
of games coming up back to back Tomorrow and Wednesday
with the Sixers and the Heat, and then Saturday and
Sunday with the Lakers and the Raptors. But let's start
with the game tomorrow night against Philadelphia. Now that's an
in season tournament game, just your thoughts, and not necessarily
(22:12):
specifically with the Calves, but the in season tournament and
how it's looked and how it's felt so far just
NBA league wide to you.
Speaker 4 (22:22):
I think the first game of the tournament, no one
really knew what to expect because obviously it's brand new
this season where players are going to be excited about it.
Were they going to buy into the hype? And I
think the Cavaliers, after they fail to the Pacers in
that first n season tournament game, realized, oh okay, we're
taking this seriously. Now we want to be part of this,
(22:42):
and I think we saw that in their last n
Season tournament game. So this is going to be a
big one because the Pacers are leading in a Group A,
but if the Caviners can take down the Sixers, they're
right back in the micks. And let's not forget that
there's one team coming out of each group, but there's
also a wild card team coming out of each conference.
So the Cavaliers, if they win this game, they're right
in the mix to still go on to those quarterfinals.
(23:05):
So I think there's gonna be a lot of excitement,
a lot of hype anytime these two teams meet up.
It's a big game. George meant going back to Chiley
for the very first time, He's going to be excited
to play there. The Sixers have been really good, you know,
losing James Harden has not hurt them one bit. Joel
Embiid is the reigning MVP. Tyree's Naxy has been playing
(23:26):
out of his mind. So it's gonna be a tough
matter for both teams. Hopefully the Cavs have a few
healthy bodies available for them too. But you know, the
n season tournament I think has lived up to the
hype that the league was hoping for it. These players
are buying in. There's some incentive down the road, and
it asks them early season excitement for the fans as well,
which I think is really cool.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
I would totally agree. And I think the further along
we go into it, as you get into hey, is
our team gonna get out of this group or will
our team get a wild card in those knockout rounds,
I think fan interest will even build from that point, oh.
Speaker 4 (24:01):
Without a doubt. I mean, you want your team to
be going to Vegas, you want them to have the
opportunity to play for this Cup. And it's been, you know,
awesome to see. The courts have been crazy. I have
the opinions on the court. Yeah. The Cavaliers though very
I would say came. I would describe their court as
tame compared to some that we saw, like the Pacers.
The first and season tournament game for the Cavaliers, that
(24:24):
was just wild to watch from our perspective. But yeah,
I totally agree the fans are bought in.
Speaker 1 (24:30):
Now.
Speaker 4 (24:31):
I've had multiple conversations with people who really find themselves
buying in. They want to see are the gags gonna
come out of this this group? So the excitement is there,
and I think the Cavaliers players are feeling it too.
We heard from Darius Garland. He did the postgame interview
with Serena after the Pistons win, and he said it,
you know, this is an in season tournament game. It
means a little bit more. So it's really cool to
(24:51):
see that all the teams and the players are buying
into it, just as much as it feels.
Speaker 9 (24:56):
Like the fans are totally agree.
Speaker 2 (24:58):
Hey, before I let you go, you mentioned as you
watch the Indiana game from your perspective. As you watch
the game, Kayley, do you, what is the perspective that
you're looking for insofar as analyzing the game. I'm a
play by play game. I just look at it play
by play. Jim Jones my partner, he analyzes literally play
(25:18):
by play as a studio host. Do you watch it
a little bit differently?
Speaker 4 (25:24):
I would say a little bit. You know, obviously the
play by play matters a lot, But when I'm working
next to an analyst, whether it's Campy Russell or Austin Carr,
you know, I try to find points in the game,
trends that they can expand on once we get into
the post game. So, like I mentioned to you before
when I talked about Max Scruz finding those little details
where hey, he led the team in four different categories
(25:45):
over four different games. That's something that jumps out to
me because then I can lead to those guys and say, hey,
what's allowing Max to be so effective in a number
of different ways. Obviously, the play by play matters when
we're breaking down a close game down the street, the
Cavaliers pull off a big victory, Yeah we got to
go back and we got to take a look at
those last few minutes. But overall, a lot of the
(26:07):
trends matter a little bit more to me in terms
of how things came together, because it makes it easier
for my analysts on set with me to break down
the game as a whole and to provide some perspective
for the viewers at home in terms of why things
are happening.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
That's great stuff. Will you do it brilliantly? You just
do a marvelous job with your work with Bally's and hey,
you are great here as well. We appreciate you stopping
by for this week's edition of caves h Q.
Speaker 4 (26:35):
Oh, Tim, thanks so much for having me. I appreciate
it all good.
Speaker 2 (26:38):
That's Kaylie Griffin again. She does unbelievable work for bally Sports.
We thank her for appearing this week on caves HQ.
We'll take a quick time out. More to come, so
stay with us Cave's h Q presented by Betway. We'll
continue after this on the Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse.
Speaker 3 (27:00):
Maxie from Well Beyond the Arcanae ty Reeese Maxie from
just Inside the Big Logo at Center Court. A thirty
footer Maxi from Dude Joel with a rip through rises
along two up front got it out that his hard Guard.
We're two terrorists going in download right a bank to
the Sixers are picking the nets apart. And I've used
(27:24):
that phrase more than once.
Speaker 2 (27:27):
Welcome Back Cavs HQ presented by Betwey on the Medical
Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse. Again our dynamic duo on the
other side of the window, putting together that montage of
one Tom McGinnis, the radio play by play voice of
the Philadelphia seventy six Ers. He was busy yesterday afternoon
(27:47):
with those calls as Philadelphia trounced the Nets one twenty
one to ninety nine. And of course I had the
game last night between the Cavs and the Nuggets. So
we're both a little scratchy here as we conduct this conversation,
but we're both looking forward to tomorrow night's end season
tournament matchup between the Calves and the Sixers. Tom has
(28:09):
always great calls and great to have you with us
on Calves HQ.
Speaker 9 (28:12):
I appreciate it, Tim, Thank you. Yeah, big game for
the Sixers, not just the Calves Tuesday, but they traveled
to Minnesota, who's been one of the best teams in
the West on Wednesday, so a bit of a difficult
back to back, but so far, so good, great start
under Nick Nurse in his first year here in Philadelphia.
Speaker 2 (28:29):
Well, let's delve into that ten in three coming out
of the blocks. And of course there was a lot
of drama early with the whole James Harden scenario and
how it would unfold first year head coach and Nick
Nurse to what do you owe this ten and three
start after dealing with all.
Speaker 9 (28:45):
That, Well, I think for anybody that follows the NBA,
you know, it's pretty clear that this opened the runway,
shall we say, for MAXI the hardened thing. It really,
as much as it was like a distraction on the outside,
obviously something was gonna give it. Really, they had Plan
A if he was with the team, and Plan B
if he was not, And mostly it was Plan B
(29:07):
because he wasn't there that much, although he did practice
and he was great. James Harden is still a very
good player, just maybe not the player that he was
five years ago. And Max, he's blossomed. As I said,
we're watching his superstar right before our eyes, from a
really good player to the potential being an All Star
and a superstar in the NBA. Just a great young
(29:29):
player with speed, that's hard to match. And then as
you heard that call, the ability to hit the breeze
at a forty percent clip, and he's become a point guard,
which he had never done before at any point in
his high school, not the one year of Kentucky and
certainly not in his first three years with the Sixers.
And then Tim, we get the Nurse. This is what happens.
(29:49):
You get moving along and you haven't even mentioned it
B yet, but we'll get to the big villa. But
Nurse has been unbelievable, certainly for the Sitzers competing against
Toronto as a division rival and in the playoffs in
nineteen and then two years ago, you really got a
pretty good he's a really good coach twenty twenty, Coach
the Year championship with the Raptors in twenty nineteen, and
(30:10):
just really a brilliant strategizer. And he might put us
over the top. And the Sixers have been, as you know,
been knocked out of the playoffs in the semi finals
of the East for the last several years, so we'll
see a long way to go. Thirteen games in and
INB has again averaging almost thirty two points per game,
leading the League in scoring. Last night in the Brooklyn win,
(30:31):
a twenty point win, it was the fourth time he
hasn't even had to play in the fourth quarter.
Speaker 7 (30:35):
Wow.
Speaker 9 (30:35):
And there was another game against Toronto in Philadelphia where
he got in, but he barely. He almost didn't need
to play in that game. So the Sixers, their point
differential at large is great, really good start. A bit
of an unexpected start for the Sixers to be at
this point this early in the season.
Speaker 2 (30:50):
Tom, I want to circle back real quickly to Maxi
because I mentioned to a few people last year when
Donovan Mitchell came to the Cavaliers out in Utah, he
was hiding in playing sight. You didn't really know a
lot about how good he was. You taught he didn't
get a lot of TNT and ESPN games and that
sort of thing. And I think the same can be
(31:11):
said somewhat for Tyrese Maxi. When you're on a team
with Joel Embiid and at the time James Harden and
you're coming into your own you're kind of that overlooked guy.
But as you mentioned, boy, he has a ceiling of
being a superstar. Agreed.
Speaker 9 (31:28):
Yeah, And man, it's also like he shows deference as
a player. You know, like did he even have minutes
when he was out there with maybe the second unit
or because he didn't even start up until last year,
there was a lot of times he wasn't even a starter.
And then when when Harden's out there, as you know,
he's blowing firmanent and Max was playing often they were
(31:50):
both Joel is a huge support. I mean, he's he
wants Maxi to blossom into that superstar and Harden was
really a good support of Nazi as well. But you
know what it gets back to, like he's a worker.
He's one of these guys that and going back not
just this year or last year, but his father was
a you know, his father was a collegiate player and
(32:12):
he grew up just outside of Dallas, and he realized
he wanted to be a basketball player, and they hired it,
and he was with all these different teams, and he's
one of these guys that's in the gym like six
days a week, and he's gotten better this whole entire time.
You watch these finishes, you're like, how does this mean
do that? It's like he's flying off a mini tramp
out of control, but he's making them, like the degree
(32:34):
of difficulties incomparable, and yet it's it's off the wrong foot.
It's all these shots he's practiced, and so the speed
is hard to match. As you know, you could talk
to it about whether your players you can show them,
but until you get out there, it's really he gets
it in fifty and lookout, he can get by most people.
(32:54):
You know, all these players, including Mitchell have the step back.
Well Maxi when he's and this is available to every
player in terms of you know, dribbling and then taking
a back dribble and shine scripty and creating space, but
Maxi does it with such unbelievable accomplishment that he's treated
like four on five set of space and he's ended up.
He ends up taking a wide open three. So it's
(33:16):
kind of like a pick your poison deal. And then
he's playing too many Listen, Bud and his assists, that's instinctive.
His assistant turnover rations off the hook that there were
several games he had no turnovers and you're looking to
have six or eight asses or ten assists, So you're right.
I mean, it's urgent, kind of neat to see, you know,
it's like I'm sometimes green with envy. When I look
across and you see another team like the Calves, and
(33:39):
I'm like, oh man, unless the kid's gonna be great,
you get all jealous. Well, guess what the Sixers found
one in ty Reson back.
Speaker 2 (33:47):
Yeah, he is just phenomenal. Again, we're talking with Tom mcguinnis.
He's the terrific radio play by play voice for the
Philadelphia seventy six Ers, Caves and seventy six Ers tomorrow night,
all along the Medical Mutual Cavil audiovers.
Speaker 3 (34:01):
Tom, do you get.
Speaker 2 (34:03):
The sense and just being with the team day in
and day out, that maybe there's a little chip on
the shoulder because everybody was talking about Boston, Milwaukee, Boston,
Milwaukee and then Philly, then the Calves and the other
teams maybe in that second tier. Do you sense that
your guys are saying, Hey, don't just talk about Boston
and Milwaukee.
Speaker 9 (34:25):
For sure, and Boston is our nemesis. You know, we
talked about Toronto defeating the Sixeries, like the Sixers cannot
get past Boston. You know, I go to our broadcasting brethren,
Mark Boyle from the Pacers years ago in the nineties
when the Pacers couldn't get by the Knicks, and they
finally did with Reggie Miller and Crewe. He said, ding dong,
the Wicked Witch is dead. Speaking of the Pacers finally
(34:47):
beating New York, that's kind of how we haven't we
haven't rung that bell yet. We haven't went away the
Wicked Witch Boston and they've had the Sixers numbers, they've
they've knocked them out of the playoffs three times in
the last five or six years. Know that. But yes,
the chip and there's always you want that as a team.
You want to be able to prove some just like
these players are so ultra competitive, they've all got some
(35:10):
they create things to be motivated about beyond their extraordinary
skills and drive that put them in this position. But
as a team, you gotta you kind of want that
whatever it comes, whatever format comes in, and it might
change as the season goes alone. But what I would
add was it's the chemistry and the camaraderie. Like you know,
all these players and basically teams go out to Los
(35:32):
Angeles and our guys were out there and they're informal workouts,
but our team was working out in the morning at
UCLA at another facility, and then they go to the
so called Rico runs that you've put in the gym there.
It's to me, it's awesome to walk into the gym
and I was a Notre Dame fan growing up where
John Wooden crafted his teams. Are you kidding me? We're
going into the lab or something the greatest players in
(35:55):
the history group played and that's where those Rico hines
kind of organizes the run. That's where the NBA shows
up in the summer. Our guys, like I said, we're
together and they've got everything you've talked about when you
hear a winning team talk about trust and loyalty and
doing it for the all those things that sound like
the cliches but are always part of a championship, the
(36:17):
fabric of a team that wins right whatever level it is,
whatever sporting is. So it's that. And then you know
you mentioned the heart and situation. They got back four
players that all fit, the first of whom is the
Nico Batoum. Now he's been out a little bit with
personal issues going back to Los Angeles, but he was
back in the last yesterday. He made one shot, it
(36:37):
was a three, and he was plus twenty five. He's
one of those players that we all seen for so
many years. He's probably the most decorated international player ever
from France, and he fits basketball IQ of multiple positions,
can guard, he makes a free, he makes the right
pass and all those things, and he's fit right in.
And Covington is kind of that sort of player as well,
(36:59):
a three and DPS guy Boris gives you some toughness.
They added Patrick Studley, which wasn't deal, So it's kind
of all coming together. And yet again, you know, at
this stage for the Sixers, it's not what have you
done for me lately? It's what are you gonna do
for me in May and April? And maybe Lord Williams you.
Speaker 2 (37:18):
Well, that's great stuff. Tom, will appreciate you spending some
time with us. Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow night.
And I think we're gonna have a heck of a
battle on our hand at the Wells Fargo Center. But
we appreciate you spending some time with us on caves
HQ for sure.
Speaker 9 (37:33):
Thank you, Tim, good luck and we'll see it tomorrow.
Speaker 2 (37:35):
Sounds great to me. That's Tom McGinnis, the radio play
by play voice of the Philadelphia seventy six Ers, and
that's who's up next for the Calves, Caves and Sixers
tomorrow night in an nd season tournament game presented by
that Way. We'll be back and we'll wrap up this
week's edition of caves HQ following this on the Medical
Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse. That's gonna do it for this
(37:59):
week's edition en of calvs HQ, presented by Betway Fun Show.
Huge thank you goes out to Kayleie Griffith for joining
us from Bally Sports. Tom McGinnis, the radio play by
play voice of the Philadelphia seventy six Ers. Let's not
forget the dynamic duo Kurt McLoughlin Marty Allen on the
other side of the window. Biggest things goes to you,
(38:19):
the listeners. Hope you enjoyed it. I'll be back with
you again tomorrow night from Philly when the Calves take
on the seventy six Ers. That game will tip off
at seven point thirty Huntington tip Off show at seven,
all along the Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse. So until then,
so long, everybody, five
Welcome to Calves HQ presented by Betway. Thank you for
joining us on the Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse. Here
are your hosts, Tim Alcorn and Jim Jones.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
From the Cavaliers production studios at Rock and Mortgage Field
House in downtown Cleveland. Hi again, everybody, and welcome to
Calves HQ. Tim Elcorn with you this week. Jim Chones
has this show off, so I'll be flying solo, but
you know what, I have the helping hands of the
Dynamic Duo Senior producer Kurt McLaughlin technical director Marty Allen,
(00:46):
so we'll get you through this. And boy, what a
fun night to bring you Calves HQ presented by Betway.
Calves coming off that big win last night at home,
they knock out the defending world champion Denver Nuggets one
twenty one to one oh nine. Cavs now with a
modest three game winning streak and they've won four of
(01:06):
their last five. Tough stretch coming up though, back to
back back to backs Tuesday and Wednesday in Philly and
then home to Miami and then Saturday and Sunday two
straight home games with the Lakers and Toronto. Well on
this week's edition of Cavs HQUBE. We're gonna have some
fun conversations. Kaylie Griffin from Bally Sports. We'll drop by
(01:29):
and pay us a visit, and then with the game
tomorrow night in Philly, we'll talk to their radio play
by play man Tom McGuinness. So stay with us. Cavs
HQB presented by Betway, continues after this on the Medical
Mutual Cavaliers Audio verse four on o'clock.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
Wait, just heaves it at the basket and hit it.
Speaker 2 (01:54):
See wait, what's literally falling into his teammates?
Speaker 1 (01:59):
Just it at the hoop?
Speaker 2 (02:02):
Swish, heaven turns Baptis Strews.
Speaker 4 (02:04):
What don powel?
Speaker 3 (02:06):
Oh what a feed by? Strews stolen my order?
Speaker 4 (02:09):
Oh by he climbed the.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
Ladder at the half court line, powe with two hands
at the other end.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Oh my, I'm starting to have an infatuation with Craig
Porter Junior. This young man is special. He is and
quite a performance on Sunday night and the Cavaliers one
twenty one to one oh nine win over the Denver Nuggets.
And now the Cavs hit the road. It's a quick
one game road trip Tuesday night, they'll be in Philly
(02:41):
to take on the seventy six ers. That's an end
season tournament matchup presented by Betway. After that big win
over the defending champs last night, JB. Bickerstaff met with
the media and he was a happy head coach.
Speaker 5 (02:53):
We did a great job executing a game plan. I
thought Jared Allen was phenomenal taking the challenge. You know,
Garden one of the best players in our game, most
versatile players in our game. He accepted the challenge. You know,
he was physical, he was intelligent, made him work for everything.
And then as a group offensively, I thought we did
a great job of just sharing the ball, playing together
(03:17):
and taking what was there. I think we found, you know,
the pick and roll game, how it was working and
how we could create advantages, and then everybody got involved
from there.
Speaker 6 (03:25):
As well as as much of a mental game as
it is a physical game. And to show that Jared
could get into the head of Nicola Jokic, who's, as
you're saying, one of the better players in the league.
And you also have players like Craig Porter Junior who
have that mentality to just stay focused. What is it
like to know that you have a younger squad, but
a more mature squad in the same way.
Speaker 5 (03:43):
I mean, it's comforting you know that you got guys
out there that you can trust. You know, it's it's
important as a group that they trust each other. And
I think that's what that maturity leads to. That maturity
leads to guys understanding their position, their roles, where they're
going to be on the floor, how they you know,
protect one another on both sides of the floor, how
they put each other in positions of strength offensively. So
(04:07):
I think, you know, the maturity is a huge thing,
and that's where the growth starts. You have guys who
understand and that's the foundation.
Speaker 6 (04:15):
Great games for Darius Garland and also got his backup
man in Craig Porter Jr. Doing his thing. How did
you grade there for performances today?
Speaker 5 (04:23):
I think both of them did a great job of
just taking what was there. You know, again, the pick
and roll game was really really good for us. It
created a lot of opportunities for both those guys. But
I thought they both were attack minded and it wasn't
just on the offensive end of the floor. I think
when you're the point guard of the league, guard and
you're at the front of the defense all the time.
(04:43):
You know, the people behind you, they see you and
they carry your energy. So if you're not getting after it,
you know, it's it can bring the group down. But
I thought both of them did a great job being
the head of the snake defensively putting pressure on guys,
you know, defeating screens and those types of things.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
Sam Amiko, who's are TV seem like tail and two
halves for Jared at least statistically.
Speaker 5 (05:05):
What do you think, you know.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
What did he contribute there, particularly in.
Speaker 5 (05:08):
The second half, what the cod was, I mean the
pick and roll game. You know, they changed a little
bit how they were covering it and went into a
deeper drop and that allowed him to get the ball
in the pocket. And you know he's good with both
hands in that pocket. And I thought Darius and all
the guards, the guys that were attacking, you know, once
they saw that big back in that space for Jared,
(05:29):
they just kept getting them the ball. So you know,
we've got a group of guys again that you know,
are learning and figuring out the game, but mostly how
they can help each other. And the simplest thing, you
know that we try to get across the guys just
throw the ball to the open man. And tonight and
that second half, Jared was the open man quite a bit.
Speaker 7 (05:47):
How much stock do you put in plus minus?
Speaker 5 (05:50):
That's an amazing number. I haven't seen a plus forty
two in you know, twenty nine minutes. That's a heck
of a number. You know, we normally say the plus
minuses for agents to negotiate contracts. But that's a heck
of a number.
Speaker 7 (06:05):
And I know it's only two games, but Craig Porter
had quite a weekend. And then you've got depth at
the guard spot when everybody's healthy, which is another matter,
I guess, but has he has he shown you enough
to where you feel like you can trust him and
play him, like even if you have healthy bodies?
Speaker 5 (06:25):
Yeah, I mean obviously, like that position is kind of
crowded when you are healthy and guys are playing, you know,
but what it gives you an opportunity is like you
don't have to stretch guys out right, like you can
play guys, you know a reasonable amount of minutes because
you have a guy that you can put in and
you know, what we've been testing is how he plays
alongside Darius so We've been able to see that these
(06:46):
past couple games, so now he could kind of play
either guard spot with those guys. So you know, again
we do have a lot of guards and wings when
we are healthy. But I mean, he's proven that he's
capable and he can help us.
Speaker 8 (06:58):
Spencer Davis Kasnsider, you kind of the words take what
they give you. But the decisiveness when the guys had
the ball in their hands, it seemed like they were
really quick processing tonight. How vital is that when you're
trying to get an offense to work together the way
it did tonight.
Speaker 5 (07:12):
I Megan, I hate to oversimplify it, but like in
the NBA, if you just throw the ball to the
open man, good things are probably going to happen for you.
And you know, as easy as that sounds like, it's
something that you have to continue to work on. But
you know, with the amount of guys and the threats
that we have here and what they're capable of, if
you just throw the ball to the open man, it's
(07:34):
as easy as you can make it, and then the
defenses have to make tough decisions from you know, now
do I rotate? You know, how do we change a coverage,
what adjustments do we make so you know, our thing
is just keep throwing the ball to the open man
and make it as simple as we can.
Speaker 8 (07:47):
Specifically, the shooters like as soon as they got the ball,
they were throwing it up like that's something too. I
think that has improved as the season's gone along.
Speaker 4 (07:54):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (07:54):
I mean, when you know you're going to get the
ball and you're going to get a shot, your shot
preparation is key. And I think that's what guys are
starting to understand, is like, you know, I know where
my spots are. I know that you know Player A
can make the pass to me, so you know I
can get to my spot, and when I get to
my spot, I'm going to get the ball. And I
think you know that's where the trust is being built.
(08:15):
It's like these are not like oh no or oh
wow shots right, these are shots we've executed. We moved
the ball, you know, we're in position uh and we're
ready to shoot it.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Jivy Wo was to play tonight against your issue.
Speaker 5 (08:27):
I mean, we just wanted to make it as difficult
as we possibly could. You know, he's so dynamic when
he touches the ball that we just tried our best
and not let him touch it. We tried to front
him all over the floor, deny him as much as
we possibly can, and just make it difficult.
Speaker 3 (08:42):
So that was JB.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Bickerstaff, and now JB turns his attention to tomorrow night's
matchup against the Philadelphia seventy six ers. Again, that's an
in season tournament game presented by bet Way. More to come.
When we come back. Kaylee Griffith, who does a great
job for Bally's Sports, will join us. We'll talk Caves
basketball with Kaylee, so stay with us. Cav's HQ presented
(09:06):
by Betway, continues after this on The Medical Mutual Cavaliers
audiovers Garland four on o'clock three, one o'clock lost the ball,
got it back, left in the lane, up and under
scoop that scorn DG. That looks crudely nice order left
of the lane, driving on.
Speaker 3 (09:26):
Stru strews lock the shot.
Speaker 2 (09:29):
Oooh my goodness, Struce left of the lane. Struce at
the other end. Struce comes down the lane. Drive scores
come back. Screwce on the loose straight border, junior around them,
oldly screen order left in the lane bank scores.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
I love this kid.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Oh, I never know what Marty Allen and Kurt McLaughlin
are gonna cook up. On the other side of the
window with the highlight montage as we welcome you back,
It's Cav's HQUE present by Bett way All along the
Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse, Tim Melicorn with you. Great
to have you with us and great to have joining
us on this week's edition of Cavs HQ. Kaylie Griffith
(10:13):
from Bally Sports does a marvelous job with the pregame
and postgame duties. Just a terrific reporter and a terrific
representative of the Cavaliers organization. And Kaylee, those highlights that
Kurt and Marty put together from last night's big win
over Denver here at Rocket Mortgage field House before we
(10:33):
delve into the overall picture of this Cavaliers basketball team. Boy,
how sweet of a win was that last night and
how big of a win to get the defending champs
here at Rocket Mortgage field House.
Speaker 4 (10:45):
Tim arguably the biggest win of the season and maybe
the most complete game we've seen from the Cavs this year.
And I don't know if I want to say was unexpected,
but a little bit without Donovan, Mitchell, karaslover tied Jerome
and Isaacacorro. You know, this team has has been preaching
that they just need to find some consistency and unfortunately
they've had to deal with the injury bugs so much.
So you come in defending champs are in town. Yes
(11:08):
they don't have Jamal Murray, but overall pretty healthy and
they've been riding really well and holding tight without Jamal
Murray in the mixt thing, you just didn't think that
that one was going to be as big and as
dominant as a victory as it was. But man, they
were clicking on all cylinders. The defense stepped up in
a big way. They essentially took Jokis out of the game,
(11:28):
and all the areas that Denver dominates it in terms
of assists and points in the pate, the Cavaliers got
the best of them in all of those categories. So
what a huge win, something this team could certainly build on.
And it's a big win going into the stretch of
games that they have because it doesn't really get any
easier after this.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
Cally, before we move on from last night's game, I
want to ask you, because all sorts of folks talking
about this today, and it deserves to be talked about.
Jared Allen's performance plus forty two in the plus minus
category and just battling Nikola jokicch as best he could,
and he did it in a Yeoman's like effort last night.
(12:09):
As you're watching that game and studying the game the
way I know you do, your thoughts on what Jared
did last night, I.
Speaker 4 (12:16):
Mean, how often do you see a plus forty two after?
Speaker 2 (12:19):
Right?
Speaker 9 (12:19):
Frairly?
Speaker 4 (12:20):
Ever, I mean JB said it too, He's like, I
don't know if I've ever seen that in my entire career.
So a hot tip to Jared Allen. This was going
to be a monster test for him regardless, a monster
test for the entire defense. You know, it doesn't fall
entirely on Ja in terms of needing to slow him down,
but he took on the challenge in more ways than one.
He frustrated Jokic in so many ways to pick up
(12:42):
that flagrant one down the stretch in that third quarter
to force that fifth ball. You could see that Jokic
was having such a hard time finding ways to be
successful around Jared Allen, and that's exactly what this team
requires of ja He is their defensive anchors. They rely
on him down there, and it was so great to
see him embrace that matchup the way he did. Because
(13:04):
Jokic is one of, if not you know, the best
player in the NBA and in the world right now.
He can do a little bit of everything. You knew
you couldn't take him completely out of the game, but
the Cavaliers and Jared Allen in particular, did such a
good job of limiting him in more ways than one.
So I had tip to Jared Allen of course going
down this stretch. He's got a lot of battles coming up.
(13:26):
He's got to Ellen de next game, bam At of
Bio after that, Anthony Davis following that. So to knock
off Jokic and the Nuggets was a huge win for
this team, but for Jared Allen in particular, I think
to show what he can do defensively and plus worys
you like you said, out of this world. I've never
seen it before. A lot of people around this organization,
(13:47):
I haven't seen it before. So if Jared Allen just
this phenomenal.
Speaker 2 (13:50):
Performance, and I think people tend to overlook the fact
that as you mentioned he's the lynchpin of the defense.
I mean, Evan Mobley is certainly elite defender, third and
NBA Defensive Player of the Year voting last year, and
first team All Defensive Team. But I think Jared Allen
anchors the defense.
Speaker 4 (14:10):
Would you agree with that, no question, and the entire
team does. When Jared missed those first few games, I
mean he missed all training camp as well, the team
continued to say, we're going to really know what we
are defensively when we get Jared Allen back because he
is our leader in there. And again, no question. Evan
Mobley in your two. Like you said, he was named
to the All Defensive Team, one of the best in
(14:32):
the NBA when it comes to defending players. But Jared
Allen has a little more experienced. He's that guy inside
and he just has a knack for finding ways to
allow this defense to flourish. And for him to embrace
that matchup last night with Jokic to help.
Speaker 9 (14:47):
Lead this group.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
He's the spark for this defense and he did again
an incredible job. A hat tip to JA plus forty two.
You can't there's no words unbelievable.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
Yeah, it was an incredible performance. Again, we're talking with
Kaylee Griffin from Bally Sports as he joins us here
on Cavs HQ presented by Bentway Kelly. The Calves of one,
three in a row, four out of five. What are
you seeing that this calvs team is doing to kind
of get on this nice little run.
Speaker 4 (15:16):
Well, Consistency has been the word that I think everyone
is preached around this team, and you know, when it
comes to lineups, they still haven't had that consistency. But
it feels like everyone is really buying in to their
roles now. And you know, it takes a second you
think that you bring back the majority of the core,
but you're adding some really key pieces. Max Druce, who's
a starter. He goes in a big addition this offseason
(15:38):
and he's had to kind of find his role. In
the beginning of the season, he was playing a little
bit more in terms of Jared Allen being out, Darius
Garland missing a few games, so Max had to play
a little bit more of the two. Now he's sliding
over and more into the three. Say, with George Niang
off the bench, you know Sam Merrill being thrown into
the mix last night, I have about Craig Porter. We can
(15:59):
go on and on about his performances as of late,
especially having to step in with tide Rome missing so
much time to the ankle injury. But consistency, you know,
while they haven't completely found that yet with the roster,
it feels like guys are really embracing their roles now.
And I think defensively, you know, this is a team
that would have had the best defense in the NBA
season ago. They had some bumps in the road in
(16:20):
terms of their defense to start, but over the last
stretch of four or five games, it feels like the
defense has picked up in a huge way. They're all
embracing their roles individually and as a team, and when
this team plays defense, they're.
Speaker 9 (16:33):
One of the best.
Speaker 2 (16:34):
Terrific stuff. Kelly Griffin our guests on Cavs HQ presented
by Betway. We're going to take a quick time out.
We've got a lot more ground to cover, so stay
with us. We're coming back after this the Medical Mutual
Cavaliers Audio vers.
Speaker 10 (16:54):
Earlier this month, the Cleveland Cavaliers held their eighth annual
Trees for Three event in partnership with the Davy Tree
Expert Company. Leaders and volunteers from the Calves Davy Tree,
City of Garfield Heights and Cleveland Metroparks gather to recognize
the distribution and planting of nearly five hundred trees as
a result of the four hundred and eighty six three
pointers made at Rocket Morgan Fieldhouse by the Calves in
(17:16):
the twenty twenty two to twenty three regular season. Four
hundred and eighty six trees will be planted by the
end of November Calves in the Community. This is brought
to you by Discount Drug March. We'll be back with
the second half of Calves HQ, presented by Betway right
after this on the Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audiovers.
Speaker 3 (17:39):
This is Calves HQ and the Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audiovers
everything you need to know about the Calves and the NBA.
Here again are Tim Alcorn and Jim Chones.
Speaker 2 (17:50):
Welcome you back to Calves HQ. Jim with the week off,
but you've got me yours truly Tim Alcorn and again
a special guest as Kallie Griffin from Sports joins us
this week as we talk Cavalier basketball. Calves Off tonight
and then Wow back to back, followed by a back
to back Tuesday night in Philly. Wednesday night, Cavaliers back
(18:14):
home to take on the Miami Heat, and then a
couple of days off, and then another back to back
Saturday and Sunday. Lebron and the Lakers will be here
on Saturday, and then on Sunday at Rock and Mortgage
Field House, it will be the Toronto Raptors in town.
So a busy week ahead for the Cavaliers. Kaylie, great
to have you with us. And let's look at this
Cavs team overall. As I mentioned before, we took the
(18:37):
break there three out of four, four of their last five.
But how do you size this team up as we
now go into this tough stretch with two back to
backs here in the next six days.
Speaker 4 (18:49):
I think we're still learning a little bit about this team,
and I think it's safe to say that it's okay
to say that after thirteen games because of the amount
of injuries that this team has had to deal with.
So I mean, team just played the Trailblazers and the
Pistons and not quite the injury bug that those teams have,
but hey, they've been missing at least two guys every
single game this season. And a lot of those matchups
(19:11):
have the cabs of been without a starter. So we're
learning about this group as a whole. But I think
things they're progressing in a really positive way because, like
we saw last night, all hands on deck and every
player stepped up in a big way. Like we mentioned before,
we talked about a little bit, players are understanding their roles,
Max Struce, George Nang, They're finding their groove within this system,
(19:33):
and we're learning a lot about some of the young
players as well. Craig Porter Junior in particular. You know,
he's a five year college player. He comes in first
time under the big lights on the NBA stage, and
he hasn't missed a beat. If anything, he has thrived
under this pressure. So I think we're learning that this
Cavaliers team really is deep what we hoped for at
(19:54):
the beginning of the season, and as they continue to
understand the system that's being built under had coach JB. Bickerstaff,
they're just continuing to find their groove and we're seeing
it come to right now.
Speaker 2 (20:05):
Kaylee. We talked about him briefly before the first segment ended,
and then of course you just brought him up again.
But let's delve a little bit deeper into Max Struce.
I think Max has been better than advertised, and there
were high expectations when the Cavs made the sign in
trade with Miami. Talk a little bit about what you've
seen from Max Struce.
Speaker 4 (20:25):
No question, Max Strus has been just a phenomenal addition.
And you knew seeing him in Miami in the finals
a season ago, being a starter on that team, he
fit right into that system. But he really did fit
into that Miami Heat system. So I think there were
questions of what it would look like once he got
out of Miami. I think any question has been answered
(20:47):
now that he's been in Cleveland for this stretch of
thirteen games. He has been so incredible. One he can
shoot the ball, we can see and score, but he's
not just a shooter. And I think he's been trying
to break out of that mold that people just describe
him as that we've seen his athleticism. He doesn't want
to be called sneaky athletic anymore. He wants to be
just known as an athletic player. He's shown that on
(21:07):
a nightly basis. But I think before last night's game,
the four games before that, he had led the team
in a different category every night. One night it was rebounds,
one night it was assists, one night it was three
point shooting, and then the next night it was steals.
If that doesn't show you the versatility of this guy,
I don't know what does. He's not just a score,
he's not just a shooter. He can do a little
(21:29):
bit of everything. And how fortunate are the Cavs to
have that player slotted right into their starting five. Max
has been incredible to start the season. You can rely
on him in so many different ways. He can play
a number of different positions and it's been just phenomenal
to watch him grow and flourish so far with this team.
Speaker 2 (21:48):
Yeah, there's no doubt about that. Again, we're talking with
Kaylee Griffins. He's from Bally Sports. It's great to have
her on keVs HQ and Kaylee, we mentioned that stretch
of games coming up back to back Tomorrow and Wednesday
with the Sixers and the Heat, and then Saturday and
Sunday with the Lakers and the Raptors. But let's start
with the game tomorrow night against Philadelphia. Now that's an
in season tournament game, just your thoughts, and not necessarily
(22:12):
specifically with the Calves, but the in season tournament and
how it's looked and how it's felt so far just
NBA league wide to you.
Speaker 4 (22:22):
I think the first game of the tournament, no one
really knew what to expect because obviously it's brand new
this season where players are going to be excited about it.
Were they going to buy into the hype? And I
think the Cavaliers, after they fail to the Pacers in
that first n season tournament game, realized, oh okay, we're
taking this seriously. Now we want to be part of this,
(22:42):
and I think we saw that in their last n
Season tournament game. So this is going to be a
big one because the Pacers are leading in a Group A,
but if the Caviners can take down the Sixers, they're
right back in the micks. And let's not forget that
there's one team coming out of each group, but there's
also a wild card team coming out of each conference.
So the Cavaliers, if they win this game, they're right
in the mix to still go on to those quarterfinals.
(23:05):
So I think there's gonna be a lot of excitement,
a lot of hype anytime these two teams meet up.
It's a big game. George meant going back to Chiley
for the very first time, He's going to be excited
to play there. The Sixers have been really good, you know,
losing James Harden has not hurt them one bit. Joel
Embiid is the reigning MVP. Tyree's Naxy has been playing
(23:26):
out of his mind. So it's gonna be a tough
matter for both teams. Hopefully the Cavs have a few
healthy bodies available for them too. But you know, the
n season tournament I think has lived up to the
hype that the league was hoping for it. These players
are buying in. There's some incentive down the road, and
it asks them early season excitement for the fans as well,
which I think is really cool.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
I would totally agree. And I think the further along
we go into it, as you get into hey, is
our team gonna get out of this group or will
our team get a wild card in those knockout rounds,
I think fan interest will even build from that point, oh.
Speaker 4 (24:01):
Without a doubt. I mean, you want your team to
be going to Vegas, you want them to have the
opportunity to play for this Cup. And it's been, you know,
awesome to see. The courts have been crazy. I have
the opinions on the court. Yeah. The Cavaliers though very
I would say came. I would describe their court as
tame compared to some that we saw, like the Pacers.
The first and season tournament game for the Cavaliers, that
(24:24):
was just wild to watch from our perspective. But yeah,
I totally agree the fans are bought in.
Speaker 1 (24:30):
Now.
Speaker 4 (24:31):
I've had multiple conversations with people who really find themselves
buying in. They want to see are the gags gonna
come out of this this group? So the excitement is there,
and I think the Cavaliers players are feeling it too.
We heard from Darius Garland. He did the postgame interview
with Serena after the Pistons win, and he said it,
you know, this is an in season tournament game. It
means a little bit more. So it's really cool to
(24:51):
see that all the teams and the players are buying
into it, just as much as it feels.
Speaker 9 (24:56):
Like the fans are totally agree.
Speaker 2 (24:58):
Hey, before I let you go, you mentioned as you
watch the Indiana game from your perspective. As you watch
the game, Kayley, do you, what is the perspective that
you're looking for insofar as analyzing the game. I'm a
play by play game. I just look at it play
by play. Jim Jones my partner, he analyzes literally play
(25:18):
by play as a studio host. Do you watch it
a little bit differently?
Speaker 4 (25:24):
I would say a little bit. You know, obviously the
play by play matters a lot, But when I'm working
next to an analyst, whether it's Campy Russell or Austin Carr,
you know, I try to find points in the game,
trends that they can expand on once we get into
the post game. So, like I mentioned to you before
when I talked about Max Scruz finding those little details
where hey, he led the team in four different categories
(25:45):
over four different games. That's something that jumps out to
me because then I can lead to those guys and say, hey,
what's allowing Max to be so effective in a number
of different ways. Obviously, the play by play matters when
we're breaking down a close game down the street, the
Cavaliers pull off a big victory, Yeah we got to
go back and we got to take a look at
those last few minutes. But overall, a lot of the
(26:07):
trends matter a little bit more to me in terms
of how things came together, because it makes it easier
for my analysts on set with me to break down
the game as a whole and to provide some perspective
for the viewers at home in terms of why things
are happening.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
That's great stuff. Will you do it brilliantly? You just
do a marvelous job with your work with Bally's and hey,
you are great here as well. We appreciate you stopping
by for this week's edition of caves h Q.
Speaker 4 (26:35):
Oh, Tim, thanks so much for having me. I appreciate
it all good.
Speaker 2 (26:38):
That's Kaylie Griffin again. She does unbelievable work for bally Sports.
We thank her for appearing this week on caves HQ.
We'll take a quick time out. More to come, so
stay with us Cave's h Q presented by Betway. We'll
continue after this on the Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse.
Speaker 3 (27:00):
Maxie from Well Beyond the Arcanae ty Reeese Maxie from
just Inside the Big Logo at Center Court. A thirty
footer Maxi from Dude Joel with a rip through rises
along two up front got it out that his hard Guard.
We're two terrorists going in download right a bank to
the Sixers are picking the nets apart. And I've used
(27:24):
that phrase more than once.
Speaker 2 (27:27):
Welcome Back Cavs HQ presented by Betwey on the Medical
Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse. Again our dynamic duo on the
other side of the window, putting together that montage of
one Tom McGinnis, the radio play by play voice of
the Philadelphia seventy six Ers. He was busy yesterday afternoon
(27:47):
with those calls as Philadelphia trounced the Nets one twenty
one to ninety nine. And of course I had the
game last night between the Cavs and the Nuggets. So
we're both a little scratchy here as we conduct this conversation,
but we're both looking forward to tomorrow night's end season
tournament matchup between the Calves and the Sixers. Tom has
(28:09):
always great calls and great to have you with us
on Calves HQ.
Speaker 9 (28:12):
I appreciate it, Tim, Thank you. Yeah, big game for
the Sixers, not just the Calves Tuesday, but they traveled
to Minnesota, who's been one of the best teams in
the West on Wednesday, so a bit of a difficult
back to back, but so far, so good, great start
under Nick Nurse in his first year here in Philadelphia.
Speaker 2 (28:29):
Well, let's delve into that ten in three coming out
of the blocks. And of course there was a lot
of drama early with the whole James Harden scenario and
how it would unfold first year head coach and Nick
Nurse to what do you owe this ten and three
start after dealing with all.
Speaker 9 (28:45):
That, Well, I think for anybody that follows the NBA,
you know, it's pretty clear that this opened the runway,
shall we say, for MAXI the hardened thing. It really,
as much as it was like a distraction on the outside,
obviously something was gonna give it. Really, they had Plan
A if he was with the team, and Plan B
if he was not, And mostly it was Plan B
(29:07):
because he wasn't there that much, although he did practice
and he was great. James Harden is still a very
good player, just maybe not the player that he was
five years ago. And Max, he's blossomed. As I said,
we're watching his superstar right before our eyes, from a
really good player to the potential being an All Star
and a superstar in the NBA. Just a great young
(29:29):
player with speed, that's hard to match. And then as
you heard that call, the ability to hit the breeze
at a forty percent clip, and he's become a point guard,
which he had never done before at any point in
his high school, not the one year of Kentucky and
certainly not in his first three years with the Sixers.
And then Tim, we get the Nurse. This is what happens.
(29:49):
You get moving along and you haven't even mentioned it
B yet, but we'll get to the big villa. But
Nurse has been unbelievable, certainly for the Sitzers competing against
Toronto as a division rival and in the playoffs in
nineteen and then two years ago, you really got a
pretty good he's a really good coach twenty twenty, Coach
the Year championship with the Raptors in twenty nineteen, and
(30:10):
just really a brilliant strategizer. And he might put us
over the top. And the Sixers have been, as you know,
been knocked out of the playoffs in the semi finals
of the East for the last several years, so we'll
see a long way to go. Thirteen games in and
INB has again averaging almost thirty two points per game,
leading the League in scoring. Last night in the Brooklyn win,
(30:31):
a twenty point win, it was the fourth time he
hasn't even had to play in the fourth quarter.
Speaker 7 (30:35):
Wow.
Speaker 9 (30:35):
And there was another game against Toronto in Philadelphia where
he got in, but he barely. He almost didn't need
to play in that game. So the Sixers, their point
differential at large is great, really good start. A bit
of an unexpected start for the Sixers to be at
this point this early in the season.
Speaker 2 (30:50):
Tom, I want to circle back real quickly to Maxi
because I mentioned to a few people last year when
Donovan Mitchell came to the Cavaliers out in Utah, he
was hiding in playing sight. You didn't really know a
lot about how good he was. You taught he didn't
get a lot of TNT and ESPN games and that
sort of thing. And I think the same can be
(31:11):
said somewhat for Tyrese Maxi. When you're on a team
with Joel Embiid and at the time James Harden and
you're coming into your own you're kind of that overlooked guy.
But as you mentioned, boy, he has a ceiling of
being a superstar. Agreed.
Speaker 9 (31:28):
Yeah, And man, it's also like he shows deference as
a player. You know, like did he even have minutes
when he was out there with maybe the second unit
or because he didn't even start up until last year,
there was a lot of times he wasn't even a starter.
And then when when Harden's out there, as you know,
he's blowing firmanent and Max was playing often they were
(31:50):
both Joel is a huge support. I mean, he's he
wants Maxi to blossom into that superstar and Harden was
really a good support of Nazi as well. But you
know what it gets back to, like he's a worker.
He's one of these guys that and going back not
just this year or last year, but his father was
a you know, his father was a collegiate player and
(32:12):
he grew up just outside of Dallas, and he realized
he wanted to be a basketball player, and they hired it,
and he was with all these different teams, and he's
one of these guys that's in the gym like six
days a week, and he's gotten better this whole entire time.
You watch these finishes, you're like, how does this mean
do that? It's like he's flying off a mini tramp
out of control, but he's making them, like the degree
(32:34):
of difficulties incomparable, and yet it's it's off the wrong foot.
It's all these shots he's practiced, and so the speed
is hard to match. As you know, you could talk
to it about whether your players you can show them,
but until you get out there, it's really he gets
it in fifty and lookout, he can get by most people.
(32:54):
You know, all these players, including Mitchell have the step back.
Well Maxi when he's and this is available to every
player in terms of you know, dribbling and then taking
a back dribble and shine scripty and creating space, but
Maxi does it with such unbelievable accomplishment that he's treated
like four on five set of space and he's ended up.
He ends up taking a wide open three. So it's
(33:16):
kind of like a pick your poison deal. And then
he's playing too many Listen, Bud and his assists, that's instinctive.
His assistant turnover rations off the hook that there were
several games he had no turnovers and you're looking to
have six or eight asses or ten assists, So you're right.
I mean, it's urgent, kind of neat to see, you know,
it's like I'm sometimes green with envy. When I look
across and you see another team like the Calves, and
(33:39):
I'm like, oh man, unless the kid's gonna be great,
you get all jealous. Well, guess what the Sixers found
one in ty Reson back.
Speaker 2 (33:47):
Yeah, he is just phenomenal. Again, we're talking with Tom mcguinnis.
He's the terrific radio play by play voice for the
Philadelphia seventy six Ers, Caves and seventy six Ers tomorrow night,
all along the Medical Mutual Cavil audiovers.
Speaker 3 (34:01):
Tom, do you get.
Speaker 2 (34:03):
The sense and just being with the team day in
and day out, that maybe there's a little chip on
the shoulder because everybody was talking about Boston, Milwaukee, Boston,
Milwaukee and then Philly, then the Calves and the other
teams maybe in that second tier. Do you sense that
your guys are saying, Hey, don't just talk about Boston
and Milwaukee.
Speaker 9 (34:25):
For sure, and Boston is our nemesis. You know, we
talked about Toronto defeating the Sixeries, like the Sixers cannot
get past Boston. You know, I go to our broadcasting brethren,
Mark Boyle from the Pacers years ago in the nineties
when the Pacers couldn't get by the Knicks, and they
finally did with Reggie Miller and Crewe. He said, ding dong,
the Wicked Witch is dead. Speaking of the Pacers finally
(34:47):
beating New York, that's kind of how we haven't we
haven't rung that bell yet. We haven't went away the
Wicked Witch Boston and they've had the Sixers numbers, they've
they've knocked them out of the playoffs three times in
the last five or six years. Know that. But yes,
the chip and there's always you want that as a team.
You want to be able to prove some just like
these players are so ultra competitive, they've all got some
(35:10):
they create things to be motivated about beyond their extraordinary
skills and drive that put them in this position. But
as a team, you gotta you kind of want that
whatever it comes, whatever format comes in, and it might
change as the season goes alone. But what I would
add was it's the chemistry and the camaraderie. Like you know,
all these players and basically teams go out to Los
(35:32):
Angeles and our guys were out there and they're informal workouts,
but our team was working out in the morning at
UCLA at another facility, and then they go to the
so called Rico runs that you've put in the gym there.
It's to me, it's awesome to walk into the gym
and I was a Notre Dame fan growing up where
John Wooden crafted his teams. Are you kidding me? We're
going into the lab or something the greatest players in
(35:55):
the history group played and that's where those Rico hines
kind of organizes the run. That's where the NBA shows
up in the summer. Our guys, like I said, we're
together and they've got everything you've talked about when you
hear a winning team talk about trust and loyalty and
doing it for the all those things that sound like
the cliches but are always part of a championship, the
(36:17):
fabric of a team that wins right whatever level it is,
whatever sporting is. So it's that. And then you know
you mentioned the heart and situation. They got back four
players that all fit, the first of whom is the
Nico Batoum. Now he's been out a little bit with
personal issues going back to Los Angeles, but he was
back in the last yesterday. He made one shot, it
(36:37):
was a three, and he was plus twenty five. He's
one of those players that we all seen for so
many years. He's probably the most decorated international player ever
from France, and he fits basketball IQ of multiple positions,
can guard, he makes a free, he makes the right
pass and all those things, and he's fit right in.
And Covington is kind of that sort of player as well,
(36:59):
a three and DPS guy Boris gives you some toughness.
They added Patrick Studley, which wasn't deal, So it's kind
of all coming together. And yet again, you know, at
this stage for the Sixers, it's not what have you
done for me lately? It's what are you gonna do
for me in May and April? And maybe Lord Williams you.
Speaker 2 (37:18):
Well, that's great stuff. Tom, will appreciate you spending some
time with us. Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow night.
And I think we're gonna have a heck of a
battle on our hand at the Wells Fargo Center. But
we appreciate you spending some time with us on caves
HQ for sure.
Speaker 9 (37:33):
Thank you, Tim, good luck and we'll see it tomorrow.
Speaker 2 (37:35):
Sounds great to me. That's Tom McGinnis, the radio play
by play voice of the Philadelphia seventy six Ers, and
that's who's up next for the Calves, Caves and Sixers
tomorrow night in an nd season tournament game presented by
that Way. We'll be back and we'll wrap up this
week's edition of caves HQ following this on the Medical
Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse. That's gonna do it for this
(37:59):
week's edition en of calvs HQ, presented by Betway Fun Show.
Huge thank you goes out to Kayleie Griffith for joining
us from Bally Sports. Tom McGinnis, the radio play by
play voice of the Philadelphia seventy six Ers. Let's not
forget the dynamic duo Kurt McLoughlin Marty Allen on the
other side of the window. Biggest things goes to you,
(38:19):
the listeners. Hope you enjoyed it. I'll be back with
you again tomorrow night from Philly when the Calves take
on the seventy six Ers. That game will tip off
at seven point thirty Huntington tip Off show at seven,
all along the Medical Mutual Cavaliers Audio Verse. So until then,
so long, everybody, five
Hosts And Creators
Tim Alcorn
Jim Chones
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