Cavs the Blog Podcast

Latest Episodes:

237: Decisions Looming Mar 23, 2021

Show notes

Old friends Nate and EvilGenius squeezes into the podcast booth and looked over the games and more importantly the coming decisions for Cleveland this week and into the future. We discussed whether Andre Drummond would get moved this week, whether we'd see much movement in general, if we'll ever see Kevin Love in a Cavs game again, and the big decisions the Cavs would have to make this offseason. Do the Cavs extend Sexton? How much do they pay Jarrett Allen? Is this "core" sustainable? Is J.B. Bickerstaff the long term answer as head coach?

We went around the league to discuss coaching fits, and delved into the Cavs' disastrous head coach hiring history. We pitched a couple albums, picked out current NBA favorites, and decided Larry Nance Jr. and Isaac Okoro really shouldn't share the floor anymore. It was a fun, if slightly ominous time.

236: What Ryan Would've Wanted Mar 08, 2021

Show notes

This podcast starts with some devastating news we received Saturday afternoon. Our friend, podcaster, and contributor Ryan Yankee passed away Friday night from heart failure. We will share more news when I have it, and a more fitting tribute to Ryan in the coming days. I'm still raw from the loss. Ryan is someone who'd contributed to the CtB community pretty regularly in the past couple years with recaps, comments, and an effervescent personality on podcasts. He always enjoyed going by the the moniker, "Jude Elysium."

This podcast kicks off with the late Michael Stanley's team theme song from the 80's, "Let's Go Cavs," and plays out with Ryan playing guitar on 2012's "Everything I Wanted," by the band Good Touch, Bad Touch. Ryan played in many Cleveland bands in his decades long adventure in the Cleveland music scene, and we hope to share more about his life in the coming days.

The Euro classically trained musical CtB contingent, Adam Cathcart and Ben Werth joined Nate in the podcast booth, and we think this podcast is what Ryan would've wanted, an in depth review of the first half of the Cavs' "corkscrew season." We kicked it off with the ridiculous Larry Nance Jr. trade rumors, whether the Cavs could get anything for Andrew Drummond, and a breakdown of the good, the bad, and the ugly from the first half. Then we got into the players: Nance, Drummond, Allen, Garland, Okoro, Windler, Stevens, and Collin Sexton. Ryan, who always pitched the silver linings in everything, would've loved the glimmers of hope and excellence we've seen from them all.

Finally, we looked at the NBA at large, with reverence for the professionalism that the players have shown in this meat grinder of a season, and picked out some of the highlights. We hope we did you proud, Ryan. We miss you.

235: Let it Rip Feb 25, 2021

Show notes

David Wood and Nate Smith dared enter the realm of the podcast booth to talk about the Cavs and a variety of other topics. They hit on why the Cavs need to just let it rip from deep, how great Dylan Windler (the South Paw Ginger Kyle Korver) is, Isaac Okoro, how the Cavs are great at post entry passes, who deserves to be in the All-Star game, why Sexton doesn't need to think as much, why Trae Young is the absolute worst, MVP choices, coach of the year, and a ton of other fun topics.

234: Threebounding Feb 06, 2021

Show notes

Cavs looked much more prolific from three in this one: 10-32 to the Bucks' 7-22. It was a marked improvement to Wednesday's 10 free throw night, but while the Cavs improved in offensive diversity, they regressed in rebounding: losing that battle 54-36. Between that and trying to stop Giannis (33/12/4) and his ability to take three steps on every dribble, it was tough for the Cavs to keep pace in a fourth quarter that saw them outscored by 15. In that frame, the Bucks turned off the cruise control and hit the gas enough to keep Cleveland at bay.

To break it all down, Nate and Ryan braved the cold to man the podcast both. We talked about the last two games, JB's problems coaching offense, the Cavs' poor out of bounds execution, whether the Cavs are tanking, and whether or not Andre Drummond should be fired into the sun. Towards the end we rebound to get into a little discussion of lizard breeding, twee pop, and Wanda Vision. It was a fun way to spend a Friday night.

233: That Escalated Quickley Jan 30, 2021

Show notes

The Cavs rolled into Madison Square Garden Friday, clearly thinking they could just flip the switch on the Knicks, yet they found themselves outworked, outplayed and outhustled on defense for one of the few times this season. Not to mention, they had real issues hitting shots both in and out of transition. It’s hard to win games where you log a 33 point half of basketball, or shoot 35% from the field. Yet, the Cavs had a chance to turn this game around following a monster run to start the second half… that is, until poor offensive execution and Immanuel Quickley caught up to them.

All in all, it was a very forgettable outing for this young Cavs team, who still have some growing pains to go through on their way to regaining relevance in the NBA… but Nate and EG hopped in the podcast booth to remember the good and the bad of tonight’s game and the previous game against the Pistons. We also delved into the upcoming brutal stretch of February games, what the Cavs should do with Andre Drummond leading up to the trade deadline, and how things are different in this Covid-impacted season. Hang out to the end for some solid documentary and musical pitches, and insight into the joys of international travel!

232: Scary Hours Jan 21, 2021

Show notes

Tom and Nate hopped in the booth to instapod and gush over what we just saw: the best performance in the best game by a Cav since the James' trip to La La land. We explored the meaning of "Scary Hours" like two Dads would do and dreamed about whether the Cavs should cash some chips in to chase a playoff spot this season.

Collin Sexton might have stolen his new nickname from Drake and the Nets' big three. With Kyrie Irving joining James Harden and Kevin Durant for the trio's first game together, the Cavs paid no attention, Wednesday, to the names on the jerseys, going on a 16-0 run to close the first quarter behind the hot shooting of Cedi Osman. Despite nurturing and watering a lead to a 14 point cushion in the third quarter, the Cavs let the Nets hang around and then paid the price as Brooklyn tied it up, and used shoddy officiating to deny the Cavs a final shot to win it before overtime.

In the first OT, all seemed lost when the Cavs trailed by five with about a minute left before crucial jumpers from Jarrett Allen and Larry Nance Junior kept Cleveland close and then Collin Sexton put the game on his back. After putting back an airball to cut the Nets lead to one, the Cavs played the free throw game before Collin Sexton burned and annoyed Kyrie Irving by tying the game on an iso left wing three point dagger.

Larry Nance shut down KD's left baseline J with 1.2 seconds left to force double super secret overtime before Sexton exploded in the second OT. Youngbull kept backing up and kept swishing threes, going 4-5 from deep and dropping a whopping 15 in the final five minutes. It was the most exciting explosion of basketball talent trying to express itself since LeBron Raymone James suited up for the wine and gold.

By a minute and a half left, Sexton had assumed the "Scary Hours" moniker and single handedly put Steve Nash on the hot seat. But lets not ignore the the contributions of Collin's teammates. With seven Cavs in double figures and major contributions from new Cavs Jarrett Allen and Taurean Prince, this was a total team effort with Sexton playing the role of ace closer. Eye popping lines like Cedi's 25/7/7, Larry Nance Jr's 15/8/5 with four steals, and Prince's 17/7/4 and +20 were the norm for a Cavs team that isn't fully healthy yet, and suddenly looks electric. Hell, Javale McGee didn't even play in this game. We can't wait to see the next one when Garland and Windler are back.

231: The Winter Soldiers Jan 14, 2021

Show notes

Any time you Podcast with Tom Pestak, It's like you're waking up Bucky Barnes from the cryo chamber as you fill him in on everything that's happened in the NBA since the last time he was on a podcast. Wednesday night was no different, Elijah Kim and Nate Smith filled him in on today's blockbuster trades, out of which the Cavs acquired Jarrett Allen and Taurean Prince. It was certainly a lot of fun as we went long on the implications of this trade, where the Cavs stand, and whether the Cavs will make any more moves.

After that we went over the last two clunkers for the Cavs, discussed the veracity of the injury report, pondered the enigma of Kyrie Irving, and lamented the Cavs' absolute dearth of wings. After the NBA talk died down, we got into Nate's embarrassing video conference faux pas, Tom's MRI Journey to Mordor, and Eli's quest to find the Wizard of Za. Now if we can just get Tom back in the freezer and survive the coming polar vortex.

230: The Wilting Wounded Jan 07, 2021

Show notes

The Cavs ran out of gas against Orlando for the second game in a row, Wednesday. A consistent theme of this game was injuries, as the Cavs were down six guys going into the night, and could be down seven after an ankle injury to Dameyan Dotson limited him to just 15 minutes. But the worst injury of the game came on a fairly innocuous play in the first quarter when Markelle Fultz blew his ACL driving on Isaac Okoro. It was a heartbreaking moment for the kid, and the Magic took it out on Cleveland for the rest of the night.

This game wasn't as close as the final score. Cleveland was down 19 by the end of the third quarter, and as much as 23 before garbage time started. As on Monday, Cleveland just didn't have enough scoring and competent NBA bodies to compete with Orlando's depth. Cleveland was running two center lineups and giving major rotation minutes to G-League rookies.

Ryan Yankee and Nate Smith broke it all down in the podcast booth: Andre Drummond's foul trouble, Cedi's bad shooting (0-7 from three), Collin Sexton's superior scoring (21 points), the Cavs' defense, Javale wondering where he was on the court, icing out Ice Okoro, and so much more. Finally we went through the list of current NBA free agents and debated whether the Cavs should dump any of their end of the roster guys to pick up some old Cavalier friends. It was a fun one!

229: Best Case Scenario Dec 28, 2020

Show notes

After a late scratch by Joel Embiid, the Cavs boat raced the unsuspecting Sixers Sunday, and posted another monster second quarter (35 points) to spring to a 14 point halftime lead. They won the final two quarters as well, with their lead ballooning to as much 32 points in a game that may open some eyes around the Association. If there is one thing that has excited Cavs fans in this 3-0 start it's the play of Darius Garland, whos' been absolutely scintillating averaging 19 points and 8.3 assists a game, and leading a team that is second in the NBA in assists.

But the real revelation has been Andre Drummond who is playing like a defensive player of the year candidate so far, and whose gravity around the basket is opening up the entire offense for the rest of the Cavs. He's got five blocks and eight steals already in three games to go along with 20/15/4 averages.

There's so much to love about this Cavs team so far, and in many ways, it's all falling into place in a "best case scenario" way most of us didn't expect. To break it all down, our own EvilGenius returned to the podcast booth with Ryan Yankee and Nate Smith. We talked about the game and how the Cavs ambushed the Sixers, as well as how the Cavs players all seem to have improved significantly since last season. Cedi, Collin, Darius, Andre, Larry, and more all seem better. Only Kevin Love seems to be struggling to return to form.

Given that, we dared to dream about whether this is sustainable, and if it is what the Cavs should do with Andre Drummond. Do they think about extending him? Do they make any trades? Who do they pay? It's an interesting and fun discussion as we dove into a pretty deep analysis of all the Cavs' players.

228: Merry Little Point Guards Dec 21, 2020

Show notes

Frohe Weihnachten, Cavs fans!. It's a Christmas Miracle! Ben Werth joined Nate Smith in the podcast booth after a three year absence! Ben, a resident of Germany joined us from Berlin, and we talked all things Cavaliers. The biggest discussion: what will the starting lineup look like. We both concluded that if the Cavs want to win, they'll start Cedi and Okoro over Sexton or Garland (we were split on which one to bench). But since they likely don't want to win, the Cavs will end up starting a pair of tiny Elves at the guard spots.

We snuck down and rattled the presents under the tree as we went through the Cavs roster and gave our thoughts on the coming NBA season: who starts, who sits, who makes the rotation. We also weighed in on all the Cavs youngsters: Sexton, Garland, Okoro, KPJ, Dylan Windler, and our not-so-tiny Tims at the end of the bench, Dean Wade and Thon Maker. There was a lot of Cavs to talk through before we even got to the NBA as a whole and walked through a season preview for the East and West.

We broke down who finishes at the top, who finishes at the bottom, and how they get there. We tried to to track some of the many movements in the NBA offseason. It will be good to open some of these presents when the NBA tips off on Tuesday, when we get to watch some real NBA action in empty gyms around the league. It's a fun listen, for Elven and Human ears.

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