Cavs the Blog Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Episode 150: It's a Rocket League... We're Just Livin' In It. Nov 10, 2017

Show notes

A vehicular soccer video game league that’s played with rocket powered cars isa pretty fitting metaphor for the kind of game the Houston Rockets play on a nightly basis in the NBA. It’s fast paced scoring with tons of shots and, when those shots aren’t falling… they pretty much just run into the other team and get to the line to score. The Cavs were the latest victim of this Rocket style of play, as they got blitzed by a barrage of threes in the first half, and then got more than lapped at the free throw line as the game wore on. As a team, the Cavs only attempted as many freebies as James Harden did alone (14). Houston also took full advantage of the confluence of the Cavs missing Tristan Thompson, having a frustrated Kevin Love in foul trouble (he fouled out in the fourth quarter), and Ty Lue refusing to play any other bigs. The lopsided rebounding advantage (45-26 in Houston’s favor) went a long way in cementing the win for the home team. Yet, it at least approached being an “acceptable loss” as far as defeats go this young season. The Cavs rarely win in Houston, and being down three players, and with their recent defensive woes, it’s a testament to their at least slightly improved effort that they weren’t blown out of the building. Also, Jeff Green had a monster night (yes, you read that right). The Rocket man himself (the aforementioned Mr. Pestak) joined Nate and EG for the second half of this podcap. In it, they cover not only this game, but also the ongoing issues with the team in general, the road ahead, how the game has fundamentally changed since the days of the LeBron 1.0 era, and whether or not “Daddy” is done spending money and picks on making this team better. Take a listen for these things and a whole lot more (including about a 15 minute conversation about The Natural — which Tom watched instead of the game tonight)… and of course a Rocket League update.

Episode 149: LeBron James vs. The NBA Nov 07, 2017

Show notes

Nate Smith sits down with Clevelander and bestselling author, Brendan Bowers to talk about his new book, LeBron James vs. the NBA. The book's and our main topic of conversation: where does LeBron currently rank among the greatest players of all time? We also talk about some of the all time NBA greats, the Cavs' "eventful" summer, what this season looks like for the Cleveland, and how well we think they'll shake out of their doldrums. Finally, we ask, how long will The King reign, will Ty Lue coach LeBron his whole career, and where and how will LeBron take his place among the greatest of all time when it's all said and done? You can pre-order Brendan's book wherever books are sold and look for him at a Cleveland area book signing in the next couple months.

Episode 148: Lue-ban Missile Crisis Oct 30, 2017

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We're at Defcon 3, folks. And I'd wager another loss puts us at Defcon 2. At Defcon 1, Dan Gilbert goes nuclear on Tyronn Lue. Seven games into this season, and it's looking Ty's elevated coaching seat might just be the hotseat as the Cavs have lost three straight and four of the last five. Those losses have come against some of the worst teams in the league. Justin May and Nate Smith hopped in the podcast booth to recap and then Tom Pestak parachuted into the war room with klaxons blaring to help us figure out what is wrong with the Cavaliers. We recapped Sunday's game, and went over everything that's going wrong (a lot), and the little that's going right (Kyle Korver). We looked at lineups (why isn't Crowder playing more?), slumping players (I'm looking at you, Mr. 4-28 from three, J.R. Smith), the age question (are the Cavs just too old), and whether this represents a failure of the front office to bring in players who make sense next to LeBron (or anyone for that matter). Do the Cavs have the worst starting backcourt in the NBA? Do they just need an infusion of Isaiah Thomas? Are they just content to make a mockery of the regular season? And what the heck is wrong with Tristan Thompson (one point, one turnover, zero rebounds in 19 minutes). We also talk about who would replace Ty Lue if (some of us say "when") the hotseat gets to Defcon 1. Larry Drew? Mark Jackson? Sobering thoughts...

Episode 147: You're Dreaming Oct 17, 2017

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It’s that time of year again… time to dream about the road ahead for another NBA season. Before tonight’s tip off, every team has a chance to capture a championship (oh, who are we kidding… it’s the Dubs and maybe the Cavs as those two squads are probably destined to meet up for Episode IV). Well, anyway, it’s nice to dream… Speaking of dreamers, the very much woke Kyrie Irving won’t be wasting any time fantasizing about his return to the place he called home for the first six years of his career. He’ll have a wonderfully lucid visual reminder of his top highlights with a video tribute before the game… though the auditory experience might not be quite as welcoming from his former fanbase. Only time will tell if Uncle Drew’s dreams will come true, or if his first game back in Cleveland will devolve into a nightmare. Nate and EG fought off sleep and weariness to try and interpret the dreams the Cavs have for the season ahead, and to weigh in on which team lines in Vegas have people dreaming way too hard. They also delve into their own dreams for winners of the individual season award winners from MVP candidates to Coach of the Year and everything in between (EG tries to throw some shade to give Nate a reality check on the Utah Jazz to no avail).

Podcast Episode 146: The Waiting is the Hardest part Oct 05, 2017

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With a wistful nod to the recently departed Tom Petty, we embark with the newly constructed Cavaliers on the (seemingly never-ending, but at least a bit shorter) pre-season campaign. In their first of five warm up games that don’t count, the guys in wine & gold red and yellow trimmed tighty-whites (which actually didn’t look half bad), took on the erstwhile Atlanta Hawks and their lone remaining peroxide patched, hookah bar brawler of a point guard, Denis SchrÖeder. The initial results were promising, as the new starting five (minus a certain kid from Akron) featuring big men who can shoot and guards who can’t, almost blew the hapless birds out of the building, constructing a 21-7 lead halfway through the first quarter. Then, Ty Lue (in an obvious nod to the start of the NHL season) proceeded to hockey line switch to his second line. Newcomers DWade, DRose and Jae Crowder flashed some of the skills that make you glad they’re a part of the team. Other fresh faces like Jeff Green, Cedi Osman and the cajoled senõr himself, Jose Calderon, weren’t quite as impressive. Still, it was just one game… and a pre-season game with no LBJ at that… but, the second half was a nearly endless quagmire of hoisted shots, an absence of recognizable sets, and more hijacking of the offense than you might find in your average G-League game (coming soon to a few select candidates). Most of this was perpetrated by the Cavs’ third team unit, while the Hawks starters (looking at you Kent Bazemore) took out some of their anger at being left behind on a lottery team. The results weren’t pretty… but will be long forgotten soon… unlike the incomparable Tom Petty. We went four deep on our first podcap of the new season, adding our newest member, Matthew Murnan, to the mix along with Nate, Sam and EG (#shademaster). We get into the details of this game and some predictions for the playoff teams in each conference, and also highlight our expected surprises and disappointments of the coming season. Not to mention plenty of discussion surrounding Iman Shumpert’s possible injured foot and TT’s adjustment to being a sixth man (and expecting dad).

Episode 145: Cajoled Seniors Sep 26, 2017

Show notes

Since it was Cavs Media Day, the C:tB ownership triumvirate felt compelled to shuffle their tired old bones into the podcast booth to hit the highlights of the events. Of course we did kick things off with a decent dose of Tribe: the Podcast as the Indians roll into post-season play, before diving into everything LeBron and the gang said to the local and national media. We rapped about LBJ's mindset, his response to Kyrie's departure and general state of staying very much woke, the rebuilding of DRose, the status of IT's rehab, what the new starting lineups might resemble... and whether or not DWade will soon be rocking a newly designed Cavs jersey. Other topics strayed to the recent Melo trade to OKC, what the Cavs might (or might not) do with the Nets pick, and who will be left without a chair when the music stops at the end of training camp (the answer might sadly break up the Road Trippin' Pod). Brace yourselves... this is longer in the tooth than most, and full of plenty of senior moments for us mid-old-timers... (we may actually have to bring on some of those sponsors we mention at the top of the pod). Oh, and if you're confused by the headline... it's just an anagram for the Cavs' own cajoled senõr... Jose Calderon. Stay tuned after the long-winded pod for extra conversations about Grampa Tom's travails at a Tribe game and Grampa Nate's crash course in Millenial-speak...

Episode 144: Millenium Edition Sep 12, 2017

Show notes

Nate Smith, Tom Pestak, and Sam Meyer spent the first 2000 seconds of this pod gushing over the Tribe, their 19th straight victory, and their pursuit of 20. Inspired, we broke down the Cavs' probable starting and crunch time lineups to start the season and how it was put together. Tom and Sam argued over Dan Gilbert's right and perogative to do and say whatever he wants. Sam gave us his gut feeling on the Isaiah Thomas hip injury and Jason Lloyd's article on it in the Athletic. We talked about Cedi Osman, Eric Moreland and Jae Crowder, Tom's Jay Bruce moment, his new electric lawnmower and everything wrong (and right) with Millenials.

Episode 143: Until We Meet Again, Uncle Drew Aug 23, 2017

Show notes

Happy Trails, Kyrie. With the news of Mr. Irving's trade to the Celtics we sounded the conch and Tom Pestak, Ben Werth, Nate Smith, and EvilGenius assembled in the podcast booth to break it all down. We all gave our knee jerk reactions to the trade and gave our yays or nays to Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, (up the) Ante Zizic, and the Nets' 2018 draft pick. We also discussed the enigma that is Kyrie Irving and whether this trade makes the Cavs better in the long term and short term. Playing the imp's advocate was Tom Pestak who held out hope that Isaiah Thomas and Jay Crowder could improve the Cavs. The rest of us were more... skeptical. Other topics included: are the Cavs' still a finals team? What are LeBron's plans for the Summer of 2018? (Including some inside dirt on the Lakers situation). Can Boston beat the Cavs in the playoffs, (or are they even the East's second best team anymore)? Are the Cavs' still a finals team? We take on all this and more.

Episode 142: Hot Take Bonfire Jul 31, 2017

Show notes

Well, it's been a while since we had Ben and EG in the booth, and they were both pretty riled up given recent Cavalier events... so the hot take sparks were flying almost from the jump. Fortunately, Nate was there to keep the friction from becoming a Kyrie vs. LeBron-esque conflagration, so Ben and EG can probably still work together going forward. We got all hot under the collar about the Kyrie situation, who's to blame, what LeBron might do about it, and who's really pulling the strings behind the scenes. The highlight is probably the spirited and scorching hot debate over whether or not a Rose by any other name would be just a Razor (i.e. is Derrick Rose any better than peak Ramon Sessions — Nate did the math and it's closer than you might think). Put on your flame-retardant headphones, grab your fire extinguisher and listen to the guys spit some fire about the Cavalier summer thus far...

Episode 141: The 10th Percentile Jul 19, 2017

Show notes

The Cleveland Cavaliers haven't done much this offseason and Nate Smith and David Wood aren't impressed in this episode of Cavs:the Podcast. . Lots of malaise over Green and Calderon who by ma ly statistical measures are in the 10th percentile of NBA players. The also argu vehemently on whether or not Cleveland should consider trading LeBron James. Before you get up in arms, one of them thinks this is a ridiculous idea. Unimpressed with the job the front office has done, they discuss ade targets from nearly every team in the league, and delve into whether a Carmelo Anthony deal could actually work. To cope with the stress, they wrap things the show playing a riveting game of who is better than Jeff Green and Jose Calderon. Guys like Brandon Knight, Austin Rivers, and Ersan Ilyasova get some mentions. Check it out to find out who is better than the worst and who is worst than the the tenth percentile.

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