The Rotation: Kevin Love leads the Cleveland Cavaliers to victory

The NBA playoffs are here. The games are tighter, the lights are brighter, and the narratives are getting thick. It can be a lot to keep up with but don’t worry we’re here to help.

Throughout the NBA postseason, FanSided will be gathering together some of the most talented writers from our network for a daily recap of our favorite stories from the night before.

Welcome to the Rotation.

Now is a perfect time to embrace the Love

Tom West | @TomWestNBA | FanSided, Clipperholics

Among the critical circles of NBA fans, it’s easy to hate on Kevin Love. He’s they guy that cost the Cleveland Cavaliers Andrew Wiggins, an often exhilarating young star who’s flourishing with the Timberwolves. Comparing the seeming limitless potential of the budding young star with the dwindling offensive production and no-defense reputation of Love gives some the wrong impression that the trade was a mistake.

Thankfully for the Cavs, in a 106-101 win against the Pistons that was closer than most would have expected, Cleveland fully embraced Love. From the way he works in the post or drains shots from outside, they utilized everything he has in his arsenal.

With 28 points (10-of-22 shooting), 13 rebounds and four three-pointers on Sunday, Game 1 gave a thorough indication of just how much Love will be able to do in this series.

With the Pistons’ starting lineup including of two 6-9 forwards — Tobias Harris and Marcus Morris, neither with the ability to defend a formidable power forward — Love quickly asserted his almost scarce authority. We haven’t seen nearly as many go-to plays for Love in the post this season, but against Harris and Morris, the Cavs’ offense was flowing through their power forward whenever they needed it to.

Regardless of the agility the two Detroit forwards have to spread opposing defenses and move towards the perimeter themselves, they can’t contain Love on defense when he commands the role of go-to scorer down low. In face-up situations and especially when his back is to the basket, the Pistons’ small fours were highlighted as a weakness during such possessions.

Into the fourth quarter, Love was flourishing at center through flurries of crisp passes and efficient spacing. With two vital threes to help overcome the Pistons’ seven-point lead at the start of the final period, the way he stretched Andre Drummond far beyond his comfort zone was blindingly obvious. When Love wasn’t working inside or moving off-ball, high screens to set up quick pick-and-pops with Kyrie Irving left a 280-pound monster like Drummond unable to close out on three-pointers at all.

In fact, even when Drummond was on the bench, the Cavs’ passing was enough to shift defenders so much that Love often found himself open for a shot as the Pistons’ frontcourt was left behind.

Perhaps in this series more than those that will follow in the East, the Cavs need to embrace Love for near 40-minute spells as they did on Sunday. He looked like a star waiting to be unleashed when the team relied heavily on his high screens with Irving, abusing matchups against lumbering centers like Drummond and enforcing a somewhat seldom-leveraged physicality against smaller power forwards.

The Hawks, who may be awaiting the Cavs in the second round, are armed with two excellent defenders in Paul Millsap and Al Horford. Abusing matchups to find momentum for Love now could help his role going forward. In the meantime, it will just help the Cavs surpass the Pistons and an amped up Stan Van Gundy.

Embrace the Love, Cleveland.

HYFR, Stan Van Gundy is Back in the Playoffs

Wes Goldberg | @wcgoldberg | Hardwood Paroxysm, All U Can Heat

Deep down, Stan Van Gundy knows the Detroit Pistons aren’t going to win this series. But Van Gundy isn’t going to lay down and just let it happen. Like a f—ing wall, Van Gundy is going to fearlessly stand in LeBron James’ way.

The Pistons played the Cavaliers tough Sunday, nearly pulling off the upset but eventually falling 106-101. Van Gundy has his team ready for the challenge.

“We don’t care who you put in front of us,” Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson said via ESPN. “We fear nobody, and experience is going to be our best teacher. We’re going to learn on the fly. We think we have a chance.”

They don’t. Not when the Cavaliers have James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving and the Pistons have Jackson. Not when the NBA wants James to win.

So let’s not worry about the winning and losing. For once, the outcome doesn’t matter. Not even for the playoffs.

Let’s just appreciate that Van Gundy is back in the post-season for the first time since 2012. That, for some reason, innately cautious broadcast crews haven’t yet decided that mic’ing up this loose cannon isn’t a bad idea (probably because it’s a really really really good idea) that makes an FCC fine not a question of if, but when.

The ABC broadcast, featuring the voice of basketball Mike Breen, our favorite uncle Jeff Van Gundy and that guy who is up to something, Mark Jackson, in the booth, consistently gave us shots of Stan Van Gundy coaching up his team on the bench.

It wasn’t the mundane “get on the glass guys” or “keep hustling, good work out there” that we get during the regular season.

Instead we got some real nuggets from our favorite Hamburglar. Declarations like “they aren’t going to play better as a team than us, they just aren’t” and pointed challenges “okay they made a run, what are you going to do now?”

(These quotes are paraphrased.)

You don’t have to say it Stan, even though I have no doubt that you know it and may very well say it. You are going to coach circles around Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue. You are going to have your team prepared and the Pistons will be in every game just like they were in this one.

The Cavaliers have the three best players on the court, but the Pistons have one of the best five or six coaches in the entire league. In the playoffs, coaching becomes more important, and Van Gundy has the stage.

The regular season is a lot of managing minutes and lineups as coaches try to make sure their teams survive 82 games before ramping it up for the post-season. Teams don’t get to practice a lot, and there isn’t a lot of opportunities to make adjustments.

Coaches, real coaches like Van Gundy, live for the playoffs. The game-to-game chess match, the increased urgency of his players, when “we just didn’t play hard enough tonight” doesn’t come up at the postgame podium and when a series can be won or lost on one coaching decision. We often forget that just like the players, the coaches also have to step up their games.

Maybe the Pistons don’t have a chance in this series but, for Van Gundy, there is no place he would rather be.

The North Remembers

Gerald Bourguet | @GeraldBourguet | HoopsHabit

Here we go again, Raptors.

Coming off a 56-win season, the latest career years from DeMar DeRozan and Skinny Kyle Lowry — along with the addition of DeMarre Carroll — figured to finally make the Toronto Raptors a legitimate threat in the Eastern Conference. But there’s a reason they play the games, and after a 100-90 Game 1 loss to the Indiana Pacers, “We The North” squandered home-court advantage in their playoff opener for the third year in a row.

Everyone remembers how that panned out for Toronto the last two times, with the Raptors losing a seven-game series to the No. 6 Brooklyn Nets in 2014 and getting unceremoniously swept by the No. 5 Washington Wizards in 2015. After watching yet another Toronto-killler named Paul stomp on the hearts of the Air Canada Centre, one can’t help but think this is the same ol’ Raptors.

Give Paul George and the Pacers credit where it’s due: PG-13 went full NC-17 on Toronto, dropping 27 of his game-high 33 points in the second half. He went 10-for-13 from the floor in the final two quarters and singlehandedly squashed the Raptors’ every attempt to regain momentum time and time again with a timely bucket or a well-placed assist.

But there was no excuse for Toronto’s All-Star backcourt completely failing to show up, and George singlehandedly outscored them in the second half alone. Lowry and DeRozan combined for 25 points and shot 8-for-32 from the floor, 1-for-10 from three-point range and 8-for-15 from the foul line. They accounted for only 11 assists and nine turnovers as well.

In his last five playoff games, Lowry is now 21-for-70 from the field (30 percent). If it weren’t for Cory Joseph’s scoring off the bench (18 points) and Jonas Valanciunas giving Toronto so many second chance opportunities (19 rebounds), Game 1 would’ve been a Pacers blowout.

The problems extend to head coach Dwane Casey as well. You wouldn’t be wrong to view Casey as a Coach of the Year candidate this season, but he’s like the Anti-Randy Wittman with the way his regular season brilliance seems to dissipate into incompetence as soon as the playoffs roll around.

Not having DeMarre Carroll at 100 percent played a major factor in Paul George’s monstrous second half, but was anyone expecting a different outcome with Casey sticking woeful defenders like DeRozan and Terrence Ross on him? With the backcourt misfiring, Ross completely lost on defense, PG-13 going off and Valanciunas fouling out, the second half was like watching The Red Wedding from Game of Thrones for Raptors fans.

After falling to 0-8 all time in playoff openers, which is the worst record among all current NBA teams, an entire season spent proving that this Raptors team is different suddenly hangs by a thread. Game 2 has become a must-win to prevent widespread panic from setting in, and the pressure is on for Lowry, DeRozan and Casey.

We’ve seen Lowry, DeRozan and Ross completely wet the bed in the playoffs for three straight years, and no matter how many game-to-game adjustments Casey makes, it’ll come down to the team’s stars getting out of their own heads and playing the high-caliber basketball they’ve played all season long. Indiana having the best player in the series is a huge factor, which is precisely why Lowry or DeRozan need to throw their names back into that conversation.

But if the Raptors find a way to drop Game 2 at home and face the prospect of another first round elimination on the road, they may as well change their patented “We The North” hashtag to “The North Remembers.” What better way is there to properly commemorate how their playoff appearances become a demoralizing exhibition of bloodshed than that?

Hassan Whiteside: Still growing, caring

David Ramil | @dramil13 | Hardwood Paroxysm

Midway through the second quarter of Miami’s 123-91 dismantling of the Charlotte Hornets, Heat center Hassan Whiteside misread a play as it unfolded and allowed Cody Zeller to swoop past him for an uncontested dunk. The play was insignificant, insofar as it only yielded two points in the midst of a blowout, but Whiteside looked genuinely upset with himself after allowing Zeller’s easy score. He clapped his hands together, uttered an expletive, and shook his head as he ran down court.

It might have been Whiteside’s only misstep of the night, as he finished his first appearance in a playoff game with the gaudy line of 21 points, 11 rebounds, 3 blocks and 2 steals. But his response was a welcome site for critics who have pointed — perhaps rightfully — to Whiteside’s tendency to chase empty individual stats.

The reaction might very well represent part of the ongoing evolution of Whiteside. Despite dominating for much of the past two seasons, concerns about his maturity, intelligence, and level of dedication still dog him. Even among the most ardent Heat supporters, Whiteside remains an unknown quantity; he could be deadly or catastrophic on any given night. With the pressure of the playoffs added to the equation, there was definitely questions regarding how he might respond.

The answer, at least for one night, is that this is a version of Whiteside who cares, who wasn’t interested in responding to some perceived slight or putting together a nice post-game sound bite. From Pat Riley to Alonzo Mourning, Juwan Howard to Udonis Haslem, many have tried to get through to Whiteside and seen slight (and temporary) progress.

Instead, he faced two very different opposing centers — rim-marauder Zeller and the slower, fleet-footed Al Jefferson — and adjusted accordingly. He picked his spots carefully, and resisted launching ill-advised jump shots.

There’s still a part of Whiteside that is terrifying, not because of his play but because he has frequently shown the tendency to walk to close to the edge of self-control. Hornets coach Steve Clifford could find a way to antagonize Whiteside into self-destructing. Spencer Hawes could be brought in to incite Hassan or criticize his political affiliation. Whiteside could still blow up at any moment and it wouldn’t be the least bit surprising.

Whiteside is a free agent this summer. Each subsequent game with Miami is could be one closer to being his last.
But for one night he was exactly what the Heat and their fans have always hoped for and that’s good enough.

Atlanta’s Frontcourt is the Celtics’ Worst Nightmare

Jeremy Karll | @JeremyKarll5 | Hardwood Houdini

The first half of Game 1 featured everything the Boston Celtics were hoping would not happen. The Atlanta Hawks forced them into the half-court, not allowing them to run, and the game was dominated by frontcourt play. It was no surprise that Atlanta led 51-34 at half. The Celtics weren’t able to get anything going on offense and had no answer for Atlanta’s big men on defense — it was complete domination

The Celtics eventually crawled back into the game and very nearly pulled off the comeback. But given the first half struggles, and their track record against Atlanta’s bigs in the regular season, they have to be concerned.

Paul Millsap didn’t have his best night against Boston, but there’s no doubt the Celtics had him circled when Atlanta was on offense. He torched the Celtics for 22.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game this season in the team’s four games. The Celtics have a lot of variety in their frontcourt rotation but don’t have anyone to defend the full range of his offensive skill set — his rare ability to shoot from outside, post-up, and drive.

Amir Johnson is the Celtics’ best defensive big man, however, he sticks on Al Horford. Jared Sullinger doesn’t have the quickness to stay on Millsap for long periods of time before getting burnt and Kelly Olynyk, who dealt with a shoulder injury this game, is at the same kind of defensive disadvantage. When it comes down to it, Boston doesn’t have the size to matchup against Horford – who had a huge night – or Millsap down low. As deep as Boston is, they lack a true defensive force in their frontcourt.

The Celtics thrive on getting as many shots up as they can. They want to run in transition to avoid having to play a half-court style of offense because of their size down low and their poor jump shooters. Atlanta’s inside presence and lack of turnovers were able to slow the game down and prevented Boston from getting out in transition. The Celtics ended with no fast break points in the first half – during the regular season they averaged the sixth-most fast break points per game.

Atlanta’s defense also made it difficult for Boston’s guards to penetrate the lane, forcing the Celtics’ starters to shoot 9-38 from the field in the first half (23.7 percent). Even though Jon Barry kept saying, “You have to get inside and stop shooting,” it was easier said than done.

Horford and Millsap both had great games on Saturday night, although Mike Scott was the big surprise for Atlanta, finishing with 14 points and five rebounds in only 18 minutes. He started out the game shooting 6-of-6 and Boston had no answer for him. The last thing Boston wanted after Game 1 was another big man they had to worry about, particularly one like Scott that they may have to chase around the perimeter.

Paul Millsap and Al Horford have been enough of a challenge for Boston this season and adding another power forward, like Scott, to worry about in this series could be troubling for Boston. However, the Celtics’ ability to speed up the game in the second half and force the Hawks to play through their guards is a good sign and they would much rather have to focus on stopping Teague and Bazemore than Millsap and Horford with their undersized frontcourt.

Curry and Harden: Inspiration Versus Opportunity

Adam McGee | @AdamMcGee11 | Behind The Buck Pass

A playoff clash between the league’s two best scorers is something to be excited about. That is, unless it comes in the form of a matchup between Golden State and Houston, Stephen Curry and James Harden.

If this series was greeted in a lukewarm fashion, there was good reason for it. Golden State’s dominance and a fear of a one-sided outcome plays a logical role in any disinterest, but it runs even deeper than that. In the past, when two legitimately great scorers would meet, there’d always be a feeling that a hot series from one of them could swing momentum in their team’s direction. In this case, in a series that will be decided by its biggest stars, the contrast between the two men is stark.

The perception of scoring has shifted, in large part due to Curry’s exceptional play, and it has created a landscape where Curry and Harden represent the NBA’s new scoring dichotomy. Both score in volume and both are capable of amazing efficiency. It’s just that Curry’s scoring seems to feed his team’s offense, where Harden’s often appears to disrupt it.

After a slow shooting start (4-11 from the field) from Golden State in the opening minutes of Game 1, Patrick Beverley flashed some of his trademark physicality in a tussle with Curry and both men were served with technical fouls.

Those who have been avid Warriors watchers over the past couple of seasons will already have known that nothing sharpens their focus like conflict. One of the most irritating aspects of the Warriors great run has been the tetchiness with which they’ve often reacted to negative press and on-court adversity. By the same token, it drives them together and that could be one of the most notable keys to what makes them great.

When the Warriors are in unison it’s a sight to behold. The incident with Beverley spurred Curry to take over. It also drove the likes of Festus Ezeli and Leandro Barbosa to make meaningful impacts too. Curry scored all 24 of his points in the first half and barely figured in the final 24 minutes due to ankle problems. It didn’t matter, his team had already received the inspiration they needed.

On the opposite side of the court Harden was having a very different night. He finished the first half with four points and four fouls. Was it any surprise that the Rockets looked listless, trailing by 27? It took less than a minute after Curry returned to the locker room for Harden to get into a rhythm, and it was behind his 13 point third quarter that Houston briefly got the lead down to 15.

It was there for all to see early in the season and here it was raising its head again. If Harden isn’t firing, neither are the Rockets. What makes Curry different is that he finds a way to get his team going regardless. If his shot’s not falling he’ll defer to those around him, or as it was on this occasion, take a technical foul if necessary.

Harden is a special scorer, but he may ultimately be remembered for how he failed to impact games when things weren’t going his way. Curry has no such problem.

Time to let Lance be Lance

Ian Levy | @HickoryHigh | FanSided

Game 1 between the San Antonio Spurs and the Memphis Grizzlies went about how you would have expected. The Grizzlies started Jordan Farmar. They lost by 32, shortest distance between two points and all that. What Memphis brought to this series, personnel-wise, is the equivalent of driftwood and flotsam. Marc Gasol, Mike Conley, and Brandan Wright all suffered season-ending injuries a good long while ago. Courtney Lee was traded to Charlotte. A light spackle of castoffs and D-Leaguers was applied, and here we are.

The Memphis Grizzlies really have no hope in this series. The have long tied their identity to the ideals of grit and grind and, ironically, this is probably the grittiest, grindiest roster they’ve ever had. In the past, that style was a conscious choice, playing to their strengths. Now, it’s out of desperate necessity and really all that’s left is weakness. Muck things up on defense, a steady diet of Zach Randolph and Vince Carter post-ups on offense, maybe hope Matt Barnes gets under someone’s skin — it’s not much of a plan. Forget system, structure, and spacing, the talent gap here is a mile wide. The only real medium for challenging San Antonio is luck. Or as the statisticians call it — variance.

Enter Lance Stephenson.

Lance Stephenson is variance incarnate. He has the skills and athleticism to be an elite NBA player. He has just the barest modicum of control over those skills and athleticism. Highlight-reel drives are mixed with possessions that look like he grabbed a rebound and then bent over and spun around 10 times with his nose on a baseball bat before heading up court. When he is on, he is tremendous. When he is off, it can be eye-gougingly bad. The thing is, rolling the dice with their regular (in the present context) rotation and game plan is likely to yield results for Memphis that are about as anything Lance’s chaos could whip up. But there is also a chance, an small one to be certain, that the Grizzlies could catch the right Lance on the right night and ride him somewhere special.

In Game 1, Lance played just over 28 minutes and attempted 11 shots. The ideal mix for Memphis is probably closer to 40 and 40. This may sound silly, but so is playing it straight and losing by 36. Memphis can play with as much grit as they want, the odds of them grinding out four wins are absurdly unlikely, unless they push all their chips to the center of the table and let Lance be Lance.

Lance is a human freight train. You never know if he’s headed for glory or for the canyon wall, but anywhere has to be better than here, right?

Maybe Dirk Should’ve Taken the Money

Trisity Miller | @Trisity_ | Clipperholics

The Dallas Mavericks series-opening loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder shouldn’t be a reminder of the past, what was (2011), and what could’ve been (every summer since the ring). But that’s all one could think about as the Thunder waltzed their way to a 1-0 lead in the Western Conference’s 3-6 matchup.

How Mark Cuban goes for gold every summer — draft or free agency, but mainly the latter — looking for the next guy(s) to carry the torch for the post-Dirk Mavericks has been the topic of conversation since the franchise won its first ring but at no point does that chase feel more relevant than right now, as the 37-year old Nowitzki is once again asked to carry the team in the playoffs.

Dwight Howard. Deron Williams. DeAndre Jordan. All of these players who entered their respective free agencies were marquee selections for whoever landed their services. All, eventual deniers of what Cuban and company offered in the offseason, and the inability to fill in after each failure is front and center when Dirk’s best teammates against the Thunder are the likes of Raymond Felton, a gimpy Deron Williams, the intriguing Salah Mejri, and rookie Justin Anderson.

If you remember, Nowitzki sacrificed his salary for a better future in Dallas — a selfless act by a player in a league filled with guys who take nothing less than the max a team can offer. Or at least that’s how it seems. Like Duncan, Nowitzki saw the offseason as time to, hopefully, help extend an already Hall of Fame career. It didn’t happen, and the result, Nowitzki scoring 18 points while no other teammate eclipsed 8 — in a 38 point loss to Oklahoma City or any playoff team not named Memphis, that’s a recipe for disaster. Statistics tell us those others won’t likely score as little in a repeat performance but even at its healthiest state, this Mavericks team is sweep bait. I like Chandler Parsons but from a talent viewpoint, even him being healthy wouldn’t make that much of a difference here.

At an unfortunate time, the Mavericks are a stern reminder of nothing being guaranteed in the NBA. If so, Nowitzki is dominating in a reduced role a la ‘rival’ Tim Duncan with the stars around him (Kawhi, Aldridge, etc.) doing the heavy lifting while Mark Cuban stands as the cocky overlord who built up another contender after skeptics said his 2011 gamble wasn’t smart. Maybe it’s DeAndre instead of Pachulia, guaranteeing Dallas’ place as a top-10 defensive team. Or Howard thriving in the role we all want to see him in because Rick Carlisle is a magician. Whoever. Instead, what was gotten with Nowitzki’s extra salary was the not-quite-100-percent Wes Matthews, Chandler Parsons, and other scraps we’d hardly recognize as stars or something of a lesser status . If not for Rick Carlisle, this post would probably be about Houston or Utah.

The situation makes one think Nowitzki should’ve taken the money, like Kobe Bryant did. At no point does the now-retired Bryant need extra persons to defend any action of his but mirroring his ‘greed’ beside Nowitzki’s ‘selflessness’ delivers a perspective that says Bryant isn’t the monster some made him out to be for taking what Lakers management offered to him post-Achilles tear.

The Lakers legacy theoretically puts them in a different stratosphere than Dallas but with the money and without it, neither team found their next guy in free agency.

Most likely, the trend continues for Dallas, with the situation more dispiriting as time goes on with Nowitzki near the end of his career. The summer is months away so there’s still a 50/50 chance Dirk is paired with a star but at some point the hint should be taken: take a look at the talent Dirk is partnered with through the next three games (I’m calling the sweep) and expect similar.

And if you’re an NBA player reading this, take the money. Dirk’s living through ‘it’ so you don’t have to.

When Your Good Ain’t Good Enough

Daniel Rowell | @danieljrowell | Hardwood Paroxysm

With a little over two minutes remaining in the third quarter, a frustrated Damian Lillard guarded Chris Paul off an inbounds play. The Clippers, up 76-60 at this point, had outshot the Trail Blazers from the field 55.6 percent to 33.8 percent. Paul’s 22 points and 11 assists led a team that looked like they had been there before. And they had, the Clippers are in their fifth straight playoffs, where they’ve made it to the second round three of the past four years.

After inbounding, Paul immediately called for the ball back on the baseline went one-on-one with Lillard. Lillard, 6-of-15 from the field with five assists and three turnovers had made it to the free throw line just once and while his performance was average, it wasn’t enough. He was visibly disgruntled. Paul swung the ball side-to-side and shouted out as Lillard swiped. I’ve watched the clip maybe a dozen times and I can’t make out what Paul is saying. He’s either calling for a screen or calling his shot, but it got just an inch of space from Lillard, and it was all that he needed. Paul pulled up a fifteen-footer and the look of defeat on Lillards face as he turned watched it fall in told the story the next fourteen minutes would hold out. His good wasn’t good enough.

The matchup with Chris Paul was all that Lillard could handle and more. The Blazers didn’t have an answer to the 1-5 pick-and-roll with DeAndre Jordan, or really any screen. Mason Plumlee and Al-Farouq Aminu lost the battle in the paint with Blake Griffin. Maybe the most telling statistic came from NBA.com new Hustle Hub, the Clippers combined for 25 screened assists — 11 more than the next closest team. The Clippers had only six three-pointers on the night, but had the Blazers guards chasing them around the perimeter, creating over half their shots off screens.

And that’s the problem for Portland. Their two best offensive players, Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum, averaged over 45 points in the regular season, but were held to just 30 on the night and couldn’t contain Paul, J.J. Redick, or Jamal Crawford off the screen. The Clippers guards combined for 58 points, 24-of-43 from the field. And they attacked McCollum on the other end, who shot 3-of-11.

So here is the question for the Blazers going into Game 2. Can your good be good enough? The Blazers are now 1-4 against the Clippers this season and 1-9 in the past ten games in the Staples Center. The 44-win season was a great regular season story for the Trail Blazers, but with Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum as the leaders of a young and inexperienced team, the demands of their role are growing faster than they can keep up. By Wednesday, they’ll need to find a way to guard Paul and Redick on the perimeter, and right now it looks like they can’t even give up an inch.