Well, I've heard just about everything now.


Dave McMenamin @mcten 59 minutes ago
New story with @WindhorstESPN: JR Smith was suspended on Thursday for throwing a bowl of soup at Cavs assistant coach Damon Jones

JR feeling the pressure from the new athletic 2 headed monster called ClarkHood.

There was a time JR was the athletic guy on the roster - now those 2 are making him replaceable.

By the way, you have to wonder if the team didn't have that in mind when shopping...

only one game suspension so it must have been kind of tepid soup.

Yeah, I'm thinking a chowder and not a vegetable or minestrone. Those tomato based soups can be hard to wash out. He may have got 3 for that.

perhaps just a consommé. No noodles or anything to get stuck in Jones' hair.

3. Ever since he took over as coach, Lue has always kept one eye on the playoffs, even if the opportunity cost is a few wins in the regular season. Last season he punted any chance at the top seed late in the year just to get guys rest. Get to the postseason healthy, he always says, and he likes his team’s chances from there. ‌‌‌

4. Only the situation facing this team now is unique enough to perhaps alter that thinking, at least for now. Both Lue and LeBron James acknowledged after Thursday’s loss that it’s time to scale back the offense and let the new guys run free again in an effort to play better in the short term. The new guys have to learn the offense at some point, but this is a team that is valuing wins more than usual given how difficult the season has been to this point.

5. “I think right now there’s so much that we’re trying to fast track that it can become too much sometimes,” James said. “It’s tough on our new guys. It’s seven games and we’re trying to put a lot in and get a lot in for these guys. Maybe scale a little bit back and see if us just trying to play a little bit faster and play a little bit more open is a better thing for our team.”

6. James cautioned, however, that the Cavs don’t want to be too predictable in the postseason, which means at some point they’ll have to learn the system. But Lue liked the way the newcomers performed before the All-Star break, when they didn’t know anything and played fast and loose. The more they try to put in now, the slower the game gets.

7. The Cavs played fast in the first quarter when they scored 29 points, passed for nine assists and consistently beat the Sixers in transition. Their pace for the first quarter was 98.3. But the pace slowed considerably after that. They had just 14 total assists after the first quarter, and their pace in the second half was down to 86.3.

8. “Right now offensively we’re just playing in thought too much,” Lue said. “Maybe we should slow down offensively. Adding I think is just too much for the guys right now. Just trying to think and play, it’s too hard.”

9. Now it’s worth noting that the Cavs don’t exactly run an elaborate offensive scheme. They’re not running the triangle or a version of the Princeton offense that involves a lot of cuts and movement. A lot of their offense is predicated on pick-and-rolls, and they run many of the same sets as most teams.

10. The confusion seems to stem from the new guys knowing where to stand on certain plays. They scored 121 points against Boston and 120 against Oklahoma City when they didn’t know any of the sets. They’ve failed to break 100 points in two of the five games since the All-Star break.

11. “We’re putting in a lot of stuff right now,” said Jordan Clarkson, one of those new guys. “The first couple of games was real simple. But we still gotta learn everything. We’re trying to log it all in right now. We know it’s coming, it’s just a process for us.”

12. Clarkson was ejected in the game’s final seconds because he threw the ball into Dario Saric’s back after Saric scored. Instead of dribbling out the clock, Saric dunked with 12 seconds left — after the game had already been decided — to push the lead to 10. Clarkson immediately fired the ball at Saric, which started some pushing and shoving. Clarkson acknowledged he was upset by the basket.

13. “Part of the game. If anybody say different, that they wouldn’t have did that, that they’d have did something different, they lying,” Clarkson said. “Especially if it was at that (point) of the game. They know what’s up.”

14. Saric apologized for the play. His dunk was preceded by a Ben Simmons dunk with 26 seconds left on the Sixers’ previous possession.

15. “It was not against the Cavs organization. I saw Ben dunk the ball, and I wanted to do the same,” Saric said. “I want to apologize to them, because I finished that ball.”

16. James seemed particularly heated during the exchange, but he didn’t want to talk about it afterward.

17. “Listen, they won the game,” he said.

Now it’s worth noting that the Cavs don’t exactly run an elaborate offensive scheme. They’re not running the triangle or a version of the Princeton offense that involves a lot of cuts and movement. A lot of their offense is predicated on pick-and-rolls, and they run many of the same sets as most teams.

Understatement. Of course in their defense practice time is very scarce since recovery between games is paramount in the few days off they get. Basketball ain't baseball.

NBA execs: Michael Porter should play if he can
Feb 26, 2018
Jeff Goodman
ESPN Insider

More than 10 NBA general managers and high-ranking executives told ESPN they would advise Missouri freshman Michael Porter Jr., a projected lottery pick, to come back and play this season.

The 6-foot-10 Porter has been out since Nov. 10, when he left the court after just two minutes in the season opener because of a back injury that required surgery. He was cleared by doctors for full-contact practice last week.

"It depends how he looks in practice," one GM told ESPN. "If he's the best player in practice two of three days in a row, then he should play."

"If he's healthy, he's not going to slide down too much even if he doesn't play well," added another. "Everyone's seen him. And if he plays well, I think he could move all the way up to the second spot in the draft."


Missouri's Michael Porter Jr., projected as a top pick in the NBA draft, was hurt in the first two minutes of the season opener and hasn't played since. David Banks/Getty Images
Missouri has two regular-season games left -- Tuesday at Vanderbilt and Saturday at home against Arkansas -- before next week's SEC tournament. The Tigers are 18-11 overall, 8-8 in league play and projected as a No. 9 seed in ESPN's latest bracket.

Missouri coach Cuonzo Martin told ESPN's Jeff Borzello after the loss to Kentucky on Saturday that there's no timeline but that Porter went through a limited practice on Friday and shootaround on Saturday.

"I don't have a timeline, but the most important thing is that he's healthy and able to play in games," Martin said. "In his case, he wants to play, and I think that the good thing about it but we just have to make sure he's ready to go from my standpoint, the doctor, the trainer, and watching him through practice and live-game situations."

One source close to the family told ESPN that no decision has been made on whether he will play -- and that his parents will ultimately make the decision. His father, Michael Porter Sr., is an assistant coach with the Tigers, and his younger brother, Jontay, is a freshman forward.

"It will depend how he looks in practice," the source told ESPN. "There's no plan, and they will just see how he looks and then make a decision."



"If he wants to be a top five pick, he should play," one NBA GM told ESPN. "Right now I don't think he is."

The NBA executives said that the medical information they receive before the NBA draft will also be important in where he winds up being drafted.

"Proving he's healthy will be enough," another said. "Basketball-wise, people know enough from what they've seen."

Thanks for the draft prospects update rusty

This team is starting to look like OKC from last year. LeBron playing Westbrook role. Everyone else watching.

Of course Kyrie was not a superstar !

rusty - of course Kyrie is a superstar but that ship sailed and it's now obvious they had no choice. He was not happy and nothing could change that.

I agree with you on the offense, sorta looks like the Finals when he was on his own that year. No Kyrie or Love.

But to be clear, Lebron is a far better passer then Westbrook. Also George Hill and Clarkson are both hybrid guards, not really distributors.

The trades really made this team more fun to watch, because they really play with energy now. Even in losses they are legit losses because they gave 100%. What I see now is growing pains defensively but offensively...

This is where they miss Kevin Love. We can't forget they are missing a huge piece offensively without him - he can score 3s, post up and also distribute when they run offense through him.

So, to me, THAT is what they are missing and he will be back.

To your point they are dreaming if they think they can be the same offensively without Kyrie Irving (I don't think they are dreaming, they realize). They won't be but they can win in other ways with their new found athleticism and desire.

That said - this year the East is more wide open and truly up for grabs for once. Toronto is good, and deep. The deep part is legit this year and was what they were missing besides a more well rounded DeRozan - and they also have that now. He now distributes and shoots 3s in addition to being the deadly mid range guy he always was. Ibaka also a big wildcard.

Boston vs Houston last night shows how darn far a team can go with good coaching, great defense and all kinds of youthful desire. Oh, and Kyrie.

It is what it is - the Cavs are a far different team now. Ultimately Houston and the Warriors are so darn good that it will be a moot point eventually.

Toronto's success has to do with the young guys that they drafted or picked up. DeRozan will still be a dog at crunch time like he has been.

Cavs are not playing good basketball right now. Lue takes forever to figure out his players. Not sure Love will really help. Thompson out for a few games or weeks will hurt. Green hurt.

Not really comparing Westbrook and LeBron as to ability. Just that Lebron is playing like Westbrook. Big stats and losses.....

Tristan Thompson will miss "multiple games" with a sprained ankle, the Cavs announced on Sunday.

Thompson stepped on someone's heel during Saturday's game and although he continued to play, he experienced "significant swelling" overnight. Without Kevin Love (hand), they could start Larry Nance Jr. at center, and may even dust off Ante Zizic for some frontcourt minutes.