| 26 May 2009
There's a certain point where there isn't much analysis that can go into breaking down a game like this. That doesn't mean that I won't attempt to break down some trends that worked and some that didn't for each team. But at the same time, it essentially came down to the Magic making big shots in overtime and outlasting one final push by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
There were 10 big story lines throughout this game:
1) The Mo Williams Guarantee - Before the game started, Mo Williams guaranteed that the Cavs would win this series. Even though series/game guarantees are essentially worthless and stupid, I have no problem with Mo thinking that the Cavs are going to win this series. He should feel that way. But you put an unnecessary vibe and pressure over your entire team (not just you) when you guarantee stuff like that. And when you don't come through, it becomes an extraneous drama that gets played up. Plus, it gives bulletin board material to the other team, which is something that doesn't need to happen in the playoffs. These guys don't need any extra motivation. So when you get down to his performance not only in this series but also in this game, the guarantee makes his performance (5/15 shooting) even more detrimental to the team.
2) The High Pick and Roll - Orlando seems to have found the perfect way to attack this Cleveland defense. They give Hedo the ball, throw Dwight Howard to screen him at the top of the key, and they give Hedo the scalpel to dissect the defense before him. He has the opportunity to draw in Howard's defender and drop it into Howard deep in the key. He has the opportunity to draw the defender from Rashard Lewis, Mickael Pietrus, or Rafer Alston to set up an open three-pointer. Or he gets a mismatch guarding him and he gets to attack for the score in whichever way he wants. And there's very little that Cleveland can do to stop it. They basically have to play smaller or hope Orlando misses their jumpers.
3) Dwight Howard's technical fouls - Going into this game, Dwight Howard had accumulated five technical fouls throughout the playoffs. As Doug Collins has droned on for dozens of minutes as of late, seven technical fouls earn you a one-game suspension during the playoffs. Well, Dwight Howard picked up a technical foul that was seemingly stupid but ultimately unfounded by the referees. He scored on a semi-rough foul by Anderson Varejao and turned towards Howard as he responded to the exultation of scoring on the play. At first glance, it appeared to be taunting by Howard. But on the replay, you could clearly see that he never really looked towards Varejao. The league SHOULD rescind the tech but if they don't then it's going to become a potential shit storm if he gets another one.
4) Rafer Alston's Surprise - No, Rafer Alston surprise is not a type of meal served in New York public schools. It was his explosion in the second half of this game that brought back catcalls of Skip To My Lou and Marv Albert's adulation. He scored the first 10 points of the third quarter for the Magic that virtually erased an eight-point Cavs lead coming out of halftime. And he racked up 20 points in the first 15 minutes of the second half. He injected life into the crowd and the Magic when they were in trouble of succumbing to Cleveland's will. He finished the game with 26 points, on 10/17 shooting and 6/12 from three-point range. He was +18 for the game and in this case, I think the +/- stat was completely accurate for stating his impact on the game.
5) Mickael Pietrus is the best player in the NBA - Okay, maybe that's not completely true. But the French Michael Jordan has been incredible in the playoffs this year. In this Cavs series alone, he's averaging 14 points on 48% shooting from the field and 41% from three in 28 minutes per game. He's been the perfect role player off the bench for the Magic and is a big time difference-maker in this series. He ends up being the one who is left wide open in the corner and he's making Cleveland pay. They have to start accounting for him or he's going to continue to burn them.
6) Dwight Howard's dominance - I don't quite know how to say this... but Dwight Howard's kind of a big deal. He has many leather-bound books and his apartment smells of rich mahogany. He's averaging 22.7 points, 13.5 rebounds, 61% shooting from the field and 71% shooting from the free throw line. Those are ridiculous numbers. And his 27-point, 14-rebound effort was exactly what Orlando needed in Game Four of this series. Cleveland has no clue on how to defend him because he's simply too strong inside. Big Z is too slow and Varejao isn't strong enough. The double team can't completely commit because Orlando is shooting 42% from three in this series. That puts Dwight Howard in position to constantly punch Cleveland in the baby-maker.
7) LeBron James performance - You have to feel bad for LeBron even if you don't like him (like how I feel). He's played about as well as he possibly can. He scored 44 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, and dished out seven assists in this game. He made some big shots and played some pretty decent defense after halftime when he switched from Rafer to the Hedo/Rashard combo (remember Rafers' second half explosion?). But he also had eight turnovers because he tried to force the issue to involve his teammates. It's hard to rip him for that because he was being a team guy. But at the same time, eight turnovers are still eight turnovers and his big one on a stupid transition pass to Delonte West that got picked off really put Cleveland in a hole in overtime. At the same time, he was just trying to get something to happen.
But what I can't let slide is his consistent missed free throws during the fourth quarters of these games. It isn't the sole reason that Cleveland keeps losing. But fourth quarter free throws are so important and the big stars have to make them. LeBron missed two in Game Four. He missed five in the fourth quarter of Game Three and it's no coincidence that in the three games in which he's missed fourth quarter free throws in this series, the Cavs have lost those games. He has to be able to come through that much more in these situations to complement his stellar play.
8) Bad Calls at the end of the game - I really can't figure out the referees in these games. Okay, that's not true. I can figure out these refs. But they're making some pretty terrible calls and Game Four's closing seconds in regulation were just atrocious. They bailed out LeBron on the last Cleveland possession in regulation when he lost his balance and fell down with 0.5 seconds left. They called the foul on Pietrus, which was arguably the worst call of the playoffs and allowed James to tie the game with two free throws. On the ensuing play, the Magic tried an inbounds alley-oop to Dwight and Varejao boxed him out from making a good play on the pass. It was far more contact than what James endured and there was no call.
Then in overtime, the refs fouled out Anderson Varejao on a play in which he didn't foul Dwight Howard. What little contact there was on the play was created by LeBron James and the fact that Andy was disqualified from the game because of that play was atrocious. Thank god there isn't an officiating problem in this league, right David Stern?
9) Delonte West's heart - Delonte West was the only Cavalier outside of LeBron who showed a ton of heart in this game. Towards the end of the game, he was the only help for LeBron who attacked the Orlando offense. He was aggressive going at Hedo Turkoglu and took him inside time after time despite the fact that he's giving up about eight inches to him. Delonte has nothing to be ashamed of in this game. Something the rest of the team can't really say (outside of LeBron of course).
10) End of the game - Cleveland has no answer for Rashard Lewis at the end of games. It's as simple as that. Somehow Rashard keeps getting free for these big threes and he's making the Cavs pay for it. From now on, maybe Mike Brown should start fining/benching players who don't cover him and deny him the ball at the end of games. If not, this 3-1 series lead is going to quickly turn into an NBA Finals berth for the Magic. Shard has been Robert Horry in this series.
Why the Magic Won This Game
The Magic executed at the end of the game a lot better than the Cavs did and that's the reason they came out with the win. Rashard Lewis' shot on the inbounds play with six seconds left was run perfectly to get him a wide-open shot. In overtime, they got Dwight the ball early to establish the threat inside once again and it flustered the Cavs attack. Their defensive effort forced three turnovers in OT and it created a lead that Cleveland couldn't quite crack. With LeBron's missed three at the end of the game, they dodged a bullet but created the nearly impossible situation with their execution in the extra period.
Why the Cavs Lost This Game
The Cavs simply ran out of bullets. They shot poorly from three-point range (6/22) but other than that, they were completely competent as a team. The role players didn't do much to help out LeBron and he had to over extend himself for much of this second half. Outside of LeBron and Delonte, the rest of the Cavs didn't create opportunities for their teammates. Bron and Delonte had seven assists apiece and the rest of the Cavs combined for just three assists in 168 minutes of play. That's far too much standing around and waiting for someone to create for you. The question is did the Magic defense create that result or is Mike Brown's offensive incompetence shining through again?
Heading Into Game Five
It's do or die time for the Cavs. They HAVE to defend the perimeter better. They HAVE to find a way to stop Dwight Howard from imposing his will and impregnating the Cavs interior defense. They HAVE to stop Hedo from picking them apart. They HAVE to stop Rashard Lewis from making big threes. They HAVE to have someone rotate better to cover Pietrus. They HAVE to get better play from someone besides LeBron. They HAVE to get Mo Williams going. Failure to do these things will earn them a Photoshop'd fishing picture with Brady Quinn and Kenny Smith.
Prediction: Cavs don't die yet, win Game Five.
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