Random dribbles following the Cavaliers’ 100-90 road loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday.
1. After 10 games, J.B. Bickerstaff gets my vote for NBA Coach of the Year.
2. Granted, I’m biased, because I write about the Cavs more than anyone else. But it’s hard for me to believe any other coach is making the most out of a crummy injury-plagued situation as successfully as Bickerstaff.
3. I’ve also covered pro basketball long enough to know how badly these scenarios can go — and that the coach is a major reason why they’re not going badly the Cavs.
4. Yes, the Cavs lost. But you know who’s missing. The list is almost too long to keep typing. It still included leading scorer Collin Sexton (ankle), fellow backcourt-mate Darius Garland (shoulder) and former All-Star Kevin Love (calf). That’s three starters.
5. Yet the Cavs (5-5) hung in there, just as they have done all season.
6. Beyond the ludicrous injury situation, everything was all set up for them to lose. The Bucks are a very good team, a team that looks to be better after finishing with the league’s best record in each of the past two season.
7. Now, it should be noted the Bucks were missing back-to-back NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, out with minor back spasms. But still. The Cavs trailed by 19 and came back to tie it. That’s not easy against anyone on the road.
8. The Cavs were also concluding a six-game road swing. They were bound to be exhausted. That would be the case even if they had been remotely healthy. Plus, the Bucks were just blasted by the Jazz the previous night. They’re just too good to lose two nights in a row, whether The Greek Freak is uniform or not.
9. Overall, the Cavs were missing seven players. I said when they left for the trip that if they win two games, they could call it a success. And I actually wrote that thinking Sexton would play the whole time. Well, they went 2-4.
10. That’s not just success, that’s flat-out remarkable. If you had told me Sexton and Garland wouldn’t play for any part of the trip, I would’ve predicted 0-6.
11. Anyway, the Cavs never led in the second half but they didn’t get blown out, either. They kept the pressure on, scrapped and forced the Bucks into 16 turnovers. It was another valiant effort in a season filled with them.
12. Bickerstaff to reporters: “They gave us what they had tonight. Asking guys to play heavy minutes, carry heavy burdens, and they scrapped and they competed. We just couldn’t manufacture enough points. I thought our defense was solid, but we just struggled to manufacture some points and find easy buckets.”
13. So who played for the Cavs? Well, Andre Drummond was again very good with 26 points and a dominating 24 rebounds. Also, shooting guard Damyean Dotson again started and played perhaps his best game as pro — finishing with 21 points and eight assists. Larry Nance Jr. added 17 points and four steals.
14. Oh by the way, Dotson’s ankle has been bothering him, too. And point guard/facilitator isn’t anything close to his natural position. But he performed it very well nonetheless.
15. More Bickerstaff: “I feel really good about this team, to be honest with you. The things we say that matter most to us, our guys have continued to show. They are competitive, they are selfless, they are together.”
16. You’d better believe Bickerstaff has plenty to do with that.
17. General manager Koby Altman also deserves credit for assembling a roster of guys who want to play hard, and as Bickerstaff noted, are clearly big on unity.
18. I’ve been covering the NBA for 15 years and I tend to be hardest on the GMs. That’s because I believe they are the men largely responsible for assembling a winning mindset and positive culture. I love Altman as a person, but I can be tough on him. That’s just my job. But he’s wildly impressed me with what he’s building and he should impress you, too.
19. Khris Middleton led the Bucks with a game-high 27 points. Bobby Portis started in place of Antetokounmpo and finished with 17 points and 11 boards. The Bucks (6-4) are going places.
20. Final word from Bickerstaff: “We just ran into something that it’s difficult to overcome. We put ourselves in position. We had to make some huge adjustments on the fly as far as game plan and style of play. And the guys bought in and gave it all they have.”
