10 Takeaways from Cavs Game 2 loss to Pistons: Blaming James Harden doesn’t tell the whole story

Game 2’s script wasn’t all that different from Game 1’s.

The Cleveland Cavaliers dug an early hole, climbed their way out, made it a close game in the fourth, and then let go of the rope in the final minutes. This culminated in a 107-97 loss to the Detroit Pistons.

The Cavs now head home having to win four of the next five games to keep their season alive.

James Harden’s poor performance is going to get the headlines, and understandably so.

He couldn’t get his shot to fall, going 3-13 from the field for just 10 points. Turnovers weren’t the big issue in Game 2, but this was the fourth time this postseason he’s had more giveaways (four) than field goals.

This game illustrated how Harden isn’t the player he was in his prime anymore. He’s able to beat mismatches if you give him one, but he’s not breaking guys down off the dribble like we’ve seen him do for a decade and a half. At least not against the best defense in the conference in the postseason with the floor as clogged as it is.

Harden very much looked his age as he was trying to create an opening against Tobias Harris late, but ended up turning the ball over instead after over-dribbling. It was an ugly, disastrous possession that was inexcusable from a star player.

However, at this point in his career, to call Harden a star is more reliant on who he has been, instead of who he currently is. This wasn’t someone who choked down the stretch, but someone incapable of physically doing what he needed to. He shouldn’t have been put in that position in the first place. This isn’t his team.

Harden’s defense only made matters worse. The Pistons hunted him out on switches and attacked him whenever they had an opportunity to do so. And they got clean looks at the rim when they did. This all resulted in the Cavs losing the minutes he played by 15.

For as bad as Harden was, to pin this all on him is disingenuous. He’s supposed to elevate this core, not be the one saving it. This team was never going to work if Evan Mobley was going to score just nine points, the role players were going to shoot this poorly from three, and Mitchell was going to fall short in the clutch.

It’s the entire team’s failing, not just the 36-year-old brought in midway through the season to help save what was a sinking ship. The cracks that caused the panic trade are bringing the group down, particularly in crunch time.

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Late-game offense once again hurt the Cavs. Cleveland had a three-point deficit with five minutes left to play. From there, Detroit outscored them 13-6. The offense went cold. They couldn’t get anything going to the basket and suffered as a result.

This has been a common occurrence throughout the postseason.

Cleveland is now 1-4 in games that are within five points in the final five minutes. They’ve lost the 18 postseason clutch minutes they’ve played by 19.

It’s easy to see why. The pace grinds to a halt late. The offense becomes isolation-heavy for the guards. The defense cheats off the non-shooters. This makes little to no room for the guards to operate, so they end up settling for bad shots that they don’t hit enough of to keep the offense afloat.

Missing open looks, particularly late, hurt. Cleveland went 0-11 from three in the fourth and was just 7-32 overall. Their 21.9% three-point percentage was their third-worst on the season.

Conversely, the Pistons had their seventh-best shooting game this year as they hit half of their triples.

This shooting split allowed the Pistons to win this game even though the Cavs won the turnover and second-chance points battles.

More than either of those things, Mitchell and Mobley combined to go 3-11 from the field for 10 points in the fourth quarter, sealing the Cavs’ fate.

Mitchell got downhill much better than he has at any point this postseason. He drove into the paint, going 9-13 there, and found ways to get to the line. However, Mitchell still didn’t attempt a shot in the restricted area, which is where he’s typically done the most damage throughout his career.

When the defense tightened up late, Mitchell wasn’t able to generate or hit clean looks. He wasn’t able to get to the rim, couldn’t create enough space for off-the-dribble threes, and didn’t find ways to set up teammates like a top-tier guard should. This resulted in him settling and missing bad looks while not doing much for his teammates either on or off-ball.

Mobley didn’t help out. He had a few forceful finishes in the paint, but overall wasn’t the impactful player he needed to be. This included struggling to clean the glass in lineups he was playing without Jarrett Allen. Nine points and just one rebound in a road playoff game isn’t close to enough from someone with his skill set.

The Cavs now have a 4-13 postseason road record in the Mitchell era. The same issues that plagued them late in games against the New York Knicks three years ago are still there. The coach, supporting cast, and even the starting point guard have changed. The issues haven’t. That blame falls on the core group that’s been there through it all.

Yes, you can point fingers at Harden if you want to. One more playoff failure on his resume doesn’t change much. However, this isn’t entirely on him. Or at the very least, this isn’t an issue he created.

Harden was brought in to help this group get over the hump. To stabilize lineups without Mitchell, to draw extra attention, and to provide supplemental on-ball creation. Not to put the team on his back or figure out the late-game offense on his own.

The Cavs have time to right the ship. They’re down 0-2 against a good Pistons team that has presented several defensive problems. At the same time, the Cavs haven’t come close to playing their best game and still had chances to win both road games late.

Things look bleak right now. Fighting back from a 0-2 hole is never ideal, but this isn’t over, at least not yet. However, if things are going to change, it has to come from the All-NBA players in their prime. Not from the guy who was one yesteryear.