CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cavs have only themselves to blame.
For failing to build the proper defensive habits throughout a turbulent regular season.
For believing they could flip a proverbial switch and erase months of mediocrity.
For going seven grueling games in Round One with a depleted and overmatched Toronto Raptors team.
For no-showing in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, an inexcusable loss that forced an every-other-day schedule that has Cleveland looking spent.
For choking away Game 1 against the Knicks inside Madison Square Garden — a loss that was worth so much more than one game and may become this franchise’s newest playoff ghost.
“Don’t lose Game 1 after being up 22,” Cavs star Donovan Mitchell said when asked about a potential lesson he could take away from his first ever conference finals appearance. “Changes the entire dynamic of the series. But you can’t reflect. We’re not sitting here reflecting on that, but if I were to say one thing, that would be that. But hey, it happened and now we have to find a way to get back from 3-0.”
Good luck there. No one has ever done it. Teams trailing 3-0 are 0-163.
And Cleveland, which lost Game 3 Saturday night, 121-108, and is currently paying for all of its previous sins, doesn’t look capable — no matter how much cologne it tries to spray on the last nine garbage quarters.
This suddenly lopsided series technically shifted late in the opener, when the poised Knicks popped open their coffin and crawled out of a 22-point hole — the second-largest comeback in NBA playoff history.
But from a practical standpoint, this potential outcome felt like months in the making.
Before James Harden. After James Harden. Doesn’t matter. Cleveland was always a middle-of-the-pack defense — an over-helping, unconnected unit lacking trust, discipline and attention to detail despite repeated claims of being a defense-first team.
Many of those flaws were masked by playing against offensively challenged and banged-up Toronto in the first round. Then again, in the conference finals, as Detroit’s spacing issues came to light while Cleveland sent multiple defenders toward MVP candidate Cade Cunningham and ignored non-shooters.
That wasn’t about Cleveland meeting a new defensive standard or breaking through a ceiling. It was about a pair of opponents unequipped to poke the necessary holes in a flimsy group. At least, over seven games.
The conference finals have asked the Cavs a much different question — and, through three games, they have no answer.
It all starts with New York captain Jalen Brunson.
Cleveland has tried switching against him, hoping it would reduce New York’s snappy ball movement. It has tried double-teaming, getting the ball out of Brunson’s hands and forcing others to make plays. It has tried mixing coverages and strategies, expecting it to confuse him.
Nothing has worked.
In Game 1, Brunson repeatedly torched Harden in the fourth quarter, sparking the miraculous comeback and finishing with 36 points.
In Game 2, Brunson had a playoff career-high 14 assists, showing his brilliance as a passer, with Josh Hart on the receiving end of many of those dimes, splashing uncontested 3s.
On Saturday, Brunson got off to a lackluster start before erupting for 21 second-half points. He finished with 30 on 10 of 19 from the field and 10 of 12 from the free-throw line in 41 steady minutes.
“His ability to just figure it out as he goes,“ Cavs center Jarrett Allen said when asked about the greatest challenge in containing Brunson. ”We threw everything at him, almost everything. We have to find out another thing to throw at him to try to slow him down. He’s an amazing player and he makes amazing shots.”
And he’s gotten plenty of help.
Swingman Mikal Bridges has continued his heater, pouring in 22 points on 11 of 15 shooting, his third game this series scoring 18 or more points.
OG Anunoby doesn’t look bothered by a hamstring injury that cost him two games last round.
Hart continues to do a little bit of everything.
Landry Shamet’s 3-point stroke has been weaponized off the bench.
Karl-Anthony Towns has avoided the perplexing stretches that have plagued him at other points throughout his career.
Through three games against New York, the Cavs have a paltry 116.9 defensive rating — the worst of all four teams in the conference finals and a number that would rank in the bottom 10 over the course of the regular season.
In 17 playoffs games, with Cleveland having a record of 8-9, it ranks 12th out of 16 teams in total defense.
The Cavs should send a few thank you notes to 3-point deficient Toronto and Detroit for keeping that ranking from being worse.
None of this should be a surprise. Everything about the Cavs during the regular season said they were an average defensive team — despite the presence of last year’s Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley and Allen, one of the league’s best rim protectors.
Sometimes you just are who you are. And there’s no amount of scheming or adjusting that can change it.
“In order to get a stop, you gotta stop the man in front of you,” Mobley said. “Whoever’s in help side gotta make efforts to make it difficult as well. It’s a team effort. We gotta be better. The scheme is there. But we gotta find a way to actually get the stop no matter what it takes.”
When asked specifically what plagued them on defense Saturday, Mobley said he needed to look at the film.
It will probably be a tough watch. Bad defensive teams tend to give opponents confidence. They make difficult shots easier.
The Knicks went 55.8% from the field and 39.3% from 3-point range. They had 27 assists on 43 makes. Six players in double figures. They outran Cleveland in transition (17-4), much like opponents did over 82 regular season games.
In the second half Saturday night, as New York foiled every potential push and increased its lead to a game-high 17, the Cavs looked exhausted — mentally and physically.
That’s the tax of two seven-game battles while playing every other day for nearly a month.
Is it why Cleveland can’t shoot? Is it why defensive rotations are slow? Is it why the Cavs can’t keep pace with New York?
“We did it to ourselves. We did it to ourselves,” Mitchell lamented. “We can’t be mad now. We were up 20 in Game 1. We had an opportunity to close at home in Game 6 [against Detroit], which would’ve given us three days off after Game 2 of this series. We didn’t do it. This is where we’re at,
“We have an opportunity to get one on Monday and then go back to New York and get one there and come back here. So that’s where the mindset is.”
As for Mitchell, he has dismissed any notion about being banged up. After Game 2, he said, “I’m great,” when asked about his health.
Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson even addressed it a little more than 90 minutes before tipoff.
“Talking to him, I just think it’s normal bumps and bruises. Nothing you’re like, ‘Oh man.’ That’s his feedback,” Atkinson said. “He knows his body better than everybody. ‘I’m fine coach.’ Got normal kind of wear and tear at this time of year. Played a lot of games in the last ton of days. Guys are going to be banged up. It’s just part of it.”
This isn’t last year’s conference semifinals, when former Cavalier Darius Garland was, as he put it, playing on “nine toes,” De’Andre Hunter had a swollen thumb from a Game 1 injury and Mobley’s ankle bothered him.
This isn’t 2024, when Mitchell missed the final few games of the Celtics series.
No excuses. It’s been a clean injury report — even though Mitchell has been taping his left hamstring and doesn’t appear to have the same burst. That’s the problem with 14 intense, physically draining games in the first two rounds. Recovery is much tougher.
Mitchell may soon have plenty of time. Much earlier than desired.
“It’s been wearing on us for a while, but we can’t use it as an excuse,” Allen said. “We put ourselves in this position and like Kenny always says, we have to win the recovery battle to make sure that our bodies are ready for excruciating games.”
The Cavs are on the brink of elimination. History is against them. They have 48 hours to get ready for Game 4.
A chance to show some pride. A chance to avoid a sweep. A chance to keep the season alive.
Coaching mistakes. Bizarre substitution patterns. Fatigue. Missed shots. Inconsistent offense.
It’s all played part in this 3-0 deficit that’s probably too much to overcome.
But as much as this series has been a reflection on the Cavs and their many blemishes, it’s also about the Knicks.
They are better, deeper and more complete. They have imposed their will and identity. They are capable of preying on Cleveland’s weaknesses in a way Toronto and Detroit couldn’t.
Following the game, Mitchell sat in a chair behind the table before his press conference and stared blankly at a box score that highlighted New York’s dominance.
Looked like a guy who recognized it.
