The Cavs shouldn’t have gone away from their 2-3 zone in the fourth quarter against the Kings
Cleveland’s defense fell apart once they switched back to man.
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell scored 10 points in the final three minutes of what was a two-point game. That sort of run is typically enough to pull out a win in a close game, but it wasn’t on Wednesday because the Sacramento Kings scored on their last six possessions.
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It doesn’t matter how many points you put up in the clutch if you can’t get stops.
Despite how torrid the Kings were down the stretch, they scored just 19 points in the first nine minutes of the fourth quarter. Cleveland’s zone was the main reason why. Going away from that proved to be a bad decision that cost them the game.
Evan Mobley’s scoring explosion in the third quarter kickstarted the offense after they fell behind by 11. He put up 12 points in the final three minutes of the quarter.
This was accompanied by Cleveland closing out the quarter in a 2-3 zone which resulted in two missed jumpers, two turnovers, and a contested made three just before the buzzer. This was a much-needed departure from the 40 points Cleveland had allowed in the first 10 minutes of the third.
Earlier this month Kenny Atkinson called the zone defense a “talent equalizer.” It could also be described as an effort equalizer. That’s what really helped in the second half.
The Kings were constantly getting the Cavs in rotation in the third quarter. The Cavs were switching most on and off-ball screens, but weren’t exerting the effort they needed to make that strategy effective. This led to straight drives to the hoop off of ball screens. Those drives caused the defense to rotate which led to dump-off passes inside and kickouts to shooters.
