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Lonzo Ball is Going To Fix The Cavs Darius Garland Problem…



Lonzo Ball is Going To Fix The Cavs Darius Garland Problem…

I really do think that Lonzo Ball, if healthy, can fix the entire Darius Garland and the Cavs small backcourt situation in 2025. Obviously, Tai Jerome was kind of that guy in 2024, but he was more of a band-aid. He was great. One of the most efficient players on the offensive end in the entire league throughout the regular season, but he really never helped with the main core issue that this team has had problems with, and that is how small the back court is. Jerome had some height to him, but he did not really play like a tall player. He wasn’t like the most agile guy defensively. He definitely was kind of a liability on that end. We saw him get exposed against Indiana. I know Tyresese Hallebertton hit that gamewinner basically over him with like 1 second left. That just completely took the air out of the stadium. I don’t even want to rethink that moment because I was there in real time. That was crazy. We all know Darius Garland is just a nice guy which makes him super soft in big moments and that’s kind of a lot of this team’s personality. But Lonzo Ball from an attribute standpoint is 6’6 with a 69 wingspan. He possesses a rare physical profile for a point guard that creates immediate mismatches. His 190lb frame provides the perfect balance of length and mobility, allowing him to guard multiple positions while maintaining the quickness necessary for elite perimeter defense, something that the back court has just been so weak in with everyone just shooting right over top of them. So, in this video, as you can already tell, I’m going to be talking a lot about Lonzo Ball and why I think if healthy, he can kind of fix all the problems the Cavs have with Darius Garland and the small back court. But first, before I continue on, I would really appreciate it if you would drop a like and subscribe. It only takes 5 seconds. Plus, you can always change your mind. We are on the road to 60,000 subscribers, and with your support, I believe that we can get there super fast. All right, so Ball’s physical dimensions create a 3-in height advantage and 5-in wingspan advantage over both Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell. This length differential is crucial with the way modern NBA switching schemes are. Balking can test shots and disrupt passing lanes that shorter guards simply cannot reach. And even though Spider has been really good at reading and jumping passing lanes, it takes all of his effort to do that just to make him and Garland a below average defending tandem. I think ball is going to provide so much instant relief when Atinson mixes up the minutes, intertwining them all together throughout a game. Lonzo has established himself as one of the premier perimeter defenders in the NBA through multiple advanced metrics. His defensive rating of 110.1 over his career demonstrates consistent impact. While his one and a half steals per game career average showcases his ability to create turnovers and generate transition opportunities, which we know the Cavs are great at and often capitalize from. Also, his defensive versatility is evident in his ability to guard the one through three positions pretty effectively. His 69 wingspan allows him to contest shots from players typically too tall for traditional point guards. And at the same time, his lateral quickness enables him to stay with quicker guards. He’s in the 92nd percentile rating in terms of deflections at 3.8 per game. And Ball has never posted a negative defensive box plus minus in his career, which indicates consistent positive defensive impact regardless of team context. His 2.8% steel rate in 2024 and 25 also ranks pretty high for the games that he did play in, which were not many. And again, the biggest thing here that is so, so important, is availability. B could be the greatest defender in the world, but you have to be healthy to go out there and give the team you’re playing for those services. As I mentioned a few times already, this new environment in Cleveland should be better for him in terms of less minutes and less wear and tear on his body and not having to carry as much workload. But when you’re out for as long as he was, you just never know what to expect. You never know what you’re going to get. But I’m just hoping the Cavs can get a good solid 13 to 15 minutes out of him a night where he could go in and disrupt the flow of opposing back courts with his size while Garwin and Mitchell take on the scoring load. But Lonzo is not at all a slouch on the offensive end either. I mean, just from nostalgia alone, I remember the Chino Hill days where all he and LaMelo did was score 90 and they just made a bunch of unnecessary highlight plays and took half court shots. But the health concerns have kind of limited Lonzo’s consistency over the past few years in the scoring department. But his efficiency has been so much better ever since correcting his jump shot, which used to be the biggest meme in the NBA. And I kind of miss those days, man. But anyways, ball shooting evolution really represents one of the most dramatic transformations in recent NBA history that we have seen. After shooting just 30 and a half% from three as a rookie, he has developed into an above average and some may even say elite longrange threat, peaking at 42.3% from behind the ark in 2021 and 2022. His catch and shoot proficiency is particularly what is the most impressive, catching in 130 catch-and shoot threes in 2021 and 22 at a 40 plus% clip. And this skill set makes him an ideal complimentary piece as he doesn’t require ball dominance to impact offensively. He’s evolved beyond that, which is which again is just so great with the Cavs having two ball dominant guards in both Garwin and Mitchell. But even Mitchell has evolved to be able to be a great offthe-ball player as well. Ball also pre-injury was really good in transition. He could throw it down himself. He could lob it up to somebody else. And he often was the one leading transition because he created the turnover. I think a lot of that young 20’s explosiveness is going to be gone. But with the athletes that are on this team, all we need is for him to command fast break situations and make smart decisions. He doesn’t have to be the one making the highlight play in most circumstances. Now, anyways, let’s move on and talk about Garland because he’s the one that could be impacted the most if Lonzo somehow has a healthy season and stays on the court. I think combinations of Garland, Lonzo, and Hunter would work. Garland, Lonzo, and Nance. There are so many options now. This is not like the past where you put Isaac Aquaro besides him because in that case, yes, the defense was fine, but Isaac provided no shooting and no spacing at all. So, the defense wasn’t even worth it. It all canceled out. So, this trade again, only if healthy, could save Garland. I would not have been mad at all if the front office traded him over the last few weeks. Obviously, it did not end up happening, which is fine, but Garland has just been such a non-factor in big moments for this team, and it feels like the injury gimmick is just a neverending thing. Obviously, you can’t really blame the guy, and he has just had some unfortunate timed injuries, but the reality is you just can’t fall in love with the personality as a fan and become insanely biased. There still are people out there that genuinely can’t fathom that people don’t think Garland is a fit in Cleveland. He’s just too soft and too small for championship basketball. Opposing teams pick on him defensively when things get physical. Occasionally, he will have offensive explosions. He’s definitely a clutch player who will make big shots in close games, but again, in the regular season, he’s never been fully available in the playoffs, and there’s no reason why the front office should become permanently attached to a guy that is never available when they need him to be the most. If Luca got traded, then anyone can. Nobody is off the table. And take Zion for example. He had superstar written all over him ever since getting drafted. But people have given him no sympathy for his health. It’s a harsh league, but it just is what it is. We need Darius Garland to be healthy so he can contribute on the big stage. And for now, all he is is just a fun, nice regular season player that has never been ready to go for the playoffs. And I don’t know what the answer is. Maybe play him less down the stretch of the season. Maybe make him play in a mask and shoes with a bunch of padding or something. He just gets banged up game in and game out. It It’s tough to watch. But being completely theoretical, if for one time in Cleveland history a miracle happens and everyone is healthy for the postseason and we’re looking at a back court of Garland, Mitchell and Ball and then you got Shrews who can also slide into the shooting guard role as well. That’s scary. That might be a top three deep back court in the entire league. And Lonzo Walt in his recent interview talked about how excited he is to play for a winning team and how excited he is for this opportunity to just get back out there, play some basketball, and compete. Here is the clip of that interview. That’s really all I got for this video. Thank you all so so much if you made it to this point. Let me know in the comments below what you think about this Lonzo Ball situation. Most about the opportunity that you have at this point in your career in Cleveland. Uh really just to have the chance to win. I mean um obviously we know how good the Cavs are. You know how good they’ve been in the past and I think that this year we have a you know great chance to go for it all and that’s really all I’m focused on. You know um I couldn’t ask for nothing better than this. I think it’s a great situation for my play style and I’m just looking forward to just getting out there and competing with the guys. Do you think the trio of Ball, Garland, and Mitchell is going to work? I’m very curious to hear why or why not. And also, if you enjoyed this one, please be sure to drop a like and subscribe and let me know what you would like to see next. And until then, I will see you all

I really do think that Lonzo Ball if healthy can fix the entire Darius Garland and the cavs small backcourt situation in 2025, Obviously Ty Jerome was kind of that guy in 2024, He was great, one of the most efficient players in the entire league throughout the regular season, but he really never helped with the main core issue that this team has had problems with, and that is how small the backcourt was. Jerome has some height to him but he did not really play like a tall player, he definitely did not defend like one we saw him kind of get exposed against Indiana.

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11 Comments

  1. Sorry, bro. Looking at the height column of the lineup card isn't analysis. This is my least favorite lazy take of the last few years.

  2. DG problem?? Lmfao they were the number one offense in the league buddy. Also number one seed in the east. When he came back to play Indy they won… There is no DG problem. There's a haters that are idiots problem like you. Lonzo is a fragile dude who has been out for years.. Get real. Trying to stay positive about losing Ice in hopes this kid shows promise.. But idiots like you keep involving DG like they are the same position. Ball passes and plays more defense. That's why Ice was traded. Not DG. Meanwhile DG is great passer but a killer scorer… I'm sorry you said they weren't even a good scoring tandem?? As the NUMBER ONE OFFENSE? Moron. Close video lol

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