Dribbles: Cavs Experience Playoff Intensity, Whole Lot Of Joel Embiid In Loss To 76ers

Random dribbles from the Cavaliers’ 103-93 road loss to the 76ers on Saturday.

1. The Cavs just looked like a team with tired legs, a team that didn’t have the energy to contain Sixers center Joel Embiid on his own home floor.

2. That’s OK. No team really can.

3. The other night on TNT, Charles Barkley said Embiid is his current pick for NBA MVP. After watching Embiid put up 40 points and a triple-double (14 rebounds, 10 assists), it’s easy to agree. 

4. As for the Cavs … honestly, not a big deal. They likely were almost entirely spent after coming down from 21 to beat the Pacers in Indianapolis the previous night. That considered, it’s a surprise this game was close for even part of the second half.

5. So the Cavs can’t be too terribly distraught. This really was one of those “schedule loss” games, when they were playing a playoff team on the second night of a road back-to-back.

6. Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff: “It was a clear message, from the beginning of the game that the intensity they were going to come with. These are the tests that we talked about. These are the lessons we had to learn.”

6. On the bright side, Darius Garland returned, and you could tell he was one of the few Cavs with fresh legs — as he went for 27 points and relentless attacked the basket.

7. On the downside, he has just one assists to six turnovers. But that can be life against Sixers super-defender Matisse Thybulle. 

8. Seven different Cavs did reach double figures in scoring, one night after seven did it. Jarrett Allen had 13 while having to exchange blows with Embiid, and Evan Mobley scored 11. Cedi Osman had 12, and Caris LeVert and Dean Wade had 11 and 10, respectively.

9. Bickerstaff also pointed out that the 76ers were more physical, and that this is the type of basketball the Cavs (35-22) are going to see in the playoffs. Man, he’s right about that, as Philly won the war on the boards by a 40-34 count.

10. Tyrese Maxey added 16 points for the 76ers (34-22), who will soon have James Harden in the mix. And the Cavs get to see them three more times in the regular season. So, that’s something to definitely keep in mind moving forward.

11. While the Cavs climbed all the way back from a nine-point deficit in the third quarter, the bench was badly out-played. That really was the difference in this one. 

12. The Cavs will also need more than the one field-goal attempt they received from Isaac Okoro to justify keeping him starting ahead of LeVert. Okoro is a fine defender, but not fine enough for the Cavs to have to play four-on-five on offense at the start of games.

13. Translation: Don’t force anything, but at least look to shoot. It’s OK to be the fifth option, but at least be an option.

14. Bickerstaff will have another decision to make here soon, as starter Lauri Markkanen is nearing a return. He is said to be day-to-day at the moment.

15. Overall, the Cavs can do just what their coach said — learn from this one, move on, and focus on themselves and what they’re doing right. You’re not going to win ’em all. There were still some good things to take from a loss, to a quality opponent, and you’ll get a few more shots at them. Then, you can find out more about what you can really do.

16. As of this writing, the Cavs were in third place in the Eastern Conference, 2.0 games behind the Heat and 1.0 behind the second-place Bulls. The Bucks were also 35-22.