Dribbles: Cavs Learn Hard Way That You Gotta Bring It Every Minute Of Every Day

Random dribbles following the Cavaliers’ 115-105 ugly road loss to the Pistons on Sunday.

1. The Cavs had three days off and held a 15-0 lead. So how did they lose to the lowly Pistons?

2. Well, for starters, the Cavs let the Pistons out-hustle, out-energize, out-execute and basically out-everything them. That hasn’t happened much this season. In fact, this may have been a first.

3. Detroit finished the game on a 22-2 flurry. With 9 minutes left, the Cavs held a nine-point lead. Then the defense broke down. Meanwhile, the Pistons’ defense picked up, as they got every 50-50 ball and bushels of easy baskets. 

4. The Pistons also shot 67 percent in the fourth quarter. A lot of those points came in the paint, which is where the tall timber-like Cavs usually dominate.

5. It was pretty clear the Pistons just wanted this game more. For the mostly young Cavs, it’s a good lesson for a young team. That lesson? You gotta play all 48 minutes.

6. Coach J.B. Bickerstaff on the turning point: “They just started putting their head down and getting in the paint. And we didn’t do a good enough of job (of stopping them). … They won the scrap tonight.”

7. Bickerstaff added that the Pistons “became more physical, they became more handsy” and that really threw off the Cavs.

8. No. 1 overall pick Cade Cunningham didn’t score in the first half. He finished with a triple-double.

9. That’s worth repeating and very telling. Cunningham had zero points through the first two quarters … and finished with 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Wow.

10. Darius Garland had another nice game, with 24 points and seven assists. Win or lose, he’s having an incredible January. But that doesn’t make you feel much better about this one as far as the team is concerned.

11. But maybe this will — the Cavs (30-20) have still won eight of 10, they are still in fifth in the Eastern Conference and they have the Pelicans in town on Monday. So play well enough, and you could forget about this one quickly.

12. I’ve been covering the NBA a long time. I’ve been watching it closely even longer. I actually half-jokingly predicted they would lose before the game. Basically, I’ve seen this before. A young team goes on the road, faces a bad team that is playing as if its Game 7 of the Finals … and collapses.

13. Honestly, happens all the time in the NBA. Doesn’t make it OK, but it does sort of make sense.

14. Evan Mobley added 18 points and nine rebounds. Jarrett Allen scored 15, also with nine boards. Dean Wade scored 14 on 5-of-6 shooting, including 4-of-5 on 3-pointers. Cedi Osman played a nice game off the bench, scoring 13 and playing with lots of passion.

15. Saddiq Bey led the Pistons (12-37) with 31 points. Frank Jackson added 19 and was particularly good in the first half. Without him, this may have been a Cavs route. Either way, between Cunningham and Bey, this team may not always be so bad.

16. As for the Cavs, not a huge deal. Learn from it, grow, get back on track. It’s tough lessons like these that make every team realize a sometimes difficult truth — nobody is perfect.

1. Finally, in case you missed it, I wrote a little earlier that Pacers guard Caris LeVert very well may be the Cavs’ top trade target. Read that full post right here.