JB Bickerstaff shuts down Cavs criticism after heat loss: I just don’t like negativity

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As JB Bickerstaff sat down at Cleveland Clinic Courts for his post-practice availability on Wednesday, he had a message he wanted to get across.

He heard the outside critics about his Cavaliers, who finished a tough month Jan. 8-8 but didn’t have a losing month this season.

I think in all the noise and chatter, people forget how much this band has accomplished, Bickerstaff said. Were still the NBA’s No. 1 ranked defense. We got the second best net rating in the NBA. There are seven teams that have 30+ NBA wins that were on those teams. The teams that are in front of us are teams that have resisted and gone through things that have built this.

Sometimes I think people want to skip steps to get where we all want to go. We weren’t putting a roof over our guys, but what they’ve accomplished at that age is beyond what’s standard. I think they have to know it and they have to appreciate it.

Less than 24 hours earlier, the Cavaliers had narrowly fallen to the Miami Heat. In a playoff-like atmosphere, Cleveland struggled to match Miami’s physique, lacked spacing, and late-game execution ultimately proved too costly. It was an important learning point for the Cavaliers, and also a Bickerstaff took responsibility.

As coaches we understand that and it depends on all of us,” Bickerstaff said. It’s not just about them. It’s on me. It’s my responsibility to continue to help these guys and work on this execution and put them in the right places. So I take responsibility for it.

Wednesday workouts continued to build on areas where they could improve. The Cavs focused on the small details, like how players open up, how to catch the ball and where they want to catch the ball in those situations. Bickerstaff acknowledged that it is difficult to recreate these game situations in an offside environment. However, they know how they play the game, they are going to be in a number of close games, so they have to understand what they want. do in these situations.

Building a team isn’t easy, Bickerstaff continued. It takes a few bumps; you need a few bruises; it takes a few failures. You learn from your biggest mistakes. If you make a runtime mistake now, that’s how you fix it, because now you know how you can improve and how you can improve.

I just don’t like the negativity surrounding the band, like something is wrong. There are too many positive things this team has accomplished to allow any negativity around our group. Individually, we have guys who have years of careers. We have done a lot in a short time and building a team is not easy.

The Cavs also had a chat during practice Wednesday about the reality of where they are. In 53 games, the Cavs sit fifth in the Eastern Conference with a 31-22 record. They have a home record of 21-6 and a road record of 10-16. They have the league’s best defensive rating at 109.6. They have the second-best net rating in the NBA at 5.7. Their offensive rating is 114.2, good for 11th in the league.

The top of the Eastern Conference continues to be competitive, and the teams that were expected to be at the top are part of that mix. The Boston Celtics are currently first with a 36-15 record. They are followed by the Milwaukee Bucks (34-17), Philadelphia 76ers (32-17) and Brooklyn Nets (31-19). Only seven teams in the league have more than 30 wins, the Celtics, Denver Nuggets, Bucks, Memphis Grizzlies, 76ers and Brooklyn Nets. The Cavs also played the second most games this season in the NBA on Wednesday afternoon with 53 games. Only the LA Clippers have played more games this season with 54.

With their position of leadership as the coaching staff, Bickerstaff and his staff know they have a responsibility to steer their players in the direction they want to go. The coaching staff is the group that initially sets the tone every day at the training facility. They’re aimed at keeping the building light, energized and driving the Cavs forward.

It’s a matter of making sure I help them enough, says Bickerstaff. Sometimes there are things as coaches that you take for granted. Working with younger guys, they’ve always been better than everyone else. So they never had to do all those cheap tricks to create separation and open up. I think that’s where it’s my responsibility to help guys understand this and do more of it.

The numerous injuries of the first part of the season did not facilitate the course of the Cavs in the East. Cleveland has had 19 different starting lineups this season and only three games where its entire rotation has been healthy. Now that they’re back to full strength, the coaching staff is working on lineups and rotations to get the guys on the court. It is a delicate process that takes time.

Bickerstaff has been changing rotations lately as he gets a feel for the game and particular matchups. He recently shared that they were intrigued by the composition of Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Dean Wade, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. That played a part in Tuesday’s game where Cedi Osman played just seven minutes after tying his career high two days earlier.

It’s not necessarily Osman’s reality moving forward; rather, it will be a day-to-day decision, Bickerstaff said. Osman will get an initial burn, but then the coaching staff can make the decision to stick with whoever is right at the time. It’s a conversation Bickerstaff once had with Osman about the importance of him staying ready.

It’s a similar situation with Kevin Love. Love was a DNP-Coachs decision on Tuesday night as he returned from dealing with back spasms. Love was on the bench throughout the game cheering and supporting his teammates. Bickerstaff said he also had a difficult conversation with Love about their need to find the best bands to put on the floor.

All of that plays a role in where the Cavs are at this point in the season.

After the Cavs traded for Mitchell, President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman reiterated both at Mitchell’s first press conference, as well as at media day, that this season is not was not an argument or a failure. The front office and management staff recognize that they are still a young group that needs to gain experience. The goal of the Mitchells’ presence was to take them to the next level, but they wanted to create a track to add playoff experience and look to the future.

The Cavs are still building and growing. That’s what this season is about, is to take another step forward. Bickerstaff wanted to remind his men.

I want our guys to understand everything they did and how good they were right now,” Bickerstaff said. Again, we are not done improving, and we will continue to improve. I will improve, the players will improve, but it’s always about that.

Again, not to hold back our guys’ expectations and growth, but I want them to understand everything they’ve done and how positive this place is and how we’re moving forward and tending in the good direction.

(Darius Garland and JB Bickerstaff top photo: Jason Miller/Getty Images)

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