CLEVELAND — Rebounding and shooting.
The Cavaliers were woefully inefficient in both against the Knicks in the playoffs, setting general manager Koby Altman in motion to address those issues.
Among his signings was Max Strus, the sharpshooting guard who eliminated the Knicks with the Miami Heat last spring and now has adopted Cleveland’s beef with New York.
“Whatever we have against the Knicks, I’m in debt to that here,” said Strus, who inked a four-year, $62 million deal in July. “They did us dirty last year and we’re going to try to play our game to show that we’re capable of playing with those guys.”
Strus and the Cavaliers have back-to-back games against the Knicks beginning Tuesday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, where Donovan Mitchell is listed as questionable (hamstring soreness) after sitting out Saturday’s loss to the Pacers.
The Knicks are expecting a fully motivated opponent and RJ Barrett understands that emotion.
“I mean, duh,” Barrett said. “But it’s fun. It’s a team we were able to beat in the playoffs. I know from my experience when we lost to Atlanta [in 2021], when we saw them we were extra motivated to go and play them. We know what kind of energy they’re going to bring to the game, but we’re excited, too. I think it’s going to be a good two games.”
Mitchell Robinson was a driving force in eliminating Cleveland in five games last season, owning the paint despite the Cavaliers’ supposed stalwart frontcourt duo of Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley.
In September, Cleveland brought back a familiar face, Tristan Thompson, whose rebounding and energy were important factors during the Cavaliers’ 2016 championship run.
Thompson, 32, is hardly the same after bouncing around the league but he’s set on neutralizing Robinson.
“He put an imprint on that whole series with his activity and length. Just playing hard and just controlling the paint and being on that rim,” Thompson said. “So myself, Evan, [Damian Jones], when we’re in there, have to keep him off the glass. Can’t have him have easy rolls and easy dunks. We can’t let [Robinson] have an impact on this game.”
The Knicks, despite their reputation for rebounding, are undersized toward the end of their nine-man rotation after declining to replace Obi Toppin.
It has left Josh Hart, who is 6-foot-4, as the backup power forward.
Thompson, who listed at 6-9 and 254 pounds, didn’t like being compared to his Knicks counterpart as a rebounder.
“Me and Josh Hart similarities with offensive rebounding? You should’ve used Pat Beverly as a comparison,” Thompson said. “Me and Josh Hart-rebounding wise? No. That’s like a filet and a sirloin steak.”
Thompson seemed unaware that Hart, who is considered among the league’s best rebounders for his size, is now New York’s backup power forward.
“Man, the NBA has changed,” he said before launching into descriptors very favorable to Hart’s game.
Hart, meanwhile, said he didn’t expect to guard Mitchell as he did successfully in the playoff series.
He’s instead charged with stopping frontcourt opponents.
“This year that’s kind of been my role,” Hart said. “First it was guarding Al [Horford in Boston]. Jalen Johnson [with the Hawks]. Did a little bit with Zion [Williamson]. That’s more of my role now is guarding those guys and not the [Jayson] Tatums or [Jaylen] Browns or Mitchells.”
Barrett will be among the players chasing around Strus and Cleveland’s other new signing, Georges Niang.
As Cleveland coach JB Bickerstaff acknowledged Monday, both were acquired to address an area of concern that was uncovered in the Knicks series.
“We were able to trick it during the regular season but the playoffs exposes weaknesses,” Bickerstaff said.
Strus adds not only shooting, but experience in beating the Knicks. He averaged 14.7 points in Miami’s six-game series victory over Tom Thibodeau’s squad.
“There’s stuff that we did that I think can help,” Strus said. “But our coaching staff is great and they’ve already studied a bunch of it. I’m sure they’ve got a sour taste in their mouth from last year, too. So everybody knows what we’ve got to do.”
Barrett is ready.
“They already were a good team, adding Strus and Niang gives them more shooting to go along with Donovan, Darius [Garland] and the bigs,” Barrett said. “So they’ve got some good pieces. We added a good piece ourselves [Donte DiVincenzo] and we’re very confident in our abilities.”
The Link LonkOctober 31, 2023 at 10:12AM
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New-look Cavaliers are leaning hard into beef with Knicks: 'Did us dirty' - New York Post
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