The Cleveland Cavaliers looked like a championship-caliber team for most of the season.
They doubled down on that in the first round vs. the Miami Heat.
Then, they went right back to their old ways against the Indiana Pacers.
The Cavs couldn’t keep up with Indiana’s up-tempo offense, physical defense, and aggressiveness.
That’s why Jarrett Allen admits that they should’ve brought more intensity and played harder for all 48 minutes:
“We have to do it for longer,” Jarrett Allen said. “I feel like that was the name of the game for every game that we played during the series. I feel like we could have been more locked in mentally for longer, been more physical for longer. I could have been better. I haven’t watched film. I haven’t gone over everything that I could have done or didn’t do or did do. Not enough though.”
Notably, that was a worrisome trend during the regular season, but the Cavs still managed to get back in games and pull off big comeback wins.
That’s not going to get the job done in the playoffs.
Every possession matters.
The Cavs were one box-out away from winning Game 2, and perhaps it would’ve been a different story.
They also looked the part in Game 5 before falling flat in the second half as well.
It’s not that the Pacers were the better or more talented team, but they just didn’t flinch when they were down, no matter how big a deficit they were facing.
That’s what competitive teams do.
That’s what winning teams do.
The Cavaliers didn’t have a basketball problem, and while the Pacers – and especially Allen – weren’t a good matchup, the Cavaliers still showed that they could beat them.
Even so, at this point in the season, it takes more than talent and Xs and Os to take care of business.
Teams that take their foot off the gas often pay the price, and it was a costly lesson for Kenny Atkinson’s team.
NEXT: Tristan Thompson Sends Warning About Cavs Next Season
