Cavaliers crush Pistons to reach conference finals: Instant takeaways

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We now have the full picture of the final four teams in the NBA.The No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers stunned the top-seeded Detroit Pistons Sunday, May 17 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals 125-94, setting up a showdown against the No. 3 New York Knicks in the conference finals.It was evident, pretty quickly after tip-off Sunday night in Detroit, that the Cavaliers had moved on from their Game 6 letdown. Cleveland played with more force and intention, relentlessly attacking the paint and outworking the Pistons on the glass.The Cavaliers had four players — Donovan Mitchell, Jarrett Allen, Sam Merrill and Evan Mobley — each score at least 21 points.Here are takeaways from Sunday’s Eastern Conference semifinal Game 7 between the Cavaliers and Pistons:Congratulations, Cleveland. Now you get to run into the buzzsaw that is the Knicks.This is the kind of performance Cleveland will need to consistently produce in order to have a chance against New York, which has easily been the hottest team in the East thus far in the postseason.The Cavaliers were far more active from the jump and won nearly every hustle metric.Yet, there were still flaws in Cleveland’s game. James Harden scored just 6 points in the first half and finished the game with just 9 on 2-of-10 shooting. At times, he appeared more focused on trying to draw fouls than get clean looks. Perimeter shooting was inconsistent; removing Sam Merrill’s 5-of-8 night, the rest of the Cavs went just 6-of-26 (23.1%) from deep.The Knicks will be fresh and rested and have homecourt advantage. They’re the most cohesive team in the East, the one with the most continuity. Cleveland did do a far better job of protecting the ball, committing just 11 turnovers, but the Knicks are far better than Detroit. The Cavaliers will need to be even more efficient.“They’re rested and they’re a juggernaut right now,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said after the game. “That’s just what it is.”The Cavs need to be mindful about finding ways to recuperateJust 48 hours after extending their season, the Cavaliers will be back at it in what’s becoming a frenetic crunch. Because its first two series went seven games, Cleveland will need to be intentional about sleep, rest and recovery.To put it in context, since April 18, the start of the playoffs, Cleveland has played 14 total games.Since May 1, the Cavs have played nine.The Knicks, by comparison, have played just 10 games since April 18 and only four since May 4.The Pistons, simply put, cannot win when shooting this poorly. That wasn’t even their biggest issue.Going back to last season, this Detroit squad has lacked reliable and consistent shooting, which has made it difficult to sustain offense. It has also made things difficult for Cade Cunningham, where he has often had to play the role of savior.Detroit’s starters combined to shoot just 14-of-48 (29.2%) from the field, contributing just 47 combined points. Cleveland’s starting five, by the way, dropped 88 combined points.Somehow, Detroit’s defense was even worseDetroit suffered uncharacteristic breakdowns, struggling to communicate on switches, leaving players streaking to the rim unobstructed. There were some solid individual efforts — Ausar Thompson was effective, as always — but Detroit’s effort and persistence on defense simply wasn’t there.They were a step slow, a step late and that sluggishness carried over into other parts of their game. After a tremendous regular season, a loss like this exposes serious limitations and shows how far this team still is from being legitimate contenders in the conference.Distributing Donovan Mitchell plays most meaningful basketball of careerIn January 2023, Donovan Mitchell scored a career-high 71 points. This game may have been even better.Mitchell erased the narrative that he cannot elevate his team to a conference finals with a complete game that showcased how dangerous he can be.Mitchell used his gravity to draw additional defensive attention, at times almost as a decoy, working his way into the paint to then find open teammates. With those open looks, many of them dump offs to Cleveland’s bigs, Cleveland converted easier buckets. But it also opened up the entire offensive rhythm for the Cavaliers; in the first half, Cleveland generated 18 assists on 22 made field goals, with six of those coming from Mitchell.Mitchell finished the game with 26 points and 8 assists, both of which were game highs, and added 6 rebounds. He set the tone and was, unquestionably, the best player on the floor Friday night.“He was better than Donovan Mitchell, is that possible?” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson told reporters after the game. “It started with him. His defense, rebounding and then, when he gets in the paint and starts making other people better — the dish-offs to our big guys — that was the key to the game. He had complete control of the game.”The Pistons asked too much of Cade Cunningham. He just ran out of gas.Cade Cunningham, the heart of Detroit’s operation, easily played his worst game of the series, scoring just 13 points on 5-of-16 shooting, adding 5 assists and 4 rebounds. He looked like a player that simply ran out of steam.The Cavaliers made Cunningham work for every basket, every drive and waited until late in games to throw double teams at him. This appeared to be by design. With the way Detroit depends on Cunningham to create his own shots and create looks for his teammates, with the way he contributes on defense, those additional Cleveland efforts to deplete Cunningham’s energy wore him down.Among all playoff players, entering Sunday night, Cunningham’s usage rate (32.1%) ranked third behind only Joel Embiid and Jaylen Brown, both of whom tied with a rate of 32.5%.The Pistons faced a 3-1 deficit in the first round, needing seven games to beat the No. 8 Magic. They fell into a 3-2 hole in this series. Cunningham is an elite player capable of greatness. This pace, however, is unsustainable.Game 7 Jarrett Allen shows upIn the final game of the first round of the playoffs, Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen was a menace, dropping 22 points and 19 rebounds against the Raptors.Friday night, Allen was stellar once again in a Game 7, impacting winning.Not only did he attack and create his shot down low, he also got to the line, leading all players with 13 free throw attempts. Allen was also active on defense, contesting shots. His 3 offensive rebounds were tied for a game-high.Allen scored 23 points on 8-of-14 shooting, adding 7 rebounds.Against the height and low-post presence of the Knicks, Cleveland will need much of the same.“I looked up at one point in the third and he only had 3 rebounds, but it felt like he had completely dominated the glass,” Cavaliers guard Sam Merrill said of Allen after the game. “They couldn’t get an offensive rebound.“It’s so cool to see. One of my favorite dudes on the planet. It’s so fun to see when he takes over a game like that.”