CLEVELAND, Ohio — Cavs sharpshooter Sam Merrill lofted a tight spiral to a streaking Isaac Okoro who pulled down the dime just before crashing into a padded wall. Then came a wobbly pass from JT Thor that sailed behind star guard Donovan Mitchell and into the waiting arms of Jarrett Allen while teammates and coaches laughed. Even coach Kenny Atkinson ran a sharp post pattern that harkened back to his younger playing days.
That impromptu football game was part of a fun, light-hearted Cavs practice on Tuesday afternoon at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Fla.
There are plenty of incentives for a team to keep advancing in the NBA Cup, which continues Wednesday night with the last two semifinal berths on the line. Those incentives aren’t just financial either.
Mitchell recently mentioned the pressure and intensity that comes with playing high-stakes games this time of year, especially with a championship on the line — ideal preparation for spring. That was clear on Tuesday night when the knockout rounds began in front of raucous crowds in Milwaukee and Oklahoma City.
The physicality picked up. The competition was stiffer. Rotations were tighter. There was greater attention to detail and more intention behind every move. Not the typical December game.
The Cavs couldn’t do anything but watch from Miami, where they last played on Sunday and aren’t scheduled to fly back home until late Wednesday because of this mini break in the schedule.
There’s certainly some organizational disappointment over missing out — again. Players openly admitted last month, before group play began, that winning the NBA Cup was significant. They were trying to run up the score late in a win against the Chicago Bulls because of the point-differential tiebreaker. But there are also benefits to already being eliminated.
Tuesday is one example.
“Get away from basketball games,” Cavs center Jarrett Allen said when asked about how he would approach the in-season layoff. “Reset your mind and reset everything. It’s huge. It’s like a mini-All-Star break for us. We all know the All-Star break helps people and helps things be smoother in the second half. Just try to emulate that and take advantage.”
Despite not being on an NBA court since Sunday — a 122-113 loss to the Miami Heat that snapped their four-game winning streak — the Cavs have already played 25 games, including five back-to-back sets. It’s been a compressed six-plus-week grind, with only two NBA teams having played more games to this point — Orlando and New York.
The jam-packed schedule has led to practices turning into treatment and recovery days. Some shootarounds have even become voluntary. Atkinson recently estimated that only about 70% of his system has been installed at this point. Players have talked about needing to adjust on the fly, during games, as opposed to behind the scenes.
It hasn’t been too much of an issue. After all, the Cavs are an NBA-best 21-4. They are one of five teams to rank top 10 in both offensive and defensive efficiency. Nonetheless, it’s been clear for a little while that Cleveland’s historic 15-0 start, on the heels of subtle schematic changes, took a mental toll.
“It’s felt like a long season already,” Allen admitted. “A lot of games. Going 15-0 was very taxing on us. It catches up to you.”
Had the Cavs advanced to the NBA Cup knockout rounds they would have been hopping on a plane and preparing for another difficult matchup in a playoff-like environment against one of the East’s contenders either Tuesday or Wednesday. Instead, they got two below-.500 opponents added to the schedule — a home game Friday and a trip to Brooklyn Monday night, another chance to bank a pair of victories and extend their lead over second-seeded Boston.
Had they advanced, they wouldn’t have been gleefully tossing the football around at practice Tuesday afternoon — a loose, team-bonding element that was introduced during training camp and has carried over into the season, when there’s actually time to break from the monotony of the everyday routine.
They wouldn’t have gotten four consecutive “off” days to recharge, rest, recover and make systematic on-court tweaks. Or given injured swingman Max Strus, who recently worked out with the G League affiliate Charge, an opportunity for his first official practice with the Cavs since suffering a severe ankle sprain on Oct. 17 that has sidelined him the first 25 games.
After practicing Tuesday and with another session scheduled for Wednesday, Strus is getting the on-court contact he needs for clearance to return, perhaps as soon as Friday against Washington.
The Cavs’ chance at capturing the ultimate in-season reward is gone. It vanished about weeks ago with a clunker against Atlanta. There will be no Vegas trip. No money. No banner. No trophy.
Around the time they return to Cleveland Wednesday evening, the second set of NBA Cup knockouts will be tipping off with the Knicks taking on the Hawks. Perhaps a tougher watch given the circumstances.
But four days off, a few days in the Florida sunshine, two games against lesser opponents and two consecutive practices for a team that hasn’t been able to do that since October?
Not a bad consolation prize.