3 ways Cavs can secure comeback win vs. Knicks in Game 4 down 68-49

It’s halftime, and the New York Knicks are leading the Cleveland Cavaliers 68-49. While the Cavaliers showed some good energy to start the game and Donovan Mitchell played with the prerequisite sense of urgency needed to force a game five, the Knicks were able to retake control.

It looks as if they’re about to punch their ticket to the NBA finals for the first time since 1999, but this isn’t an insurmountable lead. Cleveland is only down by 21 points, and momentum could very well be on their side to at least push the score into a more manageable place for the to claw their way back into the game.

For the next two quarters, they have to be pitch perfect and do these three things if they want to avoid embarrassment.

Stop making the offense so predictable

The Cavaliers’ offense has been pretty predictable in the first half of Game 4. They’ve only connected on 15 shots, with seven of them being three-pointers. Compare that to New York, who have shot 25 shots, and only 10 of them have been three-pointers.

The Cavaliers have to switch up their strategy and feature an inside-out approach to collapse the New York Knicks’ defense and open up the possibility of three-point shots. They have to draw fouls, get momentum-shifting layups and dunks. That forces the Knicks to adjust to play the game that they clearly want to play.

Donovan Mitchell can’t force the game

In Donovan Mitchell’s best games, he tends to be a shoot-first player that can heat up like a microwave from three-point land. That is what he needs to do. The Cavaliers are in desperate need of their best player to play as if he is their best player, but at certain points it appears that Donovan Mitchell is settling.

He needs to find a way to get his other teammates involved, especially get his big men into the game. Jarrett Allen currently has zero points and has only attempted one field goal, while Evan Mobley has nine points and is 4 of 9 from the field. I want to see Mitchell use the extra added attention on him in isolation to open up the floor for his teammates.

What will the bench do?

The Cleveland Cavaliers bench has only scored three points this game, courtesy of Sam Merrill, who hit one three-pointer towards the end of the first quarter. Merrill and Wade likely need to step their games up, especially in stretching the floor, to make this game even slightly competitive. Dean Wade especially needs to start to get his shooting together.

A lineup that the Cavaliers could employ to space the floor is one where he is at center alongside Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, Max Strus, and Evan Mobley. That five-out lineup could give the Cavaliers the shooting to cut into the lead while also giving both James Harden and Donovan Mitchell the space to operate.

The Knicks are two quarters away from becoming Eastern Conference champions, but perhaps the Cavaliers can make it more interesting in Game 4 if they employ this strategy.

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