Cleveland Cavaliers Have the Antidote for Atlanta Hawks' All-Star Front Line
In a clash of Eastern Conference powers, look for much of the action to take place in the paint, where All-Stars and workhorses collide.
This is where the Atlanta Hawks's All-Star frontcourt of Paul Millsap and Al Horford primarily operate. It's also home to the Cleveland Cavaliers' talented duo of Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson. While most NBA teams deploy a traditional center-power forward tandem, these two squads are very different in their similarity.
"Against the Hawks, in terms of Millsap and Horford, we are kind of the same active bigs," Thompson said after Cleveland won Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against Atlanta, 104-93, on Monday.
Ever since the Cavs decided to bench center Timofey Mozgov midseason, both teams essentially use a pair of power forwards up front. It's been an effective strategy, but what happens when each gets a taste of the other's medicine?
What They Bring to the Table
For Atlanta, Millsap and Horford have similar skill sets. Both can put the ball on the floor, face up, hit jumpers, defend and pass beautifully for players of their stature. There may not be one elite skill between the two, but there are very few weaknesses.
For Cleveland, it's the exact opposite. Besides hitting the glass, Love and Thompson offer offensive/defensive options for varying scenarios, yet they have compatible skill sets.
Love brings an impressive array of post moves plus the ability to step out and stretch the floor. Thompson ideally won't shoot anything from outside five feet but can guard multiple positions and effectively defend the pick-and-roll with his athleticism and lateral quickness.
The Cavs can play both at the same time with ease. They must do so to beat Atlanta.
Thompson, the Hawk-Tamer
Of the four, Thompson is the only one never to have been named an All-Star. He also may be the most effective for this series.
Cleveland's $82 million man helped secure his payday in large part due to last year's Eastern Conference Finals against these same Hawks. During a four-game sweep where he started at power forward, the 6'9" Texas product put up 11.8 points, 11.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks on 64.3 percent shooting from the field.
"[Millsap and Horford] are both All-Stars and two terrific players, very good players in our league, so for me as a young guy, I want to take advantage of an opportunity," Thompson said after Game 1. "I guess it's extra motivation, just because you're playing against guys who are All-Stars and very talented. [I] just try to come with my hard hat and make it tough for them."
Looking at the numbers, "tough" appears to be an appropriate adjective.
Horford averaged 15.2 points on 50.5 percent shooting from the field and 34.4 percent from three this season. In three regular-season games against Cleveland, however, these figures dropped to 14.7 points on just 41.3 percent shooting and 7.7 percent from deep.
Millsap has suffered a similar fate. While his scoring average has remained constant, open looks have been hard to come by. The 2016 All-Star shot just 36.7 percent from the field and 20.0 percent outside the arc against Cleveland during the regular season.
In head-to-head matchups, Millsap was 5-of-15 from the floor (33.3 percent) against Thompson and an almost equally poor 6-of-17 (35.3 percent) when guarded by Love, per NBA.com.
More than just his defense, Thompson's constant work on the offensive glass can break a team's psyche, as head coach Tyronn Lue noted.
"When teams play great defense for 24 seconds and he comes up with those [offensive] rebounds, it’s just demoralizing to a team, because now they have to come out and guard us again," said Lue after Game 1. "That’s what he’s done for us the last two years. We know what he does and we know what he brings, and he knows who he is."
Thompson was huge in Game 1, pulling down 14 rebounds to go along with eight points, two blocks and a pair of assists. He was tied with LeBron James and J.R. Smith for second on the Cavs with a plus-16 rating.
"I think what Dennis [Rodman] did for the Bulls—on the floor; make sure we note that part—Double T does for our team," James said afterward. "Just giving us extra possessions, defending guys that are sometimes bigger than him, defending guys that are sometimes smaller than him.
"We know that every night he's going to give us everything that he's got, and a lot of it sometimes doesn't show up in the box score. But what he does on the glass is huge for our team."
Love's Part to Play
Thompson is the main piece when it comes to slowing down what Horford and Millsap do, but Love can help out in his own way as well. The former Minnesota Timberwolf wasn't around in last year's conference finals but is now beginning to make up for lost time.
The box score will say he had a rough Game 1, shooting just 4-of-17 from the floor. This, of course, tells just part of the story.
These misses weren't just jumpers and three-point attempts, but a series of rather easy looks after working to establish post position. Love continually went to work against Millsap and Horford on the block, often drawing help from one of Atlanta's wing defenders.
When these shots start falling—and they will—the defensive toll on both Hawks will reach even greater levels. As Thompson works to wear down Millsap and Horford defensively and on the boards, Love can use his offensive skill set to keep the duo active on the other end.
After all, Love thrived against Atlanta in the regular season, averaging 16.7 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists while shooting 47.1 percent, his eighth-highest total against all teams. He won't challenge Atlanta's frontcourt defensively like Thompson can, but the latter won't draw any off-ball help like Love has already begun to do, either.
Separately, Love and Thompson bring very different skill sets to the table. Against Atlanta's power forward combo, however, they're the perfect pair.
Greg Swartz is the Cleveland Cavaliers Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @CavsGregBR.
All quotes obtained firsthand. Stats via Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com unless otherwise noted.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
