13 Takeaways from Cavs Game 5 win over Raptors: ‘We’re trying to get to that next level’

Anything bought from the links helps support *Fear the Sword*. You can buy the Donovan Mitchell and James Harden *NBA Jam* shirt HERE. You can also shop all of Homage’s Cavs gear HERE. **Inserting Max Strus into the starting lineup for Dean Wade didn’t work**. The Cavs lost the 10 minutes Strus played with the core four by 11. This has been a trend throughout the series as the Cavs have now lost the minutes with that lineup by 24 points in 23 minutes. Atkinson said before the game that it’s difficult to put too much stock in lineup data from a sample size this small. He also mentioned that the idea to go with Strus wasn’t because of anything Wade did, but more so to give the starters a boost with additional playmaking and shooting. Usually, you don’t change a starting lineup after a playoff win, but this might be the exception. The Cavs have opened better with Wade than they have with Strus thus far. **Atkinson also decided to bench Keon Ellis**. That move makes sense given Toronto’s size on the wing and the fact that the Cavs already have too many shooting guards to give minutes to. **Losing Brandon Ingram really hurts the Raptors**. He left the game in the first half with a heel injury. We don’t know if he’ll be available for Game 6, but we do know the Raptors offense struggled mightily without him. After scoring 74 points in the first half, the Raptors registered just 46 in the second. This included putting up 17 in the fourth quarter on 7-28 shooting (25%). Even though Ingram hasn’t found his shot in this series, he’s helped Toronto’s offense with the attention he’s drawn. The Cavs have consistently sent two to the ball or have used their best wing defender in Wade to stop him. Both of these things help his teammates, as does the shot-creation he provides. **There’s a cascading effect with injuries**. Losing starting point guard Immanuel Quickley shifted some of the playmaking responsibilities. Part of that fell to Ingram. Now, the Raptors will need to pick up the facilitating burden that transferred to Ingram while also trying to replace their leading scorer throughout the regular season. In Game 5, that put even more of a burden on Scottie Barnes and RJ Barrett. Both Barnes and Barrett had a difficult time in the second half after being lights out in the first two quarters. Barnes went from putting up 14 points on 6-10 shooting with eight assists in the first half, to having just six points on 0-6 shooting in the second. Meanwhile, Barrett went from scoring 13 points on 5-8 shooting to having just 12 points on 4-11 shooting in the second half. This shouldn’t be surprising. The defense was able to key in on Barnes and Barrett much more easily. We’ll see whether or not Ingram can go in Game 6, but if he can’t, the Raptors will have a difficult time generating consistent offense. **Mobley continues to be a difference maker**. There’s a common theme in the Cavs wins and losses — the outcome has coincided with how well Mobley has played. The Cavs turned momentum around at the end of the third quarter when Mobley went on a 5-0 run in the closing seconds to make it a three-point deficit heading into the fourth. A three at the start of the fourth then gave the Cavs a lead they wouldn’t relinquish for the remainder of the game. Mobley’s offense was at the center of their second-half comeback. He contributed 16 of his 23 points in the final two quarters. Nine of those were from three-balls that he confidently knocked down despite being hesitant to take outside shots throughout the series. **The Cavs passed the test in Game 5**. They weathered an up-and-down first half to take a commanding 3-2 lead in the series. It was the response that Atkinson was looking for from his group. “We’re trying to get over the hump, we’re trying to get to the next level,” Atkinson said. “That’s a real mental challenge to me, especially in a Game 5, 2-2. These are high-pressure elements. You’re down. You feel the crowd getting nervous. So I think we took a step tonight.” This game wasn’t pretty. But there’s no style points in the playoffs. The final result is all that matters. This time, the Cavs found a way to do that. And given this group’s track record in the playoffs, that isn’t something to knock them for. At the same time, it’s fair to acknowledge that they still aren’t playing up to their incredible talent level. This is a highly skilled team that fits together well on paper, and has a time throughout the regular season. Whether or not they can figure out how to get that to come through consistently in the playoffs will determine how long this run lasts. At the very least, this was a step forward from where things were after Game 4. “We didn’t sit here and think we’re coming out 4-0,” Mitchell said. “We weren’t going 16-0. This is a test. The same test we’ve been talking about all season, and we responded tonight.”