Inside the Cavs’ historic Game 2 collapse and what went wrong

Let’s try to process what happened.

The Cleveland Cavaliers led by seven points with under a minute remaining in Game 2. You know what happened next.

Now that we’ve had some time to process the results, let’s go back and try to figure out what went wrong. Could the Cavs have avoided this? Or was it a case of supreme bad luck? The answer is in the middle.

1:06 left — Max Strus hits the ‘dagger’

Let’s begin with where the game should have ended. Strus nails this three-pointer to extend the Cavaliers' lead to three possessions — with such little time on the clock that Indiana might not even have enough time for three possessions to claw back.

This is a huge shot from Strus. But it all happens because Donovan Mitchell patiently accepts the double-team and then makes a fantastic pass to Strus. This is a sign of growth from Mitchell, who previously struggled to punish teams for doubling him in the playoffs.

It was a masterclass performance from Mitchell (48 points and 9 assists) that unfortunately goes down as a loss.

1:03 left — Tyrese Haliburton layup

This is a play that went under the radar. Just three seconds after Strus buries a dagger — Indiana calls a timeout and gets an immediate score.

Pay attention to how Isaac Okoro defends Haliburton here. It will come back to haunt you.

Okoro is very clearly making an effort to keep Haliburton off the three-point line. So much so that he concedes an uncontested drive to the rim as to avoid giving up a three-point play (either from the perimeter or behind a foul). That’s how you should play this situation. RUN THEM OFF THE LINE!!!

58 seconds left — Mitchell free throws

Self-explanatory. Mitchell draws a foul and makes both free throws to extend the lead back to seven points.

48 seconds left — Pascal Siakam is fouled

Again, the Cavs have a clear objective. Don’t allow the Pacers to shoot a three-pointer.

Strus runs Haliburton away from the line, allowing dribble penetration. This puts Jarrett Allen at an odd angle to contest Siakam — and it’s a somewhat fortunate call for Indiana.

48 seconds left — Aaron Nesmith putback dunk

Siakam inexplicably missed both free throws. This could have been a saving grace for Cleveland. Only Nesmith was there to save both points.

I’ll be clear, I’m not blaming the officials for this sequence. But Nesmith commits an obvious lane violation and it’s the only reason he beats everyone to the ball. This isn’t a lack of effort from the Cavs. Mitchell literally gets injured in his attempt to stop Nesmith. It’s just an aggressive play from Indiana and a missed call from the officials.

Tough break. This is playoff intensity and Nesmith won this battle.

46 seconds left — Mitchell offensive foul

Pay attention to how quickly the Cavs are losing possessions here. It’s been 20 seconds of game time since Strus hit the “dagger” and Indiana has already had the ball four times now, after Mitchell commits an offensive foul on Nesmith.

The Cavs did everything right here. They inbounded the ball to their best ball handler and free-throw shooter. Mitchell just makes an unfortunate play when trying to create separation.

It’s possible that Mitchell opted to use his body for separation rather than dribbling due to the calf strain he suffered on the previous play. Mitchell was clearly in pain when falling after this collision.

It’s not an excuse. I’m only describing what I see.

35 seconds left — Allen blocks Haliburton

For the third time, Cleveland shows they are willing to allow dribble penetration in favor of conceding a three-point attempt.

Allen expertly keeps Haliburton away from the three-point line and manages to even block him at the rim. The ball gets loose, hits Allen’s foot and rolls out of bounds before anyone has a chance to secure the defensive stop.

Tough break. Indiana has another chance.

28 seconds left — Siakam makes the layup

I’m not a broken record. The Cavs again choose to run Indiana away from the three-point line. Watch Allen as he chooses to cover Myles Turner in the corner rather than help on this Siakam drive.

The strategy is obvious. The strategy is simple. It’s a good strategy, even. The only way Indiana can complete this miracle comeback is with three-pointers or by forcing turnovers. The Cavs are doing a good job of avoiding at least one of those things.

28 seconds left — Strus turns it over

This inbounds play should have worked.

The Cavs successfully clear space for Jerome to seal his defender and catch the ball. It’s a play they’ve run to success before.

As Strus is inbounding the ball, Jerome has his man sealed. But as soon as the ball is in the air — Jerome is blown up and beaten to the ball. This is downright inexcusable.

This is where the Cavaliers miss having Darius Garland, De’Andre Hunter and Evan Mobley. Any of them would have been more of a threat to catch the ball here. Hunter and Mobley, especially, would have more success sealing their man.

12 seconds left — Haliburton is fouled

This foul was called on Jerome. In real time, most of us assumed it was on Mitchell’s vertical contest — but it was Jerome for placing his hands on Haliburton’s back during the drive.

There’s not much to say here other than Jerome successfully ran Haliburton off the three-point line. I promise there’s a reason why I keep emphasizing this. You probably already know why.

12 seconds left — Haliburton gets the rebound

After making the first, Haliburton shorts the second free throw. It’s a fortunate bounce — as his unorthodox shooting form results in a high-arching miss. This means the ball is in the air long enough for Turner to swat it even though Allen and Mithcell have him completely boxed out.

A miss that falls flatter would have been an easy clean-up for the Cavs. Tough break.

You’ll notice no one is boxing out Haliburton on this play. The Cavs choose to have two players on the perimeter mirroring Indiana. This is likely a response to Nesmith’s previous crash. Merrill clearly understands his job is to block out Siakam.

But watch Jerome.

Jerome floats into the picture and momentarily boxes out Haliburton. But then... he just kinda freezes. The ball is bounced towards Hali and no one is there to beat him to it.

1 second left — Haliburton hits the shot

All is not lost once Hali gets the rebound. In fact, the only way the Cavs could lose is if they allow a three-point shot. They’ve done a good job avoiding that for multiple possessions now. It should be easy, right?

Wrong.

Jerome has no excuse for allowing this shot. He has help on both sides of him. Allen is standing on the nail to deter a drive. Strus is on the other wing if Hali crosses over. There’s no discernible reason why Jerome falls victim to this step-back attempt. He should have been all over it.

I promise this isn’t meant to pile on Jerome. I’m only calling it how I see it. He’s not entirely to blame for this collapse, but many of the pivotal moments were decided by him. He’ll face a ton of pressure to bounce back in Indiana.