Official Matthew Dellavedova Thread
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Billyhoyle
Im Not Juan Garcia
http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2013/nov/25/matthew-dellavedova-cleveland-cavaliers-nba
Matthew Dellavedova makes for a surprise NBA success story
Two Australians met in the NBA on Sunday, and few would have predicted one of them would play, let alone start
Australia's Matthew Dellavedova (left) and Patty Mills met on the court at the weekend. Photograph: Eric Gay/AP
In a league built around teamwork, hard-nose defense and strong fundamentals, supreme athleticism and individual feats of greatness stand out. Today the NBA is bursting at the seams with superior athletes, with players boasting lightning quick speed and unparalleled leaping ability. What stands out now might just be grit, hard-nosed defense and a team-first attitude. So far at least, it’s working great for Matthew Dellavedova.
The young Aussie point guard’s road to the NBA has been paved by hard work and odds overcome. The 23-year old is on a dream run: only months ago, his playing future was uncertain as he found himself undrafted and hopeful of being picked up by a club.
Fast-forward to now, and not only has he found a home in the NBA in Cleveland, but he’s being tried in the starting line-up, inspiring comebacks and having praises heaped on him by his coach.
The Cavs had the No1 draft pick this year and selected Anthony Bennett. Dellavedova, who was overlooked in the draft, is already receiving more minutes and posting bigger numbers. Last week he helped his team to an overtime victory against the Washington Wizards, and then inspired them to a dramatic comeback only days later.
Yesterday, he impressed again, this time against the San Antonio Spurs, who feature some familiar faces in Aussie Boomers team-mates Patty Mills and Aron Baynes.
Coming out of college, where he set numerous records and picked up a number of accolades playing for the St Mary’s Gaels, Dellavedova made no secret of the fact that the NBA was his ultimate goal.
Scouting reports cast doubts over his ambitions, however. The experts questioned his quickness and lateral movement, doubted his ability to defend quicker, more athletic guards, and only gave him an outside chance of making an NBA roster.
This view seemed validated when Dellavedova was not drafted. Unperturbed, he battled on, and some interest reportedly came from Cleveland, Orlando and New York.
He had shown his quality at the London Games in 2012, averaging over 28 minutes in a position that most thought would be sewn up by Mills.
Then head coach of the Boomers, Brett Brown, fielded countless questions about Dellavedova, and time and again his answer was simple: ‘he’s going to play’. It was as if few would believe it. After all, Mills seemed the obvious choice to start in the point spot, and few saw him leaving the floor that often.
Dellavedova’s role was not to replace Mills. Instead it gave Mills the greenlight to take on a scoring role, and it put the control of the team in Dellavedova’s hands.
The combination worked well, and the experience did not go unnoticed. Cleveland gave him the opportunity to play in the NBA Summer League, an off-season competition renowned for its desperation, as players strive to earn contracts, move up roster spots and plug gaps and holes in team lists.
Dellavedova was solid offensively, but proved tenacious on defense, and tough enough to put the clamps on the NBA’s elite athletes. Cleveland rewarded him with a contract. It was modest by NBA standards — reported to be worth $1.3m over two years — and placed him at the bottom end of a 15-man list, a long way from court time. He was in a team, he was liked, but he had work to do.
It sounded familiar.
Mills had a similar passage to the NBA. He starred for the same college, St Mary’s, only a few years earlier – they were Mills’s records that Dellavedova was breaking. Mills also used an Olympics as a springboard, in 2008 in Beijing. Unlike Dellavedova, he was drafted into the NBA, at pick 55 overall by Portland, but also with a fight on his hands for playing opportunities.
They were few and Patty has been working to stay in the league ever since. Like Dellavedova, it’s been his work ethic and likeability among team-mates and coaches that has kept him in the mix. He landed at the Spurs, where Brown was an assistant, and waited for opportunities. Last year, when the minutes dried up, Mills made a name for himself by being an overly enthusiastic supporter from the sidelines, his towel-waving antics becoming an online sensation: he stayed relevant. This season the opportunities have come, and Mills has performed.
On Sunday, the Aussies met for the first time. A 35-11 second quarter saw the Spurs take a 33-point lead into the change rooms. They wouldn’t be challenged from that point on and beat the Cavs 126-96.
The air may have gone out of the game early, but it seemed an important chapter in the unfolding stories of these two guards. Mills, a man who has been expected to flourish in the NBA, but has perhaps lacked opportunities, finished with 15 points, three rebounds and three assists in just under 23 minutes of floor time.
Dellavedova, a man who many expected wouldn’t even get a chance in the NBA, finished with 14 points, four steals, two assists and two rebounds in a starting role in just under 34 minutes.
While in the midst of an Australian Boomers training camp a couple of years ago, Dellavedova was on rookie duties. As the group milled around the baggage claim shooting the breeze, Dellavedova was gathering bags of basketballs and towels, ready to load them onto the bus for the hotel.
When the Boomers next meet ahead of the 2014 Basketball World Cup, it’s safe to say that Dellavedova won’t be gathering towels, he’ll be gathering his team-mates and leading them on the charge. If anyone can inspire that group to some unexpected success, it’s a man who is currently overcoming the odds every day he goes to work.
Billyhoyle
Im Not Juan Garcia
Billyhoyle
Im Not Juan Garcia
getting big props from NBA.com - http://www.nba.com/rookie-ladder/?l...uffer&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=Buffer
Billyhoyle
Im Not Juan Garcia
and now Slam mag
Rave Review
Undrafted rookie Matthew Dellavedova is earning respect and a role with the Cavs.
by Brendan Bowers / @BowersCLE
NBA League Pass wasn’t invented when Matthew Dellavedova was growing up in Australia. They weren’t broadcasting games on local television, either. But even though he wouldn’t watch live NBA action until high school, Dellavedova always knew where he wanted to go.
“Like most people around my age, my first memories of the NBA were of Michael Jordan,” the 23-year-old Dellavedova told SLAM. “But for me, mine were from watching Jordan and the Bulls on those championship videos you’d get at the local video store. It was before the NBA was on TV in Australia, but I remember first watching those highlight videos.”
Shortly after, NBA dreams quickly morphed into goals for the Maryborough, Victoria native. They were goals he planned to accomplish, regardless of how feasible the idea may have seemed to the outside world.
“Playing in the NBA was always one of my goals,” Dellavedova said. “I’m not sure when it became a realistic goal, but it was always one of my goals. Since I was about 14 all I wanted to do was play in college, play for Australia and play in the NBA. Those were my goals.”
Dellavedova followed San Antonio Spurs guard and fellow Australian Patty Mills to the Australian Institute of Sport for high school. Around that same time, Andrew Bogut would be drafted first overall by the Milwaukee Bucks and NBA games began popping up on local television with regularity.
“I was aware of what Luc Longley accomplished growing up as a kid with those Bulls teams,” Dellavedova recalled. “His success was huge for Australian basketball. But I didn’t have a favorite player or favorite team until I started following the games regularly in high school—and my favorite player was Steve Nash. I was getting games on TV and Nash was going through that golden period of his career. That was obviously fun to watch and I learned a lot from watching him.”
What Dellavedova learned helped him follow Mills to St. Mary’s College of California, earning a scholarship in the same West Coast Conference as Nash’s alma mater. The next stop from there for the Olympian and point guard they called Delly was the League.
Matthew Dellavedova made his NBA debut for the Cleveland Cavaliers on November 2 against the Indiana Pacers. He played one minute. It wasn’t until November 16 that Dellavedova would see extended action. Coach Mike Brown would trust Dellavedova’s ability to impact the game with hustle, passion and intensity for 31 minutes that night. Along the way, he’d help Kyrie Irving and the Cavs secure a road victory over John Wall, Bradley Beal and the Washington Wizards.
“I obviously didn’t go into the game thinking I’m about to get 30 minutes,” Dellavedova recalled with a laugh. “But you’re always just trying to stay ready. Anything can happen in the NBA. When I came in during the second quarter, I set a couple of screens that got a couple of guys open. I played some decent defense and we went on a little bit of a run, took some momentum into halftime.”
It would go on to become a breakout game of sorts for the rookie, who finished with 2 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists. But despite the lack of eye-popping statistics, his overall effort and impact defensively inspired Irving to credit Dellavedova specifically for the win—offering the 41 points he scored as a mere footnote.
“In the third quarter, Coach Brown threw me in there pretty quick and I was mostly guarding Beal, chasing him around screens,” Delly added. “I was doing an OK job so he pretty much left me in there for the rest of the game. I think it was probably about four minutes to go in the fourth when I thought, He’s probably going to leave me out here for the last bit since I’d be playing for so long. So it was a good experience to be able to play in a close game like that and help the team get a road win.”
Just over one week before that road win in Washington, Dellavedova posted a video on his Instagram account. He was running up the Rocky steps in Philadelphia. The Rocky theme song was playing in the background. Upon reaching the top, the Cavaliers guard offered a flurry of haymakers. The music continued to blare.
“I don’t know about that,” he replied with a laugh, when I asked if that run helped prepare him for those extended minutes. “That was a cool thing to do in Philly though. I’ve watched all the Rocky movies and really like them. So it was cool to get out there and pretend you’re in the movie, you know? It was good fun, my family and friends back home got a kick out of it.”
Despite emerging to average 13.9 minutes per game this season—good for 16th among all rookies through Sunday—it hasn’t been all fun for Dellavedova and the Cavs. Prior to winning five of their last seven games to improve to 9-14, Cleveland stumbled hard out the gate. Along the way, however, Delly has been earning the confidence of his head coach.
Following a loss on November 20, Brown singled Dellavedova out in his post-game comments as being the only member of the Cavaliers who competed that night.
“He wants me to practice hard and push Kyrie, Jack and Dion in practice by defending those guys and playing hard,” Dellavedova said of the role Brown is defining for him on the Cavaliers this season. “So I’m just trying to bring energy everyday, just try to make everyone else better. I’m running the point in practice mostly, so I’m trying to get everyone setup and get them into a flow and in the right spots. He also wants me to keep working on my three-point shot and then stay ready. He could throw me in whenever.”
Besides chasing down opposing guards and making fundamentally sound hustle plays all over the court, Dellavedova has demonstrated progress on the three-point shot his coach has asked him to improve. Through Monday, he leads all rookies in three-point percentage at 45.5 percent in 16 appearances.
But Delly has no interest in celebrating the idea of being an undrafted rookie free agent from a mid-major school who is earning minutes in a league nobody thought he could play in. Nor does he have time—at least right now—to formally accept teammate CJ Miles’ Twitter nomination for president, either.
“I haven’t really stepped back and thought about any of that,” he said, when I asked him about the NBA accomplishments he’s made thus far. “I probably won’t until after the season, or I might not think about that at all. I’m not sure when. Obviously, the schedule is so busy with practice, getting shots up, weights, so you hardly think about it. It’s just one day at a time, what is the schedule tomorrow. I’m just trying to focus on getting a little better each day, and by the end of the season that’s going to add up to a lot.”
Dellavedova ended his career at St. Mary’s University as the school’s all-time leader in career points. He is also the school’s all-time leader in assists, three-pointers made, free throw percentage, starts and games played.
He thought his accomplishments could be enough help his name come off the board on draft night. Despite that belief, however, he was passed over by all 30 teams. Twice.
“I thought I had good draft workouts,” he recalled. “I was getting some pretty good feedback but it didn’t turn out on draft night. I’m pretty motivated anyway, but that was some extra fuel to the fire.”
That extra fuel may have helped teammates like Anderson Varejao compare Dellavedova’s playing style to that of a pit bull recently. Or, maybe the smile he plays with has disguised a pit bull-mentality all along.
“Coming into Summer League, I had a good opportunity with the Cavs and I was basically just trying to help us win as many games as we could in Summer League. As a point guard, to make the roster, you need to be a role player on the team and show you can do the little things; playing hard, talking, being a good teammate.”
Dellavedova wasn’t supposed to be quick enough to stay in front of opposing point guards defensively at this level. Despite that, he’s guarded Kyrie Irving well enough on a daily basis to earn the All-Star’s respect and praise.
“You can’t help but get better by going against him everyday.” Dellavedova said of Irving. “Most people have a move, counter-move, and then maybe one more counter-move. But he can just keep making moves. He changes direction at top speed, and that’s not like anything I’ve seen before. You just have to try and keep him in front of you, but that’s obviously really tough.”
By working to keep Irving in front as much as possible, other matchups seem less daunting by comparison when he enters the game.
“He’s been a great teammate,” Delly added. “With his handle, quickness, speed and body control, he can get anywhere he wants on the floor. And then he can finish at the rim, he’s got floaters, pull-ups and he can shoot the three. So it’s obviously a tough cover.”
Dellavedova first learned of the League he’s now playing in through highlight tapes rented from the local video store. Now, those hoping to follow a similar path can learn directly from Delly himself.
Every week, at the Bendigo Advertiser in Australia, Dellavedova is writing a blog describing his NBA experience for those back home.
“It’s good for me to keep track of what I’ve been doing from week to week,” he said. “My parents have been saying that people from back home have been giving some good feedback on it. It’s been good to just write some things down and give people back home an idea of what’s going on.”
What’s going on is that a guy who spent his life believing he could compete at the highest level is doing specifically that. And the NBA chapter he intends to write has only just begun.
http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba/2013/12/matthew-dellavedova-rave-review/
Rave Review
Undrafted rookie Matthew Dellavedova is earning respect and a role with the Cavs.
by Brendan Bowers / @BowersCLE
NBA League Pass wasn’t invented when Matthew Dellavedova was growing up in Australia. They weren’t broadcasting games on local television, either. But even though he wouldn’t watch live NBA action until high school, Dellavedova always knew where he wanted to go.
“Like most people around my age, my first memories of the NBA were of Michael Jordan,” the 23-year-old Dellavedova told SLAM. “But for me, mine were from watching Jordan and the Bulls on those championship videos you’d get at the local video store. It was before the NBA was on TV in Australia, but I remember first watching those highlight videos.”
Shortly after, NBA dreams quickly morphed into goals for the Maryborough, Victoria native. They were goals he planned to accomplish, regardless of how feasible the idea may have seemed to the outside world.
“Playing in the NBA was always one of my goals,” Dellavedova said. “I’m not sure when it became a realistic goal, but it was always one of my goals. Since I was about 14 all I wanted to do was play in college, play for Australia and play in the NBA. Those were my goals.”
Dellavedova followed San Antonio Spurs guard and fellow Australian Patty Mills to the Australian Institute of Sport for high school. Around that same time, Andrew Bogut would be drafted first overall by the Milwaukee Bucks and NBA games began popping up on local television with regularity.
“I was aware of what Luc Longley accomplished growing up as a kid with those Bulls teams,” Dellavedova recalled. “His success was huge for Australian basketball. But I didn’t have a favorite player or favorite team until I started following the games regularly in high school—and my favorite player was Steve Nash. I was getting games on TV and Nash was going through that golden period of his career. That was obviously fun to watch and I learned a lot from watching him.”
What Dellavedova learned helped him follow Mills to St. Mary’s College of California, earning a scholarship in the same West Coast Conference as Nash’s alma mater. The next stop from there for the Olympian and point guard they called Delly was the League.
Matthew Dellavedova made his NBA debut for the Cleveland Cavaliers on November 2 against the Indiana Pacers. He played one minute. It wasn’t until November 16 that Dellavedova would see extended action. Coach Mike Brown would trust Dellavedova’s ability to impact the game with hustle, passion and intensity for 31 minutes that night. Along the way, he’d help Kyrie Irving and the Cavs secure a road victory over John Wall, Bradley Beal and the Washington Wizards.
“I obviously didn’t go into the game thinking I’m about to get 30 minutes,” Dellavedova recalled with a laugh. “But you’re always just trying to stay ready. Anything can happen in the NBA. When I came in during the second quarter, I set a couple of screens that got a couple of guys open. I played some decent defense and we went on a little bit of a run, took some momentum into halftime.”
It would go on to become a breakout game of sorts for the rookie, who finished with 2 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists. But despite the lack of eye-popping statistics, his overall effort and impact defensively inspired Irving to credit Dellavedova specifically for the win—offering the 41 points he scored as a mere footnote.
“In the third quarter, Coach Brown threw me in there pretty quick and I was mostly guarding Beal, chasing him around screens,” Delly added. “I was doing an OK job so he pretty much left me in there for the rest of the game. I think it was probably about four minutes to go in the fourth when I thought, He’s probably going to leave me out here for the last bit since I’d be playing for so long. So it was a good experience to be able to play in a close game like that and help the team get a road win.”
Just over one week before that road win in Washington, Dellavedova posted a video on his Instagram account. He was running up the Rocky steps in Philadelphia. The Rocky theme song was playing in the background. Upon reaching the top, the Cavaliers guard offered a flurry of haymakers. The music continued to blare.
“I don’t know about that,” he replied with a laugh, when I asked if that run helped prepare him for those extended minutes. “That was a cool thing to do in Philly though. I’ve watched all the Rocky movies and really like them. So it was cool to get out there and pretend you’re in the movie, you know? It was good fun, my family and friends back home got a kick out of it.”
Despite emerging to average 13.9 minutes per game this season—good for 16th among all rookies through Sunday—it hasn’t been all fun for Dellavedova and the Cavs. Prior to winning five of their last seven games to improve to 9-14, Cleveland stumbled hard out the gate. Along the way, however, Delly has been earning the confidence of his head coach.
Following a loss on November 20, Brown singled Dellavedova out in his post-game comments as being the only member of the Cavaliers who competed that night.
“He wants me to practice hard and push Kyrie, Jack and Dion in practice by defending those guys and playing hard,” Dellavedova said of the role Brown is defining for him on the Cavaliers this season. “So I’m just trying to bring energy everyday, just try to make everyone else better. I’m running the point in practice mostly, so I’m trying to get everyone setup and get them into a flow and in the right spots. He also wants me to keep working on my three-point shot and then stay ready. He could throw me in whenever.”
Besides chasing down opposing guards and making fundamentally sound hustle plays all over the court, Dellavedova has demonstrated progress on the three-point shot his coach has asked him to improve. Through Monday, he leads all rookies in three-point percentage at 45.5 percent in 16 appearances.
But Delly has no interest in celebrating the idea of being an undrafted rookie free agent from a mid-major school who is earning minutes in a league nobody thought he could play in. Nor does he have time—at least right now—to formally accept teammate CJ Miles’ Twitter nomination for president, either.
“I haven’t really stepped back and thought about any of that,” he said, when I asked him about the NBA accomplishments he’s made thus far. “I probably won’t until after the season, or I might not think about that at all. I’m not sure when. Obviously, the schedule is so busy with practice, getting shots up, weights, so you hardly think about it. It’s just one day at a time, what is the schedule tomorrow. I’m just trying to focus on getting a little better each day, and by the end of the season that’s going to add up to a lot.”
Dellavedova ended his career at St. Mary’s University as the school’s all-time leader in career points. He is also the school’s all-time leader in assists, three-pointers made, free throw percentage, starts and games played.
He thought his accomplishments could be enough help his name come off the board on draft night. Despite that belief, however, he was passed over by all 30 teams. Twice.
“I thought I had good draft workouts,” he recalled. “I was getting some pretty good feedback but it didn’t turn out on draft night. I’m pretty motivated anyway, but that was some extra fuel to the fire.”
That extra fuel may have helped teammates like Anderson Varejao compare Dellavedova’s playing style to that of a pit bull recently. Or, maybe the smile he plays with has disguised a pit bull-mentality all along.
“Coming into Summer League, I had a good opportunity with the Cavs and I was basically just trying to help us win as many games as we could in Summer League. As a point guard, to make the roster, you need to be a role player on the team and show you can do the little things; playing hard, talking, being a good teammate.”
Dellavedova wasn’t supposed to be quick enough to stay in front of opposing point guards defensively at this level. Despite that, he’s guarded Kyrie Irving well enough on a daily basis to earn the All-Star’s respect and praise.
“You can’t help but get better by going against him everyday.” Dellavedova said of Irving. “Most people have a move, counter-move, and then maybe one more counter-move. But he can just keep making moves. He changes direction at top speed, and that’s not like anything I’ve seen before. You just have to try and keep him in front of you, but that’s obviously really tough.”
By working to keep Irving in front as much as possible, other matchups seem less daunting by comparison when he enters the game.
“He’s been a great teammate,” Delly added. “With his handle, quickness, speed and body control, he can get anywhere he wants on the floor. And then he can finish at the rim, he’s got floaters, pull-ups and he can shoot the three. So it’s obviously a tough cover.”
Dellavedova first learned of the League he’s now playing in through highlight tapes rented from the local video store. Now, those hoping to follow a similar path can learn directly from Delly himself.
Every week, at the Bendigo Advertiser in Australia, Dellavedova is writing a blog describing his NBA experience for those back home.
“It’s good for me to keep track of what I’ve been doing from week to week,” he said. “My parents have been saying that people from back home have been giving some good feedback on it. It’s been good to just write some things down and give people back home an idea of what’s going on.”
What’s going on is that a guy who spent his life believing he could compete at the highest level is doing specifically that. And the NBA chapter he intends to write has only just begun.
http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba/2013/12/matthew-dellavedova-rave-review/
Billyhoyle
Im Not Juan Garcia
and now on Cavs.com
Dogged Determination
December 19, 2013
Joe Gabriele | Cavs.com Beat Writer
Related Articles:
Player Profile
Growing Up... Delly
Just a few months into Matthew Dellavedova’s NBA career, two terms that have been used to describe him have been “pit bull” and “Neanderthal.”
After another gritty effort in a win over Orlando last weekend, Anderson Varejao called Dellavedova the team’s pit bull. (Or “peet bull,” with the Varejao accent. Andy even provided the requisite sound effect: “Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!”)
Before the Cavaliers-Sixers preseason matchup in Cincinnati, Philadelphia head coach Brett Brown, who coached Dellavedova on the Australian team in the 2012 London Olympics, said, “He, at times, might not be pretty. He’s a little bit Neanderthal in how he goes about his business, but he’s for real.”
OK, so it’s not very nice to compare someone to a vicious dog and a caveman – especially around the holidays. But both comparisons were done so with much love and respect.
After getting five DNP-CDs in the Cavs’ first six contests, the man they call “Delly” scrapped his way into Mike Brown’s rotation, and it looks like the native Australian will be there for a while.
The season is just a month-and-a-half old, and it’s already been a whirlwind for the 6-4, 200-pound guard.
“I didn’t know what to expect (this season),” admitted Dellavedova. “I was coming into training camp trying to make the team, because obviously that’s the first step – you have to make the team before you can get minutes. So I tried to take it one step at a time and do what the coaches ask and try to improve. I’ve always got high expectations of myself and even though I didn’t get drafted, I thought I could play at this level.”
The rookie from St. Mary’s might not have been selected this past June. But he definitely made an impression on the club that eventually signed him during his pre-Draft workouts.
Cavs Coach Mike Brown loves to tell the story. While working out some potential draft picks in three-on-three drills this past June, Dellavedova’s team won each of the first three games. Just to mix it up, Brown “traded” Delly to the opposite team – which proceeded to win the next three games.
It was then that Brown knew he had something unique in the Aussie import.
“By the end of the session, all five guys that were here with him, they were listening to him,” Brown recalled. “He was telling them what to do – all eyes were glued on him.”
“Well, I remember it was a pretty good workout for me and obviously, it mattered,” laughed Dellavedova, recalling that day. “You want to show them how competitive you are. And the best way to do that is to win every drill, especially when they change the teams. You want to make sure you’re on the winning team every time. So whatever way you do that – talking, encouraging your teammates, getting rebounds or setting screens, stuff like that.”
Delly reaffirmed his toughness and leadership in July when he impressed coaches with the Cavs Summer League squad in Las Vegas. That led to a partially-guaranteed contract in Training Camp. And during preseason, with Jarrett Jack sidelined with a left knee ailment, Delly continued to make his mark. On October 25, the Wine and Gold announced the 15-man roster they’d take into the season, and Dellavedova was officially a Cavalier.
Dellavedova has put up some solid numbers in 17 games for the Wine and Gold this year – netting 3.8 points, 1.4 boards and 1.1 assists per contest – about the numbers that you’d expect from a first-year player averaging 13.6 minutes per game.
But the one number that tells the real story of Delly’s early-season success is the coveted “+/-“ statistic – or, basically, how the team fares when a certain player is on the floor. On the season, when Dellavedova is on the floor for the Wine and Gold, they’re +46 -- easily tops on the team. The next-best Cavalier, Henry Sims, is +9.
Dellavedova is happy to contribute in this statistical category. And while he may not be putting up monster scoring numbers, he is shooting the ball very efficiently – cashing in when his number is called. He’s shooting .489 from the floor, including .458 from beyond the arc.
He went 2-for-3 from long-distance in last Friday’s win over Orlando and hit both treys he attempted one night later in a near-upset of Miami. Two nights later, in the shootout loss against Portland at The Q, Delly drilled a game-tying three-pointer late in the third period.
He’ll never be a volume shooter at this level, but Delly knows how to pick his spots.
“We’ve obviously got some great scorers on this team, and you have to find a little bit of a role,” said the Maryborough, Victoria native. “There’s five guys on the court and there’s only one ball, so not everybody’s going to come down and shoot it each time. There’s a lot more to the game. You’re playing defense 50 percent of the time, so your focus is there. And obviously, when the time comes and you’re open, you need to knock down a shot as well.”
In last Saturday’s matchup in Miami – one night after Varejao labeled him the club’s pit bull – Dellavedova again earned his new nickname, thoroughly frustrating Dwyane Wade as the Cavs were making their second-half comeback bid.
“The biggest way to probably frustrate a good player is to deny him the ball,” opined Delly. “Because all good players want to have the ball in their hands. If you can deny them the ball, that’s probably the best way to do it.”
Is frustrating the opponent something Dellavedova thinks about on the floor?
“Not really,” he admitted. “I don’t have time to worry about that because I’m thinking what my next job is. Whether it’s denying the ball and then helping and boxing out and pushing the ball. So that really doesn’t cross my mind too much.”
Delly’s scrappy style of play is quickly making him a fan favorite. Before Cavalier fans embraced him, the former St. Mary’s standout had a small fan club half a world away in Maryborough, Victoria, Australia (pop. 7,630) – about a two-hour drive from Melbourne.
“I’m always like texting (my family) or Skyping them when the times line up,” smiled Delly. “But they actually got out (to Cleveland) on Sunday, so they’re excited to come to the games. But there’s definitely been a lot of support from back home – people watching on League Pass and things like that and following the results. And my mom and dad have said everyone’s always asking them about it. So it’s cool to know that everybody’s supporting me back home.”
It’ll be the first time in the snow for both his parents – (“It’s a bit of shock to them,” laughed the younger Dellavedova) – and they’ll be here throughout the holidays.
His mom might not like her son’s new nicknames. But they’re appropriate. And the style of play that earned them is what has the international rookie entrenched into the Cavaliers’ rotation, through the holidays and beyond.
Dogged Determination
December 19, 2013
Joe Gabriele | Cavs.com Beat Writer
Related Articles:
Player Profile
Growing Up... Delly
Just a few months into Matthew Dellavedova’s NBA career, two terms that have been used to describe him have been “pit bull” and “Neanderthal.”
After another gritty effort in a win over Orlando last weekend, Anderson Varejao called Dellavedova the team’s pit bull. (Or “peet bull,” with the Varejao accent. Andy even provided the requisite sound effect: “Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!”)
Before the Cavaliers-Sixers preseason matchup in Cincinnati, Philadelphia head coach Brett Brown, who coached Dellavedova on the Australian team in the 2012 London Olympics, said, “He, at times, might not be pretty. He’s a little bit Neanderthal in how he goes about his business, but he’s for real.”
OK, so it’s not very nice to compare someone to a vicious dog and a caveman – especially around the holidays. But both comparisons were done so with much love and respect.
After getting five DNP-CDs in the Cavs’ first six contests, the man they call “Delly” scrapped his way into Mike Brown’s rotation, and it looks like the native Australian will be there for a while.
The season is just a month-and-a-half old, and it’s already been a whirlwind for the 6-4, 200-pound guard.
“I didn’t know what to expect (this season),” admitted Dellavedova. “I was coming into training camp trying to make the team, because obviously that’s the first step – you have to make the team before you can get minutes. So I tried to take it one step at a time and do what the coaches ask and try to improve. I’ve always got high expectations of myself and even though I didn’t get drafted, I thought I could play at this level.”
The rookie from St. Mary’s might not have been selected this past June. But he definitely made an impression on the club that eventually signed him during his pre-Draft workouts.
Cavs Coach Mike Brown loves to tell the story. While working out some potential draft picks in three-on-three drills this past June, Dellavedova’s team won each of the first three games. Just to mix it up, Brown “traded” Delly to the opposite team – which proceeded to win the next three games.
It was then that Brown knew he had something unique in the Aussie import.
“By the end of the session, all five guys that were here with him, they were listening to him,” Brown recalled. “He was telling them what to do – all eyes were glued on him.”
“Well, I remember it was a pretty good workout for me and obviously, it mattered,” laughed Dellavedova, recalling that day. “You want to show them how competitive you are. And the best way to do that is to win every drill, especially when they change the teams. You want to make sure you’re on the winning team every time. So whatever way you do that – talking, encouraging your teammates, getting rebounds or setting screens, stuff like that.”
Delly reaffirmed his toughness and leadership in July when he impressed coaches with the Cavs Summer League squad in Las Vegas. That led to a partially-guaranteed contract in Training Camp. And during preseason, with Jarrett Jack sidelined with a left knee ailment, Delly continued to make his mark. On October 25, the Wine and Gold announced the 15-man roster they’d take into the season, and Dellavedova was officially a Cavalier.
Dellavedova has put up some solid numbers in 17 games for the Wine and Gold this year – netting 3.8 points, 1.4 boards and 1.1 assists per contest – about the numbers that you’d expect from a first-year player averaging 13.6 minutes per game.
But the one number that tells the real story of Delly’s early-season success is the coveted “+/-“ statistic – or, basically, how the team fares when a certain player is on the floor. On the season, when Dellavedova is on the floor for the Wine and Gold, they’re +46 -- easily tops on the team. The next-best Cavalier, Henry Sims, is +9.
Dellavedova is happy to contribute in this statistical category. And while he may not be putting up monster scoring numbers, he is shooting the ball very efficiently – cashing in when his number is called. He’s shooting .489 from the floor, including .458 from beyond the arc.
He went 2-for-3 from long-distance in last Friday’s win over Orlando and hit both treys he attempted one night later in a near-upset of Miami. Two nights later, in the shootout loss against Portland at The Q, Delly drilled a game-tying three-pointer late in the third period.
He’ll never be a volume shooter at this level, but Delly knows how to pick his spots.
“We’ve obviously got some great scorers on this team, and you have to find a little bit of a role,” said the Maryborough, Victoria native. “There’s five guys on the court and there’s only one ball, so not everybody’s going to come down and shoot it each time. There’s a lot more to the game. You’re playing defense 50 percent of the time, so your focus is there. And obviously, when the time comes and you’re open, you need to knock down a shot as well.”
In last Saturday’s matchup in Miami – one night after Varejao labeled him the club’s pit bull – Dellavedova again earned his new nickname, thoroughly frustrating Dwyane Wade as the Cavs were making their second-half comeback bid.
“The biggest way to probably frustrate a good player is to deny him the ball,” opined Delly. “Because all good players want to have the ball in their hands. If you can deny them the ball, that’s probably the best way to do it.”
Is frustrating the opponent something Dellavedova thinks about on the floor?
“Not really,” he admitted. “I don’t have time to worry about that because I’m thinking what my next job is. Whether it’s denying the ball and then helping and boxing out and pushing the ball. So that really doesn’t cross my mind too much.”
Delly’s scrappy style of play is quickly making him a fan favorite. Before Cavalier fans embraced him, the former St. Mary’s standout had a small fan club half a world away in Maryborough, Victoria, Australia (pop. 7,630) – about a two-hour drive from Melbourne.
“I’m always like texting (my family) or Skyping them when the times line up,” smiled Delly. “But they actually got out (to Cleveland) on Sunday, so they’re excited to come to the games. But there’s definitely been a lot of support from back home – people watching on League Pass and things like that and following the results. And my mom and dad have said everyone’s always asking them about it. So it’s cool to know that everybody’s supporting me back home.”
It’ll be the first time in the snow for both his parents – (“It’s a bit of shock to them,” laughed the younger Dellavedova) – and they’ll be here throughout the holidays.
His mom might not like her son’s new nicknames. But they’re appropriate. And the style of play that earned them is what has the international rookie entrenched into the Cavaliers’ rotation, through the holidays and beyond.
Billyhoyle
Im Not Juan Garcia
The Cavaliers very own Christmas miracle: Matthew Dellavedova
By David Zavac @DavidZavac on Dec 26 2013, 10:03a 20
Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
The Cavaliers haven't played like a good basketball team. But they might have found something in Australian guard Matthew Dellavedova
Tweet Share on Twitter (79) Share Share on Facebook (810) Share Share with Cavaliers friends 20 Comments
Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant loves to search for hidden gems of players not valued by other teams. Seriously, I refuse to believe that there is another executive that has given late second round picks and undrafted free agents and developmental league stars and perennial 10 day contract players the amount of opportunity that Grant has over the last 3+ seasons. It isn't just that Manny Harris, Alonzo Gee, Samardo Samuels, Semih Erden, Lester Hudson, Donald Sloan, Kevin Jones, and a bunch of others that I can't think of off the top of my head but refuse to research have made the Cleveland Cavaliers roster; lots of NBA teams have fringe NBA guys filling their 13-15th roster spots. No, what makes Chris Grant and the Cavaliers unique is that they have not only employed these players, but given them actual, meaningful roles.
It hasn't been pretty, of course. Alonzo Gee, in a true feel-good story, earned himself a multi-year, multi-million dollar contract. I don't think you could say that he has played up to the contract, but he played the 2nd most minutes of any Cavalier last season and can be valuable guarding point guards and shooting guards sometimes. About two or three times a year he has a really neat dunk. He helps Kyrie Irving warm up before every game. He tries really hard and got along well with Byron Scott, and now Mike Brown.
Alonzo Gee is the success story. Donald Sloan has an NBA contract, and if we want to be generous and include Washington Wizards cast-off Shaun Livingston, Grant has found a couple guys who are real NBA players. But neither are with the Cleveland Cavaliers now, and I don't lose much sleep over either one (I was never real big on Livingston, though he really did play alright for us. The two man game between Livingston and Luke Walton was really fun and oh my gosh this is depressing me). The rest of the mining for a diamond in the rough has gone pretty poorly, both on the court for the Cavs, and for the players once their time in Cleveland came to an end.
But this story is about a Christmas miracle, of sorts. One of the things I was most excited about this year was the fact that the Cavaliers would be less reliant on fringe NBA players after adding top overall pick Anthony Bennett and free agents Jarrett Jack, Earl Clark and Andrew Bynum. When the Cavaliers punted with the 31st pick in the draft, took Carrick Felix, and started throwing some guaranteed money at undrafted point guard Matthew Dellavedova, it didn't register much with me. Dellavedova struggled in Summer League and looked overwhelmed in the preseason, and a lot of Cavs fans wondered why the heck he even got a training camp invite. I couldn't find the energy to care.
The early negativity surrounding 'Delly' appears to have been as misguided as my notion that he somehow wouldn't have a big role with the Cavaliers this season. The Australian point guard who played his college ball at St. Mary's College has been a revelation, one of the few bright spots on a team that has disappointed. Dellavedova has appeared in 20 of 27 games for the Cavaliers, and they are unquestionably a better team with him on the court than with him off of it thus far.
On a team full of guys who love to dribble and shoot, Delly is one of the few guys that has consistently looked to keep the ball moving. The Cavaliers are scoring 123 points per 100 possessions in the 304 minutes he has played. That is an insanely good number. Right now, the Portland Trailblazers have the highest offensive rating in basketball at 114. Overall, the Cavaliers rating is 100.4, ranking 27th. It's a small sample size, but the offense is scoring when Dellavedova sees time.
Delly has a tiny usage rate, which measures the percentage of a team's possessions that a player uses while he is on the floor. He doesn't shoot often. Still, when he does, he has been incredibly effective, shooting 45+ percent from three point range on 30 attempts with a true shooting percentage over 60.
The area that Dellavedova has really won over the fans is with his tenacious play and resolve defensively. I don't think anyone has said it better than Anderson Varejao: "He's like our pit bull. He gets into the game and he's like grrrrrrrrr."
Kyrie Irving and C.J. Miles agree:
It seems like at least once a game, Dellavedova frustrates an opposing point guard into a turnover that leads to an easy basket. Some nights, it seems like his energy is infectious and the other Cavaliers buy in as well. Other nights, the team gets killed anyway. Still, it is amazing to see an undrafted rookie show leadership for an NBA team. I scoffed at it before the season, but here we are.
I don't particularly love that the Cavaliers are still giving serious minutes to guys who may or may not be real NBA players. If the Cavaliers small forward situation was a little more settled, or Sergey Karasev was a little more ready, perhaps Delly wouldn't get this opportunity. But he is making the most of it, and is far from the reason the Cavs continue to struggle. Maybe Chris Grant finally found his diamond.
By David Zavac @DavidZavac on Dec 26 2013, 10:03a 20
Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
The Cavaliers haven't played like a good basketball team. But they might have found something in Australian guard Matthew Dellavedova
Tweet Share on Twitter (79) Share Share on Facebook (810) Share Share with Cavaliers friends 20 Comments
Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant loves to search for hidden gems of players not valued by other teams. Seriously, I refuse to believe that there is another executive that has given late second round picks and undrafted free agents and developmental league stars and perennial 10 day contract players the amount of opportunity that Grant has over the last 3+ seasons. It isn't just that Manny Harris, Alonzo Gee, Samardo Samuels, Semih Erden, Lester Hudson, Donald Sloan, Kevin Jones, and a bunch of others that I can't think of off the top of my head but refuse to research have made the Cleveland Cavaliers roster; lots of NBA teams have fringe NBA guys filling their 13-15th roster spots. No, what makes Chris Grant and the Cavaliers unique is that they have not only employed these players, but given them actual, meaningful roles.
It hasn't been pretty, of course. Alonzo Gee, in a true feel-good story, earned himself a multi-year, multi-million dollar contract. I don't think you could say that he has played up to the contract, but he played the 2nd most minutes of any Cavalier last season and can be valuable guarding point guards and shooting guards sometimes. About two or three times a year he has a really neat dunk. He helps Kyrie Irving warm up before every game. He tries really hard and got along well with Byron Scott, and now Mike Brown.
Alonzo Gee is the success story. Donald Sloan has an NBA contract, and if we want to be generous and include Washington Wizards cast-off Shaun Livingston, Grant has found a couple guys who are real NBA players. But neither are with the Cleveland Cavaliers now, and I don't lose much sleep over either one (I was never real big on Livingston, though he really did play alright for us. The two man game between Livingston and Luke Walton was really fun and oh my gosh this is depressing me). The rest of the mining for a diamond in the rough has gone pretty poorly, both on the court for the Cavs, and for the players once their time in Cleveland came to an end.
But this story is about a Christmas miracle, of sorts. One of the things I was most excited about this year was the fact that the Cavaliers would be less reliant on fringe NBA players after adding top overall pick Anthony Bennett and free agents Jarrett Jack, Earl Clark and Andrew Bynum. When the Cavaliers punted with the 31st pick in the draft, took Carrick Felix, and started throwing some guaranteed money at undrafted point guard Matthew Dellavedova, it didn't register much with me. Dellavedova struggled in Summer League and looked overwhelmed in the preseason, and a lot of Cavs fans wondered why the heck he even got a training camp invite. I couldn't find the energy to care.
The early negativity surrounding 'Delly' appears to have been as misguided as my notion that he somehow wouldn't have a big role with the Cavaliers this season. The Australian point guard who played his college ball at St. Mary's College has been a revelation, one of the few bright spots on a team that has disappointed. Dellavedova has appeared in 20 of 27 games for the Cavaliers, and they are unquestionably a better team with him on the court than with him off of it thus far.
On a team full of guys who love to dribble and shoot, Delly is one of the few guys that has consistently looked to keep the ball moving. The Cavaliers are scoring 123 points per 100 possessions in the 304 minutes he has played. That is an insanely good number. Right now, the Portland Trailblazers have the highest offensive rating in basketball at 114. Overall, the Cavaliers rating is 100.4, ranking 27th. It's a small sample size, but the offense is scoring when Dellavedova sees time.
Delly has a tiny usage rate, which measures the percentage of a team's possessions that a player uses while he is on the floor. He doesn't shoot often. Still, when he does, he has been incredibly effective, shooting 45+ percent from three point range on 30 attempts with a true shooting percentage over 60.
The area that Dellavedova has really won over the fans is with his tenacious play and resolve defensively. I don't think anyone has said it better than Anderson Varejao: "He's like our pit bull. He gets into the game and he's like grrrrrrrrr."
Kyrie Irving and C.J. Miles agree:
It seems like at least once a game, Dellavedova frustrates an opposing point guard into a turnover that leads to an easy basket. Some nights, it seems like his energy is infectious and the other Cavaliers buy in as well. Other nights, the team gets killed anyway. Still, it is amazing to see an undrafted rookie show leadership for an NBA team. I scoffed at it before the season, but here we are.
I don't particularly love that the Cavaliers are still giving serious minutes to guys who may or may not be real NBA players. If the Cavaliers small forward situation was a little more settled, or Sergey Karasev was a little more ready, perhaps Delly wouldn't get this opportunity. But he is making the most of it, and is far from the reason the Cavs continue to struggle. Maybe Chris Grant finally found his diamond.
For all you Delly/Cavs fans.... Ill prob pick one up later when I have some spare funds
http://www.cavaliersteamshop.com/search.aspx?query=dellavedova
http://www.cavaliersteamshop.com/search.aspx?query=dellavedova
Billyhoyle
Im Not Juan Garcia
I wouldn't!
NBA
Dellavedova gives up jersey for Luol Deng
Dellavedova gives up jersey for Luol Deng
By Sportal Updated 08/01/2014, 23:20
Cleveland recruit Luol Deng has convinced Australian guard Matthew Dellavedova to give up his number nine jersey.
Dellavedova has worn the number through the initial part of the NBA season, but Deng - who recently joined the Cavs from the Bulls via a trade - talked the Australian in to swapping to a new number.
Deng had to wear number eight during his first practice session with his new team, but afterward convinced Dellavedova to give him the number nine, which he has worn his whole career.
"We sat in the locker room for a little while looking at each other. It was almost like we were about to break up," Deng said with a laugh.
"It was really hard, but he's such a nice guy. He gave up the number. I'm definitely going to have to pay him back for that."
Deng explained number nine has special meaning for him.
"I'm one of nine kids," he said.
"I always wore nine for my mother because she gave birth nine times. It was always my payback to her."
After learning he had been traded from the Chicago Bulls to Cleveland, Deng said the most difficult aspect of knowing he would no longer be playing for the Bulls after nine seasons wasn't packing his bags or saying goodbye to team-mates.
The hardest part was explaining to his mom, Martha, he had to move.
"She couldn't understand why," he said.
"She feels like I'm a nice guy, I get along with everybody, so I had to explain to her. She was asking me, `Are you not playing well? What's going on?' That was the hardest part."
It's gotten a little easier.
Cleveland acquired the two-time All-Star small forward Tuesday from the Bulls in exchange for centre Andrew Bynum's salary cap-friendly contract and future draft picks.
Deng said he didn't see the trade coming.
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The 28-year-old knew a deal was always possible and an end to his run with the Bulls was inevitable, but it caught him off guard.
"I've been very lucky," he said.
"Not a lot of guys can say they've been with one organization for too long. I was definitely surprised. You hear stuff, you hear rumours, but some of it's true and some of it's not. When it happened, I couldn't believe it. It took a while to hit me. But it's not like I'm stopping from playing basketball. I've been traded from one great organization to another one."
The Cavs are counting on Deng to make a difference on and off the floor. A dependable scorer, solid defender and leader, Deng brings a winning attitude to a young Cleveland team undergoing growing pains.
"He's a veteran who's still in his prime," said coach Mike Brown. "He adds to the culture of what we're trying to do here. He's definitely a two-way player that can add an amount of professionalism, a maturity, and winning ingredients to any ball club."
Brown said Deng, who averaged 19 points and 6.9 rebounds, will likely start Friday night when the Cavs open a five-game road trip in Utah. The trip will help Deng's transition.
"It's great for him to get to know us, soon and better, and for us to get to know him," Brown said. "So you couldn't ask for it to happen at a better time."
During his first interview with Cleveland media members, Deng flashed his wide smile and charmed reporters while recounting the whirlwind 36 hours since the trade was completed.
Deng recently turned down a contract extension from the Bulls, whose season shifted from contention to rebuilding after star point guard Derrick Rose was injured. Several of his former teammates expressed disappointment in seeing him leave, and Deng said it was tough knowing he won't play with them again.
"It's basketball at the end of the day, and it's my job," he said. "But the hardest thing is those are friends. It's really hard when you wake up the next day and know that your friend is gone and he's going to be competing against you. I think they understand the business part of it. It's a contract thing, and my time has come up. That's the direction the organization chose to go."
Deng is in the final year of his contract worth $14 million this season and is eligible for free agency this summer. He's willing to discuss a long-term contract with the Cavs, who are just 12-23 and currently out of playoff position.
"I'm definitely open to talking about it," he said. "I have no problem with that."
Deng said he felt like a "college kid" and was amazed as he toured Cleveland's lavish training complex for the first time.
"You've got a food place and a chef there the whole time," he said. "You pick whatever you want, then you've got a TV and a hot tub, cold tub. I was caught up with that."
