The resolutions will be televised

unless the NBA app breaks again

Some years, the New Year’s countdown feels momentous. There's a crackling energy to the air as the crowd on the dance floor or in the streets (or on the TV you forgot to turn off before you fell asleep on the couch at 10:15) shouts, "five, four, three..." The volume rises as the count descends into a chance to reinvent, redefine, revitalize, return.

Other years, the crossover into a new year doesn't feel like much more than a regretfully missed hour of sleep or a jolting stop in the music as the DJ flips to the clock. You're either in the "time is merely a construct," camp, or you've already seized–or kicked further down the road–an opportunity for a fresh start.

Time is much more than a construct in the NBA, and this was one of those less exciting New Years for the Cavs. That's because Cleveland's chance for reinvention came several weeks ago, when the team lost stars Darius Garland and Evan Mobley to significant injuries. The Cavs, to their credit, have mostly used that gut punch to redefine themselves as the pass-happy, no-quit squad many fans expected to root for at the start of the season.

Yet while the team's energy and chemistry is trending in the right direction, and back-to-back games this week against the lowly Wizards should provide another jolt, the Wine & Gold aren't without a frustrating abundance of flaws. Nothing drains the kinetic energy of free-flowing basketball like a lazy dish right to the opponent, and a perserverent spirit is most easily revealed when trailing by 19-points, as the Cavs did to the Raptors on Monday night. They lost 124-121, after dropping to Milwaukee 119-111 on Friday. The Cavs are now 18-15.

Fortunately, momentous or not, New Years is good for more than a post-Lebron-esque hangover. The holiday gives us a useful framework through which to examine the Cavaliers' recent play, and how it could be improved. 

That's right, we're talking about New Year's resolutions.

Here are 5 for the Wine and Gold.

For Jarrett Allen: Keep attacking

Jarrett Allen has thrived in recent weeks as a focal point of the Cavalier offense. He's averaging over 19 points a night on almost 68% shooting (third in the league), while pulling down 12.3 rebounds and delivering 4 assists. Those are fringe All-Star numbers, and they are the result of a few things. First, he's touching the ball more. As Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com noted, Allen is averaging 65.6 touches a game since frontcourt running mate Evan Mobley went down, compared to just over 37 before Mobley's injury. But Allen isn't just getting the ball in his hands more often, he's being more aggressive and decisive when he does. How many plays like this had we seen before these last few weeks?

Not many. 

Allen's resolution is to continue to call his own number, even and perhaps especially once Mobley is back. Because JA being an offensive threat only makes things easier for everyone else.

For Sam Merrill: You're on the scout now, adjust.

Sam Merrill has officially cracked the rotation. The 6'4 shooting guard has averaged almost 18 minutes a night in the past three weeks, and over the last eight games he's made a ridiculous 26 of his 54 three point attempts. If JB Bickerstaff is too slowly catching on to what he has in Merrill--he scored 16 points in only 17 minutes on Monday--other coaches are not. Merrill's name is clearly written in bold on scouting reports. Look at the way the Raptors close out on him here.

Where a few weeks ago, Merrill, an unknown, might have had to just let it fly, defenses now know he's looking to shoot every time he touches the ball. So the Latter Day Sniper can either start taking much tougher shots, or he can adjust, like he does here with a pump fake…

or here by attacking the closeout…

Defenses are going to try to make it hard for Merrill to get his shots off (look at how much Max Strus has to run to get any space). Whether or not the Utah product can consistently adjust to new defensive pressure will determine if he can etch himself into a permanent place in the rotation moving forward.

For Georges Niang: Stay off the floor.

I don't mean he shouldn't play. Just less of this in the new year, please, Georges.

For JB Bickerstaff: Have the flexibility to ride what's working.

Having tried to manage the rotations of a middle school basketball team to ensure everyone gets even playing time, I can tell you that substitutions are hard. Time moves fast, moments get away from you, and it's hard to tune out the gaggle of kids who all think they've "only played for like two minutes."

I can't even imagine doing it at the NBA level, when the results of games can be matchup dependent, your bench is talented but inconsistent, and you almost always (especially in Bickerstaff's case) have valid reasons to be yelling at the refs. In the chaos of whistles and buzzers and "oh my gosh we're already halfway through the second quarter," it's safest to maintain a consistent rotation pattern. Too frequently this season, the safety of that pattern has kept guys sitting on their hot hands (Merrill and Craig Porter Jr. especially), trying to keep them warm while Max Strus or Dean Wade suffers through an off night on the court.

JB's resolution is to take a page from Elastigirl's book, and be a little more flexible.

For the team: 48 minutes of focus

While the Cavs have been straight up outclassed a few times this year (Boston comes to mind), they’ve lost most of the games they have because they haven't made shots (like against Orlando) or because they've lost focus. On a micro scale, that lack of focus manifests in turnovers one could only call careless. Cleveland is 19th in turnovers, but too few of their 13.8 nightly errors are forced by their opponents.

On a macro level, Cleveland's lack of consistent attention means giving up huge quarters, often as a result of the compounding interest of lackadaisical miscues. Cleveland spent Monday night fighting back against the Raptors, having allowed Toronto to pour in 41 points in the first quarter. On Friday, the Wine & Gold were asserting their will against an elite Milwaukee squad, before getting outscored 40-21 in the third quarter.

Cleveland's resolution is to value the basketball just a bit more, and dig in just a little deeper to prevent big scoring binges. If they can, they might find the holes they're in a little shallower, and they might ultimately win more games, too.

But paying attention is perhaps hardest to do against a team you don't think is very good, and the 6-26 Wizards certainly are not very good. That means the next two games against Washington will be a good test of Cleveland's ability to play with consistent effort, attention, and aggression.

Here's hoping they pass (just to each other, though).

Cheers, and go Cavs.

Any New Year’s resolutions I should adopt as we approach the trade deadline and the meat of the season? I'd love to hear your feedback! Just reply to this email or let me know in the comments.