King’s Court: pre-Postseason Edition

This one is for Ori – we’re ditching the card rankings and just using fancy numbers.

What I’m doing here is listing out the players that are most important to the Cavs in terms of giving us a chance to win it all. For instance, let’s say I figure we have a 50% chance of winning a championship right now. But if you take away Lebron, we’re hopeless, so Lebron has added that 50% chance.

In reality, I’d put our chances of getting out of the first round at 50%. Low, yes, but look how we’re playing. Washington isn’t playing great, but it’s a close match any way you look at it. I think Lebron will put us over the top, breaking his back (hopefully not literally) for 48 minutes every game. Ok, I’ll ratchet up the odds to 60%.

Then we advance to face the Celtics. (Or Atlanta or even Indy, if I want to be thorough.) If we do make it out of the first round, we must be playing reasonably well. We won’t stop the Wizards without some defense and Lebron isn’t about to average the 95 points it’ll take to win. In other words, I’ll definitely like our chances more at that point than I would if we were looking at that series now. No doubt it would be an upset, but with Lebron, it can’t be a huge one. I’d put our chances of winning at about 35%.

Moving on to face the Pistons or Magic, we’ll have some momentum. If we’re good enough to pass the Celtics and matched up against the Pistons, I feel like we’ll have the psychological edge, though it’s possible the Pistons would make quick work of Orlando, while there’s is no way a series against Boston is anything less than a knock down drag out war. If the Magic do beat the Pistons, it’ll have been the same sort of battle. Plus, then I like our odds of beating the Magic. Like we live and die with Lebron, they need their jumpers. While I count on Lebron to never fail, jumpshots inevitably go cold. We’ve shown we can handle the Magic in spurts and we’ve seen them get hot against us. Either series would be pretty evenly matched, so I’ll put our chances at 50% to make the finals at that point.

And then the West would be a total crapshoot. I like our chances with the Lakers or Jazz, but I’m scared of the Suns, Hornets or Spurs. Let’s just put our odds at 40% and call it a day.

Of course, all those numbers are completely arbitrary. If you want some more scientific odds, go call John Hollinger. They just help me make my point about the list below. If we win any of those series, our odds will have jumped to 100% by the end. So if I go and say Dwayne Jones is THE key to beating the Wizards, he earns a big chunk of that 40% increase. But then if Lance Allred has the tools to dominate Garnett and the Celtics, he’s worth more of that 65% jump. Since the Cavs can go 11 deep, I gave Lebron Spinal Tap-esque 11s across the board and everyone else for each series, 1-10.

And with that long-winded explanation, away we go:

1. Lebron James: Is “duh” still part of the lexicon? Is anybody else more important to the Cavs chances? I suppose I could give a separate entry to Lebron’s back, but let’s assume it’s still properly attached.
2. Zydrunas Ilgaukas: We’ve seen time and again that when the big fella is on – volleyball around the rim and stroking from 18 – the Cavs are tough to beat. Making teams defend both sides of the pick and pop, when one side can shoot over anybody and the other side is Lebron, takes its toll. Plus, of our 3 likely matchups, only Rasheed has the size to body Z in the post. Everybody else needs to adjust by denying the ball or showing a double. And any attention away from Lebron gives the King the edge.
3. Delonte West: First of all, let’s make it clear that the Cavs are only going to win this little tournament with a dose of staunch defense. I’m not so worried about the Wizards – we match up pretty well. But there is no way we can beat the Celtics if Rajon Rondo runs roughshod over us and we only beat the Pistons last year because Billups couldn’t get a clean shot. That said, we also need to get some easy baskets, or these will be some awfully grueling series. We’ve seen a few times lately where the Delonte/Lebron tandem (with a sprinking of Devin Brown) can run amok in the open court. If we count on 90 half court possessions each game, Lebron and our aged front court will get worn down.
4. Joe Smith: But let’s also face it: The Cavs will end up counting on their half-court offense, and not every game is Game 5. Now, Joe Smith isn’t a guy that’s tough to match up against. He’s not that quick or strong or tall, but he is crafty. He has a number of moves in the post and, unlike the plodding Lithuanian, he knows to go to them quickly. He makes defensive rebounds work by slipping through box outs. He hits his open jumpers. And he has some creaky old knees. Everybody has been calling for more Joe Smith because he’s never let us down. With 4 months of rest around the corner, we’ll finally get what we want. Plus, he’s a smart defender. He’ll stay off Jamison and make him get hot on jumpers. He’ll poke and prod Rasheed out to the 3 point line and he won’t let KG dominate. He won’t start, but I’d bet he finishes every game we win.
5. Daniel Gibson: Boobie fit closer to the top tier than to those below him. I guess that means in crunch time, we might see that lineup of Delonte, Boobie, Lebron, Smith and Z. Or maybe I’m a little too offense-minded. Either way, Boobie’s play will be big on both ends because of how he matches up. Starting with the Wizards, he will be called on as the 6th man opposite Arenas. I don’t expect him to put up as many points, but if he is hitting, he can offset Gilbert’s output with efficiency. I’m not sure if Mike Brown would rather put a taller defender like Devin Brown on Arenas, just to keep a hand in his face, because after missing most of the year with knee trouble, I doubt Gilbert will be putting it on the floor and blowing past anybody. Against Boston, Boobie will be called on to match up with Senor Testicles, Sam Cassell. And against Detroit, let’s just hope he can step us like last year.
6. Ben Wallace: He’s banged up and erratic, but we’ll need spurts of the old Ben to have a chance. Starting the first and third, it’ll be largely on him to ensure that the game doesn’t slip away defensively. He has an incredibly tough matchup with Jamison and Garnett is a hanfdul for anybody. Even if he only plays 20 minutes each game, they need to be with the intensity of a guy with his fro on fire.
7. Wally Szczerbiak: Wallace just edged out Wally in my rankings because of those matchups in the first two rounds, but Wally will be key against the Pistons. With Sasha more or less riding the pine, it’ll fall to Wally to fight through screens to get a hand in the face of Ray Allen and Rip Hamilton once it becomes clear Devin Brown hasn’t the strength, speed or length. Wally has played with lots of hustle since coming over, and that is exactly what it takes to fight through bigger bodies in hopes of keeping a shooter from the open looks that lead to a hot hand. On the offensive end, if Boobie can’t find his shot, we’ll be counting on Wally to stretch the floor for Lebron.
8. Anderson Varejao: If he could make the passes he did against the Bulls consistently, he’d almost top this list as the Brazilian Garnett. Instead his contributions, like Wallace’s will be mostly defensive. In fact, I have him as more crucial than Wallace once we get past the Wizards, as I think he’ll get more important minutes with the task of stopping Garnett and Rasheed. Plus, if Wallace can’t stay in front of Jamison, Varejao actually becomes the defensive key in each series. And then anything he brings offensively is a bonus.
9. Devin Brown: Starting, and averaging close to 30 minutes of late, puts a lot of responsibility on DB’s shoulders. Unfortunately, I don’t really see him living up to it, so I’m not counting on him providing much shut down defense against Arenas, Butler, Allen, Pierce, Chauncey or Rip. But, if he can be the catalyst preventing our offense lulls, he’ll prove his worth and keep his minutes at least in the 20s. If Lebron dominates the ball, relegating Devin to the corner, he’ll quickly give way to a better shooter.
10. Sasha Pavlovic: Will Sasha play? Nobody but Mike Brown knows, probably not even Sasha. Clearly he belongs down here based on the recent string of DNP-CDs, but he still has tremendous potential, as he is the most physically able to defend the shooting guards and small forwards that would otherwise be tasked to Lebron. I don’t expect him to play, but I hope he’s ready if we need him.
11. Damon Jones He might only play 14 seconds, but he’ll make it count.

We’ll be back after the Heat game tomorrow. There’s no need to preview a game with a team that bad. We’d better win.

Go Cavs!

Play mean you heartless bastards!

(This might be the longest post ever. If you like paragraphs, read these first frustrated paragraphs. If you like bullets, scroll down for my notes. And if you read all the way through, you’re the man.)

Are there any Cavs fan left after that game? Are the Cavs the worst team headed to the playoffs? Is Joe Smith the only Cav with a basketball IQ higher than Slingblade?

Two yeses and a no. You match em up. Lebron reckons he’ll have him some of the bigguns.

So tonight’s embarrassment in Chicago started spectacularly. By the end of the first quarter, every Cavs fan was on the edge of their seat and inching closer to euphoria. It’s those highest of highs, knowing you are becoming a part of history, that make the lows so low.

At one point I jotted down, “24 in the first. Are you watching Wilt?” Wow, what an ass I am. See, the thing is, Lebron could’ve have kept that up. I mean, he wasn’t going 40-40 for 96 points, but he, and in turn the whole offense, was playing spectacularly well. His unusually good shooting percentage was offset by the rest of the team’s bricklaying. 48 minutes of that probably means Lebron going something like 18-26 for 50 points and watching all of the 4th from his courtside bed, rather than just the first 6 minutes.

Instead, the Cavs seemed content with their 12 minutes of work and phoned it in the rest of the night.

Here’s the thing. The first quarter wasn’t beautiful because Lebron was on, it was beautiful to watch Lebron get the ball anywhere he wanted with a soft defense that could never be quick enough to recover around him. He used screens, he got the ball deep in the post, he ran curls, and with the whole team looking to push, he wasn’t the only one getting to the rim.

Then it stopped. Lebron went to the bench after one miss and nobody stepped in to fill the void. Without Delonte or Lebron, nobody looked up court. Without Z or Joe Smith, there were no options in the half court. Without a hot hand, there were no points. We’ve seen that before. We know to expect it. It’s why Lebron will play 48 minutes most nights in the playoffs.

But tonight, even once he came back, nothing was the same. Maybe his back tightened up – 6 rebounds and very few layups don’t seem too explosive. Maybe Mike Brown saw a couple turnovers in transition and tried to reign the team back in. But whatever combination caused it, the offense completely ceased to do the things that lead to easy baskets.

The game slipper further and further away. As the momentum shifted, the Cavs’ defense softened, making it ever tougher to regain. By the time we finally realized that we’re allowed to exploit advantages – namely Joe Smith checked by Tyrus Thomas – it was too late. Lebron rode back in with 6:30 left for his usual hero role and killed the bit of offense we had mustered.

On the other end, the Bulls shots were a tidal wave pushing them closer and closer to the hoop. Initially, it was just some jumpers from Gordon. Then it turned into a few mid-rangers from Thomas and putbacks by Noah. Soon it was dunks all around. Until Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah absolutely embarrassed our bigs. Noah makes Anderson Varejao look like a D-leaguer. Both Thomas and Noah were quick and energetic enough to beat the box outs of the slow and ground bound Wallace and Z. Not a single Bull hit the ground hard and not a single Cav looked to infuse some emotion as the game slipped away.

I’ve been using the word “embarrassed” a lot lately. Tonight that’s probably not even strong enough. I hope the Cavs are ashamed. Without even being too physical, the Bulls questioned our collective manhood and we were too frail and uninspired to even answer.

But hey, at least Larry Hughes sucked.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I typed up a storm of notes during the game. Here are a few, in chronological order:

• Early on, it looks like the refs are “letting them play”. Not to say it’s a wrestling match, but too often the refs blow the whistle because a play looks like the type that would be a foul. Not tonight. If the refs can’t see or hear it, they’re not calling it. (When Wallace reject Noah, body to body, forearm to forearm.)
• Cavs looking to run – especially Lebron
• And now Lebron on the block
• Another possession another move – Lebron curls for the leaner. He’s putting himself in a position for baskets. Rare.
• Hubie: “Devin Brown gives you another guy on the break who can finish.” I love that he’s on the break, but it’s mostly wrong to think he can finish.
• Up 17-8, Chicago hasn’t hit a jumper yet. Keep them shooting!
• CLEARLY the focus in practice was on pushing. 2 quick outlets on rebounds by Wallace and Z within the first 7 minutes. We haven’t seen 2 like that in the course of a game.
• Even when Delonte gets the ball in space in the backcourt, he gets it a bit upcourt to Lebron. And it leads to Sefalosha on Lebron instead of Deng and another easy shot for Lebron.
• After his first 3 baskets I was going to say something along the lines of “Tyrus Thomas has no offensive game – we keep giving him dunks instead of letting him try and fail to operate” but then he schooled Andy for a dunk from the top of the key. I have to give Ty credit. He’s making you pay attention to him defensively. That’s more than you can say about Wallace, or Andy most times. (Yikes! Lots of typos when I typed that one. Hooray for editing.)
• WHY DOES BOOBIE FLOP ON EVERY 3 attempt? Jesus!
• Lebron is getting the rim at will because he knows the Bulls defense. He knows when to stop and start and know sees when lanes are opening up. Film study only does so much – playing the Bulls every couple days the past few weeks has been like jacking Lebron into the Matrix and teaching him all their sets. This is why he dominates in the playoffs.
• After 19 in the first 11 minutes, I want Lebron to play all 48 and go for 80, just to see if he can. It’s not that he’s hot. He’s hit a few contested jumpers, but mostly he’s just getting what he wants.
• 24 in the first. Are you watching Wilt?
• Gibson should be able to stay in front of Gordon, but he gets off balance way too close to Gordon, leading to a couple quick fouls. Gordon seems especially focused on beating Gibson, starting with that slap on the butt. (More right than I knew. Worse, this is when Gordon found his rhythm.)
• Lebron was fouled on the floor going towards the hoop, and rather than throw one up (and potentially miss) he swallowed it. No superstition there. But then he misses a 3 on the next possession. It’s fitting that his first miss is a 3. And I don’t think MB was going to pull him until he missed. If things went according to plan, I think he would’ve pulled Lebron much earlier to give him a shorter rest.
• And the Bulls take the lead 5 minutes into the 2nd. The Cavs haven’t hit anything from the field since Lebron left.
• As I typed that, Andy made an incredibly pass to Joe Smith for the and-1 as he dove through the paint. Can he get some props from the booth? That was an amazing pass.
• There ya go – Hubie delivers moments later. He was just being polite, waiting for Dave Pasch to finish rambling.
• Andy delivered a great pass over the top to get Smith another layup. Wow.
• Ok, MB was right to pull Lebron. He’s going to need to play 48 minutes every night after next week, so let him rest now.
• Lebron comes back in and the Bulls do a lot more to deny him in the post by flasing a double when the ball rotates to his side. Great job by Lebron to start the game, now he needs to adjust to beat the Bulls adjustments. (Did I jinx it saying that??)
• Next time down he can only get it atop the key, run into the teeth of the defense in a straight line (meaning he can’t use his RB-style cut through the hole) and kick it out for the brick. (Remind me to explain how Lebron is effective going to hoop when he runs like a running back picking a hole sometime.)
• Devin Brown has no lateral movement. If he’s defending the post, we need to cheat to his side to make the space around him smaller.
• Lebron is in the post – which is good – but that’s all. With nobody else hitting, he needs to focus on moving. It’s awfully tough to double a moving target. The drive and kick and post moves are just leading to open shots for people that can’t hit open shots. (If it’s this obvious to me…)
• Ah yes, we’re pushing the ball. I’d forgotten. It took until the 45 second mark in the 2nd for anything close to a break since the 1st quarter. I guess the 2nd unit doesn’t run.
• To be down 6 after a 3-18 second quarter on the road, I don’t feel so bad. The shots need to start falling, but the game is very winnable.
• Windy: “After LeBron missed a jumper in the second quarter to go 10-of-12 in the game, a guy in the first row got on him about taking a bad shot. LeBron said: “Have you been watching what is going on?”” (I always recommend Windhorst’s recaps, but especially tonight. He thought the whole game was laughable and it comes roaring through in his writing.
• Want to guess the player with the most assignments on offense? Ben Wallace. Now there’s no decision making – heavens no – but he runs station to station setting picks as though there is a pre-determined order. Kinda makes you think we’re running a play. (In hindsight, I must have been wrong.)
• Tyrus Thomas shoots the Bulls T’s? With the starters on the floor? Wow, I definitely would not have guess that. Then again, with Z as one of our best, I guess I’m not in a position to be surprised.
• I like the concern from the announcers about his bad back when he lands on his back. Have these guys ever had a bad back? You can beat the shit out of that thing; it won’t matter. Taking a big, slow step would damage the bad back more than a big spill. That spill Lebron took just hurt his tailbone. He’ll shake it off.
• It looks like we’re trying to rush it up court early in the 3rd (so it’s definitely an initiative from the coach), but the Bulls are getting a lot of baskets. It’s tough to run on makes.
• Remember 12-15 years ago when somebody like Latrell Sprewell would make a crazy circus shot and it would be all over Sportscenter? How far we’ve come that somebody like Devin Brown can make a shot like that and it barely warrants mention.
• There was a set at about 7:45 in the 3rd where 4 Bulls were defending on the nearside, with the ball moving between Delonte up top to Devin in the corner. Lebron was alone with Deng on the far wing. All we need in that situation is somebody who can throw their body into traffic and get it over the top to Lebron. The defense would be so horribly out of position, there is no dunk that’s a thunderous dunk. But alas, Sasha is the intermission entertainment. On this play in particular the ball swung through Wallace over to Lebron and the defense had plenty of time to rotate. Lebron missed a three badly and we were back the other way. Just one play, but a microcosm of what to consider when building an offense.
• Our offense has ground to a halt midway through the 3rd. In come Andy and Boobie. Let’s see what type of sets we try to run.
• Play 1: post for Z – Noah can’t handle him.
• Won’t matter if we can’t stop Noah…
• Play 2: Boobie brings it up out of a dead ball with Delonte on the floor, gives it to Lebron to do figure 8s out past the 3 point line and dribble out the clock before a drive and brick
• We have no interior defense to speak of. Aren’t our bigs supposed to be our strength?
• Play 3 is a Lebron dribble fest/turnover. We’re just not running an offense.
• Play 4 is also a dribble fest/turnover.
• Meanwhile, the Bulls are dunking it every time down. I might just turn it off if we close out the quarter like this.
• Play 5: dribble fest step back brick. Is Lebron in take over mode or has he just given up on passing? At what point does he realize this isn’t working either and try something new? What happened to the first quarters curls, screens and posts?
• Joe Smith is the only play deserved of being on the floor, between stopping Noah (why he was brought in) and killing the offensive boards. As if on cue, MB takes out Lebron.
• End of 3rd: Boy, we suck. I no longer think of the game as winnable. I’d bet we make it look closer than it is by the end, but it’s definitely too little too late when they have this many players playing well.
• I really liked Varejao’s passes. I really didn’t like Andy trying his game on the block.
• If Joe Smith wasn’t such a “good guy” I bet he’d hate playing on this team. He’s the only guy you can count on to play productive basketball. Including Lebron.
• This game would’ve made a great live blog. Joe Smith is making my dreams (and predictions) come true.(Ha!)
• Twice in the last minute Dave Pasch has said “That’s a big basket by…” as the Cavs cut it to 11. Will the same by true with 2 minutes left?(It was, but he changes his wording a bit. I decided against bothering to type it out.)
• It really is the death knell of his Cavs career that DJ couldn’t get in when NOBODY could hit a shot. He’s not even an option at this point. Down 3 with 5 seconds left, he doesn’t end up on the floor.
• With Lebron coming back in with 6:30 left, does Smith get to continue to dominate? Will James “make his teammates better” and help exploit an advantage? I doubt it.(I wish I could bet on things like this. I’d be homeless, from losing so much on other things, but this I knew.)
• Lebron is standing around. And Hubie is commenting on our going away from Smith. Maybe I should be a retired coach, too.
• OMG! Lebron got Smith a basket.
• 10-10 to start, 1-6 since. Defense? No, all Lebron’s fault. More Hubie: “We know that if they run the staggered screens or if they run up/diagonal type of screens, you cannot double him coming off at that angle.”(Who is we? Apparently not anybody on the Cavs payroll.)

At least the Wizards lost. With the Heat coming up for us and the Wizards playing again tomorrow and traveling to Orlando next week, we’re still in good shape for home court. Lot of good it’ll do us.

Go Cavs!

One more try at a table…

If it doesn’t work, I’ll just have to take it out on the Bulls.

Cavs		Bulls
89.0 (22nd)	Pace	91.7 (11th)
107.9 (19th)	Offensive Efficiency	104.7 (26th)
108.3 (12th)	Defensive Efficiency	108.3 (13th)

So from the looks of it, the Bulls play fast and loose. Fast, because they squeeze nearly 3 possessions more out of each game and loose because they don’t know what the hell do to with those possessions.

Of course, the bigger story is that this is another post-trade rematch. Larry Hughes was unstoppable and the Cavs, embarrassingly, blew a lead and the game. Pride alone should be enough to put the Cavs over the top, since it’s one in a million that Hughes can repeat, but if you asked me what has 2 thumbs and doesn’t think the Cavs care to take their show on the road before the playoffs start, I’d point to this guy.

Honestly, with the rumored discord between Mike Brown and DJ, Sasha’s careless expression even when he gets minutes, as he’s resigned to lose them again, and the worrisome nagging back injuries across the front line, I feel like I’m in sync with the Cavs locker room in thinking that this next week could hurt more than it helps heading into the playoffs.

Let’s tune in tonight and hope I’m wrong. Go Cavs!

Till the death! The Cavs Best Rivalries

After playing nice with blogger for bit this evening, I won’t write much or keep you here long, but I do insist you leave your opinion of this 3 column look in the comments.

I caught this from washingtontimes.com while perusing Truehoop:

In an attempt to get fans to boo loudly when Boston’s Leon Powe was at the foul line, the scoreboard put up images of LeBron James, Kwame Brown, J.J. Redick in a Duke uniform and a Yankees logo

My first thought, obviously was pride and smirk at Lebron being vilified – more on that later. Then I wondered if the Cavs were the first with this gimmick a few years ago, or if not, who was.

Then I realized I was a bit confused. The Wizards play in Washington, right? That’s the Verizon Center?

I can understand Lebron. We trounce the Wizards when it counts, so he must be their arch-nemesis. And Kwame makes sense, too, though it’s a bit too malicious for my blood to hate a guy just because Michael Jordan thought he would be good.

But JJ Redick? And the Yankees?

First, Redick. Maybe I missed a few geography lessons, but is DC that close to tobacco road? Does any DC area team have a rivalry that approaches Duke-UNC? Georgetown? Is there another notable DC hoops squad? A quick Google search has the Hoyas beating Duke despite 41 from Redick not long ago. No reason for hate. So this just generic, then? The area is so lacking for rivals they can stick to cliche Duke hatred.

The Yankees make a little more sense. Not much more than 10 years ago the Orioles could muster 80 wins in a season, even make the playoffs, but the Yankees (and Indians!) were the ones moving on to the World Series. Some rivalry is inevitably perpetuated by 18 games each year, and the Yankees are the Yankees, but it’s sad that that is the best Washington can offer up.

How about going outside of sports instead? Throw up George W. Bush on half the Jumbotrons and Michael Moore or Hillary Clinton on the other. Or, as long as we’re getting political, put up a portrait of an old King of England and see if anybody catches on. Isn’t Cowboys/Redskins much more heated? Are there any local villains, like the old crack smoking mayor?

But back to Lebron vs. the Wizards…

Three years in a row seeing somebody get sent home definitely makes a rivalry, and we’re headed that way now. If we make it past Round 1, we move on to the Pistons, for another playoff series threepeat.

So for the first team, the Cavs are building a resume of rivalries. In the Mark Price era, there was always Michael Jordan, but that seemed quite one-sided. The Pistons peak came a few years early and despite a few epic playoff series’s with the Celtics, it always seemed like they have bigger fish to fry, like MJ or the Lakers.

How do the Cavs top 5 rivalries rank?

1. Detroit – This one is indisputable in my mind. Each of the past 2 years, the Cavs and Pistons provided the most intense playoff series’s in the East, peppered with historic showings like “Game 5″. Now, for the Cavs to repeat or improve on last year, they will likely need to go through the Pistons again. Similar the 20 years ago, the Pistons’s star has started to fade prematurely, but they’re done such a great job infusing youth, this rivalry, always Ohio and Michigan, should continue atop this list for a long time to come.

2. Washington – Playoff showdowns beget rivalries. So far this matchup has been one-sided, with the Wizards unable to get past the Cavs, but there’s still little doubt the gap is small. Honestly, I’ll confess I’m a bit scared of the Wizards in round 1. Nothing motivates like a chipped shoulder and DeShawn Stevenson seems to have something to prove against Lebron at every turn. Especially as we get closer and closer to the playoffs, this rivalry is solidified in the 2nd spot.

3. Chicago – It’s tough to have a rivalry when one team is awful (see: Orioles/Yankees). But remember, everybody was picking the Bulls to start the year and their rise from mediocrity has paralleled the Cavs. Besides, bad blood lasts a lifetime and I still wince every time I see The Shot. Even this year, with our schedule conveniently backloaded, each Bulls game was must watch, as Larry Hughes came out with something to prove and most every Cavs fan wanted to watch him fail.

4. Lakers – The Lakers don’t fit in here. Hell, we only play them twice each year. But this one is more personal. Until they’re both long retired, and even beyond, the debate will rage as to who is the better player/better scorer/MVP/funniest/smartest/best dressed/rapiest. Not only is each matchup with the Lakers a showdown, where all eyes fall to Lebron and Kobe for the entire 4th quarter as they go head to head, but even in the media, Kobe and Lebron compete with dueling 50 point games. Each time one explodes with an incredible outing, look to the highlights the following day for a riposte. Nothing short of the Finals will cement this rivalry, but with so much ink spilled about it, it can’t be disregarded.

5. Boston – This one is something of a wild card. Each game this season has been rather intense, but it’s still more a rivalry in the making. If these teams do meet finally meet in the playoffs for the first time in more than 15 years, it will be the matchup of best team versus best player. Besides, I hate Boston – and I know I’m not alone.

Honorable mention – Milwaukee, but it’s just not competitive enough.

With the ebb and flow of teams like the Celtics and Dwyane Wade’s Heat over the next few seasons, this list is likely to change. The best rivalries cause wounds that are not quick to heal, but they cut that deep because the emotion wrapped up in them can’t be spared for just any opposition.

Go Cavs!

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Cav

I sure do hope Ori can pull himself away from those nubile, uniformed exchange students. He was at the game tonight, while I was busy entertaining some clients on the company dime, catching tidbits as I could at the bar. And despite some helpful recaps from St. Rummy of Beernuts, it was confusing as hell.

First, where did Sasha come from? Looks like he played before and after halftime. Mike said after the game it was a “gut feel” decision. I didn’t see anything in a brief moment in the first half to explain his second half burn, but I guess he put together a reasonably effective game. I was happy to see Mike Brown decide on a 9 man rotation and go to the mattresses with it, but there is no disputing that Sasha is more talented than just about any of the Lebron’s wing sidekicks, especially Devin Brown, who’s gotten all the starts in place of Sasha and often logs starter minutes. Now I have no idea what to expect on Friday. I think we’ll see more Sasha, though.

Speaking of appearances out of the blue, whither Damon Jones? At this point, I think he has every right to be ticked off, and we all know I love the man like the brother I never had, plus it’s odd that Mike Brown sticks to his guns with one but not the other, but I guess the continuity of a 10 man rotation is still better than 11. Still, Sasha has been awful, Boobie was worthless until tonight, Wally has climbed out of the doghouse, but Damon took his criticism, did as he was told, was always effective and probably won’t see another minute of floor time, meaningful or not, for months.

Speaking of Lil A-Cup, look who’s back and better than ever. I guess after building a house with all those bricks, Boobie finally decided to move in a little closer. And while he did it he managed to the double threat of pass or shoot, unlike his usual flailing-flop-fast-break-the-other-way foray to the hoop. I’d love to pencil him in for 12, 5 and 5 every night – or even just the 12 and 5. If he can do it on demand, we’re that much closer to the returning to the finals. I guess last year was just the bombs. This year, with Mr. Gibson supplying the small arms, maybe we can win a few once we get there.

Now, as good as things turned out, the fact remains we were down 67-53, to the Nets, at home, in a game where the Nets had nothing to gain. 67-53! At home, rested and healthy. 67-53! Absurd. Embarrassing. Unconscionable. Did we storm back out of pride? Necessity? Probability? I don’t think I saw the Nets hit a shot in the last 20 minutes of the game. Is our defense really that easy to flip on and off? Seems like our offense and defense rely heavily on each other, or at least the willingness to sweat put us over the top of the Nets on both fronts. It’s the same story, so there’s no need to rehash beyond a bevy of one word sentences, but we all know that’s not going to fly against the Pistons or Celtics.

So what else?

I didn’t see enough to figure out why, but Devin Harris didn’t kill us. In fact, he was so bad, he lost minutes to Marcus Williams. Did we just clog the lane? If we did clog the lane, who was it? Andy had an uncharacteristic 3 blocks (in 19 minutes). Wallace only played 16.

Lebron went all game without a turnover. Can we go back and check our record when Lebron throws a dumb pass in the first 3 minutes vs when he doesn’t?

Lebron dominated in his standard way; 33, 8 and 7 is just about on his averages. Plus he seemed to be willing and able to drive. I guess he’s all better?

Lasagna Diop pulled in 6 offensive boards. With his T-Rex arms, he’s not going over the back. Who’s not boxing out?

Wally has been in double digits 3 of the last 4 games.

We didn’t shoot great, but 84 points from our top 5 scorers came on 58 shots. Let the scorers score and they can do it well.

I’m really out of steam fabricating thoughts from 11 minutes of watching the game and half an hour of ogling the box score like it’s a foxy strawberry in nothing but a just long enough Mark Price jersey.

What do you think? Good win? Lucky win? Expected win?

Quotes
More pictures

The unwanted win

(Update – 1:15pm: Lebron is cleared to play.)

The Cavs take on Jay-Z’s New Jersey Nets Wednesday. Before we fall in line with a panicked article about how Lebron is such chums with Mr. Beyonce Knowles, let’s at least get to the game.

The Nets still have the slimmest of playoff chances, as running the table while the Hawks and Pacers take a nap would win them the opportunity to serve as sacrificial lamb to the Celtics. I know, you know and they know that not only have they given up the hope, but they’d much rather move up in the draft than embarrass themselves with an extra week of 20 point losses.

The Cavs, meanwhile, have their own reasons for not wanting to win. Nobody outside of a small monastery in the Himalayas is privy to those reasons, but there’s no other way to explain the on again, off again malaise that overtakes this team from quarter to quarter.

Most sign point to Lebron playing, but after missing practice again, the comes some encouraging words suggesting Lebron might get the rest I (and I alone?) want to see him get.

“I know he wants to play,” Brown said. “But we have to be cautious with him now.”

Despite the mid-season pseudo-blockbuster, the Cavs aren’t inclined to be a gambling team. It’s just such a darned tough decision about whether or not to bench Lebron. We couldn’t possibly go against his wishes. Chances are that means Lebron will play 25 unnecessary minutes. I expect to hear that he is a game time decision up until opening tip, but hope that after arriving at the arena, he puts up his fanciest suit for a photo-op with Jay-Z.

In the meantime, let’s see if the stats tell a story:

• The Cavs have been swept by the Nets in their first 3 matchups, with New Jersey cracking 100 each time
• The first loss came sans Lebron and served as Shannon Brown’s career highlight (20-4-4).
• The second loss, a close one, was largely the result of getting worked on the boards (45-35).
• The most recent and closest was slipped away because of shoddy defense (51% allowed) and sloppy offense (17 turnovers). It was also the only matchup after each team’s blockbusters.
• The Nets play at a slightly faster pace, averaging 90.1 possessions per game (15th fastest) compared to the Cavs 89.0 (22nd).
• The Cavs have the 19th best offense, scoring 107.8 points per 100 possessions, beating the 23rd ranked Nets (105.6).
• The Cavs also have the edge defensively, at 13th in the league, allowing 108.5 PP100, compared to 110.7 for the 21st ranked Nets.
• The Nets’ strong suits are shooting and offensive rebounding, at 11th and 10th in the league respectively, while the struggle the most at getting to the line (27th).
• The Cavs dominate on the offensive boards (2nd) and come in just behind the Nets in shooting. Our biggest weakness is a not-terrifying 21st in turnovers.

The numbers add up to the Nets being the far inferior team, but that’s why the play the game. Much like the Bucks, the Nets have had our number this year. We have one last chance at some redemption and payback. The Nets likely wouldn’t mind letting us have it, but do we care enough to take it?

Go Cavs!

Magic live blog

Magic, because it wrote itself. Live blog because I was doing it during the game against Orlando.

Lebron’s back at full strength – he started strong with the bad pass turnover on the 2nd possession

And wow was that an embarassing WIDE OPEN dunk by Wallace. That was worse than the Bulls game. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt by hoping the ball just slipped out of his hand.

We are dominating the offensive boards and there is nothing they can do to stop it. If we just keep moving the ball and play some defense (early on they’ve gotten some WIDE open 3s), then this is a W.

At full strength, we really are deep. There aren’t many better 6-7 tandems than Boobie And Andy. And Joe Smith at 8? You could definitely debate the value of our starters – I doubt Devin Brown or Ben Wallace would start for many contenders, but our bench might be the best in the league.

Sloppy Q1. We routinely cut down our turnovers in the 2nd half, so keeping this one close and dominating the boards should still be enough.

I don’t really like Rick Carlisle as a color guy because everything he says is a tease. “3 point shooting is weapon. We’ll talk more about it.” And on to some fluff comment from the play by play guy. Adds 0 to the game. Plus, for a coach, his insight is amazingly cliched. “Bringing in a guy like Ben Wallace will add some toughness in the playoffs.” Why not just talk about the weather? We’ll all spoiled by JVG.

Yikes! Hedo blew right past the much smaller Devin Brown.

Lebron laying on his back behind the bench is worrisome. If we can hang with the Magic for a stretch of the 2nd quarter without him, I’d be fine not bringing him back out in the 3rd. He’s not as loose as he’d like and trying to explode through that just means the risk of worsening the injury.

This should definitely be a live blog. That fact that I’m typing all this in notepad doesn’t do anybody a lick of good. Then again, I doubt too many folks are stopping by mid-game. Do people like live blogs?

“If the Pistons could have a do over of last year, they would take the ball out of Lebron James’s hands.” I’m starting to hate Rick Carlisle.

Lebron is back in. Let’s keep an eye on how much he moves on both ends.

Wally has seemed steadily assertive. As in, he’ll get his minutes, if the shots are falling, he’ll keep shooting, and he could well average 12 per the rest of the way. What I think nobody realized was that Wally isn’t really a 3 point shooter. From me to Mike Brown, we all looked for him to a be another stand in the corner and wait guy, but he’s really more like Rip Hamilton, using screens and hitting mid-range jumpers. Just the sort of offensive player that commands some attention from the defense. If he develops some chemistry with Lebron where Lebron keeps his dribble working on wing while Wally uses a curl around the back, Lebron should do a great job of anticipating the defense reacting to Wally and exploiting that for a quick drive to the hoop.

As for that last point… Does Mike Brown draw up any plays?

We’re finishing the 2nd quarter strong. Moving the ball and moving without the ball has gotten us a number of easy shots the last 2 minutes, and making the defense pay attention has given Lebron a few one on one opportunities and lanes to the hoop.

(I hope the halftime show is the pig play Ori and I caught once up a time.)

The announcers are commenting on Dwight Howard having only 2 and 2 – after starting the 2nd half with a rebound. This is after averaging 25 and 13 against us the previous 3 games. When was the last time a star had an abysmal game against the Cavs?

We’re starting the 3rd with a lot more sloppy play. I don’t have the stats for it at hand, but I’d guess that if we start and finish the 3rd with a lead, we win an overwhelming amount. However, I’d guess we give away a lot of 3rd quarter leads, and lose far too many of those games. In other words, if we can put together a string of solid possessions to keep this lead, we’re looking good, but if we put in our usual poor 3rd, I’d bet against us.

Z finally gets us on the board, 3:28 into the 3rd. Our offense is running a lot more pick and roll and post sets, compared to a number of off the ball screens (really, a good mix) in the first half.

Dwight Howard doesn’t seem explosively decisive. When he gets it in the post, he turns, hesitates, then springs up. No spins, no elbow hooks, no lateral movement. Is it him or is it us?

I just decided I’m rooting for Memphis to go all the way. Lebron missed a free throw, making him 3-6 on the day. Everybody picked against Memphis because they don’t hit free throws, so they’re a college version of us. Which means we should just put Derrick Rose on the Cavs rather than go through the draft process.

We’re not getting nearly as many offensive rebounds this half. Of course, it’s very noticeable because nothing is falling. It looks like Orlando is crashing harder with 3 or 4 guys, having just 1 leak out, and it’s working. Still, we’re plus 20 tonight. Thank you ESPN for the timely graphic.

Pat Garrity with the season high in scoring. That’s what you expect against the Cavs.

Lebron James is very good friends with everybody. Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, everybody who comes through town. Can we just rename the Cavs “Superfriends” and get them all in uniform? If my friends and I were capable of an absolute dynasty, I think we’d swallow a little individual pride to do it.

Remember how we finished the 2nd quarter strong? Up to 15 turnovers… But the defense has been contesting and we’re still dominating the boards.

On to the 4th with a 3 point lead. I’ll predict this one going down to the wire. We’ve been too sloppy to expect us to clamp down and execute.

About our bench again, right now we have Boobie, Andy, Joe and Wally out there with Lebron. Is that lineup any worse than Delonte, Devin, Ben and Z?

Rick Carlisle just said he wouldn’t want to play Philadelphia in a first round series AND he wouldn’t want to play them in a 2nd round series. Well then! I sure hope the Cavs don’t see them until the conference finals.

I’m definitely not going to say he’s been a liability or that he’s costing us the game, but as he goes to 5-17, Lebron is clearly unable to take over. I’d like to put the onus on the rest of the team to win this one for Lebron. Take him out.

There goes the lead, as we’ve started both the 3rd and 4th ice cold.

First points 4:03 in to the 4th. Z again. Lean on him the rest of the way, damnit.

DirecTV box just froze. This greatly displeases me…

And the game is back on just in time for me to see Delonte miss consecutive free throws. Why do I feel like this is going to get worse before it gets better?

… We’re not getting any good looks, we’re putting them on the line over and over agian, and Lebron isn’t coming to the rescue.

And the deficit is double digits. Hedo is a poor Turkish man’s Lebron, as he does it all in the 4th quarter. Since Lebron is a hobbled old homeless man’s Lebron today, that’s enough for the Magic to kick us to the curb.

Ugh. Lebron ended up 1-7 in the 4th tonight, leaving him 1-12 for 4 points in the past 2 games. As a team, the Cavs are 10-46 in the 4th between the Bulls and Magic games. That’s not the Cavs way.

So now the Magic have clinched the 3rd spot. We’re still 2.5 ahead of Philly and Washington for the 4th spot. We’re mostly healthy, but still need to get over that hump. We’ve shown signs of great movement on offense and suffocating defense for stretches.

We’re off until Wednesday, when we take on a Nets team that is just realizing there is no playoffs. Rest up.

Go Cavs!

An afternoon at the ballgame

Playoff preview? Saturday matinee? Public practice session?

The Cavs take on the Magic. The game is, in a way, important for the Cavs. Not so much the win or loss. For pride’s sake I’d like a win. At the very least, we had better not get run off our home floor.

But no, aside from some intangible psychology impact, the win or less hardly matters. This is just one of few chances the Cavs have had with a full roster. That is, I’m guessing Lebron will play, despite his sore back. Should he? Well, it’s important to see the offense gel, but it’s much more important that Lebron be 100% in 2 weeks.

So one way or another we’ll see what we’ve got. If Lebron doesn’t play, it will give us some insight into what we could expect during those 2 minute stretches in the playoffs where he rides the pine.

Not that we’ll play the Magic anyway.

What I’m very curious to see is whether Mike Brown has the discipline I’m sure he preaches. Clearly he made the decision to set the rotation, but also clearly, Boobie Gibson doesn’t have it (yet). If Lebron doesn’t play, or sits extended minutes, does Damon Jones make an appearance? Can he earn his way back into the rotation? He’s been hitting his shots at nearly the same clip as Boobie, injury free, and runs the offense as well as anybody.

In other news, the Cavs signed Lance Allred for the rest of the year. Good for him.

Go Cavs!

Don’t call it a come back

LeCavs has been slipping lately. It happens when cruises and surgeries get in the way, but enough shenanigans. It’s time to get this ship righted in the time for the playoffs.

I’m back to crank out at least a post each weekday and one for the weekends and Ori is busy carousing with teenaged foreign girls. Everything is as it should be.

I’m starting this post up at halftime, but don’t call it a live blog. This way I can hit that post button and visit Mr. Percocet that much sooner. And if I popped before I posted, I’d write more like a senile drunk again.

The Cavs finished the first half strong. We’ve been powered by Lebron and Z. All is right in the world. The Bulls aren’t very good. The Cavs are moving the ball, forcing the Bulls to play defense and then coming down and contesting every Bulls jumper. If anything, all the Bulls easy shots have been a result of the Cavs being too aggressive. The Bulls get credit for making the extra pass – at least early on. Plus, Larry Hughes is 3-7, so his likely 1-9 second half sets us up nicely.

I love the way that Wally goes into the post when Hinrich ends up on him and I love even more that that is our 4th option. I love how not just Delonte, Lebron and Devin Brown are out running. How about Big Ben throwing the outlet to Delonte then beating everybody down the court for the dunk?

Honestly, it was a damned near perfect half. If there was one thing I’d improve it would be offensive rebounding. But then, if there’s one thing the Cavs don’t need to worry about, it’s offensive rebounding.

While we all get ready for the 2nd half, I’ll leave you with a wonderful line from Brian Windhorst:

–The Bulls are a jump shot team. The Cavs need to keep them off the offensive glass and rotate to contest shots. If they do, they will have an excellent chance to win. Chicago can get hot from the outside but it usually doesn’t last. Which is why Larry Hughes fits in so well.

Back after the game.

~~~~~~

Well I’m a jinx. Hughes has hit his first 3 shots this half… 4… 5 (on a 3). Jeez… 6. This quarter is Hughes vs Lebron like Dominique vs MJ. You know, because at the end of the day, Dominique wasn’t all that good.

Lebron came to score in the 3rd quarter. He hasn’t dominated at all, but he’s just pouring it in. Being on the floor with Delonte and Devin has made his life easier as long as he moves off the ball.

Finally misses one with a minute and a half left in the quarter. The way they’ve shot all quarter, I guess we’re lucky to still be up 8

Z has been crashing the boards hard this quarter, but still the lead is tenuous. As long as we keep it around 6 until Lebron comes back.

In fact, Z is carrying us in the early 4th. As it should be. He’s our 2nd best player, let’s lean on him while Lebron rests.

Reggie Miller: “Do not fall asleep on Ben Gordon. He will rape you. You’ll walk funny for days. I know I did.”

Wow, Noah dunked it THROUGH Wallace’s block. I’ve gotta see a replay of that.

Wow again. Wallace on a great feed from Varejao front rimmed a dunk of his own. I’m not saying he’s washed up, but those 2 plays are the most concise evidence that he’s at least eroded.

The Bulls aren’t missing. It’s tough to lose that way. The Cavs are missing. So far we’ve picked up every offensive rebound to keep the lead.

Until Ben Gordon’s 3 free throws. Damn those stupid fouls.

And now we can’t buy a shot and the rebounds aren’t falling our way. Okay, Lebron, time to take over!

Ok, one possession. Wonder who this play focuses on. With our offensive rebounding, I look to score sooner rather than later. Especially because in crunch time I wouldn’t have any faith in Hughes or Gordon for the game winner, even if they have shot well so far.

Reggie just mentioned our leading the lead in 4th quarter comebacks. This definitely shouldn’t count. We gave away the big lead.

Well, Lebron went for it with enough time that we still have a chance after the layup came up short. It’s amazing how easily Lebron gets a close look in these situations. 90% of the time that goes in.

I guess Hughes is clutch enough. So who shoots the 3? Lebron has shot reasonably well tonight (3-7). Nobody else has taken many. I guess we run the play for Lebron and leave it to him to see who is most open. If I could pick anybody getting a clean look, it’d be Damon Jones, of course.

Well, it was a great play and great decision by Lebron to find Boobie. Boobie just didn’t hit it. This is one of those games that definitely does NOT come down to the final play.

We blew a win and I bet Larry Hughes is loving it. We hit a huge drought, but it was as much our own doing as bad fortune. Sure, the shots stopped falling, but we also stopped attacking. Lebron should never be held to a single point in the 4th – he should at least get to the line enough to score a couple. Instead we accepted our bricked jumpers and kept at them. As I mentioned earlier, the offensive rebounding carried, but as the misses piled up, we couldn’t grab them all.

I should be more pissed about throwing away this one, but the Cavs looked good for long stretches and better to crap the bed now than in 3 weeks. Live and learn.

Go Cavs!

(PS – Look at the pictures and tell me who you think provided the best facial expression. I vote for Ben Gordon, riding the roller coaster he likes to call ballhandling.)

Slow down Cavs!

Seriously, it’s hard enough to keep up with these games every few days when I’m compelled to blog my pretty little heart while feeling drunk at work. These back-to-backs take a toll. Soon I’ll be on the sidelines indefinitely like Ben Wallace, handled with the kiddie gloves because I’m too fragile to finish out the regular season and still be in game shape for the playoffs.

Fortunately, the Cavs took one in Charlotte on cruise control last night. You can always tell when the Cavs are in cruise control because they’re not quite sloppy, but they’re also not exercising Mike Brown’s credo of “slow it down until the other team cries”.

Really, it was a huge positive to see Lebron foul out on the road and see a few of the supporting cast step up to earn the win. Sure, we could never stop the Bobcat machine. And sure there is some karma in store for Lebron’s thundering down the lane for a dunk and then pointing up to Michael Jordan’s owners box as if to say “I’m coming for you”. But the fact is we do have some offensive pieces that can get the job done even without Lebron and it was good to get that reassurance.

Ori will be by sometime to offer up his snapshot view of the game where he turns it on with but 2 minutes remaning and the King riding the pine.

In the meantime, the Cavs get ready for a nationally televised showdown with the Bulls. I bet TNT wishes they could swap out tonight’s slate. Cavs/Bulls and Rockets/Blazers? Yuck! Looks like you and I will be the only ones watching.