The Milton Berle game

The Cavs are good at a lot of things: rebounding (+15 tonight), offensive rebounding (33% of our misses), 3 point shooting (not so much tonight), and protecting the ball (11 turnovers). But what we’re best at is doing just enough to win.

Tonight, against a depleted Clippers team (down Brand, Livingston, Kaman and Maggette) that was on the road for the 2nd night of a back to back, 2,000 miles from home, we hung around until halftime, starting playing a bit in the 3rd and clamped down for the win in the 4th.

Really, there was no way we were losing. The Clippers don’t have the firepower to come into the Q and run us out of the building, so I guess I can’t blame the Cavs for throwing it into cruise control for most of the game.

Player of the game, for me, was Big Z. He just felt like he controlled both ends of the floor. He ended up shooting 82% for 22 points and adding 13 boards, 4 assists and 4 blocks. He was good on his feet in the interior, detering penetration and forcing awkward shots, without picking up fouls too quickly.

Lebron, of course, is a close 2nd. As is often the case, nobody on the Clippers could prevent his penetration. His game-high 28 came with only 7 of 19 shots outside the paint, and a heap of foul shots. If he was on from either the floor or the line, we might’ve put this one away early and won by 30, but as 8-19 and 11-16 attest, it wasn’t his night. Still adding 11 boards and 7 assists, he easily left his mark.

Other contributors:
Boobie gets high marks for hitting his shots, as expected, and also throwing his body into traffic for a few boards. I’m still frightened when he drives to the hoop, but he did show a slick move where he dribbles across the lane, stopping and popping for an easy 10 footer.

Drew Gooden had his way offensively, too, pulling down 6 offensive boards, contributing to his double-double (14 and 12).

And of course, where would we be if I didn’t mention the contributions of one Lawrence “Smooth” Hughes? I’m certain of the strong correlation between Hughes dunks and our victory. After the first Lebron-to-Larry alley-oop in the 3rd, victory was near assured, but with the subsequent reverse lay-up oop, I knew we could put it in the books. Larry didn’t do much else.

I can’t see us ever losing a game where we shoot 47% and pull down 50 rebounds. That just shows a dominance around the rim and lackluster defense from the opposition. And that’s exactly what tonight was, with the Clippers playing victim. At 14 points, one of our biggest victories this year, we start off February right after finishing January 11-3.

Go Cavs!

Would you?

Do me a favor:
Grow about a foot. Then shave your head bald. Move into a nice office on the corner of Huron and Ontario (streets, not lakes). Now take a seat and wait for the phone to ring…

(ring…)
You: Hello?

Hi Danny. This is Elgin Baylor. I have a deal for you that’s off the table as soon as I hang up the phone. Actually, I have 2.

I want to give you a point guard: Sam Cassell. And if you’ll take Tim Thomas off my hands, you can have him for Gooden, Newble and that Brown kid you guys don’t let play.

Or, tell you what, I’m feeling generous, and I still think this Thomas kid can play. Just hand over Gooden and a conditional pick. A first and second rounder if you make the conference finals, otherwise just a 2nd this year and next.

You: … (well?)

Serious Recap:

Ohio State Lost (And are no longer #1) – I was visibly upset.

Cleveland Browns Lost (In heartbreaking fashion, to the Steelers no less) – I was beside myself.

If Cleveland Cavaliers Lose - Committing Hara Kiri would have been the only option.

Cavaliers- 103
Clippers- 95

Cavaliers with a big win last night over the Clippers, in a game of spurts and rallies.

This was the second of the two big wins for Cleveland yesterday as Chef Michael Symon of Cleveland, Ohio won the title of “The Next Iron Chef” on the Food Network, joining the ranks of Iron Chef’s Cat Cora, Bobby Flay, Masaharu Mosimoto, Mario Batali and Colonel Sanders.

Game Ball: Drew Gooden

And seriously, Drew Gooden.

Drew Gooden played really well and had a double-double by halftime. Z played well enough to cancel Chris Kaman out which was big for us. Lebron wasn’t forcing anything and drove to the basket the whole game. Devin Brown was solid. Cedric “Don’t call me Ceballos” Simmons did a decent job in his limited minutes. Boobie hit his shots but didn’t play many minuted due to foul trouble.

Brace yourself for this.

Larry Hughes played well. He took good shots under control, brought the ball quickly up the court, made some great passes, and proved that he is the best point guard on the team.

As usual, free throws were our Achilles heal and we missed 4 in a row at the end of the game before Damon Jones came up and hit two big free throws an played well overall. If we are Matt though, we’ll just choose to ignore that a couple plays before that, DJones tripped over himself dribbling the ball, fell to the floor and gave the Clippers an easy dunk.

It seems that we split our free throws almost every time we got to the line. It isn’t just Lebron, and this is going to kill us as the season goes on. It’s not good that I (and every fan) only trust Zydrunas and Boobie to make crucial free throws. And we certainly don’t have anyone who we would consider “Automatic” (88% or above).

But, if the Cavaliers win in Denver tonight, most would agree that this is a pretty good start to the season; especially considering our injuries, holdouts, free throws and other shortcomings.

Quick recap

Game ball: Damon Jones

Hear that? Game ball: Damon Jones!

Why? He makes free throws in the final minute.

I love him, too.

The front line, as is Cavs basketball, dominated tonight. 65 points and 28 boards – 10 offensive – for the big 3. Gooden, after a few wince-inducing jumpers, decided it was time to make like Olivia Newton John and get physical. The first half lead is largely attributed to him, coupled with some solid shooting from Hughes and DB.

In the second half – the 4th quarter specifically – Lebron’s passing and Z’s shooting propelled the team. Despite his poor shooting and numerous turnovers, I give Lebron lots of credit for tonight’s game. He was in attack mode, putting pressure on the defense to create shots, and, more importantly, his defense was stellar. He has an incredible knack for coming from the top of the key to defend against wing players coming around a curl. Additionally, he can play up on shooters when he chooses to, because if once a player gets by him, his length and timing make him a threat to block the shot.

Special mention also goes to Ira Newble. I still can’t make heads or tails of when Coach Mike decides to use him. It looks like he’s playing our small ball power forward, at the moment. With no need to worry about Tim Thomas inside, Newble was able to get onto the floor with Lebron for a while tonight. With his willingness to throw his body into traffic and knack for rolling into passing lanes, he provides a great presence inside without needing to be strong and physical. Essentially, he plays the role of Andy-lite. I expect he’ll start seeing more minutes since he’s played far more effectively than Dwayne Jones or Cedric Simmons. Tonight he played so well, that he kept Gooden off the floor, despite Gooden’s huge numbers, for most of the 4th quarter.

With limited minutes tonight for Boobie, Hughes and Gooden, we should be in good shape tomorrow in Denver.

Go Cavs!

Game 7 Preview: Los Angeles Clippers

Was it Mortal Kombat where the toughest guy in the game was shadow you? Well, I hope we can deliver a fatality to the Clippers tonight, in the mirror match.

Just think about the starting lineups:
C: Large, funny looking white guy
PF: Soft, athletic player who prefers the perimeter
SF: Musclebound scorer
SG: Solid, unassuming contributor
PG: Scoring point guard

Which team am I talking about? The Cavs with Z, Gooden, Lebron, Sasha and Boobie, or the Clippers, with Kaveman, Tim Thomas, Maggette, Cuttino Mobley*, and Sam Cassell?

What do the Clippers have that we don’t? Solid backup PG, inside scoring off the bench, defensive stopper, and, separately, a Kobe-stopper in Brevin Knight, Al Thornton, Quentin Ross, and Ruben Patterson.

What do the Cavs have that the Clippers don’t? Lebron.

We always have a tough time with the Clippers because Corey Maggette hates Lebron for some reason. He never comes harder than when the Cavs are in town. The Clippers aren’t the quickest defensive team, so a bit of ball movement and shooting, should keep us right in it, but we’re looking at yet another game where it’s all on Lebron’s shoulders.

Hopefully Boobie will continue his hot shooting, as Cassell will likely sag and play passing lanes. Hopefully Z comes hungry, because Kaveman has been playing out of his mind as well this year. Hopefully Gooden watched football all afternoon and wants to hit somebody; he’s bigger and stronger than Tim Thomas, by far.

Any two of those, and it all adds up to another win for your Cleveland Cavaliers.

*Mobley is out for tonight, so it’s Quentin Ross from the start. With Lebron posting so much this year, we’ll probably see Maggette on him early.