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!

Which sucks more?

My table or the cavalry?

I’m saying the cavalry.

Sasha returned with a whimper, logging 10 minutes, missing all 3 shots and turning it over once. I will give him credit for Vince’s 5-19, though he was only on the floor for maybe 4 of those shots, and Vince made up for it, anyway, with 8 boards and 6 assists.

Ben Wallace couldn’t shake the spasms to get back into the lineup.

Delonte West amazed with 5 turnovers in 19 minutes.

Joe Smith finally had an off night, though we should be able to survive 2-6 from him.

Wally is still off, going 3-8, missing his pair of 3 balls, but trying to make up for it with a Vince-like 5 assists and 4 boards.

Offensively, there just weren’t many bright spots.

But the real story was another lackluster defensive performance, wasting Lebron’s 42, 11 and 7. Carter aside, the Nets shot 60%, getting big nights from Devin Harris, Richard Jefferson and Bostjan Nachbar. The Cavs have an incredible way of making average talent look good.

We can make up for it quickly as we head down to Washington for a matchup with the depleted Wizards – still without Arenas and possibly without Butler. I’m starting to think we’re destined with that 4 spot and a matchup with the Raptors. We’re just too middling and low energy right now to overcome the fact that the team hasn’t gelled, and with all the injuries, that chemistry won’t come easily.

Go Cavs!

Here comes the cavalry!

But first, fun with tables….

	Cavs	Nets
Record:	37-27	26-38
Pace: (possessions per game)	89.2 (23rd)	89.7 (18th)
Offensive efficiency: (per 100 possessions)	107.7 (17th)	103.7 (26th)
Defensive efficiency: (per 100 possessions)	108.3 (14th)	109.5 (20th)
eFG%: (FGM+3PM/2)/FGA	48.3 (20th)	47.1 (27th)
TO: (per 100 possessions)	15.6 (T-12th)	16.8 (26th)
Offensive rebound rate:	29.7 (3rd)	27.1 (14th)
FT/FG:	22.1 (19th)	25.4 (10th)

Ok, I suck at tables.

So, the Cavs are better than the Nets, though with the big trades each team has made, those numbers don’t tell the whole story.

The Cavs also have the affliction of a war torn roster. When Ben Wallace missed the 2nd half against Portland, we may have hit our low point. BW is a question mark for tonight, but he’s not the only one.

Sasha Pavlovic is ready to play. So even if Wallace sits, we’ll have a sufficiently deep 9 man rotation, assuming Lebron sees minutes at the 4 as he did against Portland. A 3 man big rotation (with an appearance by Dwayne Jones) would be plenty against a team starting Josh Boone and Nenad Krstic, while that will open up some backcourt minutes for Sasha.

Go Cavs!

Mavs <3 Jason Kidd

So you’re saying there’s still a chance!  The Mavs for Kidd deal is off thanks to Devean George.  Maybe the Cavs still have a shot?

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Yes, Jason Kidd is about to become a Mav. Now if only they could pry Jamal Mashburn from ESPN and talk Jimmy Jackson out of retirement, they could return to their glory days.

Since the Cavs are the center of the universe (we have LEBRON!), I’ll just touch on the implications.

The Mavs get smaller, while Phoenix and LA have been busy growing, and get thinner by trading 3 rotation players and 2 others for Kidd and a maybe rotation player in Malik Allen.

• This seems like a move to turn the Mavs more into the up-tempo team Don Nelson originally formed them as. I have no idea what they plan to do against the Duncans, Gasol/Bynums, Shaqs or Yaos of the world. Dampier certainly isn’t the answer. Maybe they can just outscore everyone.
• Losing the depth won’t affect them much. Going 10 deep is great for an 82 game regular season – just look at all the wins they racked up last year – but you only need 8 strong for the playoffs.
• A starting lineup of Kidd, Terry, Howard, Dirk and Dampier is pretty damned good. Brandon Bass, JJ Barea and Eddie Jones is everything else they have.

For the Nets, well, kudos to them. They finally found a deal they like to help them rebuild.

• Harris is their PG of the future.
• Stackhouse is a contributor, an asset to trade elsewhere, and a replacement for a soon-to-be-traded Vince Carter
• All the expiring contracts ($5.5 mil) and cash ($3 mil) let them rebuild this summer instead of down the road.
• And the pick is a throw in to seal the deal – it’ll probably be 25th or lower.

So why didn’t the Cavs get Kidd?

We couldn’t come anywhere close to that package! We couldn’t make an offer that wouldn’t be laughed at compared to that one.

• A quality point guard? Boobie? They’ll pass.
• Another quality scorer? Sasha? Hughes? Would you take either – contracts aside – over Stackhouse? No. And neither would the Nets.
• Ok, we could’ve matched the expiring deals with Ira and the Browns, but even including Kellen Winslow wouldn’t make that deal palatable.

I don’t think Lebron is going to pause for a moment and wonder what could have been. Nothing could have been. It was never a possibility. As I’ve said all along, the Cavs only shot is for a mid-level player. Maybe next year when we have some real assets.

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Let’s drop a quickie preview of tonight’s game while we’re at it:
Cavs, at home, against a Spurs team without Tony Parker on the last leg of their “rodeo road trip”. Hughes should be playing with confidence. Lebron won’t be thinking about getting Kidd. Gooden and Z should play. Good things should happen.

Go Cavs!

It’s official.

1. We need to make a trade. This team needs new life, someone to bring in a different perspective. I’d prefer a PG and Jason Kidd would do the trick immediately, but he likely would not get traded within the East. Andre Miller would be a fine addition to the team although I’m not willing to trade Gooden to get him. At this point, I would welcome Bostjan Nachbar.

2. I officially, officially…. HATE Larry Hughes. I really did try to like him after the past few games. I tried to be positive about him. I don’t care if he averages 40 a game for the rest of the season, I will never like Larry Hughes. Please know this when reading my blog posts from now on.To be fair, I will do my best to not mention Larry Hughes when he goes 24/29 from the field and when he goes 3/19 from the field. This will be my final (I hope) break down of Hughes. I. Hate. Him.

First of all, before we even go into his horrific offense, I’m tired of everyone thinking that this guy (Hughes) is a premier defensive player. He is an average defensive player at best. I’ve been saying it since last year. Yesterday he took on the “challenge” of guarding Vince Carter and was totally annihilated. I know VC is a great player, but that would not have happened against Ron Artest, AK-47, Bruce Bowen, even Lebron James would have done a better job of body-ing him up. Hughes is not physical enough to be a great defender. He has long hands, gets steals and is generally annoying but can easily be pushed around. I don’t even want to talk about his 30% shooting. In 34 minutes Larry Hughes also had one assist and brought down a solid zero rebounds. He is not still growing as a player, he is injury prone, and overall brings down the team more than he helps it when on the court. He did not get to the free throw line once. This is our top shooting guard!!?

Boobie (Matt’s whipping boy), on the other hand, did a great job defending Jason Kidd and hit 75% of his shots. He only took 4 shots, but that’s because Hughes was out there “creating”.

Mike Brown did a horrible job coaching this game. We were purposely fouling Boone with 4 minutes left and down by 4. The last five minutes of the game we were getting completely out hustled. So why not bring our hustle guy (Varejao) off the bench to grab some rebounds and knock some people down?

I’m also convinced that Lebron doesn’t like Coach Brown. Those off-balance three pointers that he was taking at the end of the game were obviously not what the coach drew up. So either Lebron is selfish, or he realizes that his coach is an idiot and that he has to do it by himself. I’ll go with the latter, as it is obvious that Lebron is generally not selfish on the court.

Tonight against the 76’s. We should win this one and get a good look at Andre Miller. Let’s just hope that Hughes doesn’t take the “challenge” of guarding Iguodala.

Baseball

In the 7th inning of a baseball game, the opposing pitches each throw the same pitch an inch off the plate. For one it’s a ball, for the other it’s a strike.

Well, early on the Cavs were hacking the Nets, and as the game rolled on, the whistles just never stopped. I don’t know if all the calls were fair, but I can’t disagree with the refs’ expecting to see fouls. This is yet another game where I’m bewildered as to how we let ourselves lose a game at the line. With Lebron backed by a few other slashers and 2 of the best offensive rebounders in the game, we should be putting on the charity stripe marathon, not the Nets.

Instead, we’re soundly beaten at the line, we’re embarassed on the boards, we led early because the shots were falling and we fell apart when the game turned to a grind. Who is this team? Where did that identity come from? That sounds like a 10-13 team, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.

Picking out the bright spots is tough – every single one is tempered with a huge flaw.

Boobie shot well – and only took 1 shot, a missed 3, in the 2nd half.

Gooden was solid, if invisible, at 13 and 7.

Lebron was Lebron, but that meant too many turnovers and easy shots back the other way.

Z was the only Cav with a legitimately GOOD stat line. Until desparation set in, there was never a reason to cease running the offense through the big fella.

Snow was perfect from the field yet again – 1-1 – and that’s really the 5th best thing I can say about this team.

Some flat out ugly spots:

Larry was Larry, ending 4-15 after missing his last 5 shots.

Sasha went straight to the dog house after some quick fouls.

Andy is going to make me look smart if he can’t stay on the floor, but he’ll make the Cavs looks bad if he goes on to average 6 and 6 again.

The Nets went small a lot of the game and still snared 14 offensive boards to our 24 defensive. I blame Lebron as much as anyone – only 6 boards against a soft team like this? Any boards from Hughes or Boobie come as a bonus. Sasha didn’t play. Gooden could’ve done more, but I appreciate his 7 in 28 minutes much more than Lebron’s 6 in 41.

Lots of reasons we lost this game, and they all roll into the supercategory of defense. Again I ask, who is this team?

At least me and Ori sat courtside. Isn’t his hair nice?

8 pm! Whew!

Good thing those Friday night games start late, or we wouldn’t have been able to sneak in a quickie preview of tonight’s Cavs/Nets game.

The most important thing to ask yourself about tonight’s game is, “Is this an audition for Jason Kidd?” Well, I can’t answer that for you, but if you were to ask me instead, I would say, “No.”

I love Ori’s dream of a Jason Kidd led backcourt and would be happy to part with Boobie, Gooden, or whomever else to see be able to see Kidd feed Lebron, but it’s not going to happen. Not even in consideration. I’ll let it blindside me if it does.

Meanwhile, it would be a fairly short train ride up from Philly to Jersey for Andre Miller…

Trade wishes aside, this game does have import as a matchup of past playoff foes hoping to right the ship and begin an ascent in the standings. The Cavs clearly have the advantage in momentum as our wounds are healing and Vince Carter, unlike last post season, has already gotten his.

After the performance of the uber-bench in the Pacers game, this will be an opportunity for the Cavs to test their rejuvenated depth and reconfigured rotations against a well balanced, defensively competent team. It will likely be competitive throughout, as Jason Kidd will likely abuse Boobie for about 30 minutes and the Cavs seem to have a history of leaving Richard Jefferson unguarded.

Given those defensive failings and inevitable close nature of the game, I’m most curious to see Coach Brown’s crunch time lineup management.

The Cavs will likely start Boobie, Sasha, Lebron, Gooden and Z, bringing in Snow, Varejao and Hughes with the first wave of substitutions. Over the course of the game, I expect to see Lebron log a few of his 40 minutes at the 4, I anticipate a faster pace with the 2nd unit – especially when Kidd sits, as the Cavs are often use that chance to spark a run, and I expect to see Coach Mike play offense/defense throughout the game with Boobie and Snow to manage the game and the lead.

What I can’t predict is how well Brown will use this depth in deciding whom to play in crucial spots. Will he go with the hot hand? Will he automatically look to slow the tempo, focusing on defense? Does Hughes’s aptitude on D overcome his inability to hit a long jumper with the clock winding down? Who defends Kidd at the end? I’d like to see Lebron – keeping Snow on the bench and freeing Boobie to hide against an off-guard and produce on the other end.

Long story short, I think this game is the first insight into Mike Brown’s advancement as a coach this season and I think it’s important that we start a streak with a winnable road game.

Go Cavs!