A rainy Game 2
Posted April 25th, 2007 by Brian Windhorst
–Don’t confuse Drew Gooden’s "Let it Rain" with Pacman Jones "Make it Rain." One involves a geeky-looking hand gesture. The other $81,000 in cash and strippers.
–Drew informed me tonight that he can’t do his "rain dance" until he makes at least four shots in a row. Write this down, people.
–OK, that covers that. What’s most important from Game 2 is the Cavs again got other players besides LeBron to step up. Gooden had an unbelievable second quarter, not just because he was making shots, but because he was making contested jumpers. Almost more important that Drew’s hot streak was how Zydrunas Ilgauskas played. The Wizards seem determined to double-team James on pick-and-rolls so Z making jumpers off them is vital to the Cavs’ offense. Also, I though Larry Hughes’ decision-making was much better tonight. In fact, I’ll go so far as to say Larry played better in Game 2 than he did in Game 1.
–Just re-establishing my point during this series, the Wizards have almost no margin for error on offense. If Antawn Jamison doesn’t score 50 points, the Wizards need help from DeShawn Stevenson (who is 6-of-24 in two games) and Antonio Daniels (who is 7-of-18). It also doesn’t help when Jarvis Hayes goes 2-of-11. I will again say, though, that the Wizards are going to make shots at some point in this series.
–All that out, the Cavs defense continues to bait the Wizards into hoisting those jumpers. They are going under most pick-and-rolls, which means they are denying drives. They are also helping well, which means most of the jumpers are contested. The Wizards are shooting less than 40 percent in the two games.
–On the big videoboards after Brendan Haywood got hit with a technical for screaming at Andy Varejao, you could just see him holding up one hand and gesturing but you couldn’t see his fingers. It appeared to the crowd watching the screen that he flicked everyone off. I don’t believe this was the case, but that’s why the crowd started chanting "a——." What I’d like to know is if Etan Thomas was joining in the chant. After the game Andy told me "he was saying somethings and they were not nice." I’m sure. I agree with Bill Simmons, it’s only a matter of time before someone just hauls off and socks Varejao during a game. Perhaps it will be Game 3.
–Before the game, I was checking out Damon Jones sweet red and white Li Ning shoes. Inside the shoe by the ankle, apparently just for Damon to see, is the phrase "I Am Global." I ran over to look inside LeBron’s shoes to see if they said "I am a global icon" inside, but they have their own bodyguards. Here’s all I need to tell you about Damon: His winter coat says "Damon Jones" on the back. Not "Damon." Not "Jones," like it was a high school letter jacket. Damon Jones. That and as he was walking into the locker room tonight in his pink shirt and gray suit, the camera guy who was recording his arrival wasn’t ready. So Damon stopped, waited, and then started walking again when the guy had the thing on. Pure comedy.
April 25th, 2007 at 10:05 pm
Committing only 4 turnovers with such a hectic offense is pretty incredible. Wizards hung tough.
April 25th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
“That and as he was walking into the locker room tonight in his pink shit and gray suit, the camera guy who was recording his arrival wasn’t ready.”
A typo? A Freudian slip? Intentional? All three? I wish more beat writers would discuss the pink shit going on behind the scenes. It’s quite funny and very informative.
April 25th, 2007 at 10:50 pm
Hahaha. I guess some editors took the night off, eh? That’s classic
April 26th, 2007 at 12:40 am
not as funny as your slip of the tongue bw. any way what is going down with damon jones, because i am a big fan of the big damona, and i want to know why he is not playing bw, come on brother man get on your job, are you a beat reporter or are you just beating off. anyway we won game two, so what, anything less then a 4 game sweep should be disappointing for me and my friend boat shoes “danny”.
April 26th, 2007 at 2:41 am
can we finally nab carlisle as our coach?
April 26th, 2007 at 3:51 am
I do not know about carlisle, but I would like to nab JoeHoops to be my bossom buddy. How about it JOe, can we make up, stop hating on me and shake my hand and be my friend stop eating boogers out of the garbage can.
April 26th, 2007 at 5:34 am
Carlisle? let’s try him maybe he can deliver.
April 26th, 2007 at 5:37 am
If someone like Gooden or Gibson had thrown the GAWD-AWFUL halfcourt inbounds pass that Snow tossed up, Potato would bury them so far at the end of the bench that they would never see game action again.
I hate you Mike Brown.
April 26th, 2007 at 6:25 am
What are you complaining about Topes? You gotta have Esnow on the court in crunch time. He brings “veteran savvy”. Missing all those wide open jumpers allows lebron to build his offensive rebounding totals. Letting guards blow by him kindly allows Z an attempt to pad his shot blocking stats. He’s a team player. Dont you get it? And that inbounds pass, didn’t that make the game more exciting? What do you want, to be able to coast to a victory against a vastly outgunned team?
April 26th, 2007 at 7:11 am
Can’t help but think the Wiz are going to win one of the next two forcing the Cavs back to Cleveland…Cavs have played pretty well and the Wiz are hanging with ‘em.
It has to be frustrating for Wash, however, knowing you just don’t have enough. Good enought to get withing 5 points or so, but that’s it….
April 26th, 2007 at 8:29 am
This was a very confusing game to me. I thought the Cavs played pretty well. Several guys had very productive games. James’ injury is worse than he’s letting on, but he is still able to bull his way to the basket and get at least a foul, if not a basket. It seems he can only do this in spurts, however. All that said - I don’t get how the Wizards were able to stay in this game. It should have been a 20+ point blow-out. All credit to Washington, and the coaches. It is so imortant to close this series out in four games. James needs time to heal. Otherwise, he will reamain at 70%, and the Cavs have no chance in the next round.
April 26th, 2007 at 8:55 am
Thoughts on last night’s game:
- I’m pretty sure that 5 turnovers is an all-time NBA record low. Even with Arenas and Butler the Wizards could not have expected that kind of efficiency. That, as much as anything, helped them stay in the game for as long as they did.
- Coach Brown didn’t make the proper adjustments in the last few minutes of the game, which allowed the Wizards to make some 3’s that should have been more contested. The Cavs want the Wizards to shoot as many jumpers as possible, but when the Wizards were forced to shoot 3’s to stay in the game, the Cavs should have adjusted their defense accordingly.
- There was a time when Daniel Gibson was supposed to be the savior of this team. He still might contribute, but his shot selection right now is terrible, because he’s afraid he’s not going to get another opportunity. You cannot have Gibson, Varejao, and Snow on the court at the same time right now, because all three are a danger to themselves and others on offense. That being said, the Cavs are going to need to find some more bench scoring soon, and it’s going to have to come from Gibson and Marshall, because none of the other bench scorers are going to get any minutes.
- Why isn’t there more information about Drew Gooden’s use of the exclamation “Yee!” here on Ohio.com? Brian, are you saving the good stuff for ESPN? And where do I get one of these YEE shirts? Drew Gooden’s personality is one of the most interesting parts of this Cavaliers team, and it’s a shame that most reporters decide not to share it. He’s our basketball Manny Ramirez.
- Kudos to FSN for throwing in a few more Cavalier Girls shots last night. But someone needs to get Time Warner in line, because we should have been watching the Cavs game in HD, not the Indians game. Both are broadcast on the same HD channel here in Cleveland, and it was disappointing last night.
To the other comments:
- Other than the awful inbounds pass, ESnow was just as effective as Andy last night. He’s been fine.
- I agree that the Wizards are hanging with the Cavaliers, but I wouldn’t say that they’ve been any more competitive than the Magic have been with the Pistons. The better team is doing enough to win the games, and that’s all that matters.
- Even if LeBron is at 70% in the next round, the Cavs are winning. I know that everyone sees the problems with the Cavaliers, but they will be matching up with a more-flawed team in the next round, regardless of who wins the Raptors-Nets series. Which reminds me, where are all those people who were saying the Cavs would lose in the first round of the playoffs? It’s not all about the Cavs, it’s also about their opponent, as this series is clearly demonstrating. That being said, LeBron will need to be at his best in the Conference Finals.
Go Cavs. Rise Up.
Mike
April 26th, 2007 at 10:11 am
seriously, jmoe, are you that unimaginative that you have to use my name to post? As if JoeHoops and some of the other pimple-faced idiots using 900 aliases isn’t enough. Grow up, man.
doc, you have some sort of problem with veteran savvy? What’s next, taking a rap at his veteran locker room presence?
And what’s the deal with the unannounced corrective editing of the original BW post??? I kind of enjoyed reading about Damon Jones’ “pink shit.” It was the most fun I had all day.
Hey, I wonder if Sebastian Telfair would be worth a small gamble.
April 26th, 2007 at 10:57 am
I was wondering about Telfair too, but mostly I’m wondering why Damon is even a topic on this blog anymore. Is he still on the team?
I’ve also been thinking how grateful I am that Ferry decided Allen Iverson would screw up the Cavs’ chemistry.
We won’t get any coverage of Gooden’s personality for another six years. You’ve either got to be from Akron or over 32 years old for that kind of coverage. But Gooden’s capable of having those kinds of games a lot more often.
The Cavs are doing fine. Blowouts in the NBA are pretty rare, no matter how mismatched the teams. When you get one, the loser always bounces back.
April 26th, 2007 at 11:16 am
Alan, I do not use any other aliases. I am JoeHoops, the one and only. And ready to school your sorry butt on the court any day you armchair monday morning cavs hater!!!!
April 26th, 2007 at 12:05 pm
If by school you mean “high school,” I am man enough to concede your point, JoeHoops. Keep up the good work.
And that point about Jones is right on…why is Jones even mentioned in this blog in late April 2007? O.K., he’s comic relief, but for all the wrong reasons. For God’s sakes, even that awful Newble is now getting court time. In the meantime, Jones is sitting on a chair painting a Kung Fu mustache on the Chairman Mao logo pasted inside of his shoe. And this is why Ferry used four years of cap space?
April 26th, 2007 at 1:16 pm
actually i am pretty fond of Chairman Mao, i used to be a commy back in the 60’s and 70’s but had to give it up because the pressure was getting to me. Now i am liberal and as free as a bird, and i am free to take you Joe “i cannot shoot Hoops” to the court any time you are ready just name the place and time and i will be there. and as for damona, he will get his revenge in game for in wash. he will shoot a last second three to put us in the next round.
April 26th, 2007 at 1:36 pm
darn it, i am having deja vu, that was last year, can anyone say alzehiemer.
April 26th, 2007 at 1:37 pm
“pink shit”, smells good.
April 26th, 2007 at 3:15 pm
Apparently telfair met with ferry to discuss his options last week, but ferry inadvertently let his bare foot slide out of his boat shoe and the smell almost killed bassy. I hear he’s looking now looking at the hawks situation.
April 26th, 2007 at 3:21 pm
It cracks me up how Lebron doesnt hesitate to tell reporters that he’s not 100%. And it’s never something like 90 or 95% either. It has to be some ridiculus number like 60-80% to better explain the 8-22 performances.
As for ESnow. I was actually going to rip him on his “uncanny court sense” or “his intangibles that can’t be measured with mere statistics.”
April 26th, 2007 at 4:25 pm
Hey, I like all the Damon Jones information. Though, you guys are probably right. Updates about Jones probably belong in the Lifestyle section nowadays.
Speaking of DJ, the PD reported that Jones choreographs all the elaborate handshakes and pantomimes that the Cavs do during their introductions.
So, essentially, the team is now paying 16 million dollars over 4 years for what amounts to an ugly Cavaliers Girl in Chinese sneakers.
Maybe next year Ferry can add Thurl Bailey to the roster solely so he can sing the national anthem before each game.
April 26th, 2007 at 4:44 pm
damn you’d think that watching some of the football games at canton-mckinley, snowflake could throw a better pass than that. that reminded me of high school gym class when our lesbian teacher was demonstrating how to “throw from the chest.” i’m sure coach roker was happy with the play though, citing snow’s “intangibles, veteran leadership, and similarly bald head” as key factors to winning the game.
April 26th, 2007 at 5:53 pm
Now Mr. Tucker:
I would never post under your name. You have
many other schizophrenic friends on this blog. Now on to our schizophrenic team.
If Mr. Gibson would have missed that three
he hoisted with 22 seconds left on the clock
when we were down by seven he would have been shipped to the Siberian Tiger Cats and
his winter coat would say Tiger Boobies on
the back. Nice to look at but don’t touch.
The Brazilian fur got Haywood Calhoun ruffled. Time for a steel cage match. It is
imperative that Damona gets in to the fracas
as that is the only way he will get on the floor and thus have his pretty little picture taken
April 26th, 2007 at 7:54 pm
Larry Bird’s discs used to shoot through his uniform like that thing in “Alien,” but for some cosmic reason, you’d never read about him unloading that “I’m _% BS upon reporters. But James is like Tiger Woods. Why make excuses when reporters with their tongues hanging out will be delighted to make them for you? When you have a captive audience that eagerly buys anything that he’s selling, James may as well just use 60%-80%. Perhaps 90% if Windhorst & Co. use their Kroger cards.
April 26th, 2007 at 8:01 pm
Mike C,
Awesome post. You should be getting your own blog.
Pluto’s Hair,
Nice one! That cracked me up.
April 27th, 2007 at 2:57 am
I AM ALAN TUCKER DAMMIT!!!! HEY MEL,MEL, MAY BE YOU NEED TO PUT THE CRACK PIPE DOWN.
April 27th, 2007 at 3:02 am
okay, with a show of hands, who love me ALAN TUCKER? I AM THE ALL WISE ALAN TUCKER, DID YOU NOT READ MY POSTS, THEY ARE INSIGHTFUL AND HUMOROUS, EVERYBODY LOVES ME ALAN TUCKER? HEY JOE HOOPS DON’T YOU WISH YOU WERE HOT LIKE ME? I AM ALAN TUCKER DAMMIT, HEAR ME ROAR. I AM THE KING OF THIS HERE BLOG, LOVE ME, READ IT OR GET TO STEPPIN. HEY BW, I AM ALAN TUCKER DAMMIT AND ONE DAY THIS WILL BE MY BLOG, AND YOU ALL WILL BOW DOWN TO ME. ALAN TUCKER.
April 27th, 2007 at 4:02 am
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII AMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!AAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN TTTTTTTTTTTUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKKEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! DAMMIT.
April 27th, 2007 at 5:18 am
O.K., for these two specific posts, my money is on Billy or Geddy. But I really don’t know, there’s so many I.Q.-deprived stalkers to choose from, I just don’t know which one to choose. It’s like O.J. sitting there with his credit card and having to choose just one single knife from the Ginsu collection on QVC. All the choices. All the decisions. All the anxiety.
April 27th, 2007 at 5:33 am
Will the real Alan Tucker please stand up.
Billy we need your prayers for game 3.
Please issue your most fervent sermon.
Joe Hoops we need you to switch your stalk
from Tucker to Haywood. Please report to
the Verizon Center by 5pm for a pregame
menace.
April 27th, 2007 at 8:13 am
Tucker, I find it amusing that you try to drag me into this mess with your nonsense about IQ-deprived stalkers. Speaking of IQ-deprived, how is it so many things simply go over your head–you still never understood a simple comment I made about your stalkers, and yet you try to feign intelligence by criticizing others. I had nothing to do with these posts, and I have no connections to whoever Billie and JoeHoops are. in fact, as another poster mentioned, I too now believe that you are in fact simply posting as these people yourself. Check out the DSM-IV diagnosis of dissociative identity disorder and stop posting as Billie, JoeHoops, and whoever else.
April 27th, 2007 at 9:12 am
Joe Tait broadcasting Hoops vs. Tucker:
Tucker in the backcourt dribbling with
the right hand. Tucker crosses the time line
into the forecourt. Tucker dribbling dribbling dribbling, around Joe Hoops to the
foul line into the lane, WHAAAAAMMMMMMM with
the right hand!!!!!!!!!!!OHHHHHH MYYYYYY.
“Laughter” You should have seen the look
on Joe Hoops, HE WAS NOT PLEASED.
April 27th, 2007 at 9:25 am
My name is Alan Tucker. The real Alan Tucker. I can prove it, too:
My ex-wife’s name is Sadie;
My father — by the way, have I ever mentioned that once upon a time he sat on the Cavs board of directors? Or that Joe Tait interviewed me, twice? Or that I could have been a sportswriter like Windhorst if only I’d taken that internship? — was named Maishe;
My colonoscopy showed three polyps, not counting my head.
So there. Now please stop posting in my name. Please. I’m asking nice this time. If asking nice won’t work, I’ll be forced to respond to each and every BW blog entry with dozens of posts full of smug, stupid, narcissistic drivel. Consider yourselves warned.
April 27th, 2007 at 9:55 am
Geddy, did you check-in your brain along with your hat?
April 27th, 2007 at 9:59 am
Holy cow…talk about stalkers, this one is going back to posts made a year and a half to over two years ago. Dude, you frighten me even more than if the Browns draft a quarterback to replace Terry Pluto’s Charlie Frye.
April 27th, 2007 at 10:28 am
On Damonas shoes it should say “I am
mobile” in other words headed out of town.
April 27th, 2007 at 10:29 am
i hear charlie frye will be at reverend pluto’s creepy den for the draft so he can be cuddled and assuaged when the browns take brady quinn
April 27th, 2007 at 10:32 am
With nine days off between games, don’t you suppose bron bron should be able to get at least 83% for tomorrow’s tilt?
April 27th, 2007 at 10:42 am
Absolutely pricelss Reverend Pluto. He doesn’t watch Skinemax at night because of his “Robert Test”, a crossdreser name if there ever was one. I hope the Roberta test is in full force this weekend when Chaz Frye starts feeling vulnerable as Brady Quinn dons his brownies cap.
Friday, Apr 27, 2007Terry Pluto
Test your private acts by imagining them public
I receive e-mails from people wanting advice.
Often, I have no clue what they should do, because sometimes I have no clue what I should do.
Some people say, “That’s easy, just look to the Scriptures.”
Certainly the Bible supplies general guidance about everything from money to sex to gossip, but there are still times when it’s not clear what decision is best.
God’s will can seem elusive in our everyday choices, too.
That’s when I use the TV test.
I ask myself, “If this were shown on television, would I be embarrassed?”
Not sure if you should go to that bar? To that dance? To that person’s house where you could end up in a compromising position?
Just ask yourself the TV question, and you’ll probably get a decent answer.
When I’m on the computer, I ask myself: “Would I be OK if my wife was sitting here next to me when I’m on this Web site?”
That brings immediate clarity.
I use the same question when I’m watching TV and she’s not there. I give it the Roberta test. Some men who travel put a picture of their kids next to the hotel room TV set. The message is loud, without anyone saying a word.
If the kids were with Dad, could they watch this program with him? That certainly keeps we men who travel away from most of the pay movies and from a lot of the late-night premium channels.
For some women, the question would be, “How would my husband, my boyfriend, my best friend feel about me taking part in this chat room?”
Or suppose a phone conversation was played over the radio. Would I be OK with the content if everyone heard it?
Confession time: I struggle with my language. St. Paul told the Romans, “What I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do — this I keep on doing.”
That’s me in several areas of my life, including my vocabulary. It’s been cleaned up a lot, and I don’t take God’s name in anger, but I still can be stunned at some of the words coming from my mouth.
I also duel with gossip. I’m in the news business. Perhaps a dozen times a day, someone asks: “What do you hear?” The Indians want to trade for a certain player, or the Browns are close to drafting someone — that’s information.
But sometimes I hear things about the personal lives of athletes and coaches. I have no idea if they are true. I try to sometimes stop people in the middle of a story when it’s obvious where it’s going — and it’s just character assassination disguised as passing along information.
I just say, “That’s OK, I get the point,” and try to change the subject.
But there’s a side of me that finds it tempting to believe the worst about most people. Yet, I expect them to believe the best about me.
Doesn’t exactly line up.
I’m sure someone is reading this and thinking, “I’ve heard Pluto talk, and believe me, he’s not afraid to rip someone.”
So true, and I’m not proud of it. When I criticize someone, I want to take issue with the action, not the person. A smart guy can make a very dumb trade. That doesn’t make him a moron.
I recently listened to a CD of a sermon by Mike Breaux, a pastor from Willow Creek Community Church outside Chicago. It was part of a series he did about figuring out God’s will for our life. He said God is more concerned with the person we are and what we are doing rather than where we are doing it.
In real estate, it’s all about location.
In life, it’s about character.
The idea is when we go to work on ourselves in a godly way, life tends to work out better. Not easier, just wiser.
April 27th, 2007 at 10:43 am
“robertA test” actually
April 27th, 2007 at 11:00 am
You somewhat lost me here…is that an actual Terry Pluto column, or one of doc’s “The Onion” satirical skewers? Either way, if Savage takes a quarterback, I hope the Scriptures give religious sportswriters a free pass (so to speak) to go postal.
April 27th, 2007 at 11:12 am
it’s an actual column. You can probably find it next to the latest jewel cardwell blah fest. I had to post it because it represents the quintessence of our dear reverend. And i figured billy would start speaking in tongues when he reads it.
April 27th, 2007 at 11:41 am
God damn Billy that was a great column
by Reverend Pluto. I’ll see you at the
tittie bar at about 8pm. Did you see that
new web site “Booze and Babes”? Oh by the
way Reverend I am Jewish.
April 27th, 2007 at 12:37 pm
Dear Reverend:
You will not steal my man toy Brady.
I will put a picture of him by my TV every
Sunday so I am not tempted to watch your
man toy Charlie. You will likewise put a
picture of Charlie next to your TV because
you may not watch Brady.
Signed, John Ameichi
June 2nd, 2007 at 8:15 am
http://messexxx.info x
June 3rd, 2007 at 4:13 am
http://sextasexxx.info x