East Rutherford, NJ — It was inevitable that the Nets Big 3 would get things going together in this series with the Cavs, and they certainly did so in the Game 3 victory.  Nobody thought this series was going to be a sweep either way.  While I still think it will be tough for the Nets to sustain that level of play to win four of five games, this could very much go either way.

Some thoughts…

–There are a couple of things not trending well for the Cavs.  First off, they are not passing the ball nearly as well as they were in the Washington series.  As a result, they are getting few good shots and making fewer shots.  The Nets have a lot to do with this, but all Jersey is doing is following the book of forcing the ball out of LeBron James’ hands and letting the lessor players decide the game.  The Cavs are shooting just 42 percent in this series.
–Secondly, the Cavs’ defense is allowing a lot of open shots and very high percentages, 50 percent in the last two games.  They are just freely allowing Jason Kidd to shot from the outside.  I realize that giving him space is the smart play because you don’t want him driving, but how many wide open 3s will be allowed when he’s making 75 percent of them?   Richard Jefferson is also shooting 52 percent in the series.  Much of that is Kidd getting him the ball in position, there’s no doubt he’s a master at it.  He’s a true Hall of Famer.  But, as the Cavs will point out, he’s not a Hall of Fame shooter.
–All that said, I believe a lot of things have been going in the Nets favor over the last several games on offense. They are making a lot of shots. Perhaps the Cavs can survive that if LeBron is into the game and the Cavs are getting extra possessions with offensive rebounds.  But that didn’t happen in Game 3 because the Cavs and LeBron played passive.
–I asked Mike Brown about the defense at practice today.  Usually he sees defensive flaws when they aren’t there.  Today he said he was OK with the effort and said the team has to live with Kidd and Jefferson getting those shots.  So I guess you shouldn’t expect any changes.
–Had I been live blogging yesterday’s game, I would’ve told you the Cavs were in great position at the half, when they had a 26-12 edge in points in the paint.  The teams ended up tied in that category and the Cavs had a grand total of 2 in the fourth quarter.  You know how much I hate the jump shot and that’s all the Cavs took in the fourth, which that stat shows.  Also the Nets 56 percent shooting in the second half illustrated how more willing they were to get better shots.
–At practice today at John Jay College in New York, there was a banner off a small balcony that read: "The Doghouse."  Apparently that’s what the home of the Bloodhounds (it’s a criminal justice school, get it?) is called.  One reporter, who shall not be named, asked if that was where Damon Jones would be practicing.  It was funny, but honestly I don’t see Damon as being in Brown’s doghouse, he was a victim of the Cavs going in another direction.  Same for Donyell Marshall, who is still grumpy about losing much of his playing time.  I asked Donyell about whether he’d play tomorrow (because he’s got a sprained left ankle) and he and Scot Pollard both laughed.  Pollard then said: "It has very little to do with his ankle."  While the Cavs in general have almost no problems in the locker room, there’s no doubt there’s an under current of angry veterans upset about playing time.  They know enough not to make major waves, but Donyell and others get their digs in every now and then.  It won’t happen publicly, but expect Damon Jones, Donyell Marshall and Ira Newble to ask Danny Ferry for trades in the offseason.  As for Pollard, even if he doesn’t retire he probably won’t be back.  Then again, having veterans who believe they are capable and aren’t playing is a common thread across all sports.

This was dispatched to me on April 14 by the NBA office as part of my All-NBA team vote:

"You have been chosen by the National Basketball Association to serve on a committee to vote for the All-NBA Team for the 2006-07 season. Please vote for the player at the position that he plays regularly. You can vote for five players on each of the three All-NBA teams. No ties may be awarded."

I did not bold and underline that sentence.  It was bolded and underlined by the league.  I’d like to bring this up after viewing the All-NBA Voting that was released by the league today.  There were 129 ballots out there, therefore there must be 129 first-team votes for center.  However, if you combine Amare Stoudemire (36), Yao Ming (38), Dwight Howard (1), Shaquille O’Neal (3, one of them mine), and Marcus Camby (2) you come up with 80 votes.  Where are the other 49 votes?  I’ll tell you, in Tim Duncan’s totals.  And perhaps a few in Dirk Nowitzki.  Which is why, in a nutshell, LeBron James was left off the first team.

How do I know this?  Because if you combine all the forwards who got first-team votes you come up with 297.  If each voter voted for two forwards as instructed there would be only 258 total votes.

But this isn’t close to where the tomfoolery ends.  This from the NBA release today:

"The media voted for All-NBA First, Second and Third Teams by position with points awarded on a 5-3-1 basis."

OK, well Stoudemire got 36 first-place votes and, says the release, 494 overall points.  This is mathematically impossible.  See, 36 first-place votes X 5 points each = 180 points.  Then let’s just assume Stoudemire was second on every other ballot (which is impossible because I personally put him on the third team, but anyway) so say he’s got 93 second-place votes.  That’s 93 second-place votes X 3 points each = 279.  Add up the points: 180 + 279 = 459.  459 is the max he can have.  The 494 points reported, though, is exactly the same as LeBron’s total.  Which seems a bit odd/fishy.  But Stoudemire doesn’t have to out vote LeBron for the team, just the other centers.

I can only assume this was a clerical error.  At least I really hope so, otherwise there’s some funny business going on.  According to reader Alan Dail, who actually added up all the possible points across the board, there’s 145 too many.  Take away those excess 145 from Stoudemire’s total and everything seems to jive and he edges Yao Ming on the first team.  Or maybe he doesn’t.  Hmmmm…

Anyway, my fellow media voters have really disappointed me this awards season.  I guess they didn’t like any of the center choices so they stuck in Duncan (so I guess those 74 games Francisco Elson and Fabricio Oberto combined to start for the Spurs at center must be meaningless) on the first team.  The NBA-released All-Star ballot lists both Duncan and Dirk as forwards, by the by.

As such, Duncan ended up with 30 more first place votes than LeBron, who was bumped to the second team even though he may’ve been on more ballots as a forward than Duncan.  Plus, I know some voters put Tracy McGrady in as a forward.  He’s a guard.  Shane Battier is the Rocket’s small forward.  I mean, I wanted to get McGrady on the first team badly, too.  Perhaps I should’ve just put Steve Nash at center since he’d have gotten the points anyway because the NBA seems to just turn the other cheek to the rampant idiocy.

Sorry to say, here’s an offender right here: respected colleague and ESPN Insider Chris Sheridan put Dirk at center and McGrady at forward on the first team.

Now, if you want to make the argument that you should vote for the five best players regardless of position, fine.  If you want to talk about how there aren’t five positions left in basketball, cool.  Maybe you have a point and there can be a debate.  But those aren’t the rules now, as the NBA specifically spells out and many voters, including this one, follow.  You can see my ballot in case you forgot.

It may just be a story for one day, but the All-NBA team does mean a lot to a lot of people and those of us tasked with deciding it and the folks in New York tabulating it ought to treat it with a lot more respect.

Finally, I am feeling no regrets voting Nash as my MVP (Dirk is going to win), Carlos Boozer on my second-team All-NBA (he didn’t make any teams), and giving Sasha Pavlovic his only vote for Most Improved Player.

Before tonight’s, well considering I’m getting to this at 2 a.m., last night’s game, I told a handful of people I thought the Nets would win Game 2.  I heard some of the things the Nets said they planned to improve on — especially their offensive ball movement — and thought they might have a chance to get the Cavs.  Actually, it was the inverse, the Nets did a lot right and still couldn’t overcome the Cavs in Game 2.

Thoughts…

–The Nets’ ball movement was excellent, they really beat the Cavs rotations a bunch and it got them open shots.  Open shots that they made.  I know everyone, especially the New York media, will make such a big deal about Vince Carter’s struggles.  But Carter distributed very well, he had seven assists, and his teammates were awesome at times.  At one point in the third quarter, Mikki Moore, Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson were a combined 16-of-18 shooting and most of those were jumpers.  I mean, wow, man.
–Of course, this was totally overcome by the Cavs offensive rebounding.  While I thought too much was made of the offensive rebounding differential (20-9) in Game 1 — both teams were virtually tied in second-chance points — it was almost doubly effective than numbers (19-3) showed the in Game 2.  The Cavs got 20 more shots, which everyone will point out.  However, the Cavs also took eight more free throws (shots don’t count in stats when a player is fouled) and committed eight fewer turnovers.  So that overall possession differential is gargantuan.  In fact, it was amazing the Nets only lost by 10.  It shows just how well they played.  Do you know how hard it is to shoot 52 percent in an NBA game and only score 92 points?  Well, it’s hard.
–LeBron James was great and he’s been great for almost every game in these playoffs.  I’m not writing any more about it now, other than to say the chemistry in the fourth quarter on offense has been huge.  The movement away from the ball has dramatically improved.
–Sasha Pavlovic’s best defensive job has been when Carter has attempted to drive to the baseline.  The way the Cavs play, he will always have help when Carter goes to the middle.  Sasha has been just quick enough to cut Carter off numerous times, especially tonight.  Which is why Carter ended up taking so many jumpers from the baseline tonight.  By the way, the next 72 hours hold the potential for Sasha hitting rock star status.
–Larry Hughes is shooting 40 percent in the six playoff games.  All roads…
–A few years back Buster Olney, now with ESPN but then of the New York Times, kept track of how many bats Yankees closer Mariano Rivera broke during a season.  I thought that was super cool (in a nerdy beat writer sort of way), so every year I’ve been on the Cavs beat I tried to keep my own obscure stat.  This year I tracked Anderson Varejao’s charges taken (78 in the regular season, two so far in the playoffs) because it’s not an official stat.  If I were to cover the Nets, though, I think I would keep track of the amount of games when Carter goes to a limp.  So far in this series it’s 2.
–Want to know what was the Cavs’ the biggest offensive rebound of the night?  When Sasha tracked down his missed 3-pointer with 50 seconds left.  He took that 3 with like 16 seconds on the shot clock and the Cavs up 7.  Not so big for the team as for Sasha himself.  Mike Brown might’ve ordered lashes.
–Tonight was the first night I thought the atmosphere at the Q reached last year’s levels.  It was very loud in the second half.

Time for bed, three off days now to digest more…

The Cavs didn’t play very well today and still won.  On the other hand, the Nets didn’t play very well and nearly stole a road game less than two days after they won their previous series.  The Cavs did a good job limiting Vince Carter and he didn’t shoot well but had a good all-around game.  On the other hand, the Nets did a pretty good job on LeBron James, who didn’t shoot well but had a good all-around game.  The Cavs played excellent overall defense, denying the middle and forcing lots of low percentage shots.  And, ahem, so did the Nets.

My point is the Cavs and Nets are alike in many ways.  Which, I think, is going to make this serious very competitive and tightly played.  Even if America may just be bored waiting for the Suns-Spurs games to start.

Some stuff…

–After the game in the locker room the players were talking about how they’ve won nine games in a row now.  That is the longest streak of the season.  More interesting, the Cavs have not lost a game in four weeks, since April 8 in Detroit.  They’ve been building and playing with confidence for some time and it shows.  Also, they’ve executed in late-game situations on both ends of the court.  It was somewhat overlooked in the Wizards series just how well the Cavs executed in the fourth quarters.  They did it again today.
–The Cavs benefited from the officials letting the teams play.  Getting to the foul line is a big part of the Nets game because they want to drive so much.  LeBron didn’t get to the line much, either, but he didn’t attack as often as Carter.  The Nets are going to make it hard on LeBron at every turn, but he could do a better job of forcing the issue than he did at times.  He played well overall, but he went 21 minutes without scoring at one point.
–The most important thing that happened for Sasha Pavlovic today, other than hitting his first two shots, was staying out of early foul trouble.  He had to be shut down in the first quarter in three games against the Wizards and it broke his rhythm.  You could see him gaining confidence as the game went on and it set him up for a great defensive finish.
–The Nets are better equipped to handle Zydrunas Ilgauskas than the Wizards because they have three seven footers.  But they don’t seem to have much of an answer for the versatility of Drew Gooden.  He could be very valuable for the Cavs in this series.
–Now, where the Nets have an advantage is with Bostjan Nachbar.  He’s quite a find for Jersey and he’s playing very well right now.  When the Nets go small with him, he’s tough to keep track of and he made more jumpers from the weakside today than the Wizards did in the whole previous series, it seems.
–I don’t want to make any assumptions or tell tales outside school, but during the postgame press conference I think LeBron may’ve been grandstanding just a bit.  He wrapped his head in a towel and was constantly coughing and sniffing and the media was lapping it up.  OK, he’s sick, that is obvious, but he wasn’t coughing and sniffing so much once the cameras were off in the locker room, that’s all I’ll say.  He is, the most recent Sprite commercial notwithstanding, an actor, too.
–In a playful mood after the game, Gooden was complaining that people always think if he played at Kansas with Scot Pollard and that no one remembers he was in the same class as Kirk Hinrich.  By the way, Gooden calls him Curt to this day because that’s what he thought his name was for the first few weeks of school.  Anyway, maybe it’s because after he shaved his head he started looking older.  With Drew’s current 1980s kick, I considered asking him about his memories playing with Danny Manning, but I let it go.

–Make no mistake, the Cavs won this game with defense.  This is a Mike Brown special.  The Cavs held the Nets to 6-of-19 shooting in the fourth quarter and 37 percent for the game.  Vince Carter was just 7-of-23, Jason Kidd was 2-of-11
–Much credit goes to LeBron James for the drive with 19 seconds left.  The Cavs ran a high screen with Larry Hughes and James attacked.  This is the way to play and when a player like him can make such a huge difference in the game, he did not settle.  Plus it was a good call by Brown as well.
–LeBron then made a big-time defensive play with the block on Bostjan Nachbar that basically ended the Nets chances.
–Sasha Pavlovic was truly the X-factor in this game.  In the first half it was his offense, down the stretch he did a great job on defense.  He really held his own and of course had the massive block shot on Kidd that was an emotional play and save two huge points.
–Drew Gooden’s energy play was big throughout the second half.  His influence on the playoff games has been greater than I would’ve guess two weeks ago.  He had 14 points and 14 rebounds.

More on the game later

–The Nets aren’t doing anything special, but LeBron hasn’t been a major factor.  They are bringing help but LeBron hasn’t deep posted or driven much at all.  You can double him 25 feet from the hoop without feeling much pain defensively.  He went 21 minutes of court time between baskets.  He’s gotten to the line just once, right at the end of the quarter, which is stunning.  The goal wouldn’t be to have LeBron force action, if there are plays that set up his teammates.  But he’s not being the offensive force he could be and it’s hurting the cause.
–On the other hand, Vince Carter is just 7-of-19 and the Nets are shooting just 39 percent.  The star that gets it going may indeed lead his team to victory.
–Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Drew Gooden’s hot shooting days appear to be over, they are a combined 8-of-21.  Much of this is because the Nets are keeping close contact, but some of it is just missing shots.  Also, the Cavs have had no success running side pick-and-rolls with James and Ilgauskas.  The Cavs had just six points in the paint in the third quarter and they are shooting just 38 percent for the game.  In addition, the Cavs have just four bench points.
–The Cavs are picking up lots of offense rebounds but kicking them out instead of going up many times.  They have a significant edge in rebounds, but the Nets have just as many second-chance points.
–Jason Kidd is just 1-of-8 shooting, Richard Jefferson had just nine points.  Both positives for the Cavs.

–The game is being played at the Cavs pace with the score 43-41, the Nets can win a game like this but would prefer to run a little more.  Still both teams have things to be happy and upset about.
–The Nets are playing the same style the Wizards did last series, doubling or tripling LeBron James and he’s giving it up.  Right now it is Sasha Pavlovic and Larry Hughes who are taking advantage because the Nets are helping with guards in the zone.  The Wizards helped with bigs, which is why Ilgauskas and Gooden were always open.  Of course making Sasha and Hughes beat you is a prudent play over the long haul.  LeBron didn’t score in the second quarter, which the Nets are probably very pleased about.
–After committing just three turnovers in the first quarter, the Nets gave it away seven times in the second, which got the Cavs out and running more.  The Cavs scored 11 points off those TOs, it is why they are leading.
–Early in the quarter you see how fast Vince Carter can change a game.  He made three in a row and it kicked off a 13-2 run.  In the first half he was 6-of-15 for 15 points.  This is acceptable, the Cavs will live with that.  It also benefits that the officials are letting them play so Carter has only gotten to the line once.  More important for the Cavs, Richard Jefferson scored just five points on three shots.  He is the guy that must be held down from the Cavs perspective.
–LeBron James only went to the basket in the half court once and he got an offensive foul.  As a team the Cavs got to foul line just twice, which isn’t their game.  Also, Z and Drew were not factors in the second quarter.  What the Cavs are happy about is they are shooting just 38 percent yet are ahead in the game.  This is because the Nets are shooting just 42 percent and are 2-of-10 on 3-pointers.  The Nets will make some treys.  Now, will the Cavs run better offense and improve that percentage.

–After Mikki Moore scored three quick baskets, Mike Brown switched Zydrunas Ilgauskas to him instead of Drew Gooden.  Still, it appears Gooden was following a game plan by double-teaming Vince Carter and Jason Kidd off pick-and-rolls when Moore got free when Gooden didn’t get back.  Z has also come across to double on Carter in the post a little bit.
–It is obvious the Cavs are going to help on the "big 3" outside and live with entry passes into the weaker interior Nets scorers.  Those guys are going to get easy baskets from time to time.
–The Nets are switching back and forth between zone and man-to-man, which the Cavs are still trying to figure out.  When they go zone, LeBron has been trying to throw passes to cutters in the lane.  LeBron has not yet posted Richard Jefferson up yet, perhaps that is coming.
–Sasha Pavlovic has two early turnovers and has been burned by Carter already.  However, his driving hoop and that 3-pointer probably did a world of good for his confidence.  He’s just going to struggle at times, but he makes up for it by getting going offensively.
–The Cavs didn’t shoot all that well in the first quarter, just 41 percent.  But by denying drives with their pick and roll coverage and help, the Nets took a boatload of jumpers and only shot 39 percent.  Vince Carter was just 2-of-7 shooting because he’s settled for jumpers mostly.  He’ll make those when he gets hot, but that’s what the Cavs want.
–LeBron had six rebounds in the quarter, but the teams were mostly even.  This is an area the Cavs need to win.  Carter and Kidd both had four each.  Pavlovic and Larry Hughes had zero.  That trend can’t continue.

Here live at the Q, where there is a very late arriving crowd.  A couple of notes to pass along before this game starts.

First off, LeBron James is under the weather.  He’s battling a cold and had to leave the floor briefly during pregame warmups.  He said before the game that he didn’t think it would affect him.  We’ll see.

Also, the Nets may be perhaps trying a little of early gamesmanship.  They have claimed the basket in front of the Cavs bench for the first half, which is a switch from routine.  Normally all teams play offense in front of their own bench in the first half so they can have help on defense in the second half.

Check back after each quarter for updates.

Finally it is known for sure the Cavs will get the New Jersey Nets in the second round.  Although Game 6 tonight was much tighter than I thought.  The Raptors died hard. 

Here are the game times:

Game 1 - Sunday, NJ at Cavs, 1 p.m., ABC
Game 2 - Tuesday, NJ at Cavs, 8 p.m., TNT
Game 3 - Saturday,  May 12, Cavs at NJ, 5 p.m., ESPN
Game 4 - Monday, May 14, Cavs at New Jersey, 7 p.m., TNT
Game 5 - Wednesday,  May 16, New Jersey at Cavs, TBD, TNT
Game 6 - Friday,  May 18, Cavs at New Jersey , TBD, ESPN
Game 7 - Sunday, May 20, NJ at Cavs, TBD, TNT

Anyway, like the Cavs, I have been preparing fruitfully for the series.  You can get the general overview and player-by-player matchups and individual scouting breakdown in Sunday’s Beacon Journal and on Ohio.com (yes, it’s already done).

Here’s a deeper look at the Nets, from several scouts I spoke at length with:

Offense
–The Nets run many of the same sets as the Wizards, which is a relic from when Eddie Jordan installed the Princeton offense under Byron Scott.  They will use these sets — like the guard-to-guard action the Wizards and the Nets call "chin" and the side dribble handoff action known to both teams as "forwards out" — early in games.  Late in tight games, though, they will mostly rely on pick-and-roll action setting up Jason Kidd and Vince Carter and spreading the floor with others.
–The Nets get almost no low post scoring from their bigs.  While Mikki Moore has become an option for them over the last few months, he gets most of his points on mid-range jumpers and putbacks.  The Nets paint scoring comes from dribble penetration and from posting Carter and Kidd, who often have smaller defenders.
–The X-factor player for them is Richard Jefferson, the scouts and I believe.  Although Carter will occasionally get hot from the outside and put up 40 points, he’s going to get his 25-30 points through various drives, foul shots and 40 percent shooting from the outside.  Kidd will make outside shots at times, but he often takes more than he should.  Over the last two years, when Jefferson gets going against the Cavs, the Nets win.  When he doesn’t, they don’t.  Jersey need all three guys to be going to beat the Cavs on most nights.
–Kidd is most dangerous when he gets into the paint, causing the defense to collapse.  This is obvious, but the thing is, he’s got lots of ways to get into the paint.  Including when he backs guys down.  Also, he’s tremendous in the fast break because he’ll look to throw 30 or 40 foot passes that beat the defense.  He’s one of the best passers of all time and he averaged a triple double in the series with the Raps.
–Late in games the Nets usually will go small with Moore, Collins  or Josh Boone as their center and Bostjan Nachbar as the 4-man.  Nachbar’s purpose is to spread the floor for when teams collapse on Carter or Kidd on drives.  Nachbar will get open 3s, it is a certainty.  Jefferson also fills this role, but he’s more likely to drive, of course.  This is when they will often run their "fist spread play," which has several options but involves Carter and Kidd creating with screen rolls.  Just like in Game 6 tonight, they really want to pressure the defense to either double team to allow a kickout or draw a foul going 1-on-1.

Defense
–Not unlike the Cavs, the Nets’ mission on defensive is to deny the middle and "shrink the floor."  Often they will go under on pick-and-rolls to discourage driving and encourage pull up jumpers.  The Cavs will often do this as well.
–Here’s the rub on that, though, in general the Nets perimeter guys are not good on ball defenders and the guys in the back are not shot changers.  They are best at playing angles and helping and recovering.  This isn’t unlike the Cavs, either, considering their troubles with quick drivers.
–The Nets do not force a lot of turnovers, they get many off their fast break chances when Kidd or other grab a long rebound off a jumper miss and they push.  Overall, the Nets aren’t great rebounders and really could have trouble with the Cavs offensive rebounders.
–The Nets really had a problem dealing with LeBron James going into the post in the last meeting and it totally took a toll on Jefferson.   Also, while Jason Collins battles on defense, he’s not very good moving on pick-and-rolls.  In fact, Zydrunas Ilgauskas may actually be quicker moving out there.

Much more later, of course.  I am planning on live blogging Game 1.