Cavs 109, Grizzlies 89
–This game was almost like a feel-good practice. The new guys all played well in their own way and the fans were able to greet them. The Grizzlies didn’t put up much of a fight at the start. It reminded me of the game against the Pacers in December when Anderson Varejao played his first game and LeBron James came back from his injury and Larry Hughes made like every shot.
–The biggest thing you can take from this was how well the front line looked. LeBron, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Ben Wallace and Joe Smith combined for 73 points and 36 rebounds. Wallace was able to get plenty of open looks for dunks, which is all you want him to take, and they dominated around the glass. Then again, you aren’t going to be facing the likes of Kwame Brown and Darko Milicic every night. But, Anderson Varejao isn’t in the picture either. The Cavs are banking on that front line to be a massive strength and it showed promise out of the gate.
–Wally Szczberiak wasn’t always in the right place, but he hit a couple 3s. If this is an average game for him, he’s an addition. When he gets going he may have a 30-point night.
–Delonte West missed a lot of shots, he went 2-of-12. He’s having a terrible shooting year, which is one of the reasons the Sonics chose to move him of their point guards. However, he did have six assists and three steals. Want to know what Larry Hughes’ season-high in assists was? Six.
–We will know more about this team after Wednesday when they play in Boston. There are signs there that this could really work out, but I need to see so much more. So this was an easy first step, let’s see what happens next.
–Dan Gilbert spoke to the media before the game. Here’s the best of what he had to say:
“I thought it was pretty important to do something. We got to the Finals with this team, but the competition got harder and it was going to be a bigger challenge than last year. We are trying to build something here. You pay $375 million for a franchise and then break even for a couple years, you can’t start getting cheap now. It’s a big commitment, but before we even look at money we look at what is right basketball wise first. If you do it money first, you may start getting (the front office) gun shy even thinking of ideas.
Recap:
Pregame
Starting lineups
Grizzlies: Mike Conley, Juan Carlos Navarro, Rudy Gay, Hakim Warrick, Kwame Brown
Cavs: Delonte West, Devin Brown, LeBron James, Ben Wallace, Zydrunas Ilgauskas
–West and Brown in the backcourt does NOT give the Cavs a lot of shooting in the backcourt. Not too far off from the Eric Snow/Larry Hughes days if you ask me. But this is just a trial. Wally Szczerbiak will get major minutes off the bench. The problem I see is that if you play Wally with Damon Jones you are going to have some defensive issues. We’ll see, lots to learn over the next few games.
–Mike Miller and Anderson Varejao are out tonight.
–Let’s see how Mike Brown uses his frontcourt rotation. How much he plays Big Ben and Z together and how many minutes Joe Smith gets. I for one think there’s going to be some playing time issues with the bigs when Andy gets back. Someone’s minutes are getting slashed a bit.
–Overall, there’s a lot of excitement here. I expect the performance to be uneven, which is why it is fortunate the Cavs are playing one of the worst teams in the league.
Halftime — Cavs 59, Grizzlies 38
–I am tempted to throw out much of what you see tonight because the Cavs are sort of playing on emotion and the Grizzlies are so horrible.
–However, there are some things you can tell that will last past tonight. Opposing teams are going to pull their 4s out and force Ben Wallace away from the basket when they can. To me, this transition will be interesting for him. But Wallace is so much better defending the high pick-and-roll than Ilgauskas because he’s so much quicker. He’s trying pretty hard tonight, too. He had a steal on the first play of the game and made some othe defensive plays.
–West is very active on defense and he pushes the ball big time. This could be a major upgrade. I have said for some time that they Cavs would benefit from just having a point guard who has good instincts in setting up easy offense. That was not a strongsuit of anyone before, even when LeBron did it he looked to score first, which is what you want. But you want someone running and setting stuff up, which West is showing a little bit tonight.
–Wally Szczerbiak looks like he’s not comfortable with wear his shots are coming from just yet. That’ll take a bit. Joe Smith was very solid in the first half, he was 4-of-4 and had a couple rebounds.
–No one is paying attention, but Devin Brown and Damon Jones are really playing well. Devin had six assists in the half and Damon’s hot shooting is continuing.
–It won’t matter tonight, but man the Grizz are stubborn in how they guard LeBron. They played him 1-on-1 last month and he lit them up for 51. They are doing it again tonight.
Postgame
Stars
LeBron, 25 points, seven rebounds, 11 assists
Ilgauskas, 22 points, 13 rebounds
Wallace, 12 points, 10 rebounds
Hakim Warrick, 21 points, nine rebounds
Quotes:
LeBron: “Ben’s ability to get up and rebound and throw down dunks (showed his potential),” James said. “He’s rejuvenated.”
Joe Smith: “This might have been the first time in a long time I got chills when I took the court. When we ran out on the court for warm-ups the crowd reaction and how they accepted us, I kind of got goose bumps.”
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I imagine you mean that the West/Brown combo does NOT give us much shooting in the backcourt Brian.
Definitely should be interesting to see how everything plays out, but i am pretty surprised Wally is coming off the bench. Hard to imagine that continuing to be the case.
I’m glad to see West starting, it’s like a whole new world for him
The ball never stopped moving early in the first. It’s like not having Hughes around encouraged Lebron to give it up and keep running.
Pretty easy game today but it looks like our bench is pretty good. I’m impressed by Smith, and West looks good despite the cold shooting so far… And quick, three steals already. Like Hughes here, Wallace was kinda out of his element in Chicago. Wallace is what he is and if we use him right he’ll be fine, and it looks like Z is enjoying himself.
Man even Damon Jones is suddenly looking comfortable.
The “new guys” are looking really good! They have combined for 22 pts in the first half. Cavs are leading 59-38. I like this trade because i believe it makes the Cavs a lot more versatile. With Wallace we have a guy who can muscle down low when Z gets winded. Wally gives us another outside shooter and West and Smith are great players too. I’d like to see Lebron go off in the second half and have a 40 point game! Go CAVS!!!
I hope we don’t forget about Damon Jones and Devin Brown in the rush of new players. If they keep this up then IMO they deserve minutes in the playoff.
Also, not seeing the game…is Wallace getting any feeds from Lebron for easy buckets?
Thoughts on this game . . .
Obviously, the score makes no difference as this is a glorified scrimmage but still, a few things stand out so far.
1. It’s early but I’m starting to believe Delonte West is a much bigger part of this deal than I realized. He is a real live competent guard. He can handle the ball, shoot a little bit, pass, penetrate, defend…he doesn’t do any of these things exceptionally well but he is at least average at all of them. For this Cavs team, that skill set at the point position should be a revelation.
2. Ben Wallace is no longer Ben Wallace. It seems pretty obvious that he is no longer the elite defender and rebounder he once was. With that being said, he still appears to be very good at both…just not elite. I think this is more than enough for the Cavs. Without the new guards, I think Larry Hughes would be more valuable to the old Cavs than Wallace just because they would’ve needed the scoring. With the new guys coming in and shifting some scoring to the perimeter, Wallace can be a huge asset. The other teams in the East are going to have an awful time keeping the Cavs off the glass with 4 legit bigs, 3 of whom are awesome rebounders. This will be even more of a problem when the Cavs are on offense because so many teams have to take their guys out of rebounding position to defend Lebron. I think Wallace will fit well with this new roster. The Cavs now have the best rebounding and defending frontcourt, perhaps in the entire NBA.
4. Szczerbiak certainly has a pure stroke. If he can’t hit open shots playing with Lebron, it will be tough to explain. With Damon Jones playing the way he is and Boobie coming back, the Cavs should have 3 lethal gunners ready for the playoffs. Have fun with that Boston and Detroit.
3. These guys really are going to love playing with Lebron. Look at what a guy like Joe Smith can do when he’s just an afterthought to the opposition at the offensive end.
4. The Cavs, even with 2.5 key players still out with injuries, are 100% more watchable already. I know they were playing the NBA’s version of a JV team tonight and everyone was fired up but its just a day and night difference between bona-fide NBA players and the has beens/never weres that have now been sent to torment fans in Chicago and Seattle.
5. I think this team will have a tough time beating good teams for a while just because they have no idea where they all fit in. In time though, I really think the Cavs will be the best team in the East.
Effortless win. This is a deep squad, even with Varejao/Dracula out. Love the defense from the guards. Cavs are made for the playoffs. They’re going to get the third seed; bank on it.
Delonte West is an odd looking dude. He actually frightened my wife the first time she saw him on the big screen. Sczerbiak looks like a guy who plays a lot of racquetball in the offseason.
LOL Yes, the thing about West is that he’s still learning and now he’s suddenly in a real good situation. A much better thought than Kermit Bibby in the long run. Plus we don’t have to wonder why he’s impersonating kermit the frog in the post game interviews.
I don’t know, Biff. Local folks also had the same kind of giddiness the first month after the Cavs did that Eric Williams, Tony Battie and Kedrick Brown trade.
I think West is an upgrade at the point, but then again, so was just about anybody who has some semblance of ability to dribble and drive. I don’t think he’s a long-term answer, he’s a stiff in a better-defending Jeff McInnis kind of mold, but I suppose for now he’s better than either Hughes or Gibson out there.
I think the trade will help Cleveland, mostly because of what was unloaded. Major addition by subtraction. A vat of Sean Kemp’s splooge was better than the garbage they unloaded. To receive anything with a pulse in return was a bonus.
What bothers me about the trade is not the trade itself, which I do like, but the absurd PR nonsense being spread by Windy, the Reverend Pluto, et al. As if the movement of Gasol, Kidd and Bibby nearly causing James’ head to explode wasn’t the true underlying engine that drove Ferry and Gilbert to get off their cushy sofa. A calculated long-term business gamble, if they can persuade James to stick around for one more season beyond his opt-out year, it will far more than offset any additional payroll and luxury tax expense. And from a PR perspective, it consciously serves to alter public perception that Ferry is a blue-blooded statue.
Couldn’t stand Delonte West as a Celtic because he was so dang ugly! One of the weirdest shaped heads I’ve ever seen, and sort of a scar running from the bottom of the right side of his lips. Scary indeed……add the weirdo tats and then listen to him talk (or attempt to talk) and you’d think you’re looking at something far worse than a gangsta thug. Is that what they produce on the streets of Philadelphia?
That said, he’s a CAV now so I’ll do my best to overlook the above (it will be tough-it disgusted me to look at him when the CAVS used to play the Celtics). If he can penetrate and dish like he did tonight and hit the occasional J I’ll try and focus on the court and not his mug.
Alan, I’m not sure what you’re talking about. Clearly no one was as excited for the Battie trade. I mean, seriously, this is a move that have Cavs fans thinking they could win the title, not even remotely comparable.
On your other point, it’s laughable for fans to contradict those actually in contact with league sources and say Ferry wasn’t trying to do anything until recently. When every source that covers the Cavs, and even some national outlets, say they’ve been trying to move Gooden and Hughes for more than a year, for anyone to say this is just a counter to the Gasol, Kidd and Bibby moves is nuts. They’re trying to win, and I’m sure Ferry was trying to get all three of those players, but didn’t have the pieces.
I loved Dan Gilbert coming into the booth and saying “when I first got here a lot of people here was talking about how everyone in the national media is anti-cleveland. I thought it was really a victim mentality – but now it’s obvious to me that there are people that don’t want to see Cleveland win.” And then he made fun of the Orlando dude that says the Cleveland trade HELPED Orlando…
Liked what I saw from Joe Smith tonight.
Get a clue Alan!!
Oh, come on, Bob. Purported “league sources” have been giving the locals baloney sandwiches of non-existent Ferry deals for nearly three years. The buzzword was supposedly “flexibility,” even to the point of causing Varejao to be a short-term rental. So if Sideshow isn’t traded before next year’s deadline, he’s gone for nothing. Now, suddenly, Ferry decides to pull a trigger and spend more money on payroll, the direct opposite of what they were plainly and very diligently attempting to avoid? Please.
There are coincidences, and then there is the obvious. No matter what it took, if Ferry didn’t make some kind of major move after the movement of Gasol, Kidd and Bibby to teams other than Cleveland, this would have been LeBron:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HY-03vYYAjA&feature=related
So the first quarter romp was adrenaline. How would the last 3 quarters match up against a good team? Will the adrenaline continue for the rest of the season? Will it last through the back-to-back sending us to Boston this week?
Wallace may not longer be an “elite” defender, but I think I saw him rotate defensively more times tonight than Drew Gooden did all year. He’s still got quickness and with the Cavs’ perimeter defense, he’ll have plenty of opportunities to protect the paint. I’m looking forward to the combo of Varejao drawing charges with Wallace blocking shots.
Cavs are a decent 2-guard away from a championship. Can they make the salaries work for another big trade next year?
Whoops. Along with Gasol, Kidd and Bibby being moved, I don’t know how I forgot to write O’Neal.
I was impressed with the victory, but the amusing part of the night came after I changed over to the Bulls/Rockets game and watched Drew Gooden badly miss on a defensive rotation after watching Ben Wallace and Z switch off consistently when needed.
Also, has anyone else noticed that some Chicago writers think the Bulls ripped off the Cavs in this deal? They evidently think that they’re getting superstars in Larry Hughes and Gooden and we’re getting a cancer in Wallace.
There’s still a long way to go to see if this deal works out, but tonight was a great start.
guys, let’s welcome Alan back from his long slumber rather than berate him. some people are just different and Alan will never like Danny Ferry or what Brian writes. There’s no use trying to change his mind.
Welcome back, alan! can’t wait to read your opinions again. They always make me laugh.
Props to whomever came up with the Sasha/Dracula comparison. Thankfully, I wasn’t eating or drinking anything when i saw it. I think we need a PS of Sasha as Dracula.
Finally, this is what we’ve been looking for. Moveable, talented role players around Lebron. This team has so much more depth. They can play a set offense and they can run. This team will return to the finals. It doesn’t take much with Lebron playing the best basketball of his career. And now, they have so much more than that!
Geez all of you are acting like the trade was made at the end of the season and we’re heading into the playoffs tomorrow! For Chrissake, give these cats time to mesh with one another and see what happens. It’s WAY WAY WAY WAY WAAAAAY too premature to make any kind of judgement. THEY’VE HAD ONE PRACTICE TOGETHER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Gaaaaawd…now that I’ve gotten that out, considering they’ve only had that one practice together all the new guys contributed well, Joe Smith is a steal, Szczerbiak had an bad night, Ben Wallace showed us that he can still be a very good defender and Delonte showed signs of being a good perimeter defender as well as a good passer and decision maker.
Will it work out? Time will tell. Just sit back and enjoy the ride for the next couple weeks and watch these guys get to know each other. It should be pretty fun.
To Defensive Rotation, I think it should be easy to make a move next year. The salary situation looks mostly the same as it did before with the addition of about $5 mil per year more. They added Szczerbiak’s contract which expires at the end of next season an is a whopping $13 million next year. With that they should be able to make a move with any rebuilding team looking to move a star or near star caliber player. Look what the Lakers got for Kwame Brown’s $9 million expiring this year! Since Milwaukee is rebuilding around Bogut and Yi, can anyone here say Michael Redd?
Hughes has recently been having the best stretch he’s had since he was with the Wizards…making him look almost like a mediocre but legitimate NBA player. 13 points on 11 shots against Houston today, which for him is pretty good. Still think we came out ahead though.
West is going to be left wiiide open until he proves he can shoot.
You’re probably right to some degree Alan. This game doesn’t prove much of anything and there is a definite honeymoon period after any major acquisition. That being said, the points being made about defensive rotations, shooting, etc. are on the money. I mean we literally traded away garbage. These guys may not be the most talented players in the world but they know what they’re doing. I’m sure there are going to be plenty of nights when we’re trying to come back in the 4th and Wallace is bricking free throws and West is taking bad shots but for now, lets just all enjoy our good fortune.
Flip on a Bulls or Sonics game this week and tell me that my exuberance is irrational…
LeCavalier, I’m really not a Transylvania expert or anything, and really don’t deserve any kudos for it, but I’m the guy who noticed that Pavlovic is a dead ringer for Dracula.
And Biff, I think you mean that they figuratively traded away garbage, not literally traded away. Although, I certainly think Hughes, Newble and Marshall should be living in a dumpster, if not dumped into one.
I said that James could still drag the team back into the finals before the trade, and I still believe that. But it won’t be because of the trade. Actually, I’m kind of interested to see what they look like with Wallace and Sideshow on the floor at the same time. That could get pretty ugly. Figuratively. Literally, if you look at West. I think Nazi mad scientists mated Bob Sura with Jason Kidd and David Wesley.
Sasha/Dracula PS coming soon…
Delonte West is pushing to make the Cavs all-ugly team:
PG – Delonte West
SG – Wesley Person
SF –
PF – Tyrone Hill
C – Scott Pollard
Help me out with some suggestions….
in a history of saying some of the stupidest things *ever* said about the cavs, tucker topped himself with this bit of idiocy: “I said that James could still drag the team back into the finals before the trade, and I still believe that. But it won’t be because of the trade.”
uh huh…”won’t be because of the trade,” eh? yeah, you’re right, alan, *clearly* having a squad eleven deep, when healthy, filled with veterans with career numbers (and most importantly, MUCH better basketball iq’s than the people we traded away) better than the people they were traded for won’t make a damn bit of difference, eh? wow, are you for real? you can’t seriously know *anything* about nba basketball and really believe what you wrote.
FWIW, finan at the LMJ is on board with the new look cavs and unlike some writers, unafraid to stick his neck out! just kidding, windy…
he says “Once the Cavs’ injured players return, not only will they have a bloated roster, they are going to be an Eastern Conference power.
I’ve finally drank the Kool-Aid. This is going to be an accomplished team, one that should get back to the NBA Finals. They’ll likely have to face either Boston or Detroit in the second round of the playoffs.
I think they’re a better team than Boston. The Pistons still bother me. I worry about defensive coverage of Detroit’s backcourt. But, remember, the Cavs still have No. 23 on their roster. He’s the equalizer, and someone the Pistons have been unable to deal with over the years.”
hard to argue with his conclusions…except, of course, if you’re a bitter, old fool who hates cleveland and the cavs…
the cavs have two away games mid-week and then they’re home for 5-6 days with only two home games. i expect to see more improvement after that stretch as we will have had time to get some practice time in – particularly on defense. that time will probably also give coach brown a better idea how much of a potential liability szczerbiak will be defensively which will have an impact on how much playing time wally gets. i’ve heard that wally is finally healthy so as long as he hustles he should be on the floor enough to open up the court for lebron – or at least until gibson gets healthy – and also keep damon jones hustling instead of thinking that he’s a lock to get court time.
if big ben can alter as few as 5 shots a game, especially as a help.weak-side defender, he more than makes up for gooden’s offense and anything he scores is gravy IMO – but it was nice to see him start with a double-double. andt we still have joe smith who can duplicate gooden’s offense – in fewer minutes *and* defend. our interior defense is going to be really really tough when it gels. i’m guessing that Z will also benefit because he’ll be playing fewer minutes when V cames back so hopefully he’ll be fresher come playoff time.
i didn’t realize how badly snow was hurt when he hurt his knee last fall; getting west was actually a bigger deal than i would have thought – he can run the floor and at 6′3″, big enough to defend bigger guards. and if pavlovic can recover and play better now that his dad is in town (he was starting to play better when he got hurt, dad just got to US a week earlier, and according to BW, pavlovic was always calling home), we might be ok there.
AND we’re still in position to make a major trade next year with 30 million in expiring contracts.
I’ve been away for a few days, but I take it all of you apologized to Ferry and the front office for your lack of faith? This trade was an absolute coup, a masterpiece, and anyone who continues to be pessimistic at this point is obviously a walking charade. The Eastern Conference playoffs just got REAL interesting…
I cant wait till this roster gets healthy.
It is a coup but there’s no reason to apologize to Ferry. The time to make over rosters is in the summer, not late Feb. Odds are, it’s too late and there’s been a wasted season in LeBron’s career, but I hope not. In any case, the trade was confirmation that Ferry’s previous work had in large part failed.
I also enjoy the notion that Gilbert’s generosity made this happen. If LeBron were to leave the team in disgust in a couple years, Gilbert is liable to lose a hundred million or so in franchise value, I’d guess. I’m sure he wants to win, but winning is money especially considering the LeBron situation.
That said, the trade was brilliant. I’m especially pleased at the team’s new look, as some have discussed–I can’t wait to see Pavs, West and Devin Brown on the court at one time, along with Big Ben and AV with their afros teased out for maximum effect. Scary.
Hey Alan, you have to be joking right? The Cavs have been trying to move Hughes for not 1 year but 2 years now and although they may have not been actively trying to move Gooden, everyone knows they would move him, hell he was in the deal over the summer for Scola and Bibby, so quit with your anti Ferry and beat writers junk and either stop watching or be honest at least. Of course there is a impending sense of helping Lebron, that has been obvious for years now. You continue to prove you know as much about hoops as Stephen A. Blowhard. Nice try Alan but your ignorance continues to amaze even me, just when I think you may have a pea rattling around up there you go and blow it again.
larry d. it is a logical fallacy, to say the least, to insist that this trade “was confirmation that Ferry’s previous work had in large part failed.” the cavs have had the most successful run in their history under ferry. his only “fail(ure)” was the hughes signing, i guess BUT EVERYONE, including LBJ, loved the signing at the time. jones and marshall were good signings, without question and the drafting of gibson a coup as well. the drafting of shannon brown was a good move as well, i think, but mike brown didn’t do a good job of developing him.
now, you may be right that making over the team now is a case of wrong timing, though i disagree but give ferry credit for seeing how the season was playing out with both his team and the other contenders and then making a deal to improve his team as the contenders made moves. sure, it was reactionary but that is not always a bad thing at all.
one more thing, i wish this was discussed more in the media but i suppose it’s a somewhat delicate thing to bring up but it became obvious to me this season, and it must’ve to the front office as well, that perhaps the most important attribute a player who will play with LBJ must have is a high basketball IQ or court smarts. the trades we made got rid of all those players that didn’t have that (save for pavs, i’m sorry to say) attribute and brought in players who do. everyone of these players brought in are a mental upgrade over the players traded. it was obvious in just the game last night. this will not only make LBJ’s life easier it will cover up those mental lapses Z still suffers from as well. i cannot emphasize enough how important this will be in the coming months…
B. McCoy, they’ve been “trying” to move Hughes? They were “actively” trying to move Gooden? Well, what stopped them? I’ll tell you what stopped them. They didn’t want to take on other team’s bad contracts. They didn’t want to take on more payroll. They didn’t want to take on more luxury tax. Indeed, despite what Windy says, Quicken is not in good shape, and if you know anybody who works at Quicken, ask them what’s been going on. Quicken hasn’t been immune to what’s happening all over the country, it ain’t the least bit pretty. Gilbert & Co. were refusing to put any more money into anything Cavs-related, whether it be payroll or halftime shows. Now, suddenly, after Gasol, O’Neal, Kidd and Bibby are moved, and the Franchise’s skull is in full Scanners mode, they do a complete 180, completely disregard the foolishness and embarrassment of this past summer, and take on other team’s bad contracts and more payroll? Please don’t tell me you think it’s a coincidence.
Biff…..an addition to your “all-ugly” Cavs team:
Edgar “Vampire” Jones-F/C
(played without his front teeth).
Biff-oh, and here’s a power forward “all ugly” candidate”:
Paul Mokeski
7″ F/C
Is it true that Delonte West is dating Jessica Simpson?
(T. Romo dumped her and she’s supposedly on the prowl).
So thats your excuse Alan? The only reason they made a move was because of the moves the Western Conference made? To me, it may have played part of it but not what you are saying.
Even if those moves did not happen, Ferry was going to do something. The writing was on the wall. Would the same trade have happened, maybe not. But there were clear signs that the Cavs wanted to make a move.
Even if Quicken is not doing as great, the Cavs playing well and LeBron staying is more valuable to Gilbert then Quicken. Even a year over the salary cap wont hurt hurt Gilbert unless the trade flops.
You wanted Ferry to make a move, now you got it. Be happy like the rest of us. Admit you were wrong. It is not so bad!
Ya know whats odd? We trade two of our starters (Gooden and Hughes) to a terrible team like Chicago, and they don’t even start for Chicago, they came off the bench.
kj, I guess it depends on what you think Ferry’s goals are. He brought in some veterans and helped turn the team into Eastern Conference champs, making basketball pretty relevant in Cleveland. That’s great and it would be considered highly successful in most circumstances.
But if his goal is to build a team that will win championships, and keep LeBron around so his owner can make more dough, he came up short in the first go-around. He realized it and has now moved on.
For all those picking on Delonte West out there, I recommend you YouTube him. There’s lots of interview clips on there and he very well could be the single funniest player in the NBA. Also, has anyone noticed that because of this trade LeBron’s two biggest victims are now on a team with him? If you watch his NBA TV top ten dunks, the two guys who get hit hardest are none other than Delonte West and Damon Jones (dunks #4 and 1 respectively). I wonder if that’s awkward in the locker room.
Part of the reason that this trade will work is that, hard as it is to believe, I think LeBron is the most improved player in the NBA this year.
Last year he was learning how to be the closer; this year he IS THE MAN in the 4th quarter.
The Finals taught him that he has to take it to the hole in the 4th quarter, and he has not forgotten that lesson, as you may have noticed. And with Gibson and Wally to knock down 3 pointers, he will make them pay if they try to clog the paint.
If the Cavs go into the last 3 minutes down by 4 or less, then BEWARE. Shaq may be the Diesel, but LeBron is the Streamline Express Train headed for the basket.
Mort:
I’m gonna have to disagree on Mokeski. From this picture, he doesn’t look all that bad….not that there’s anything wrong with that.
http://www.cavshistory.com/menupages/playerpage.php?player=161
I’ll give you Edgar Jones. I’d never even heard of this guy but he’s hideous.
http://www.nba.com/media/cavaliers/edgar_sm.jpg
Alan what a financial analyst you are, when are you appearing on MSNBC so I can listen for more wisdom. Hey Alan when did Memphis make Gasol available, when did Miami make Shaq available and when did Kidd become available, not over the summer just within the last month so to talk about over the summer is irrelevant, they tried to do a deal and it didn’t work out for Bibby (which is good news to me) See Alan teams usually don’t move star players in the off season, that is done around the deadline just as this was. So keep living in the past, I have no doubt that if the right trade was presented over the summer it would have gotten done, so keep thinking the the economy is the driving factor in our decisions, the last time I checked Gilbert is worth hundreds of millions, so I don’t think that if Quicken is hurting really affects us when you are dealing with hundreds of millions of dollars.
Who watches PMSNBC?
Look, if you’re going to field an All-Ugly Team, there’s no way Delonte West starts ahead of Sam Cassell. West may have some aesthetic issues, but Sam looks like a sleep-deprived alien that got hit in the face with a shovel.
By the way, Tucker, everyone makes the Sasha/Dracula connection. Taking credit for that is like taking credit for noticing that the sky is blue or that Terry Pluto’s columns are boring.
Now, calling attention to the Mike Brown/Bill Dukes resemblance–that takes genius.
PS: I am the one who called attention to the Mike Brown/Bill Dukes resemblance.
Nice call on the Delonte Humor Factor:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TyAVieST3Ks&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
And since we’re all taking credit for nicknames, I invented Boatshoes and Bongyell. And I’m not convinced Dracula is the best name for Sasha. It’s too cool of a nickname for a guy who hasn’t done much. At best he’s the Sesame Street Count, at this point in his career. http://www.sesameworkshop.org/aboutus/pressroom/presskits/season37/images/muppets_6.jpg
Cassell was never a Cavalier (at least to my knowledge). Thus, he can’t be on the roster.