- This quote from Tayshaun Prince says a lot about the Pistons psyche when they go back to Motown and heaven forbid they go down 2-0:

We haven’t played well at home all season. Being down 2-0 against them puts yourself in a tough situation because this season we played better on the road than we did at home.  We’ve had a lot of bad losses at home to teams we definitely should have beat.  To get in the playoffs now and obviously have your home crowd and court is something that’s important, but we’ve definitely shown throughout the season that we haven’t done a good job of taking care of our home court.

Think they’ve already tossed in the towel?

- Mo Williams doesn’t seem worried about the Pistons stifling LeBron:

We’ve seen it all. There won’t be nothing a team throws at us that we haven’t seen at some point in time this season.  We just read and react.  ‘Bron is a good enough player to react and if they double team him, he’s a good enough player to find the open man.  It’s up to us to knock it down.

- Coach Mike Brown may have heard from some of his former coaching mentors, but he’s not sure:

I’m sure I have, but this is on overload (laughing as he points to his Blackberry) right now. I still havent’ gotten back to them.  I haven’t checked.

- Lastly, Brown’s sons got the pleasure of telling their father he’d won Coach of the Year.  G.M. Danny Ferry hearded the entire Brown family, along with the team’s three owners and assistant G.M. Lance Blanks into Brown’s office where the boys delivered the news:

I can’t remember which of my two boys said it, but they kind of make fun of me because I say ‘heckuva’ a lot. They were going ‘Mike is a heckuva…’ And one of them said ‘He’s a heckuva coach of a the year.’ I said ‘Oh’ and we had out little celebration moved on.

Personally, I’ve never read so much blather about two trades a team makes to rid themselves of cap room by getting rid of Zach Randolph and Jamal Crawford and clearing tons of cap space.

What’s it do?  A team that had no legitimate shot at making a run at James 48 hours ago, has one now.  My guess is James is probably intrigued by the prospect of playing in a Mike D’Antoni offense.  My guess is the prospect of playing in NYC is even more intriguing.

 Let’s hear it for the worst kept secret in professional basketball – the New York Knicks covet LeBron James.  Wow!  Shock.  Dismay.  I’m MORTIFIED, I tell you.  Mortified.

Here’s some of the stuff coming out of the Big Apple:

Go ahead, now you can start dreaming about LeBron James wearing a Knicks uniform.

Of course, it can’t be for another two seasons, but some things in life are worth waiting for, and King James is one of them.

Here’s one from Mike Lupica, a columnist I’ve always admired, actually looking at the bigger picture:

And if the Knicks don’t get LeBron – even though Walsh will have them as well-positioned as any team in the league by then – they can go after Chris Bosh, or Dwyane Wade, or Amare Stoudemire. They might even have a chance at Steve Nash, too.

Get used to this stuff – especially for the next few days when the Cavs march into Madison Square Garden for a game against the reconstituted Knicks.  It’s only going to get worse as the New York media peppers James – who is getting increasingly annoyed with the situation – regarding something that won’t happen for two years.

It’s a distinct possibility that James will vacate Cleveland for the bright lights and big city.  If that’s what he wants, who can stop him.  I’ve only seen James on a more extensive basis for the past two months. But he’s been consistent in what he says regarding leaving town.  He’s worried about the here and now.  Winning a championship and the distinct impression from the players is that they believe that they can with this current roster.

The word “special” is bandied about when they mention the team.  Even the normally cynical media that something different is in the works here.  Only time will tell.

What I can surmise is this – James wants to be with a team that has the chance to win multiple titles.  Last I checked, the Knicks hadn’t been in that position since the Patrick Ewing era and even then fell short. NYC is viewed as a basketball Mecca. Hell, folks like to view it as a Mecca for all things.  Me?  Great place to visit for four-day stretches.  Couldn’t live there.  But I’m not LeBron James.

If basketball is truly his primary interest – despite saying he’d like to be the Muhammad Ali of the basketball world and make a billion dollars – the only place he’ll want to be is where he can win those multiple championships.  Right now, the Cavs arguably has the best owner in town in Dan Gilbert.  Something struck me about him when he met with the media earlier this season when he said when you pay more than $300 million now’s not the time to get cheap.  He’s currently paying the leaugue’s luxury tax.  If the Cavs lose James it won’t be because he’s unwilling to spend money.

People like to tout that “bright lights, big city” thing and say that’s the only way James can reach his goals.  That rationale smells worse than any Ted Stepien owned Cavaliers team.  We live in the Internet Age.  Folks can buy what they want, watch what they want and listen to what they want with a click of a mouse. James is far too savvy at his age to not realize that. He can sell his shoes, gum, soft drinks and jerseys playing for the Cavaliers.

The key:  Being with a franchise set up to win.  In that respect, the ball’s in Danny Ferry and Gilbert’s court.

Yes, the countdown has begun.  Two years left on the contract.  Watching the Celtics raise their championship banner and get bedecked in jewels, LeBron James is ready to bolt.  That’s the belief on the national level.

With James, the Cavaliers are running out of time. It’s two seasons and counting until he can become a free agent. To listen to Cleveland owner Dan Gilbert dismiss the possibility of James leaving in the summer of 2010 for a bigger market as a product of “bored sportswriters” is beyond laughable. These aren’t bored sportswriters, but a restless superstar and a stable of handlers seemingly sold on his exit.

Get used to it Cavs fans because whenever James arrives in a town for the first time over the course of the next couple of seasons.  That will be one of the first questions asked of him.   Given that in an interview with ESPN a couple of seasons back, he said that he wanted to be a sports ambassador to the world along the lines of Muhammad Ali, then it’s a possibilty he bolts.  The only tact that Cavs fans can take is hoping that Danny Ferry and Dan Gilbert do enough to keep him here.

To those who continue to read this, I may be walking around in a haze for just a couple weeks, so be it.  Everything has a learning curve, even covering an NBA team with the most popular player on the planet in his hometown paper…errr…blog…Yeah, well you know what the heck I’m trying to say.

Ran across one piece while browsing the innertubes this a.m. comparing the offseason moves made by the Cavaliers and Toroto Raptors.  How apropos considering they just squared off last night. Everyone in the league knows that the Cavs got Mo Williams in an off-season trade.

The Raptors, they got Jermaine O’Neal from Indiana Pacers.  With big moves, come big expecations and HoopsWorld’s Tommy Beer has a great take on it.  O’Neal attracted plenty of interest in the offseason – even from the Cavaliers, Mike Brown said last night.

And on a completely different note:  I mentioned in this part of cyberspace Cavaliers owner Daniel Gilbert got some heat regarding his comments and continued insistence on the national level that LeBron James will eventual bolt the snowy roads of Northeast Ohio for the Great White Way of New York City.  Hey, after all, it’s the only city big enough for him.

James told fans at a voter registration rally that he wouldn’t be going anywhere.  Apparently, even the prospect of James not taking a bite out of the Big Apple is unfathomable to Joe DeLassio of New York Magazine.  It’s must reading.

Anyone whose read me in my nine years at the ABJ knows that for the first seven, I was the paper’s movie critic.  I’ve spent a lot of time in New York and Los Angeles.  At times it felt like too much.  New York, great place to visit but…  You can finish the sentence.  Most New Yorkers, depending on where you are in the city are a down home lot.  While covering movies, however, I felt more comfortable with the hotel staff then I ever did with studio executives.

With that Manhattan crowd, there was always this sense of disbelief that I could never want to live in NYC with its $2,500-a-month rent for 900 square feet of space, the smell of horse sweat, horse urine, and pretzels. With my proclamation also came a hint of condescension.  You know, NYC is the center of the universe.  Yada, yada, yada to borrow from its native son, Jerry Seinfeld.

If you’re poking around the Internet (as you obviously are now) take a look at a piece from the News Herald’s Bob Finnan regarding Anderson Varejao’s future with the Cavaliers.  It makes for some interesting reading for Cavs’ fans.

Looking for humorous take on the Varejao situation? Check out Marcel Mutoni over at Slamonline.com.  He takes a look at Finnan’s article, but you gotta love a guy with a sense of humor.  The money quote:

Sign him to a long-term deal, don’t sign him. I don’t really care either way. Just don’t make me think about Sideshow Bob too much.

What’s with financial institutions in Detroit and Cleveland?  National City Bank, headquartered in Cleveland, signed a deal to be a Detroit Pistons sponsor Wednesday. Methinks that they have identity crises.  Quicken Loans Arena is named for owner Daniel Gilbert’s other little baby.  At least that deal makes some sense.

First, let’s deal with the two-ton elephant in this cyber room if you will.  I ain’t Brian Windhorst.  Although he and I possess the same physique, I’ve got about 13 years on him and I have a much better tan – much better.  I’d like to say he’s a friend. He’s taught me a few things about hoops and the Cavs in particular, but he and I are different people.  So, by all means, feel free to bash me in different ways.  That being said, let’s take a look at what’s happening with the Cavaliers in the NBA and a couple of things fans may want to check out:

First stop John Hollinger  at espn.com and his look at the Cavaliers and their prospects for the season.  I’ve never been one for trying to predict how sports teams will perform in any given season.  Why? Look at the Cleveland Browns right now.  Nor can you ever account for X factors such as team chemistry.

No one knows what effect that the addition of Mo Williams will have on the Cavs.  Judging from just one performance Saturday, the upside will have fans salivating.  Williams brings a dimension that the team’s not seen since Andre Miller wore the wine and …err…orange and blue.  Hollinger in his preview expects the Cavs to be a five seed for the playoffs. Yours truly can only say:  we shall see.  He may have something with this thought, however:

Filling out the rotation is Pavlovic, who has had four absolutely horrible pro seasons and one halfway decent one. Anybody want to take odds on how this season turns out?

Looking for just a little insight into who Mo Wiliams is?  Take a look at this piece  from the Cleveland Free Time’s Vince Grzegorek – a little over a month in town and Williams is already enjoying a local delicacy – pierogies.  Yes, there’s more to it than the fact that Williams enjoys ethnic foods.  After the debacle that was Larry Hughes, it’s refreshing to hear someone brought here to help LeBron James talk about playing as part of a team.

There’s been a lot of speculation – LOTS – about LeBron Jamesleaving the Cavs for pastures that may not necessarily be greener, but more in the spotlight.  Holding court on Media Day last week, James, the Akron native tried to end speculation.  Will those words suffice?  Some would say that you handle politicians and athletes the same way – you take what they say with a healthy dose of skepticism.  But since signing his contract, James consistently has said he’s happy here.

It’s quite evident they have an owner in Dan Gilbert, for whom money is no object (the team has one of the highest payrolls in the NBA) and when James’ contract is up in 2010, the team will have a pile of cash under the salary camp.  Realistically speaking, however, the speculation won’t end until James re-signs or leaves.

Gilbert knows this, but still his remarks related to James’ leaving made a bit of news nationally.  So much so that it set off the snark-o-meter of Lang Whitaker on his Slam Magazine blog.  Yes, the next two years will be tons of fun.