Apologies for no halftime analysis, but I was working on getting news of Delonte West’s injury and let’s face it, if you’re a Cavs’ fan it’s not good.

It’s easy to look at West’s 12 points per game, four assists and the rest of it and say that those numbers are replaceable, but there are other factors to deal with here.

This loss could be as big as losing Zydrunas Ilgauskas, primarily because West brings other intangibles to the game.  Those 12 points can be made up in other ways, but what about West’s defense?

Other than LeBron James he might be the team’s most consistent defender this season, taking on bigger, taller shooting guards in the league and rarely, if ever, truly getting lit up.

He’s a crafty, intelligent ball player who plays defense that way, often blanketing opponents and still managing not to get called for a foul.

And for a while there, after his injury, the Cavaliers looked just a wee bit lost and, I’d argue, they missed his defense down the stretch with the game on the line and clinging to a very narrow lead.

So what next?  Who’s got to step up?  I suspect you see Sasha Pavlovic move into that starting role and Daniel Gibson will still come off the bench, primarily because Mike Brown has consistently said that Gibson plays better in that particular role.

But if Cavs fans are honest and realistic, Pavlovic will have some big sneakers to fill because defensively, he’s not West and he’s never played as consistently as him.

After the game LeBron James had this look of resignation on his face as if something was slipping away from him with this wave of injuries.  He could be right, but the Cavs believed when the season started that they had a very deep bench.  Now, they get to find out just how true that is.

Quotable:

Mike Brown on Delonte West’s injury:

That is just part of basketball.  We just have to have the other guys step up.  Tonight I rode some guys for too long which is something you can have a tendency to do when an injury like that occurs.

LeBron James on the Cavs’ injury bug:

They say all teams go through this at some time.  It just seems our team is going through it with our starters and not just for two or three days.  Z is out for a month, Ben is out and now Delonte for how long.  It’s a real challenge.  We just have to go out there and do it.

Game:  Cavs (30-6) at Chicago Bulls (16-22)

Broadcast:  TV: FSOhio, TNT WAKR (1590 AM); WTAM (1100 AM), WHBC (1480 AM)

Starters: Cavs:  LeBron James (F); Lorenzen Wright (F); Anderson Varejao (C); Delonte West (G); Mo Williams (G).  Bulls:  Tyrus Thomas (F); Luol Deng (F); Joakim Noah (C); Ben Gordon (G); Derrick Rose (G).
Injured-inactive: Cavs: Ben Wallace (flu); Zydrunas Ilgauskas (ankle). Bulls: Michael Ruffin, Cedric Simmons.

Officials:  Joe DeRosa, James Capers, Leroy Richardson

Streaking:  Cavs have won three in a row. The Bulls have won their last game.

So far this year:  The Cavs have won all three games.  LeBron James has averaged 32.7 points in those contests

Three things to watch:

• Mo Williams-Derrick Rose – Rose is coming off a double-double (25 points, 10 assists) against the Toronto Raptors Wednesday while Williams and his backups gave up 25 to the Memphis Grizzlies Kevin Lowry.  To be fair 15 of those points came on free throws, but displays how Lowry was able to penetrate the Cavs defense and get to the hoop and get a shot off.  Williams will have to watch Rose’s perimeter game and ability to go inside.
• Bulls as a team – They’re playing their fifth game in less than a week.  Reading that is enough to make me tired.  They’re 2-2 in that stretch and played well enough to beat Toronto in their building Wednesday, but fatigue could be a factor.
• Drew Gooden – Gooden is averaging more than 19 points a game and more than 10 rebounds in the four games since his return from an injury. It must be the beard.

Quotable:

From the coach’s office:

Mike Brown on the return of Kirk Hinrich and Drew Gooden:

You’re talking about an All-Star and Olympian in Hinrich and somebody close to being an All-Star in Drew.  It’s two very talented guys who are veterans, who are experienced and who know how to score baskets.  That’s going to make it a lot tougher on us because of the experience and scoring capabalities they bring to the table.

From the locker room:

Lorenzen Wright on starting his second game:

You just have to get back into the swing of things,” he said. It’s not about the start.  It’s about starting with the players that you’ve never played with, so you really don’t know where you fit in, so you have to figure out everything on the fly

Post mortem:

Cavs 102, Grizzlies 87

Want to sum this win up succinctly?  Two words:  LEBRON JAMES.  While the team wasn’t necessarily flat, James lit the fuse that blew this one open.  He walked into the locker room with just nine points and left the game with 30.  Toss in 11 rebounds and 10 assists that inspired his teammates and you get a win.  No one, least of all Rudy Gay had any answers for James as he dunked, hit layups, made steals, grabbed rebounds and dished the ball of.  Was he alone in his effort?  Not even close.

The backcourt tandem of Mo Williams (16 points) and Delonte West (19 points) combined for 35 points. But it was his defense that proved key as he may as well have kept O.J. Mayo bound, gagged and locked in a broom closet. Mayo averages close to 20 points per game, but scored just six on the night.

Quotable:

From the coach’s office:

Mike Brown on West’s defense:

O.J. Mayo is a great young player.  He is a guy who knows how to score in a lot of different ways.  Delonte did a nice job of making O.J. work for his looks.   Delonte had good team dfense behind him and he did a great job of making that young guy work.

From the locker room:

LeBron James on his triple-double:

I had no idea about the triple-double.  I’m just out there playing.  We really had to pick it up on the boards tonight.  We wanted to really get to the glass and put pressure on them. 

At the half:

Cavs 47, Grizzlies 44

Ummm…the Grizzlies shoot 35 percent, yet only trail by three at the half.   What’s wrong with this picture.  Star with the Grizzlies getting 11 more trips to the free throw line than the Cavaliers and making the most of those shots.  Then there’s the matter of the second chance points (6-0) the Grizzlies got in the half, including one on LeBron James for holding on to the rim that I’ve not seen call all season.   One of the myriad of things that irk me about the NBA – a lack of consistency.  Refereeing is so subjective in the league no player has any idea what they’re going to get called for game go game.  To the second half.

Game:  Cavs (29-6) vs. Miami Heat (11-26)

Broadcast:  TV: FSOhio
WAKR (1590 AM); WTAM (1100 AM), WHBC (1480 AM)

Starters:  Cavs:  LeBron James (F); Ben Wallace (F); Anderson Varejao (C); Delonte West (G); Mo Williams (G).  Grizzlies:  Rudy Gay (F); Darrell Arthur (F); Marc Gasol (C); O.J. Mayo (G); Kyle Lowery (G).

Injuries/inactives:  Cavs Eric Snow (knee); Zydrunas Ilgauskas (ankle).

Officials:  Greg Willard, Brian Forte and Jason Phillips

Streaking:  Cavaliers have won two in a row; the Grizzlies have lost three consecutive games.

Three things to watch:

• Rudy Gay vs. LeBron James – Gay is having a decent season averaging more than 19 points per game.  James has been in lockdown mode on defense in recent games including last week’s masterful performance against Paul Pierce.
• Grizzlies rookie O.J. Mayo – The talk with respect to NBA rookies has revolved around Chicago’s Derrick Rose.  Quietly, probably due to the size of the media market, O.J. Mayo has stated his case averaging more than 20 points per game. The Cavs Delonte West will get a workout tonight.  But he could also take advantage of Mayo’s defensive deficiencies, something even his coach acknowledges need much work.
• Lorenzen Wright – Big Ben Wallace is down for the game with flu-like symptoms.  If another starter was going to go down, better it happen against the Grizzlies than next week against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Quotable:

From the coach’s office:

Mike Brown on potentially starting J.J. Hickson for Ben Wallace:

He’s playing well in his role now, so for me to start it with him probably won’t happen. I don’t want him thinking too much.  I just want him going to play and that’s what he’s done a solid job of doing so far.

Grizzlies Coach Marc Iavaroni on the Cavs this year:

Obviously LeBron is bringing the big time juice.  He’s on a mission. He’s bringing all of his gold medal experience and everyone is buying into what Mike Brown is doing.  He’s done a great job.

From the locker room:

Darius Miles on whether he’s surprised about what’s happened with his situation:

I’m not worried about any of that stuff.  It doesn’t bother me.  It doesn’t affect me at all as far as what they do. 

LeBron James on O.J. Mayo:

He’s not a rookie; I’ll tell you that.  He’s a really good talent. All he’s going to do is continue to get better,’’ James said. ‘’ Some guys are born for the NBA and college basketball sometimes doesn’t showcase what you have.

Post mortem:

The Cavaliers won this game for two reasons – Delonte West stepped up big in the third quarter, dropping three, 3-point shots.  LeBron James assumed his normal role in the fourth quarter and dominated that period and lastly, defense.  While James was busy muzzling the Jazz with 13-of-21 shooting for 38 points, the team went into shutdown mode, forcing Jazz players to alter shots and contesting each one.  The Jazz would only shoot 35 percent in the fourth quarter.  The fnished with a total of 10 steals and 6 blocked shots, including a monster one from James on Carlos Boozer that had to make every fan in Quicken Loans Arena scream with glee.

Just as important:  the Cavs had been losing the rebound battle in some recent games.  While they didn’t dominate this one, they still came out ahead 40-37.  Ben Wallace, Z and Anderson Varejao kept Carlos Boozer in check, holding him to 17 points.

Quotable

From the coach’s office:

Mike Brown on Delonte West’s defense against the Jazz’s Kyle Korver:

More important than that, another guy that could have gotten going for them was Kyle Korver.  We told Delonte he needed to stay attached to Kyle and don’t have any air space.  Delonte did a nice job.

LeBron James on closing out games:

Tonight was another close game.  I think Boobie’s shot (a 3-pointer)  at the end of the third quarter gave us a lot of momentum and then we were able to put a lot of pressure on them because of our defense.  That’s when we lock down defensively and we got stops.

An improbable 7-0 run for the Jazz ended the first quarter to pull the Jazz back into a game the Cavaliers threatened to blow out early.  Two lazy passes that led to two steals and four points and a 3-pointer at the buzzer.  That run would boil over to a 14-0 and the Cavs lost their bearings as they let a guy by the name of of Paul Millsap get into a groove and sink them.  The Cavaliers walked into the locker room down by seven, 53-46, when in all likelihood they should have been winning.  But that opinion and $4 will get you a cup of coffee at Starbucks.  I’ll give you guys $2 and you can go to MickeyD’s instead.

Broadcast:

TV: FSOhio

Radio: WAKR (1590 AM); WTAM (1100 AM), WHBC (1480 AM)

Starters:

Cavs:  LeBron James (F);  Ben Wallace (F); Zydrunas Ilgauskas (C); Delonte West (G); Mo Williams (G).  Jazz:  C.J. Miles (F); Carlos Boozer (F); Kosta Koufos (C); Ronnie Brewer (G); Ronnie Price (G).

Injuries:   Jazz:  Matt Harpring is a game-time decision; Andrei Kirilenko is day-to-day with a sprained right index finger; Mehmet Okur is out for personal reasons and Deron Williams is doubtful with a sprained ankle.

Officials:  Dick Bavetta, Marc Davis, Zach Zarba

Streaking:  The Cavaliers put a six-game winning streak on the line this evening against an undermanned Jazz.  Utah has lost two in a row.

 Three things to watch: 

 1) Watch the battle in the paint.  Rookie center and Northeast Ohio native Kosta Koufos has been pressed into a starting role because of injuries.  He was somewhat of an unfinished product while at Ohio State, more Dirk Nowitzki than dominating post presence.  Although he made strides in that area toward the end of the collegiate season.  In Friday’s game against the Charlotte Bobcats he blocked nine shots.

2) If you’re the Utah Jazz, you’ve got to be bothered by the fact that you lost to the Charlotte Bobcats Friday night.  They could be fiery to start.  It also doesn’t help that while on the road the past four games they own a 1-3 record. 

3) LeBron James and Carlos Boozer will likely get some face time together when James plays power forward some, so it will be interesting to see how they play off one another.  Also, Jazz point guard Deron Williams likely won’t be playing tonight because of a left ankle sprain.  He saw time against the Bobcats, but the Jazz are likely to play him a second night in a row.

Quotable:

In the coach’s office:

Coach Mike Brown on playing an undermanned Jazz team:

We should play the right way and sometimes if you play the right way, it doesn’t work out…As long as our focus is here tonight, which I guess you could say is kind of sort of a test, I’ll be happy.  It doesn’t matter who’s in uniform we need to understand that we’ve got to come out and we need to play the right way.

Jazz Coach  Jerry Sloan on Canton native center Kosta Koufos:

I’ll break them in if they’re willing to work.  You can’t break them in if they’re not willing to work.   He came in worked hard.  Made some mistakes and didn’t feel sorry for himself and didn’t pout around. He just stepped out there and acted the way a pro should act and consequently, he’s gotten a chance to play.

 From the locker room:

 Kosta Koufos on playing in the NBA:

I’m living my dream.  It’s good to play in front of the home crowd. The game’s the game.  You’ve got to come in and play hard and hopefully come out with a victory.

CLEVELAND – The Cavaliers open their exhibition season tonight at Quicken Loans Arena, with a roster of 18, two of whom – guards Delonte West and Michael Dickerson – who aren’t here.

Coach Mike Brown is treating this exactly how it should be – a glorified practice. Don’t look for the starters to see a lot of minutes, primarily because Brown wants to get a look at everyone.  That means LeBron James will see limited action in the first quarter, primarily because he gave his hometown a show on Saturday at the James A. Rhodes Arena in Akron.

Game:  Cavaliers (0-0) vs. Toronto Raptors (0-0)

Broadcast: WAKR (1590 AM); WTAM (1100 AM), WHBC (1480 AM)

Starters:

Cavs:  LeBron James (F); Ben Wallace (F); Zydrunas Ilgauskas (C); Sasha Pavlovic (G); Mo Williams (G)

Raptors:  Jamario Moon (F); Jermaine O’Neal (F); Anthony Parker (G); Jose Calderon (G)

What to watch:  The Cavs will unveil their new look with point guard Mo Willaims as the helm.  If last Saturday is any indication, the offense will be looser and looking to run more. Cavs fans heard all about the exploits of rookie J.J. Hickson during the team’s summer league.  Brown said that they will get a chance to see the first rounder out of North Carolina State.  Be sure to watch his defensive game as on more than one occasion during last Saturday’s Wine & Gold Scrimmage, he stood toe-to-toe with Ben Wallace not giving an inch.

In the coach’s office:

On how many minutes starters will play: “We’re going to be conscious of our guys age and body and stuff like that,”  Coach Mike Brown said.

On how much he’d like James to play each game this season:  “I’d love to have it around 38 minutes per game.”

In the locker room: James is already sounds as if he trusts his team.  “I think with the team we have, (I’ll play) right around 38-40.”

Injury update:  Anderson Varejao who injured his left quadriceps at some point this week will play, he said.  Lorenzen Wright will sit out with ingrown toenails.

Game analysis:   The 104-84 loss to the Raptors tonight wasn’t exactly pretty.  Actually, it was pretty damned ugly in spots.

But there are a couple of things to take away.  First the Cavs got out of that lumbering offense that put people to sleep at The Q last year. You could hear Coach Mike Brown screaming “Push It! Push It!” through much of the game and that they did.

They outscored the Raptors 21-9 in the transition game and it was due primarily to the effort of Mo Williams, whose quickness, along with Delonte West, But Willaims showed that he has a downside as well.  There were plenty of times in transition when he chose to pull up and settle for a jumper as opposed to driving the lane and working for an easier look.  Could that be a function of LBJ not plaing much?  Of course.  But it bears watching during the regular season.

Coach Mike Brown said that J.J. Hickson played like rookie tonight.  I can’t dispute that, but there were more than a few times he looked mighty impressive on defense and just athletically.  Take the steal in the fourth quarter.  He snatched the ball from Toronto’s Will Solomon and raced down the court to finish the play with a thunderous two-handed dunk.  Nice work.   Other times, however, he looked as if he were lost.

Hey, they don’t call them rookies for nothing.