Post-mortem:  Cavs (9-4) 105, Pacers (5-5) 95

The Cavaliers need to thank LeBron James (40 points), the refs and the free throw line for this victory.  Yeah, OK, they should pat themselves on the back for some timely defense in the fourth quarter.  Let’s deal with them in order.

• LeBron James came out of the locker room frothing.  His intensity was high as he had some choice words through out the game.  More importantly that manifested itself out on the court as he scored 40 points, grabbed nine rebounds and dished out seven assists.  Although he hit his first eight shots, his dominance really showed in the fourth quarter when he scored 10 points, including a key three-point shot with one second left on the shot clock and 53 seconds left on the game clock.
• Give the Cavs credit for one thing in the game: at times they were aggressive going to the basket – at least that is what the stats show.  They went to the free throw line 34 times, connected on 27 of them while Indiana went to the line just 21 times. That ultimately proved to be the difference in the game.
• An abysmal third quarter almost sunk the Cavs, but an energetic fourth quarter with some timely offense and defense, along with hitting 8-of-9 from the free throw line saved them.  They saved their best defense for last holding the Pacers to just 22 percent shooting in the quarter.  They, in turn, hit 53 percent of their shots in the third. That helped them to erase a five-point deficit they accumulated courtesy of 17 percent shooting in the third and some fairly crappy defense.

Game: Cavs at Indiana Pacers

Broadcast:

TV:  FSOhio

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

Starting lineups:

Cavs:  LeBron James (F);  J.J. Hickson (F); Zydrunas Ilgauskas (C); Anthony Parker (G); Mo Williams (G).

Pacers:  Danny Granger (F);  Dahntay Jones (F); Roy Hibbert (C); T.J. Ford (G); Brandon Rush (G).

Injuries:

Cavs:  Shaquille O’Neal (shoulder strain) – OUT;  Anderson Varejao (hip contusion) – PROBABLE.

Pacers:  Mike Dunleavy (knee); Jeff Foster (sprained right ankle) – OUT; T.J. Ford (back spasms), Troy Murphy (bruised lower back) – DAY-TO-DAY.

Officials:  Rod Garretson, Pat Fraher, Haywood Workman.

• The Indiana Pacers love to give the Cavs fits at Canseco Fieldhouse.  This time last year the game gave them the infamous “that official” outburst from coach Mike Brown, who lambasted Joey Crawford for making what he viewed to be a makeup call in the game’s final seconds, giving the Pacers the chance to win the game at the free throw line.  Brown was eventually fined $25,000 for his remarks.  The Cavs went 3-1 against Indiana last year overall.
• Both teams had five-game win streaks snapped in their last games.  The Cavs blew a 17-point lead versus the Washington Wizards.  The Pacers blew a big lead against the New York Knicks before falling to them. In the process forward Danny Granger scored a game high 33 points. 
• The Pacers average more than 101 points per game and the Cavs give up about 93.  Something will have to give in that area.  Danny Granger is averaging 25.4 points a game and swingman Dahntay Jones puts up more than 17.  He and James had an interesting battle last year in the opener between the two clubs and it came down to those two in that game.
• The Cavs will have the services of forward Anderson Varejao tonight and that should help given that the Wizards and specifically Antawn Jamison took them to task in the paint and on the boards Wednesday night at the Verizon Center in a game that Cavs should have won.  Shaquille O’Neal didn’t even travel with the team and will obviously miss tonight.

Post-mortem:  Wizards 108, Cavs 91

• It was bound to catch up with them sooner or later.  The Cavaliers had been living on the edge in the second halves of games for the past several.  Tonight the Wizards made them pay.  They held the Cavs to 39 percent shooting in the second half and forced 10 turnovers and outscored them 64-40.   At times the offense looked stagnant with the Cavs doing basically nothing but standing around waiting for grass to grow.  There was little in the way of ball movement and the team was far too willing to settle for jump shots rather than attacking the hoop.
• Offensively and defensively it was clear that they missed the presence of Shaquille O’Neal on the inside. The Wizards got far too many easy layups and they did well in the paint as well, scoring 38 points.  It also allowed Antawn Jamison to score virtually at will in his season debut. In all, he hit 31 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.

Game:  Cavs (8-3) at Washington Wizards (3-7)

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

Starting lineup: 

Cavs: LeBron James (F); J.J. Hickson (F); Zydrunas Ilgauskas (C); Anthony Parker (G); Mo Williams (G).

Wizards: Caron Butler (F); Antawn Jamison (F); Brendan Haywood (C); Gilbert Arenas (G); Mike Miller (G).

Injuries: 

Cavs:  Shaquille O’Neal (strained shoulder), Anderson Varejao (hip contusion); Jamario Moon (left sprained ankle).

Wizards:

Officials:  Eddie Rush, Joe Forte and Bennie Adams.

• Last time around the Cavs caught the Wizards as they were contending with the injury to big man Antawan Jamison.  Guess who’s back to face the Cavs in round two of their battle?  Jamison returns and the shoe is on the other foot this time as the Cavs will be without big men Shaquille O’Neal and Anderson Varejao.  J.J. Hickson has progressed in each game he’s started thus far, but his defense remains suspect with coach Mike Brown even calling him out about it in his post game interview after the Warriors’ game despite a 21-point effort.  The message was clear as a bell ringing on a winter’s night:  “get your defensive game together, young man”
• The Wizards have lost six games in a row, the latest being a 106-103 loss to the Detroit Pistons. The Cavs have won five in a row and more importantly, the are developing some semblance of team chemistry. Whether that’s enough to carry them through tonight with missing two big men remains to be seen. 
• According to Michael Lee of the Washington Post, the Wizards have been in an early season funk and that brought out Jamison’s wrath recently after a loss to the Indiana Pacers. In an 82-game season you generally have to discount most games during the early season, but here’s guessing that the Wizards, who view the Cavs as one of their main rivals, would love nothing more than to rack up a victory against the Cavs on Jamison’s first night back.   Washington’s coach, Flip Saunders, is counting a lot on Jamison helping to ground the team.  Part of the problem has been Gilbert Arenas’ lack of comfort in Saunders’ offense and his disjointed play with Caron Butler.

CLEVELAND – LeBron James has continued a friendship with the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry, that began two years ago when the rookie was in college.

Curry, who was born in Akron, was the first-round draft choice of the Warriors this past summer and started last night against the Cavs.

With some of the things happening to the Warriors – the controversy surrounding Stephen Jackson and the ongoing speculation about coach Don Nelson’s status – James offered him some advice.

‘’I guess there was a little chaos on our team,’’ he said.  ‘’He’s just making sure I was keeping my head straight, working hard and reminding me to get better everyday.’’

James said that he’s a fan of Curry’s game and that he sees in him the ability to continue to improve and Curry, the son of former Cavalier Dell Curry, didn’t arrive with the hype James, but because of what he accomplished at tiny Davidson College in North Carolina he came in with some notoriety and expectations – a couple of the reasons James reached out to him.

‘’I’m all about helping the guys that come after me. There are guys in the league and I’m all about giving advice,’’ he said. ’’  This league could be a lot on a kid coming in.  It could be a lot on anybody. ‘’

Tuesday’s game marked the first time that the two squared off against one another on the court, however. Curry had a playful, yet serious answer when asked about that.

‘’Friends off the court once you’re on the court all that goes out the door,’’ he said. ‘’It’s going to be fun just to go out there and compete.  I should be a good atmosphere, so I am looking forward to it.’’

Talk of Jackson
The one face that went unseen was that of guard Stephen Jackson, who had figured prominently in trade rumors involving the Cavs. He eventually went to the Charlotte Bobcats for Raja Bell and Vladimir Radmanovic.
Warriors coach Don Nelson said that trading Jackson was better for everyone involved and he’s glad it was done sooner rather than later.

‘’It’s good for us because we can move on.  I think the last thing you want to do is have an unhappy guy all the way to the trade deadline and being forced into doing something,’’ he said.

Jackson had become a malcontent in the Bay Area and the league fined him over the summer for publicly stating that he wanted to be traded to the Cavaliers.  For the record, James said he was amenable to the idea because he’s a big fan of Jackson’s.

‘’I’m all for guys coming onto this team no matter who they are if they are going to be productive for our team and represent what we represent and that’s a winning mentality,’’ James said.

It is well known that Jackson would come with some baggage, but that wouldn’t have been a problem for James because he believes they have the right locker room to handle another out there personality.

‘’There’s big influences in here and we have a lot of guys who are always positive, who stay positive’’ he said,  ‘’and at the same time we try to make people understand that it’s more than the game of basketball.  Once you figure that out, the game of basketball becomes very easy.’’

Buzzer beaters:  Forward Anderson Varejao was a late scratch for Tuesday’s game and probably will not play tonight against the Washington Wizards…Shaquille O’Neal sat again with a shoulder strain and it looks as if his situation won’t be re-evaluated until later this week.

Post-mortem:  Cavs 114, Warriors 108

The good:  The Cavaliers continue to look better and better on offense after struggling early in the season.  They knew that they would get involved in an up tempo game with the Warriors and they were able to beat them at it.  Of course, it helps when you can shoot 58 percent from the floor in the process.  LeBron James led the Cavs with 31 points, 12 assists, followed by second-year big man J.J. Hickson – 21 points, nine assists – who continues to develop and have his share of defensive woes in the process.

The bad: In the process of playing the Warriors game, they seemed to forget about defense.  Golden State got off nine more shots and hit for almost 47 percent.  Too many of those shots came on layups from not boxing out and second chance points as the Warriors scored 23 points on offensive rebounds.  It’s almost as if they figured they were going to be in a shootout, may as well just beat them at their game, not a defensive one.

The ugly:  Seventeen turnovers for 25 points.  Enough said.  Had this been a fully manned team, the outcome may have been different given the number of turnovers.

Game:  Cavs (7-3) vs. Golden State Warriors (3-6)

Time:  7 p.m.

Television:  FSOhio

Starters:

Cavs:  LeBron James (F);  J.J. Hickson (F); Zydrunas Ilgauskas (C); Anthony Parker (G); Mo Williams (G).

Warriors:  Anthony Randolph (F); Vladimir Radmanovic (G); Mikki Moore (C); Monta Ellis (G); Stephen Curry (G).

Injured:

Cavs: Shaquille O’Neal (shoulder strain); Leon Powe (left knee surgery).

Warriors: Kelenna Azubuike (left patellar tendon injury); Andris Biendrins (osteitis pubis) , Ronny Turiaf (left knee strain); Brendan Wright (shoulder surgery) - OUT, Cory Magette (hamstring) – PROBABLE.

Officials:  Bill Spooner, Curtis Blair and Derrick Collins.

• The Warriors will dress the league minimum of eight players, the final one being Raja Bell, who was acquired in a trade with the Charlotte Bobcats.  But Bell won’t see any action unless there’s an emergency coach Don Nelson said before shootaround.
• Most are expecting a shootout, but it’s difficult to get into one of those when you have a depleted roster and what was once of your key players, Stephen Jackson, is gone.
• The Cavs go without two of the big men – Anderson Varejao and Shaquille O’Neal.  Varejao suffers from a hip contusion, but ultimately, considering that the only seven-footer the Warriors have is journeyman Mikki Moore and they like to play small a lot, it may not be of a major concern.

Coach Mike Brown said that Delonte West will be activated for tonight’s game against the Golden State Warriors.
How much playing time he gets remains to be seen.  In West’s three games of being inactive, others have stepped in to fill the void and his time.

‘’That depends on how the game unfolds in terms of his playing time, but he will definitely be in uniform with his teammates,’’ coach Mike Brown said.

Guard Anthony Parker is starting to find consistency on both sides of the court and Jamario Moon has stepped up to claim minutes.

‘’We’ve had some success.  Guys have played well; they’ve earned the minutes they’ve gotten, so it would be hard to take away from somebody and you have to find some minutes for him if possible,’’ Brown added.

West has been inactive for the past three games as he continues to deal with issues related to his bipolar disorder.  Team officials have not said why he’s been inactive, but the troubled guard did miss the team’s charter flight to Florida for their two-games against the Orlando Magic and Miami Heat.

Warriors invade
Brown said he knows what he will be looking at as the Golden State Warriors come in to play tonight at Quicken Loans Arena – a bit of the unusual.

‘’They’ve got a bunch of a talented players and they try to junk up the game offensively and defensively which makes it hard,‘’ he said. ‘’It’s a tough team with the style of play the use on both ends of the floor.’’

Guard Anthony Parker agreed:   ‘’They’re a bit unorthodox.  They do a lot of things you probably don’t see again during the season, but I think this team is built to face any lineup and it’s no excuse.’’

O’Neal out
Shaquille O’Neal wasn’t at Quicken Loans Arena and will miss tonight’s game with a shoulder strain.  Brown couldn’t say how long he would be out.   Zydrunas Ilgauskas will start in his place.

Post-mortem:  Cavs 107, Jazz 103

The jury remains out on the Shaquille O’Neal trade, but tonight was a perfect example of why the Cavs traded for him.  O’Neal sat out the game with a shoulder strain and that left the Utah Jazz’s guards free to do some damange. Chief among them:  Eric Maynor, who replaced Deron Williams at the point tonight.  Maynor scored 22 points tonight, some on jumpers but a lot of it driving to the lane.  In total the Jazz scored 40 in the paint.

J.J. Hickson had another outstanding game tonight offensively, scoring 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting.  It seems that his off court time with LeBron James this summer is finally paying dividends.  He’s less hesitant going to the hoop and he was undeniably aggressive tonight against the Jazz.  It’s the second night in a row he posted career best numbers.  Part of it, as James said after the game, is that teams are not worried about him now.  James also accurately pointed out that will change. How he adjusts to it will matter most, but it’s not premature to say that Hickson may indeed be blossoming.

At the half:  Cavs 59, Jazz 54

The Jazz’s two rookies are continuing to play well, something they started in their game against the Philadelphia 76ers.  Guards Wesley Matthews and Eric Maynor have combined for 24 in the first half to help the Jazz overcome what was once a 16-point lead.

Game:  Cavs (6-3) vs. Utah Jazz (4-5)

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

Starting lineup: LeBron James (F); J.J. Hickson (F); Zydrunas Ilgauskas (C); Anthony Parker (G); Mo Williams (G).  Jazz:  Ronnie Brewer (F); Carlos Boozer (F); Mehmet Okur (C); Wesley Matthews (G); Eric Maynor (G).

Injuries:  Cavs:  Leon Powe.  Jazz:  Matt Harpring, Deron Williams, C.J. Miles. Kyle Korver.

Officials: Bennett Salvatore, Eric Dalen, Pat Fraher.

Streaking:  Cavs have won thred consecutive.  Utah has won one.

What to watch:

The Jazz are without valued point guard Deron Williams as he deals with a personal problem related to his child’s surgery.  While Carlos Boozer will play, that means there is an opportunity for them to exploit that absence.  His backup, Ronnie Price is out with a toe injury.  Maynor has averaged 3.9 points in limited duty.  Mo Williams has tossed in 53 points in his last two games, so he could have another nice scoring night.

MIAMI – LeBron James announced Friday night that the No. 23 may no longer be in his future.
The Cavs’ superstar said that he is leaning toward changing his jersey number next season to honor NBA legend and retired Chicago Bull Michael Jordan.
‘’The guy is the best basketball player we’ve ever seen. …If you see 23 you think of Michael Jordan.  If you see guys flying through the air, you think of Michael Jordan,‘’ James said after the Cavs’ 111-104 victory over the Miami Heat.  ‘’If you see fly kicks, you think of Michael Jordan. He did so many things for the league it has to be recognized, not just by putting him in the Hall of Fame.’’
James has flirted with the jersey change in the past. In addition to the No. 23, he also wore No. 32 at some points during his career at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School. In the Olympics last year he donned the No. 6, the one he is likely to move to next season, he said.
In addition to being a fan of Philadelphia 76ers legend Julius Erving, that particular number means some personal things to James, he said.  His first son was born on Oct. 6, 2004 and his second son was born in June.
More notably, James believes it’s the only way that Jordan can be honored and is willing to petition other players who wear No. 23 to change numbers.
‘’You can’t get the logo.  We can have an argument about that, but Jerry West, he was unbelievable also,‘’ he said. ‘’And if you can’t get the logo something has to be done, so I’m going to start and next year I’m going to change my number probably to six because I feel like no NBA player should wear 23.’’

Post-mortem:  Cavs 102, Magic 93

• Had anyone judged from the first quarter, this thing had all the makings of a shootout.  It wasn’t until the second that the Cavs put forth much in the way of defense and their defensive efforts in that quarter won the game for them.
• Consider that the Magic shot just 29 percent from the floor in that span.  In the meantime the Cavs capitalized on the effort and built on what was a 15-point lead.  Some might say the game was over after the first half.  It’s the Magic.  The Cavs have been up against them by double digits before only to have them come back on them and smack them.
• The Cavs beat the Magic because they attacked Dwight Howard from the get go, making a conscious effort to get Shaquille O’Neal the ball in the paint.  Plenty of readers have written me with the refrain that O’Neal is washed up, over the hill.  By all means insert your favorite analogy here.  You’re not going to get 20 and 10 from O’Neal on a consistent basis.  He hasn’t even come close this season, but he showed what he could still do tonight.  That was draw Howard’s attention and Howard took the bait.  The result:  the Orlando center got his third personal foul at 9:32 in the second quarter.  On the night, he scored just 11 points and pulled down seven rebounds.
• The Cavs beat the Magic at what was supposed to be their game – outside.  They came into Wednesday night’s contest hitting 44 percent from the three-point line.  They did nothing to hurt that percentage as they connected on 10-14 shots fromt he arc for an astounding 71 percent.  Mo Williams led the charge hitting 4-of-
• What remains annoying is willingness to ease up in the fourth quarter when they think the game is in hand.  Opening the fourth, the Cavs led 88-68.  The Magic got that down to nine as the Cavs let up. 
• Don’t forget LeBron James and Mo Williams combining for 64 points.

First half:

The Cavs make a consious move to get their inside game and Shaquille O’Neal going early as O’Neal scores eight points in the half, but it’s LeBron James and Mo Williams who play as if they’re the only two players on the court.  James has 23 points in the first half.  Williams is perfect – literally – hitting every shot from the field and free throw line thus far.  He’s also 4-of-4 from the three-point line.

One thing you can fault coach Mike Brown for:  having Dwight Howard in foul trouble early in the quarter and not going right at him trying to get O’Neal back in the game to draw No. 4.

Game:  Cavs (4-3) at Orlando Magic (6-2)

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

Starting lineup:  Cavs: LeBron James (F); J.J. Hickson (F); Shaquille O’Neal (C); Anthony Parker (G); Delonte West (G);  Magic:  Matt Barnes (F); Brandon Bass (F); Dwight Howard (C); Vince Carter (G); Jameer Nelson (G).

Injuries:  Vince Carter (ankle) is probably and Ryan Anderson is doubtful.  Forward Rashard Lewis is still serving a suspension for violating the league’s rules on performance enhancing drugs.

Officials: Dan Crawford, Gary Zielinski, Courtney Kirkland

Streaking:  The Cavs have lost one.  The Magic have won one.

What to watch:

These are two vastly different teams than the ones that faced off against one another in the Eastern Conference Finals.  The Cavs added O’Neal, Jamario Moon, Anthony Parker and the Magic traded for Vince Carter, allowed Hedo Turkoglu to leave via free agency.  Additionally point guard Jameer Nelson will play inthis game and he wasn’t available to the Magic when they last met.

The big question of the night:  does O’Neal have enough left to keep Dwight Howard contained defensively?  Here’s a key that some gloss over in this matchup.  As far as I can tell, Howard still hasn’t developed any moves around the basket.  He dunks, when he’s fouled he shoots free throws with the medicrity of O’Neal.  The key is O’Neal’s ability to keep Howard in front of him.

Everyone is hyping this as some sort of litmus test for the Cavaliers.  Not bloody likely considering the injuries to the Magic (Anderson and Carter) and the fact that Lewis isn’t playing at all.  The reality is the Cavs  have lost eight of the last 11 games to the Magic and are 38-35 overall against them.  It’s a team that’s always given them trouble.

So we’re back to that privacy issue.   This time as it related to Shaquille O’Neal. For those who missed the TMZ report O’Neal’s wife has filed papers in a California court asking for a legal separation.  She fled their Orlando area home with their kids and loaded up and moved to Cali.

No comments here other than the facts.  And O’Neal, as anyone could understand, has asked for understanding:

As announced today, Shaunie has filed for separation.  Obviously, this is a difficult time for our family, and we request that the media respect our privacy.  I will continue to focus on being there for our children and I am confident that Shaunie will do the same.

‘Nuff said on that.  Nothing else will be said here.

Ahead of the Orlando game

Dwight Howard should be nice and surly.   A post on his website got the Magic center a 15K fine from the league for criticizing referees.  (Is it me or has the NBA been a bit anal about that this year?):

”I was on the floor for 16 minutes and fouled out!!! Let me say that again: 17 minutes and six fouls!!! How can that be, ya’ll? It was crazy,” Howard said on his personal blog. “They called me for a charge on a flop, a push off when the defender was on me and two fouls on blocked shots.

“Man, 16 minutes is a lifetime low for me I think. I haven’t played that little in a game since I was 10 years old in pee-wee ball. It was crazy from the start of the game all the way to when I fouled out with about 4 minutes to play.

“What really bothers me is they are letting guys hammer me at one end of the floor, yet I’m being called for everything. All of those hits take a toll on my body after a while.”

For that, Howard is lighter in the wallet today.  Heaven forbid what happens when any player offers real criticism of officials.

All-Star Stuff

It’s All-Star ballot time (yes, already) and here are the nuts and bolts of it this year:

There are several ways fans can cast their votes, including: at each NBA arena; in 20 languages on NBA.com; and through mobile phones by texting the player’s last name to 6-9-6-2-2 (“MYNBA”), via Web2Go® on T-Mobile phones or wap.nba.com for any wireless carrier. A T-Mobile-branded All-Star Balloting widget will also be available on NBA.com so that fans can “grab” the widget and place it on their blogs, social network pages, or personal Web sites allowing others to vote directly from the widget. Paper balloting will continue through Jan. 10, while wireless balloting and voting on NBA.com will conclude Jan. 18. Starters will be announced live on TNT on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2010.

Don’t look for too much drama when it comes to the Cavs facing off against the Orlando Magic for the first time this year.

You’d think that with Shaquille O’Neal’s history with that club it might be something more, but that’s not the case.   Shaq was the NBA’s original Man of Steel, but Dwight Howard co-opted the persona. 

My only concern is winning championships.  I’m not worried about all of that.   I’ve been there, done that.

Then there’s the fact that O’Neal played for the Magic many, many moons ago:

I’ve played for too many franchises to get charged (up) every time I go back. It’s going to be an important game. It’s an important game for both teams, it will be a hostile environment.

Something, however, that doesn’t sound like water under the bridge is a spat that cropped up with Magic coach Stan Van Gundy.  Last season, Van Gundy accused O’Neal of flopping in a Phoenix Suns’ loss to the Magic.  At the time, O’Neal replied by calling Van Gundy the ”master of panic.”   O’Neal said he was just defending himself:

I’ve never been critical, but I will defend myself every time.  It’s not my style to call people out, but I will defend myself.  You smack me, I’ll punch you every time.  I don’t care who it is.