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Playoffs vs. Boston (2008)

Some thoughts on Game 7 …

May 19, 2008

OK … there were computer problems. But I got a kick out of this comment on the previous post stating there were computer problems. “Computer problems??? That's the same silly excuse Windy uses whenever he's running late to meet his espn.com deadline.” Why is that funny? Because it was Brian Windhorst, my esteemed colleague, who [...]

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Game 7 approaches …

May 18, 2008

I watched some of the talking-head shows on Boston TV Saturday night. You know the kind, when two guys who have no right at all to talk like experts about sports sit around and talk like experts about sports. Anyway, there was a lot of … “when the Celtics get to Detroit …” or “ [...]

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Celts don't take the series, now the Cavs can

May 17, 2008

To win a playoff series on the road, a team has to go take the game. Sort of like the old boxing analogy. The contender has to take it from the champion. The Boston Celtics didn’t do that. They had a second-quarter lead and they could have put their foot on the Cavs’ throats. They [...]

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Actual photos from Game 5 …

May 16, 2008

People always ask where my seat is at these games. There's no doubt it's great to be there. It's exciting, intense and sometimes amazing. The new Boston Garden is surprisingly loud. They don't do as much during timeouts as the Cavs do — there are times they JUST PLAY MUSIC, which is shocking in this [...]

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Cavs must find way to replace Gibson's offense

May 16, 2008

Let’s not minimize the loss of Daniel Gibson. Boobie was the fifth best three-point shooter in the league this season (among guys who took at least 100 threes). He made 44 percent, a very high percentage. Now he sits with a separated shoulder. And it’s not good. LeBron James trusts Gibson – to the point [...]

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Game 5 goes to Boston, and the cheerleaders check in …

May 15, 2008

LeBron James ended his news conference with this statement: “A LeBron James team is never desperate.” It came when someone asked him after the game if the Cavs would be desperate in Game 6 having lost Game 5. It’s one of those silly questions the media asks that a guy can’t win by answering. “Yeah,” [...]

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The great mystery: How the two losses affect the Celtics

May 14, 2008

Before we get to LeBron’s dunk …
The more you think, the more it seems that all the pressure rests on the shoulders of the Boston Celtics right now. They are playing at home. They were supposed to win this series. They led 2-0. They are shooting terribly. They scored 12 points and disappeared in the [...]

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The win, the dunk (WOW), the series …

May 13, 2008

Who’s the pressure on now? Is it on the Cavs, who must win on the road in Game 5 in Boston to maintain their momentum and keep from having to win a Game 7 in Boston? Or is on the Celtics, who seemed to tighten up in the fourth quarter in Game 4 in Cleveland [...]

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The key to game 4 isn't real complex …

May 11, 2008

What do the Cavs do to win Game 4? Just what they did in Game 3. Sounds simple, really, but that’s really it. Move the ball to find the man open for a shot, them make the shot. As Zydrunas Ilgauskas said: “The best way to attack this team is to move the ball and [...]

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Finally, an offense that resembled an NBA offense …

May 10, 2008

That’s the way a team is supposed to play, the way a team is supposed to run an offense. The Cavs claimed they did nothing different, but there had to be some new wrinkles in the Cavs' Game 3 win. The key thing they did different – especially early – was make shots and protect [...]

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So much focus on LeBron …

May 10, 2008

Yes, LeBron James leads the Cavs. Yes, he is a superstar, a standout, an All-Star, a guy who feeds hungry pigeons, protects nearly-endangered polar bears and does the ironing for several assisted living centers in the Akron and Cleveland area. James pretty much does it all for the Cavaliers.
Which may be part of the problem [...]

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Celtics win a blowout and Cavs are up against it

May 9, 2008

As the final seconds of Game 2 ticked down in Boston, LeBron James stood up on the Cavs bench. He turned and told the coaching staff to get up, then went down the bench, one by one, slapping hands with all his teammates. When the game ended, James did not turn and leave the court [...]

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The Cavs offense needs work, yes …

May 7, 2008

I got a few e-mails and comments from folks saying (again) that Mike Brown was at fault for the Game 1 loss, that his lack of offensive coaching and his offensive (no pun intended) system were the reason LeBron James struggled.
Brown was asked what he saw from his team's offense when he watched the tape [...]

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Cavs lose … and who was that wearing No. 23 on Cleveland?

May 7, 2008

Weird opening game. That’s the kind of probing analysis you pay for and expect, eh?
Who knows? Maybe LeBron James was reading the Boston Globe all day and pondering how great he is. Nah. His shots just did not go in. That happens sometimes. It doesn’t happen often like this with LeBron (2-for-18, 10 turnovers), but [...]

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LeBoston loves LeBron

May 6, 2008

Boston is one of the great sports cities in America. Passionate, involved, a bit obnoxious — but amazingly knowledgeable. Fans in Boston are some of the wisest in the country — even with their home-town biases. Too, some of the best sportswriters in our purple mountain's majesty work in Boston. Larry Bird once said [...]

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Celtics show respect … and some D.C. travel tips

May 5, 2008

The Boston Celtics are treating the Cavs with a little more respect than Washington did. The Celtics said many things that show they are taking the Cavs seriously. If they mean what they say, that is. There are some interesting feelings in this series. LeBron James and Paul Pierce do not seem to be best [...]

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