The King's Throne

6:47:27 PM EDT
Feeling Chillin'

The Toshiba Vegas Summer League to a close last week and the Cavs finished 3-2 by winning their last three games. Their rookies look really impressive, especially their first round draft pick, guard Shannon Brown. He averaged 14 points in 30 minutes per game. From what I've seen from him in college and in the summer league, he looks like he's NBA ready. He can fly down the court. He plays big for someone whose listed at 6'4". He's got some mad hops. Even though he advertised as a SG, he played the point at times in Vegas and was respectable. I think the one thing he needs to work on is his perimeter shooting. He did shoot 50% (27-54), but only made 1-6 from three-point range. I love his driving ability. If he can work on that outside jumper, he will be hard to stop.

Their other rookie, guard Daniel Gibson, was also pretty impressive. He averaged 9 ppg in 31 mpg. I think he needs to realize what position he can. Is he a point guard or a two-guard? Once he figures that out, he could be an quality player in this league. In Vegas, he played pretty good defense and showed that he can shoot. He shot mostly threes in college, but I think the Cavs want to utilize him in the mid-range area. I don't see him being a legitimate three-point threat, but I do see him being accurate from the 12- to18-foot range.

Another guy who I liked in the summer league was Sharrod Ford, a 6'9" forward. He averaged 12.4 ppg and 7.6 rpg in about 25 mpg and shot 56.8% (21-37) from the field. I don't know much about this guy, but the Cavs might invite him to camp with them.

Project-in-the-making Martynas Andriuskevicius had an sub-par performance in Vegas. Of course, he did have a game where he knocked down 2 three-pointers. I have a problem with him. Sure, he can shoot. But he is 7'2" (and could still grow taller) and he very seldom posts up. In an interview two years ago, before he came into the league, he said he wanted to become a center. To do that, he needs to gain about 20-30 pounds and learn how to post up. However, right now, I only see him as a 7'2" small forward. I'm sure this guy could be a great NBA player, but he needs another year to bulk up and develop.

Now, there were disappointments in the Vegas summer league. Sasha Pavlovic, even though he average 11 points, he shot a unimpressive 30.4% (14-46) from the field. Before the summer league started, I looked for Sasha to shine. He started out strong, but shot just 2-16 in the last two games. Once the season starts, him and Luke Jackson will probably battle for playing time.

As far as the free agent market goes, the #1 priority is to sign Drew Gooden. However, the Cavs, Gooden, and his agent, Calvin Andrews, are not on the same page. Gooden is asking for $60 million over six years, which is the same contract that Denver power forward Nene got. The Cavs originally offered Gooden a contract worth around $6 million dollars. If they can't come up with a deal, they can sign him for one-year. Cleveland doesn't want to do that because that would make him an unrestricted free agent next year and they would lose him for nothing. So apparently, they have two options: they could either sign him for one year or set up a sign-and-trade. One of the rumors floating around has Gooden going to Chicago for Chris Duhon and Michael Sweetney. Another one is Gooden to Boston for Delonte West and/or Ryan Gomes. Don't know if there's any truth in these. Only time will tell.

Reports state that the Cavs are close to signing guard David Wesley. According to these reports, they offered him a two-year, $3.6 million contract, the same contract that Flip Murray got from the Pistons. Wesley will turn 36 in November, so I don't see him being able to log more than 20 minutes a game. If we do sign him, there's a strong possibility that we could trade Damon Jones.

So that should catch you up on all the news about the Cavs. If anything occurs in the next few days, I will be here to write about it.

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1:28:37 PM EST
Feeling Chillin'

LeBron not clutch? Yeah, right.

The Cavs are on a four-game winning streak, beating Portland (99-84), Los Angeles (96-95), Charlotte (120-118), and Boston (94-82), all at home. Now, any combination of Cavs win and Chicago Bulls losses that equal 3 will get the Cavs into the playoffs for the first time since 1998. The story of the week has been the fact that LeBron hit his first game-winning shot of his career in the game against the Bobcats on Wednesday. This came after many reporters (mostly from ESPN) continuously bashed LeBron, saying he is "too scared" to take the last shot and instead, passes to his teammates. My question is: what's wrong with that? There's nothing wrong with trusting your teammates in late-game situations. That's a good thing, in my opinion. It helps build team chemistry and gives the rest of the team confidence. When you have guys that can knock down shots in the clutch, it takes pressure off of LeBron and that's always a good thing. Another thing, in these late-game situations, team tend to double- and triple-team LeBron. This is bond to leave 1 or 2 of his team mates wide open. Lebron notices this and gets them the ball. This is what make him different from Kobe. Kobe takes the last shot with 2-3 guys guarding him and at least 1 of his fellow player wide open. Sure, Kobe has hit a lot of big shots in his career, I'll give him that. But he gets so trigger-happy when it comes to possible game-winning shots that he often forces a shot over three defenders and misses them. I don't care who you are, but if you try to take a 30-foot jumper over 3 guys, 9 times out of ten, you're going to miss it. Fact: in the Cavs-Bobcats game, if LeBron wouldn't have passed the ball to Flip, they would've lost. Then in overtime, LeBron took the last shot because he had nothing to lose. If he made it, they won it. If he missed it, they'd go to a second overtime. But he just stepped up, proved everybody wrong, and nailed it. Take that, ESPN!

Yesterday, Cleveland played Paul Pierce and the Boston Celtic. The beginning of the game was bad for both teams, who started shooting a combined 3-25 (Cavs: 0-11, Celtics: 3-14). Cleveland started off playing their usual game, letting players drive to the hoop and get wide open for three. But in the second half, the Cavs picked it up, especially on the defensive end. Finally, they were playing tough defense on every Celtic possession and the stats show that; 12 steals and 10 blocks for the Cavs. In the fourth quarter. LeBron just took over, scoring 19 points as the Cavs outscored the Celts 36-23.

So, the Cavs, after a 4-0 homestand, will travel to Houston tomorrow to faceoff with the struggling, McGrady-less Rockets, who have dropped 6 of their last 10. I'm looking forward to see if the Cavs can keep the momentum going as they seek that well-awaited playoff spot and home-court advantage for the first round.

Also in Cavs news, the Plain Dealer reported that Larry Hughes' rehab is going well and he could be back anywhere from 2 weeks to playoff time, so Cavs fans should be looking forward to that as well.

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7:58:38 PM EST
Feeling Chillin'

I haven't blogged in awhile, because I've been really busy lately with school and everthing. But enough about that. Let's get on with it.

The Cavs have dropped their last two games, losing 98-92 to Miami after the 29-point thrashing handed to them by Orlando. Next game is in Dallas against the Mavs, which will be a real test. Over the past few weeks. I've been questioning the decision of making Mike Brown the head coach. I know the guy SUPPOSEDLY teaches defense. I must admit that the Cavs' defense has looked better at times. But what about the offensive end of the ball? I've seen very few set plays run by Brown. A lot of times this season, this has been their routine: Snow dribbles the ball for about 10 seconds and gives the ball to LeBron. Z sets a high pick for him. Then, LeBron ends up having to take a desperation fade away shot as the shot clock goes off because nobody on the team moves to get open as soon as LeBron gets the ball. It's okay to depend on LeBron to set up the offense, because he has bailed us out too many times. But Brown and the Cavs, for that matter, depend too much on him for points. If you look back at all the NBA Champions over the course of history, it's been proven that one player can not single-handedly lead an entire team to a title. It's impossible. Look at Wilt Chamberlain, for example. In the early years of his career, he was averaging anywhere between 30-50 points a game and yet, the team didn't win a title until Wilt became more of a team player and had more of a supporting cast. That's why the Lakers are barely clinging on to their playoff spot. Now, Dan Gilbert and Danny Ferry both went out this summer and picked up supporting players to surround LeBron with, but Larry Hughes got hurt and Damon Jones and Donyell Marshall have been disappointing to say the least. Since "Flip" Murray came to the Cavs, he has been key. He gives us the ability to slash to the hoop and play defense that the team hasn't seen since Hughes. If we keep Murray around, he could become a major asset to this team for many years.

So, where are the Cavs headed? Playoffs. I think it's safe to say that they will not suffer another slide like they've had the past two season (knock on wood). But come offseason, I expect either Eric Snow or Damon Jones to be gone. I was actually excited when the Cavs signed DJ. Now, he has become such an annoyance and such a bust that I just want him gone. Sure, he hit a game-winning three at the buzzer against Toronto. But face facts. If he had been hitting shots earlier in the game, they wouldn't have had to win it at the last second. This guy is garbage, no doubt. He can't play defense, he's a streaky shooter, and he not serious enough. We could trade him for someone better (like Mike James), or cut him and use the money to sign someone better (like Mike James).

The way I see it, I like Snow...when he scores 10+ points and close to 10 assist. When he does that, the Cavs usually win. But last game kinda threw me off the Snow bandwagon. He played 30 minutes and score 4 points. Most starting point guard in the NBA would be able to score at least 12 or more points when given those kind of minutes. I don't know what happened to Snow once he left Philly, but he is no longer start worthy. Neither Jones nor Snow are. Message to Dan and Danny: Find another point guard in the league worthy of starting and/or select one in the draft (like Dee Brown), because neither of these guys will lead this team anywhere.

There's a nice long entry to hold you guys over for a little bit. I don't know when I'll be able to update again, but stay tuned. And my final thought: For the Cavs sake, let's hope Hughes will be back in time for the playoffs (again, knock on wood)

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8:15:47 PM EST
Feeling Chillin'

Okay, here's the good news. The Cavs have won their last six games, including four straight on the road, their longest road winning streak since the '97-'98 season. During the streak, they've beaten a playoff contender (Phoenix), a so-so (Utah), and a team that is already looking forward to next year (Charlotte). But there is bad news. The last time the Cavs had a six-game winning streak, they had to play the Nets and the Nets snapped our streak. Cleveland has had trouble dealing with New Jersey for the last few years. Needless to say, they have our number. However, the scenario is a little different this time. When Cleveland played the Nets during the six-game winning streak, the Nets were also on a six-game winning streak (they went on to win 10 straight). This time, the Cavs have a six-game winning streak and the Nets have a four-game losing streak (could be five after tonight's game with Detroit). Maybe Cleveland can turn the tables in this game.

LeBron James was honored with the Eastern Conference Player of the Week award, the fifth time in his career that he has won the award. Last week, he led the Cavs to a perfect 4-0 record while averaging 33.8 points, 8.5 rebounds, 7.5 assists, and 2.3 steals per game. However, a lot of fans were probably saddened when they heard that LeBron won't be in the NBA Slam Dunk Competition this year and, most likely, never. He will, though, participate in the NBA Skills Competition, which, if you didn't know, tests shooting, passing, and dribbling skills into one big competition. So, fans should be happy about that. There is still a possibility the Damon Jones will be in the NBA 3-point Competition.

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8:03:57 PM EST
Feeling Chillin'

Even though the Cavaliers have won 9 of their last 11 games after beating Milwaukee last night, they will be without Larry Hughes for 6-8 weeks after having surgery to repair a fractured right long finger. This doesn't come as a huge surprise to me because he has been injury prone over the last few season. If you remember, he was out for a chunk of the season last year because of a broken thumb. After that, his shooting stats went down. I wish him a speedy recovery.

The Cavs have won 2 out of 3 without him, but the energy that he brought onto the court is missing from Cleveland. Jones has started at shooting guard in his place. He's been going through a bit of a funk as of late. In three games as a starter, he is averaging 3.0 ppg, while shooting 15% from the field and almost 17% from the land of three. This is a guy who is the self-proclaimed "best shooter in the world". Also, he has been playing lack luster defense. I don't know about you, but I would rather see Ira Newble start instead of Jones. DJ has done much better when he has come of the bench.  Newble may not score a lot of points, but he bring a defensive presence to the Cavs line-up and I think he could score more points as a starter than Jones is right now. Mike Brown should give Newble a chance and go back to bringing the combo of Jones and DMarsh off the bench like before.

Back to the Milwaukee game, it wasn't pretty, but it was a win nonetheless. LeBron once again had to dominate because of the lack of help. Remember how Michael Jordan always had big moments and big games against the Cavs. Well, that's what LBJ is doing to the Bucks this season. Here's his stats from the first three games against Milwaukee this year:

December 10th: 52 points, 7 rebs., 7 asts, 19-29 shooting, 5-9 3pt shooting

January 4th: 32 points, 11 rebs., 11 asts, 12-29 shooting, 2-8 3pt shooting

Yesterday: 35 points, 7 rebs., 6 asts, 14-22 shooting, 3-7 3pt shooting

Season avg.: 39.7 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 8 apg., .563% shooting, .417% 3pt shooting

Dominating. That's the only word to describe it. Dominating. We'll see just how dominating he is when the Cavs host the New York Knicks. This is a very important game because this is their last home game for the next to weeks. After this game, they will go on a 6-game West Coast road trip. It's important to continue their dominance at home before going out to the West side, a place where they have struggled the last few years.

In other news, "The Wild Thing", "Sideshow Bob", "The Human Palm Tree" Anderson Varejao has returned to practice is planning to make his long-awaited return to the Cavs within the next couple of weeks. He was projected to be out for as long as the All-Star break, but he's made better progress on his rehab than people thought. I can't wait for him to come back because he is just the defensive energy player that the Cavs have needed all year. When he returns, expect him to get Alan Henderson's minutes.

 Hurry back, big man.

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5:42:59 PM EST
Feeling Chillin'

The Cavs have lost their last five games after almost blowing a 22-point lead against the Pacers. Tonight, it's the Bulls at home. Again, I'll be looking at the team's defense. They played OK defense for about three quarters on Friday. I've seen some improvement in the defense, but it could be better. And I think it will get better in time.

In other Cavs news, there have been rumors floating around saying the Cavs are looking into a deal with the Portland Trailblazers that would send Ruben Patterson to Cleveland. I don't know how solid this story is, but I think Patterson would give the Cavs another bench player. If we could get him without giving up DMarsh and Jones, I say let's do it.

I found these cool LeBron videos on a website called Youtube.com. One is a mix of all of his great plays from his rookie season. The other is a mix of good play from his first two seasons. I thought they were cool and I hope you do, too. Check 'em out.

YouTube - Lebron James Rookie Mixtape

YouTube - lebron

Finally, I hope everyone had a very merry Christmas. 2005 is almost over and I hope you all have a very good 2006!

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5:55:37 PM EST
Feeling Chillin'

After starting the season 9-2, the Cavs have dropped seven of their last 10 games. Though they still have a winning record, they are fourth in their division and their defense is almost nonexistent. The Cavs beat the Nuggets 84-85 last night. In that game, I saw a glimmer of hope for the Cavs' defense. We'll see how their defense will be tonight against the Dwayne Wade and the red-hot Miami Heat.

The first returns of the All-Star voting are in and LeBron James is leading all East player on the ballot, receiving 665,849 votes. Looks like he'll be a starter once again this year. Also, Zydrunas Ilgauskas is third among East centers with 55,576, behind only Shaq (646,085) and Ben Wallace (336,518)

The Ron Artest sweepstakes continues. I'm sure you heard the interview Artest had with the Indianapolis Star about wanting to be traded, in which he said he wouldn't mind coming of the bench for Cleveland behind LeBron James. Although I would love to have Artest come to Cleveland because of his defense, there are three problems: 1) the chances that the Pacers will trade Ron-Ron to another team in the Central, 2) I don't think Danny Ferry would be willing to trade this early in the season, and 3) The Cavs don't have the players, besides one of their offseason acquisitions, that they could offer in a deal to match the talent of Artest. But anything can happen in the NBA.

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9:48:39 PM EST
Feeling Chillin'

As most of my readers know, the Cavs have dropped their last two games to Indiana and Minnesota. For some reason, the offense that was once nearly unstoppable has now become null and void. Also, the defense, well, is a work in progress to say the least. But, don't fret, Cavalier groupees, because it will get better.

After the painful defeat to the Pacer and the very chilly shooting, the Cavs came home to play the T'Wolves, a game in which the shooting wasn't chilly, but frozen. A weak 31% and yet the game was relatively close. See, when the Cavs lost to the Pacers, not only did their stats suffer, but so did their pride. On Saturday, it was basically a mirror image of the Pacers game. The best thing about the game was LeBron's sick elevating dunk. 

Even worse at times was their defense. In the last two games, the Cavs have been burned by Sarunas Jasikevicius and Troy Hutson, in terms of three-pointers. Gooden was burned by Ron Artest. Ron-Ron also did a pretty good job of shuting down Bron-Bron. But I believe that, with a three-day rest for the Cavs, the offense will resurface before the next game.

Speaking of the next game, it's the Clippers that will come to the Q. Personally, I think they have been the biggest surprise in the NBA thus far and are now the dominant team in Los Angeles (sorry Yannis). But they better watch out, because they are coming to our house.

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9:16:13 PM EST
Feeling Chillin'
Hearing SBL

So, here we are. The Cavs are 8-2 and are eyeing the Pistons in the Central. Because of the great playing by the Cavs, LeBron James was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week. He averaged 29.7 points, along with nine rebounds and six assist and helped the Cavs have a perfect 3-0 record. He beat out his teammate, Larry Hughes, for the award.

According to Steve Kerr's NBA power rankings, the Cavs are listed as the 4th best team in NBA, behind only the Pistons, Mavs, and, of course, Spurs. It's a pretty good ranking. This is what Kerr says about the Cavs in his ranking: Larry Hughes gets 37 in a win over Philly. This team is deep. That pretty much sums it up.

The Cavs come home, after a big win in the city of brotherly love, to face the Boston Celtics, a team that helped bury the  Cavs' playoff dreams last year. Really, the only two players you have to be worried about are Paul Pierce and Ricky Davis. Maybe Raef LaFrentz when he gets hot. But this team is not that deep and not that good. Cleveland should run over them.

On November 22, the new Cavs alternate jerseys will be put on sale. Here's a picture of a new LeBron jersey, in case some of you haven't seen it:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah. It's navy blue, baby. If you want to see these jerseys in action, The Cavs will wear them for the first time November 26th when they play at home against the Timberwolves. Man, I've got to get some money so I can buy one of those.

 

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6:58:49 PM EST
Feeling Chillin'

Talk about team effort. This has to be the best Cavs team I've seen since LeBron was drafted. The King is still averaging 28 points, and he doesn't have to play 42-48 minutes a night. Larry Hughes has been LeBron's "Pippen". Jones and Marshall have been everything I'd hoped and more. The Cavs have gotten great production from their bench and from the free throw line.

However, you have to take the good with the bad. There are some factors that the Cavs must improve. I would like to see more offense out of Eric Snow. Last game, Snow scored 6 points in the first quarter, but didn't score for the rest of the game. The team is still averaging over 100 points per game, so they have been able to get past that. Their defense has gotten better since the first game. But they still fall asleep on D sometimes.

So, I have reviewed the state of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and it is strong. Tonight, the Cavs try to win their six straight, forth straight at home, against the Orlando Magic. If you're a Cavs fan, but are not local, you can turn it over to ESPN and watch it. Speaking of, it's almost on. I better get in there.

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