LeBron Carries the Load
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Of course, that really did happen – LeBron netted 19 points in the fourth quarter; Orlando, 18 – but the point is a little misleading. The Chosen One polished off the Magic in the final period, but Zydrunas Ilgauskas did all the heavy lifting in the first half and Drew Gooden had eight points and a pair of boards in the pivotal 10-0 run in the third quarter.
But it was LeBron’s 13 straight points down the stretch that finally snapped the Cavaliers from their funk, avenging a loss to Orlando one week earlier. James has looked brilliant countless times through the first 26 games of the season, but that deciding stretch in the fourth quarter was the first time this year that LeBron looked like the player he was last year.
After the game, James said, “Our offense is what’s killing us right now. It’s not our defense. In the past, it’s been our defense. We’ve never had problems on offense like we’re having now. We finally figured it out tonight.”
Actually, the Cavaliers haven’t had the same problems from one game to the next or one quarter to the next. The one expression you hear most from players and even Mike Brown through December’s inconsistencies is “48 minutes” – as in a sustained, consistent effort throughout the ballgame.
“This is a game that we played as close to 48 minutes as possible,” said Brown following the 86-83 win. “The thing that makes it really good is I thought mentally in the fourth quarter we showed a lot of toughness where we got stops and executed offensively.”
The Cavaliers have had a schizophrenic couple of weeks. Over the last four games before Saturday’s victory, Cleveland has scored 106, 74, 113 and 71 points.
The Cavaliers need to find that delicate balance between good offense and good defense – and doing it for 48 minutes – and find it fast. Starting with Wednesday night’s matchup with in Atlanta, the Wine and Gold play 11 of their next 14 on the road, including a prolonged West Coast trip starting January 9.
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Andriuskevicius, the 44th pick of the 2005 Draft, will not file formal charges in the incident.
Bulls GM John Paxson says that NBA and NBDL are investigating the incident and that Martynas will return to Chicago as soon as he is given medical clearance to travel.
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Why is it that we, as fans, can see what’s wrong with the Cavs but Danny Ferry can’t? The Cavs will go nowhere without a fast, play-making point guard. They think Snow provides veteran leadership. That’s overrated.
Jack
Akron, OH
JG: Jack, I agree with you that a quick, play-making point would be a nice fit on this team. Two things, however. One, veteran leadership is not overrated and that’s not all Snow brings anyway. While not in the mold of a Chris Paul, Snow does play hard-nosed defense, often against guys much bigger than him. He routinely draws the assignment against Michael Redd or Kobe Bryant or Paul Pierce. Mike Bibby can go end-to-end in a hurry, but he can’t defend three positions.
Secondly, the Cavaliers are more of a ‘point-guard-by-committee’ team with the roster as it’s currently structured. Snow provides defense, but not great scoring. Damon Jones provides scoring, but not great defense. And Daniel Gibson provides a little of both, but is still rough around his rookie edges.
I think the Cavaliers should go to the hoop more. They will get their points easier. That’s how they will win more games.
Brandon
North Olmsted, OH
JG: Leonardo da Vinci once said, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” And that’s about it when it comes to the Cavaliers. I’ll go one step further and say that when LeBron James goes to the hole, the entire team sees the light. LeBron was designed to go the hole – he’s too big for small forwards and too quick for power forwards.
In Wednesday night’s robust second half against the Nets, James went to the hole time after time. On more than one occasion, LeBron admits that when he’s aggressive, attacking the rim, his teammates feed off that.
Long story, short, Brandon – I agree.
Hi Joe,
I have one question – Can LeBron stop biting his fingernails during timeouts? It is horrible! Millions of people are looking at him!
Viktor
Cleveland, OH
JG: I wish I could find out how to quit myself, but it’s a habit that LeBron and I share. James rationalizes that it psyches out opponents who thinks he’s nervous before going for the kill. I don’t have that same reason, but it’s so hard to stop. I know it’s awful.
Anyone who knows of a way to break the habit, please write in. Do it for LeBron, my girlfriend, Viktor and the millions of supposedly grossed-out fans.
Joe,
I am just wondering why on the Pigskin Predictions do you pick the browns to win every week?
Daniel
Cuyahoga Falls, OH
JG: That’s easy, Daniel. I’m not as warped as cavs.com’s “other” writer, the Optimist. But I do pick the Browns with a hopeful heart. Unlike Branson Wright – who claims to be a die-hard Raiders fan, but freely picks against them – I go with the Browns every week because I suppose I’m stupid enough every week to think that this is the week they’ll turn the corner. That corner’s been a long-time coming, but that’s why we’re called “die-hard” fans.
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So there’s no reason to think that Karl and Anthony can’t hold it together with Allen Iverson joining the mile high mix.
Easily the biggest trade of the season – and one of the most significant of the past few years – matches the league’s top two scorers. And from a Wine and Gold perspective, it gets one of the great all-time Cav Killers out of the Conference. Cleveland faced him once this season with Philadelphia and they’ll get him again out West on January 19. (‘Melo will be serving the last game of his suspension when Cleveland takes on the Nuggets.)
“They have the two top scorers – 60 points between two guys. So they’re going to be real tough.
“If we can send everyone West than score (like Iverson), I’m all for that,” laughed Head Coach Mike Brown. “It’ll still be tough, but I’m all for that.”
The trade is one that should help both teams achieve their short and long term goals. Andre Miller and two No. 1’s in 2007 can get Philly back to respectability relatively quickly. The marriage between the Sixers and Iverson had been souring for years and, with the cumbersome contract of Chris Webber, Philly had gone as far as they were going to. The Nuggets suddenly move into the fray among the Western Conference heavyweights.
Iverson’s former backcourt running mate, Eric Snow, thinks Iverson and Anthony won’t have any problems meshing on the court.
“If he has a problem sharing the ball, than why does he constantly average seven, eight, nine assists?” posited the pugnacious point guard. “He doesn’t have a problem sharing the ball.
“You put them on the same team and they have a coach who’s a little more lenient than some other coaches. So knowing George Karl and Allen – (I don’t know Carmelo too well) – but I think it’s the right place and the right style of play and they’ll make it work.”
Snow shared a backcourt with the Answer for eight seasons, so he knows exactly what Karl, the Nuggets and Western Conference are in for.
“I tell you what, you’ll never have to question his effort,” continued Snow. “So that right there gives you a great chance to win. Because you’ll never have to question that.”
When asked if any of his old friends were still in New Jersey, Tait replied, “They all drowned trying to swim out across the river.”
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In an ironic twist (with another Cavaliers connection) the Stampede mysteriously waived their leading scorer, David Jackson – Luke’s teammate at Oregon and once a member of the Cavs Training Camp roster – to make room for the former tenth overall pick in 2004.
James recognized that game as being huge, but was pragmatic about its effect on Wednesday night’s battle. “(That win) started something special for us last year, coming in here beating the hottest team in the league,” said James. “It really started something for us. We took that into Oklahoma City and got a big win and took that into the playoffs.”
LeBron added: “This is a whole new year and we have to approach it like it’s a whole new year. We can’t go out there saying, ‘We beat them last year, we’re going to do the same thing this year. We can’t do that. We have to play it like a new game and try to get the win.”
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Cavaliers Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Dwayne Jones, Anderson Varejao, David Wesley, Shannon Brown, Dan Gibson, Sasha Pavlovic and Ira Newble made the annual trip to Cleveland Clinic’s Children’s Hospital to brighten some young faces and spread some good cheer – as well as some autographed Cavaliers pillows and blankets.
The Wild Thing might be fierce between the lines, but his disarming smile and moppy locks can brighten a sick child’s day. Same with David Wesley’s easy charm and Dan Gibson’s toothy grin. These are things that can’t be measured by statistics or in wins and losses. A three-pointer can change a ballgame, but a hug from the man who made it can change a life.
On Monday afternoon, the little ones got a huge lift from some huge individuals.
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Even the players had to laugh and admire his persistence.
Throughout the holiday season, the Cavaliers have touched the community, whether it’s an octet at the Children’s Hospital or Larry Hughes pumping free gas on Carnegie or Donyell Marshall leading a shopping spree in Wal-Mart.
Fans of the Wine and Gold have embraced the team and the Cavaliers have returned the love. On Monday afternoon, some of their smallest fans got some of the biggest thrills.
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The Knicks and the Nuggets organizations got fined $500,000 apiece. According to Stern’s ruling: “Teams will be held accountable for the actions of their employees – management and players alike.”
Carmelo Anthony obviously took the brunt of the punishment, which makes sense since his shot on Mardy Collins exacerbated what was already an ugly situation. He got 15 games – the last of which is the matchup with the Cavaliers in Denver on January 19.
Nate Robinson got 10 games for body-slamming J.R. Smith, who got 10 games himself. New York’s Mardy Collins received a six-game stretch and teammate Jared Jeffries got four. Knicks center Jerome James and Nuggets forward Nene got one game each for breaking the old “leaving the bench during an on-court altercation” rule.
The Cavaliers practiced on Monday afternoon, but had a few things to say about the melee in Manhattan and the punishments that resulted from it.
“I can’t speak on other coaches. I can only speak for myself. And I don’t look at like any unwritten rule or anything like that. It’s up to whatever the coach feels or what the organization feels.”
“The way I look at it is: I don’t have to prove anything to anybody, so you get fouled – unless you get mugged with an AK-47 – I take my free throws and go back to playing.
“I’ve been those situations and I’m not going to criticize those guys. It’s tough to know what you would do in those situations because you do want to protect your teammates.”
… and finally, the refreshingly candid LeBron James: “We’re in a stage now where we’re trying to clean up image for the players for the organization for the whole league.”
“’Melo, being a leader, he has to protect his teammates. How far does it go? I’m not sure. But you have to protect your teammates. The suspensions had to be given out, because we’re in a sense right now that we’re trying to clean up image of the league. Those guys are grown men and they’re going to take their consequences and take their suspensions be back on the court in no time.”
“There’s no such thing as a ‘mercy rule’ in our league. We’re all NBA players so you have to go out and play. That’s up to the head coach. If you’re getting blown out, you’re getting blown out. You shouldn’t be getting beat that bad. Don’t blame it on another team because you’re losing that bad. “
“Little kids these days see a lot worse than (the fight in New York). They watch videos, they watch scary movies, they watch wrestling, they watch hockey. It’s not going to hurt them too bad. For the image of our league it’s not going to help, but as far as little kids and what’s going on with technology and the internet, that’s small.”
“My son’s seen better punches than what ‘Melo did to Mardy Collins.”
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We’re only one-quarter through the 2006-07 season, but a pattern is developing – and it’s not an especially good pattern. The Cavaliers are terrific at home in the first half of a back-to-back and run out of gas in the second leg on the road. Cleveland is 0-5 in the back of a back-to-back away from The Q, including Saturday night’s 81-74 loss to the Magic at Amway Arena.
This year, the Cavaliers are 11-2 at home and 3-7 on the road. Since late season, there isn’t a team better than Cleveland in their own gym. The Wine and Gold are an amazing 22-2 at The Q since last March 8 – the best mark in the league in that stretch. But a good team – that dares to be great – needs to be .500 on the road. LeBron James will be the first to admit that the Cavaliers aren’t yet a great team.
“I think we kind of press too much (on the road) whereas at home we just play,” said James after Saturday’s loss. “On the road we just press too hard and try not to make a mistake. We have to go out and let loose. In the first quarter tonight, we just played. We got a little tight and then we tried not to make a mistake instead of just playing. Once we figure that out we’ll be fine.”
The Cavaliers aren’t going to get only eight points from their bench very often. And they’re going to score eight points in a quarter even more rarely. But if the Wine and Gold are going to move into that upper echelon of the NBA, they’re going to have to figure out how to win the second game of a back-to-back. (This week would be a good start – although the home-road pattern is inversed – as they travel to New Jersey on Wednesday and return to Cleveland for their first meeting with Detroit since the second round of last year’s Playoffs.)
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The recent fracas also has a much more interesting subplot.
There’s the North Carolina angle. George Karl and Larry Brown are very close and both former Tarheels. Brown was unceremoniously dumped from the Knicks after one season with the club. (Albeit with a fat buyout.) Karl’s club was also dumped by the Knicks in Denver earlier this season. Why else would four Nuggets’ starters still be in the game with a 19-point lead and two minutes remaining?
The cameras also caught Isaiah Thomas telling Carmelo Anthony not to go inside in the final moments of the game.
Thomas and Anthony will definitely incur the Commissioner’s wrath. For his role in the fight – a sucker punch that escalated the affair – Anthony has already released a statement apologizing to Mardy Collins, the team, the league and his mother. Nate Robinson will certainly be given some time off as will J.R. Smith and Jared Jeffries.
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Only Ohio State football’s pending national championship game against Florida has kept the spotlight from totally shining on the Buckeye’s one-armed man.
The Cavaliers will obviously not be in the running for Oden, and the only stake they have in the whole matter is to hope that the Knicks don’t wind up winning the Lottery. Their pick goes to the Bulls.
The sentimental choice is OSU’s Heisman Award-winning quarterback – and Cleveland native – Troy Smith.
I believe Smith will be a good, if not great, pro quarterback. But if he comes to the Browns with the offensive line as it stands, he’ll be just one more QB who takes a beating in the backfield. The former Glenville star is mobile, but not mobile enough to avoid the jailbreak that is often awaiting Browns signal-callers seven-steps after the snap.
Good teams are built from the left tackle up. In other words, the left tackle is often the first piece that leads to a team’s eventual success. The Rams began their run years ago with Orlando Pace, the Jaguars with Tony Boselli, the Seahawks with Walter Jones, the Panthers with Jordan Gross and the list goes on and on.
We’ll get back to basketball after the Cavaliers practice this afternoon. But for now, my Christmas wish is that in April, the Browns draft a left tackle …
