Monday, February 27
TODAY: Cavaliers Stats | Stat of the Day | Playoff Picture | In the Paint | Upcoming Promotions | The Daily Poll: Closest Competition | Cavaliers Trivia | Quote of the Day: Scott Skiles | The Optimist Archives
The King's Court
by Joe Gabriele
cavs.com
Like his teammates, LeBron struggled over the weekend.
Allen Einstein
NBAE/Getty Images
|
February 27 -- It’s a long season and teams are going to have peaks and valleys. The Cavaliers are in a valley.
But one win, especially against a heavyweight at home, can turn things around. The Wine and Gold dropped six straight on the west coast in January and it looked like they might not win another game all year, but one win in Utah changed everything and Cleveland ran off seven straight and went 12-4 from that point until the recent slump.
The Cavaliers dropped a pair of games over the weekend and looked bad doing it. The defense was sub-par in the loss at Philly and home against Washington. On Sunday afternoon in Detroit, it was the offense that couldn’t get untracked.
“We're going to have to do a better job in our half-court offense,” said Mike Brown following Sunday’s 90-78 loss in the Motor City. “We're going to have to do a better job taking care of the basketball. There is no way you can win on the road with 20 turnovers, especially against a team like this.”
Actually, there’s no way you can beat Detroit anywhere with 20 turnovers and certainly not when you add 56 percent free throw shooting to the mix. Cleveland shot an equally anemic percentage on Friday night.
That brings us to the real topic of today’s column: the boo-birds at The Q in Friday night’s loss to the Wizards.
LeBron James was one of the main culprits of the free throw woes the Cavaliers experienced in their second-straight loss. The young King was 8-of-19 from the line on Friday, missing his final four tosses. The Wine and Gold, as a team, shot only 57 percent from the stripe. He took full responsibility for his struggles following the game.
“I think I was focused in the game, but when I got to the line they just weren’t falling for me,” said James. “It got to a point where it’s kind of mental. I just got to regroup and work on it and just get better.
“I put the blame all on myself.”
As LeBron struggled, a smattering of boos could be heard.
Now I understand that seats are expensive and that fans have the right to do whatever they want once they’ve put down the hard-earned. But to boo LeBron James EVER is totally out of line. I don’t write this as an employee of the Cavaliers; I write this as a Clevelander and as a basketball fan.
LeBron is the reason for the season; he is the straw that stirs the drink. And he’s the greatest athlete to grace the Cleveland sports scene since Jim Brown. He is one of the NBA’s top players now and could go down as one of the greatest of all-time when it’s all said and done. We may never see another one like him.
He handles himself impeccably. He does great work in the community. He is an excellent teammate and the club’s unquestioned leader. He is a superstar who loves being here.
I’m asking fans at The Q to consider these things should LeBron struggle once again. It will happen. Please think about your actions before you do it. I don’t think it affects LeBron much – he’s a big boy and can handle it. But it’s an embarrassment for our city and our Arena.
LeBron James is the best thing that ever happened to this franchise. Please remember that the next time you’re tempted to boo. If he struggles, just let it go. Because eventually he’s going to turn it around and when he does – as always – it will be incredible.
Be sure to tune in during every Cleveland Cavaliers' game for Joe Gabriele's IN-GAME LIVE quarterly updates.
| SCORING
|
| LeBron James |
30.9 |
Zydrunas
Ilgauskas |
16.4 |
Drew
Gooden |
10.8 |
Donyell
Marshall |
10.1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| REBOUNDS
|
Drew
Gooden |
8.7 |
Zydrunas
Ilgauskas |
7.6 |
LeBron
James |
6.9 |
Donyell
Marshall |
6.4 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| ASSISTS
|
LeBron
James |
6.7 |
Eric
Snow |
4.3 |
Damon
Jones |
1.9 |
Zydrunas
Ilgauskas |
1.2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 February 27, 2006
Flip Murray came off the bench to score 17 points on 7-13 shooting and recorded a season-high three steals in 36 minutes yesterday at Detroit. In two games with the Cavs, Murray is averaging 10.5 points, 2.5 assists, 1.5 rebounds and 2 steals while shooting 56.3% from the field.
|
The Playoff Picture
| Team |
Seed |
Record |
Upcoming Schedule |
|
1 |
46-9 |
vs. Indiana 2/23 (W) | @ Chicago 2/24 (W) | vs. Cleveland 2/26(W) |
|
2 |
35-20 |
vs. Seattle 2/25 (W) | vs. Toronto 2/27 | @ Boston 3/1 |
|
3 |
31-24 |
@ New York 2/24 (W) | vs. Indiana 2/26 (L) | @ Atlanta 2/27 |
|
4 |
32-24 |
Washington, 2/24 (L) | @ Detroit 2/26 (L) | vs. Detroit 2/27 |
|
5 |
28-25 |
@ Detroit 2/23 (L) | vs. Atlanta 2/24 (W) | @ New Jersey 2/26 (W) |
|
6 |
29-25 |
@ Cleveland 2/24 (W) | vs. New York 2/25 (W) | @ Memphis 2/27 |
|
7 |
28-27 |
@ Milwaukee 2/24 (W) | vs. Chicago 2/25 (W) | @ Dallas 2/27 |
|
8 |
28-28 |
vs. Philadelphia 2/24 (L) | @ Atlanta 2/25 (W) | @ Denver 2/27 |
In the Paint
Last Night's Action
Old Rivals: Paul Pierce scored 39 points for the Celtics on Sunday night, and got the best of the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, who scored 40 points in 112-111 loss. It was the sixth Lakers loss this season in which Bryant scored at least 40 points, the most such games by any player since Michael Jordan scored 40 or more points in seven Bulls losses during the 1989-1990 season. For the second time this season, Bryant missed two potential game-tying or go-ahead field-goal attempts in the final 30 seconds of the fourth quarter. He had only one such game over the previous four seasons combined. Pierce, who is from Los Angeles, raised his scoring average for February to a scorching 33.5 points per game. (Elias Sports Bureau)
Nets Ripped: The Indiana Pacers are making the second half surge they expected to and continued their ascent by ripping the New Jersey Nets 101-91 in East Rutherford. Peja Stojakovic and Fred Jones paced Indiana with 22 points each and have combined to become a potent 1-2 punch for the Pacers until Jermaine O’Neal returns from a groin injury. In the 11 games since Stojakovic was traded to the Pacers for Ron Artest, Indiana (28-25) is 7-4. The Nets getting ripped by the Pacers is the least of their concerns. All-Star Vince Carter suffered a hamstring injury late in the first quarter and is day to day. Jason Kidd narrowly missed his 72nd career triple-double with 19 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds while Richard Jefferson had 23 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists.
Around the League
D-League Update: Ime Udoka has anchored the Fort Worth Flyers this year, starting all 34 games and averaging 17 points a game. On Sunday, he was at it again, scoring 20 points, handing out seven assists, grabbing six boards and nabbing four steals in a 92-82 road victory over the Florida Flame. Udoka also has his team in sole possession of first place by 1.5 games after winning two consecutive contests over the Flame. Coming into Thursday's game with Florida, the teams were tied for first, but Udoka sparked his team to a 19-point victory on Thursday as well as the 10-point triumph on Sunday.
THE DAILY POLL - Closest Competition
|
|
|
Cavaliers Trivia
Think you know everything there is to know about the Cleveland Cavaliers? Well here's a chance to test your knowledge. Simply select your answer and check out the results. Good luck!
| Quote of the Day |
"Anybody that has seen us practice or has been around me for any length of time knows I don't have any pets."
--Chicago Bulls coach, Scott Skiles on the accusations that he plays favorites, notably Kirk Hinrich over Ben Gordon
|
The Optimist Archive
Check out some of the Optimist's collection of classics spanning three years (2003-05). The Optimist takes a lighthearted look at the bright side of the Cavaliers season. He predicted the Wine and Gold to go 82-0 at the beginning of the season and hasn't stopped since. The Optimist makes an appearance in every Game Preview.
Remember, all the Optimist ever asks of Cavaliers fans is two things...
One, is to ask yourself a simple question: WHY NOT? The second is to HAVE FAITH. Neither require manual labor.
And if you think the Optimist is right on, full of it, or just plain entertaining, you can contact the Optimist by clicking here.
CLICK HERE FOR THE OPTIMIST ARCHIVE
|
