CAVS RECORD: 19-63
Without Anderson Varejao, the Cavs’ Bench Is Looking For a Spark
Sunday was Zydrunas Ilgauskas’ first day back at The Q since he was finally able to re-sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers last week. And it was special.
Z received several ovations from the crowd . . . as the arena recognized him multiple times, including a special “welcome back” announcement after the starting lineups were introduced.
He came off the bench to another loud cheer, and had a good game. He finished with four points (on 2-of-5 shooting) with six rebounds and three blocks in 22 minutes.
But it was LeBron James who gift-wrapped the win over the Sacramento Kings for him. LBJ closed the game out strong, scoring 23 of the Cavs’ 39 points in the second half. And all of it was necessary, since the Kings were in it and neck-and-neck until the final few possessions.
It wasn’t exactly the bounce-back performance Cleveland was looking for after their uninspired performance in San Antonio on Friday. In fact, Sunday’s game, coupled with the Spurs one, was more of a trend-setter than a trend-blocker.
The standout problem is the lack of depth from what is arguably the deepest team in the NBA.
If you’ve watched the past two games, you know what I mean. If you haven’t, the best way to explain it is that the Cavs are playing without sparks. Everything is still there, but it’s just . . . there.
There are probably countless ways to break down the ephemeral cracks in the Cavs’ depth. Some of them are interesting, and some of them are less so. Here’s (hopefully) one of the more interesting ones:
In the last two games, the Cavs have scored 97 points in each game. In the Spurs game, the bench scored 15 points. In the Kings game, the bench scored 12. That’s only 15.5% and 12.4%, respectively, of the Cavs’ total points in those games. That’s way too reliant on the starters . . . and that’s not good.
Two games is not the biggest sample size . . . and hopefully this will be resolved before we get a more reasonable one . . . but here’s something more comprehensive for comparison.
In the Cavs’ previous 15 games, in which they were 14-1, the Cavs’ bench scored 488 of the Cavs’ total 1,572 points (and the starters scored 1,084 points). That’s 31.0%.
And in none of those games did the bench’s production count for less than 19.8%. That 19.8%, by the way, was the low-mark over the past 15 games. (It was the exact result of two games: The Cavs’ first game without Shaq on February 26th, and the March 3rd game against New Jersey.)
[Here's my amateur chart from the past two games . . . and the 15 prior games, for comparison. Left to Right: You have the date, team, win/loss, total points, points by starters, points by the bench, bench percentage of the total, and the high scorer off the bench and their total.]
- 2/23: N.O. (W) Total: 105 (S: 77, B: 28, B%: 26.7%) Hi Bench: Varejao (14)
- 2/25: @BOS (W) Total: 108 (S: 75, B: 33, B%: 30.6%) Hi Bench: Varejao (14)
- 2/26: @TOR (W) Total: 126 (S: 101, B: 25, B%: 19.8%) Hi Bench: West (15)*
- 3/01: NY (W) Total: 124 (S: 71, B: 53, B%: 42.7%) Hi Bench: West (15)
- 3/03: @NJ (W) Total: 111 (S: 89, B: 22, B%: 19.8%) Hi Bench: Varejao (12)
- 3/05: DET (W) Total: 99 (S: 71, B: 28, B%: 28.3%) Hi Bench: Varejao (16)
- 3/06: @MIL (L) Total: 85 (S: 49, B: 36, B%: 42.4%) Hi Bench: West (27)**
- 3/08: S.A. (W) Total: 97 (S: 67, B: 30, B%: 30.9%) Hi Bench: West (16)**
- 3/12: @PHI (W) Total: 100 (S: 56, B: 44, B%: 44%) Hi Bench: West (17)
- 3/14: BOS (W) Total: 104 (S: 77, B: 27, B%: 26.0%) Hi Bench: Varejao (17)
- 3/16: @DET (W) Total: 113 (S: 79, B: 34, B%: 30.1%) Hi Bench: J. Williams (10)
- 3/17: IND (W) Total: 99 (S: 71, B: 28, B%: 28.3%) Hi Bench: Varejao (13)
- 3/19: @CHI (W) Total: 92 (S: 62, B: 30, B%: 32.6%) Hi B.: J. Will / West (10)
- 3/21: DET (W) Total: 104 (S: 57, B: 47, B%: 45.2%) Hi Bench: Powe (16)
- 3/24: @N.O. (W) Total: 105 (S: 82, B: 23, B%: 21.9%) Hi Bench: West (15)
—–
- 3/26: @S.A. (L) Total: 97 (S: 82, B: 15, B%: 15.5%) Hi Bench: West (7)
- 3/28: SAC (W) Total: 97 (S: 85, B: 12, B%: 12.4%) Hi B.: West / Z / Powe (4)
* = First game without Shaq, Anderson Varejao starts for one game.
** = Games without LeBron James.
Granted, there are a lot of factors that can affect these numbers, including: Minutes, the closeness of the game (the “diff”, if you will), certain players catching fire / ice, the Cavs’ offensive strategies, and the opposing team’s defensive strategies.
Another one is: The availability of human spark, Anderson Varejao.
Andy left the San Antonio game with a hamstring injury in the second quarter. Coincidence or not, when he left, the Cavs were up by seven points, 46-39. The Cavs ended up losing by five, 102-97.
In the Cavs’ past 17 games, the bench’s three worst percentages of the final point total were all in games that Andy wasn’t available off the bench.
In six of the previous 15 games, he led the bench in scoring. (And technically, that’s six out of 14 because he started the Toronto game.)
But it isn’t just about his points. It’s the offensive rebounding, the saved / gained possessions, his pick-setting, his activity / movement on both ends of the floor, his paint defense, and his MVP of the second unit status; he makes his teammates better.
Before the San Antonio loss, the Cavs had a fairly solid win over New Orleans . . . but that game’s scoring was also dominated by the starters (78.1% to 21.9%).
That brings up another factor: The re-introduction of Z. (That was his first game.)
Ever since Mo Williams went down in January, Coach Mike Brown has had to work around a lot of lineup changes. There’s the arrival of Antawn Jamison and Leon Powe, the in-and-outs of Z, Mo, Delonte West, Varejao and LeBron James, and the loss of Shaquille O’Neal.
Getting players regular playing time, at regular times, is often integral to their success . . . and is something that Brown has been unable to do with the roster’s revolving door over the past few weeks. Still, thereason to have depth is to compensate for when the team needs help.
The Cavs still have two-plus weeks to find spark-inducing tandems and line-ups in preparation for the playoffs, when the Cavs are going to need to offer more balanced scoring to be successful.
But this weekend hasn’t been all frustrating news.
Over the past two games, Jamison has been on fire. He had 24 points (on 9-of-20 shooting) against the Spurs . . . and 26 points (on 11-of-21 shooting) against the Kings. He also had nine rebounds in both games. His quick, half-hook shot in the post looks so sweet.
Mike Brown Shrinks the Rotation . . . and the New Cavs Grind Out a Win
Once the playoffs hit, Mike Brown’s tendency (like a lot of coaches) will be to shrink the rotation down to seven or eight players . . . and barring any injuries or severe lop-sidedness, that’s it. That’s the team.
If Zydrunas Ilguaskas comes back, he gets the final spot in that Top Eight. That sure leaves a lot of talent on the bench. This deep, deep depth is a good problem to have, but it doesn’t exactly output easy answers. The nagging question will always be: Are my Top Eight really my Top Eight . . . right now?
Wednesday’s game against the New Orleans Hornets was a “must win.”
Not in a playoff, do-or-die way, of course. And actually, not in any sort of real, necessary way either. But it was nonetheless, and Mike Brown celebrated that fact by using a tight, playoff rotation.
To explain the little extra playoff-like seriousness, consider Cleveland came into the New Orleans game on a three-game losing streak.
The Cavs were 0-3 since the All-Star Break, they were 0-3 with Mo Williams back, they were 0-3 with Antawn Jamison on the team, they were 0-2 with Jamison actually playing, and 0-1 with Jamison playing and not going 0-for-12 from the field.
The Cavaliers were already on their first three-game losing streak since March of 2008. A loss would be their first two-game home losing streak since April of 2008 . . . and their first four-game losing streak since December of 2007, when they lost six in a row.
[LeBron sat out five of those games with a sprained left index finger. If you want to go back to the last four-game losing streak with LeBron, you have to go back to the 2007 NBA Finals sweep. The last regular season four-game losing streak with LeBron happened four years ago, in February of 2006, when the Cavs' starting backcourt was Eric Snow and Flip Murray.]
Yes, the rotation has been a revolving door recently, with Jamison, Mo, Delonte and Powe coming in . . . and Zydrunas Ilgauskas, along with players like Jawad Williams, Jamario Moon and Daniel Gibson going out. It’s definitely a major transitional point for the team.
But at some point, the Cavs were just going to have to get the Moondog off their backs, so that they could go back to improving and working on their game like they’re used to: While winning.
Mike Brown wanted this game more than anything. (Well, maybe more than anything except being able to see the team finally start playing some freakin’ defense again, which didn’t happen in this game.)
Fortunately, the Cavs ended up beating the Hornets 105-95.
Perhaps fittingly, Brown achieved the win while firmly sticking to a tight eight-man rotation. It included the Top Seven listed above, plus Jamario (in what would probably be Z’s spot).
Was it Bown’s Top Eight players right now? Maybe not . . . Mo is still playing himself into game shape, while Daniel Gibson is arguably better on both sides of the ball right now. And although J.J.’s defense is usually a roller-coaster ride, his overall game is bigger than Jamario’s right now.
And no, Leon Powe did not get into the game . . . although he was active and available. [It'll be interesting to see if he makes his debut on Thursday night in Boston. He'll probably be pretty rusty . . . and hasn't meshed with the team in an actual game . . . but you know he wants a piece of that.]
LeBron played 44 minutes, Jamison played 37, Delonte played 32, Mo and Shaq played 31, Anderson played 28, AP played 27 and Jamario played nine minutes.
The scoring and shot distribution also had a nice, even playoff-type feel.
LeBron and Shaq led the team with 20 points each. Jamison had 18, Anderson had 14, Delonte and AP both had 13, Mo had 6 and Jamario had 1 point. And here’s how the shots and assists broke down:
- LeBron: 7-of-16 . . . 13 assists
- Jamison: 7-of-14 . . . 2 assists
- Shaq: 9-of-13 . . . 0 assists
- Anderson: 6-of-12 . . . 0 assists
- Delonte: 5-of-10 . . . 3 assists
- Mo: 2-of-9 . . . 8 assists
- AP: 4-of-7 . . . 1 assist
- Moon: 0-of-1 . . . 2 assists
Oh, and six of the eight players had between four and seven rebounds: LeBron (5), Jamison (6), Shaq (7), AP (4), Delonte (4) and Anderson (7). Jamario added a couple and Mo had one.
The offense as a whole was intermittent. It looked great in the first quarter . . . and in patches throughout the rest of the game. The good news is, Jamison is clearly well on his way to finding his place within the offense.
Now, if only the Cavs’ defense could come together.
Once again, they allowed an opponent to shoot 50% . . . and once again, they made a star out of a rookie. Make that two. Marcus Thornton went off for 37 points, and Darren Collison had 22.
It’s hard to say how much the tightened rotation had to do with this win . . . if anything. Mike Brown prefers to have his players work out their wrinkles on the floor, so his decision probably had more to do with giving Jamison, Delonte and Mo as much playing time as possible with LeBron and Shaq to give them an opportunity to get a feel for each other and inspire more on-court chemistry.
Still, it’ll be interesting to see how he handles the rotation throughout the rest of the regular season (at least, in games where the score remains within 10 either way).
Will we see more tight rotations with the eighth spot sort of an open slot to try someone different in each game, depending on the match-ups . . . or, once things settle down, will the rotation be expanded once again, to play around with all the possible groups and lineups?
There are threesomes, foursomes, and fivesomes that will be magical and lethal for the Cavs . . . even against the top teams in the league . . . it’s just a matter of discovering them, and finding how and where they fit.
Regardless, if Z comes back . . . and a healthy Cavs team is legitimately 13 deep . . . Mike Brown has both the easiest job in the league and the hardest.
He has the talent to win. Now he must configure it so they do.
Trade Deadline Update #2: Some Random Links on Cleveland and Amar’e
Nothing is official yet (at least, as of early this morning) but it’s looking more and more like the Phoenix Suns will trade Amar’e Stoudemire to the Cleveland Cavaliers for . . . whatever it is that they’re getting.
(We’re assuming that is Zydrunas Ilgauskas, J.J. Hickson and possibly a first round draft pick.)
That would be quite a colossal move by Danny Ferry . . . one that comes with both big-time risks and big-time rewards. It’s the kind of game-changing, over-the-top move that Cleveland is not used to seeing from their GMs when their teams are on the brink of a championship.
But again, since there isn’t anything definite to report . . . and we’re all a little exasperated with the good-fit / bad-fit speculation . . . here’s a rundown of some of the interesting things we found when we tore up Google early this morning.
#1.) ESPN’s Chris Broussard says that Phoenix is still holding out hope that the Philadelphia 76ers will offer them a package including Andre Iguodala for Amar’e . . . but Philly isn’t too sure they want to trade their best player for Amar’e.
That’s definitely understandable. A lot of Cavaliers fans aren’t too thrilled about trading our least important rotation player, J.J. Hickson, for Amar’e.
Sources also tell Broussard that while Amar’e is cool with LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal, he’d prefer to play in Miami where he lives in the offseason . . . but since Phoenix isn’t interested in Michael Beasley, the Heat have nothing to build a deal around, at least without another team being involved.
Naturally, it’s hard to characterize and contextualize what “sources” say . . . and there’s a good chance that they’re not accurate anyway . . . but I’d question the mind-set of any player that would turn down the chance to join the Cavaliers right now, in February of 2010. I mean, seriously. [Full Story]
“Even if the Cavs get Stoudemire, they might attempt to do a secondary trade to obtain [Antawn] Jamison or [Troy] Murphy to fill the need for a 4 who could stretch the floor with his shooting.
“Given that the Cavs have concerns about how well Stoudemire and Shaquille O’Neal would fit together, the team would consider moving Shaq if it acquired Amar’e. For instance, the Cavs could swap O’Neal and their first-round pick to Washington for Jamison and Mike Miller. They could send the same package to Indiana in a deal for Murphy and Mike Dunleavy.”
Oh! And we could also flip Daniel Gibson and Delonte West to Golden State for Corey Maggette!!!
This sort of reminds me of 2004, when I’d go into the forums . . . and some people were wondering why then-GM Jim Paxson wouldn’t trade Lucious Harris, Eric Snow and Ira Newble to Philadelphia to get Allen Iverson. After all, it did work out in the Trade Machine.
It’s going to take almost the rest of the regular season to integrate Stoudemire into the team . . . because he isn’t just going to be used in Hickson’s so-called “Cedric Ceballos” role. We wouldn’t be utilizing his talent in that role, and there’s probably no way he’d accept it anyway. So the offense will need to be revamped.
Also, whether it’s solely the product of playing in Phoenix . . . or not . . . Stoudemire isn’t exactly a defensive juggernaut. It’s going to be imperative for him to fit seamlessly into our defense come playoff time. No matter how good he is on the offensive end, the Cavs title hopes rest on their defense.
It’s not a knock on Amar’e. Any time you add an impact player as significant as he is, it’s going to take a long time to recalibrate. High-functioning teams may be able to sneak a role player into the rotation without too much turbulence . . . but if you’re adding an All-Star, you’re at the drawing board.
My point: If the trade goes through, Mike Brown, LeBron James, Amar’e and the rest of the Cavs are going to have plenty on their plates. The last thing they need is more new spare parts.
One starter (and at least 30 days of an important man off your bench) for another, better starter is enough to absorb. There’s no need to completely overhaul a lineup that is 43-11, has the best record in the NBA, and is still on a 13-game winning streak.
Not every trade that looks good on paper . . . or works in the Trade Machine . . . is something that will work in real life. [Full Story]
#3.) The ”Arizona Republic” reports that the Suns have recently taken another stab at trying to keep Amar’e in Phoenix. Supposedly, they’re still taking his temperature on a possible extension. The paper reports:
“The Suns and the Stoudemire camps exchanged contract extension proposals Friday in Dallas with the Suns offering an additional two years beyond Stoudemire’s $17.7 million player option for the 2010-11 season.”
Virtually everyone on the Internet (and there’s a lot of people on the Internet) expects Phoenix to trade Stoudemire to someone . . . so it’d be surprising if they suddenly backed down and decided to take their chances at being able to re-sign him.
Also, “Plain Dealer” beat-writer Brian Windhorst has said that Amar’e wants a max contract . . . and the Suns are reluctant to give him one considering the serious injuries he’s dealt with over the years.
For what it’s worth, the ”Arizona Republic” also says Danny Green may be included in the deal. [Full Story]
#4.) In his latest sensationalist column, Yahoo Sports! writer Adrian Wojnarowski suggests that even a trade for Amar’e may not be enough to keep LeBron James in Cleveland. He says:
“James has given the Cavaliers no promise that trading for . . . and retaining . . . Stoudemire would assure that he re-signs this summer. Acquiring Stoudemire could help, but James and his inner circle continue to privately insist they’ll explore free agency in July before making a final decision.”
On one hand, this is nothing new: LeBron isn’t going to make a final decision until this summer. He’s consistently said that for years. He’s going to take a look at all his underwhelming options before re-upping with the wine and gold, who have had contending teams for years now, and have never shied away from doing whatever it takes to improve the team (for both now and the future).
On the other hand, this is ridiculous. Can we stop insisting that there’s some hidden secret to keeping LeBron in Cleveland that the Cavs are too inept to discover or execute? He wants to win championships. That championships. He will look for the best opportunity he has to do that, now and in the future.
Right now, it’s Cleveland . . . and a title this year would be a huge statement.
If the Cavs don’t make a trade, LeBron isn’t going to see it as a sign that the Cavaliers aren’t doing enough for him. They’re doing everything for him, trade or not, and he is well aware of that. [Full Story]
#5.) And forget about Stoudemire, CBS Sports columnist Gregg Doyel would like to see LeBron go somewhere to pair up with Dwyane Wade. Because he deserves it. Here’s his argument:
“The two of them could play again. Permanently. And I don’t mean the 2012 Summer Olympics, though in 2012 they are sure to reprise their roles of Batman and Robin . . . or Batman and Batman . . . during the United States’ gold-medal run of 2008. I’m talking about the 2010-11 season, when one or both of them could be playing for a new team. For years, as the potential disaster of losing LeBron has loomed for the Cavaliers, I’ve fought for Cleveland, and for Ohio. We can’t lose LeBron. He’s ours. That’s been my position.
“Now, my position is this: I want to see LeBron play with a great teammate (and sorry, Mo Williams, but neither you nor half-a-Shaq count). I want to see that because I want LeBron to fulfill his destiny as the greatest player in NBA history, and he can only do that with championship rings, and he can only do that with better talent around him. Maybe he and Wade can go somewhere together, swallow some pride and save their next team some money and play together knowing damn well that a series of NBA rings would lead to more millions in endorsements and other opportunities than whatever they’d lose in salary.”
And then . . . LeBron could finally be playing the most exciting basketball of his career, be a legitimate title contender, a shoe-in for the MVP award, have his team sitting with the NBA’s best record at the All-Star Break, and also have led his team to 13 straight victories . . . with some mesmerizing clutch performances, as a creator and as a finisher.
What a dream. [Full Story]
Finally, if you haven’t listened to Brian Windhorst’s 20-minute interview on WKNR from yesterday, you should. It’s packed with perspective on what kinds of risks and rewards you can expect if the Cavs do end up making a deal for Amare. Here’s the link to the podcast.
This Delonte West Situation Is Going to Require Some Problem-Solving
So far, the “uncertainty surrounding Delonte West” has been a wild, blindfolded rollercoaster ride.
And there’s no real sign that it’s coming to an end anytime soon. (Which is great news for everyone that loves the Cavs and the idea of endless thrill rides . . . and bad news for everyone who loves the Cavs but has a weak stomach riding in the backseat of a Ford Focus.)
On the face, I’d position myself in the first group, because I love rides. But in reality, where rollercoasters are not endless, and the “uncertainty surrounding LeBron James’ future” would have any Cavs fan throwing up in the back of a Ford Focus . . . I realize that this Delonte situation requires some careful problem-solving.
At least for now, it would seem that the Cavs are on the right path. They’ve had Delonte with the team for over three weeks straight now . . . since he missed the team flight to Florida last month.
The team is assessing him and his day-to-day emotional health internally. When there’s a blip on the “Delonte Is Off” radar, Mike Brown will either hold him out of the game . . . or be quick to yank him if he appears sluggish, unfocused or agitated on the court.
Normally that kind of stop-and-go approach would kill a player’s momentum or a team’s chemistry, but judging from the beta tests, it actually might work for Delonte and the Cavs.
With Delonte, the Cavs’ rotation is 10-deep right now, and if everyone’s healthy . . . that creates a minutes crunch. Being forced to go without Delonte definitely weakens the team, but as long as the roster is intact it doesn’t compromise the rotation.
If Delonte’s not available, or deemed not able to play significant minutes, Coach can do things like bumping Daniel Gibson and Jamario Moon from 15 minutes to 22-25. So, it isn’t like losing Delonte means that we’ll have to give 20 minutes to Danny Green or Jawad Williams.
As for Delonte himself, he seems completely unfazed by his previous status with the team. And by “previous,” I mean five minutes ago. Whether this is true or not, I wouldn’t be able to tell you. But consider this:
After his sudden (preseason-less) activation on Halloween, Delonte immediately produced an amazing game. He had 13 points (on 5-of-7 shooting), with four assists, two steals and two rebounds.
His scoring sagged over the next few games, but he put up solid assist numbers while posting one of the team’s best plus/minus ratings. And then he missed that flight.
Like everything else, it’s unclear what exactly happened. There were reports that Delonte sometimes suffers from anxiety just before flying . . . and that it has been an issue before, as well. But there is so much orbiting him right now that it could’ve been a permutation of any number of things.
He ended up missing three games, and when he came back, his minutes weren’t there. The Cavs were in the middle of a solid stretch, and Mike Brown didn’t want to disrupt the rotation. In six games, he averaged just 10.5 minutes in four of them, and didn’t get into the other two.
A low point came after Delonte followed up a DNP (Coach’s Decision) in Detroit with just two uneventful minutes in the Cavs’ loss to Charlotte. At that point, it was safe to write Delonte off . . . for one day.
The next night, against the small and quick Dallas lineups, Delonte was given 28 minutes (while Z sat at the end of the bench shooting icy stares at Mike Brown) . . . and he responded with a double-double. (!)
He had 10 points, 10 assists and four rebounds off the bench. The next game, the minutes were still there and so was Delonte. He had eight points, six assists, two steals and a block against Phoenix.
Before the next game, Mike Brown’s Delontometer was bleeping like crazy . . . telling him that Delonte wasn’t having a good day. He only got five minutes and didn’t do much with them.
Again, there aren’t any real specifics on what happened, but at least part of Delonte’s discontent involved the pink shoes some of the Cavs wore that night for breast cancer awareness. “Cleveland Plain Dealer” beat writer Brian Windhorst reported:
“Just when West looked like he’d turned the corner and had played a couple of good games in a row and was in a good mood, this game was a setback in several ways.
“As soon as West arrived at the arena tonight it was clear it was going to be a rough one for him. He declined to wear the pink shoes for breast cancer awareness and did so with venom. Everyone on the team who wears Nikes was sent pink shoes, including West, and all of them wore them except West. He wasn’t in the mood.
“When he got in the game he was lethargic and downtrodden. Mike Brown pulled him after five minutes and his body language was poor. Brown never went back to him, knowing it was a bad day.
“The thing is, tomorrow West could be right back on top. That is the nature of this situation. Most people understand that, Brown especially.”
And sure enough, the next game he was more than back on top. He was over the top.
In 24 minutes, he had 21 points (on 6-of-9 shooting) with four rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. He also outscored the entire Milwaukee Bucks team 14-to-0, by himself, over the first four minutes of the second quarter. [You can read more about that awesomeness, here.]
One day, he’s throwing up all kinds of warning signs by “venomously” denying to wear pink shoes and not being in the “mood” for breast cancer awareness . . . and the next game, he’s in Milwaukee showing off a hardcore LeBron James impersonation.
So, no, Delonte doesn’t appear to be affected by missing minutes or entire games. He’d probably be able to make a positive impact even if his next Cavs game was Game Seven of the Finals.
Obviously, no one wants to go into the postseason with a vital rotation player being a game-time decision every night, but the Cavs are probably hoping Delonte will be settled . . . in one way or another . . . by then. Of course, it’s hard to see even that as a reasonable expectation at this point.
But until then, can this Delonte evaluation equation really work?
Can the team and its game plans actually be flexible enough for it not to matter whether Delonte is able to play that day? Is it really entirely a periphery problem?
Or is Delonte’s on-again / off-again status debilitating the potential progress of other players . . . in regards to their routine, their rhythm and their on-court growth, adjustments and chemistry?
For now, it seems to be working OK, and that’s a good thing. But the next couple months will be telling. First, Delonte’s trial on gun charges is due to begin early next year . . . and a plea deal (or conviction) would likely come with a several week suspension from the NBA.
And then there’s the trading deadline in February.
Keeping Delonte for the playoffs would be a major commitment from the Cavs. And personally, I hope they make that commitment. But if he’s not able to make a commitment back, the team may decide to trade him for someone else since the stakes are so high this year.
There’s a lot on the line here: Cleveland has a high payroll . . . a stockpile of talent . . . playoff experience . . . a winning culture . . . the ability to do it now . . . and the perceived threat of watching LeBron walk this summer if they don’t.
The Cavs have arrived. And now they need to win.
Delonte is an important piece to making that happen, and I hope he’s along for the ride. He’s one of the most versatile players in the NBA . . . and can be an irreplaceable team player.
But that is “can be.” There’s no switch to flip; it’s going to take a long series of things to work out in order for Delonte to inspire any real confidence with the coaches and the organization. So we’ll see.
It’s pretty wild. The initial concern (from back in September) over Delonte being “forced” to deal with serious legal issues during the season now seems like a “trying to find parking at a Chipotle”-level problem compared to what he has going on now.
For now, the Cavaliers are operating within a holding pattern with Delonte. They’re hoping a solution arises before any real problems start to set in . . . and I think it will, it’ll just take some problem solving.
Gold Nuggets: Shaq’s Dings / Brown Sizes Up Danny Green / Cavs Fan
Shaq Has a Few Dings.
Shaquille O’Neal missed his fifth straight game on Saturday night. As of late Sunday night, his status for Wednesday’s game in Detroit was unclear, which isn’t exactly surprising; the Cavs are tight-lipped about how tight their lips are.
Officially, I believe, the Cavs say Shaq has a strained shoulder . . . but late last week, Mike Brown described him as just having a few “dings.” He said:
“We’ll keep taking it day-by-day. I’ve pulled him out of practices, a couple practices. It might be because he has a few dings here or there. ‘Hey, big fella, sit down.’ He has a ding, yes. (???)
“It’s early in the year. In my opinion, it’s an opportune time to let him get some rest and let him get his body back. I’m not thinking he has to play X-amount of games. I’m not thinking he has to practice 75 percent of the time.
“It’s nothing scientific. I’m not that smart.”
My desk, which is made of some fake wood (with a real wood-sounding name), has a few dings, my 2007 BMW 5-Series has a few dings . . . the Libery Bell has a few dings . . . and now Shaq has a few dings.
[And by BMW 5-Series, I mean my 1992 Honda Accord LX. The "LX" is for luxury.]
This Mike Brown quote is fun, but I’m completely with the Cavs here. Yeah, it’d be nice to have Shaq in games so we can continue to work on our intra-lineup, on-the-court chemistry.
But that time will come. More importantly, we want to make sure that Shaq is healthy and rested for our bigger games later this season . . . and the playoffs, of course. A little caution in mid-November is fine.
Fun with (Slightly) Taking Things Out of Context, Target: Mike Brown.
Does Mike Brown look at rookie Danny Green and think: You know, I might be better at basketball than he is? Well, not exactly . . . but he wouldn’t be surprised if others might. He said:
“You look at Danny initially and you’re like, ‘Man. I’m quicker than him. Or I can jump higher than him. I might be able to even shoot better than him. But then the more you’re around him and the more you watch him, he does a lot of little things that just wow you.
“He’s a little quicker than what you think, a little stronger than what you think, a little bigger than what you think, a better shooter than what you think, better off the dribble, a better passer. [...] He has impressed me so far for a young rookie, especially a second-round pick, and I’m glad that we picked him. He’s an NBA player. No question.”
Just for the hell of it, is there any player-coach tandem that Mike Brown and Danny Green could smoke in a full-court game of two-on-two? I think even Hank Egan and Daniel Gibson would have the edge on The Coach and The NBA Player (for lack of better nicknames).
What about athletic trainer Max Benton and Jamario Moon? If Benton has a decent lob pass, they should be fine. On the flip side, Michael Malone and Delonte West (circa 2007) would be pretty tough.
But here’s the real question: Is there any five-man Cavs team . . . of players only, if you like . . . that is a lock to dominate the two-man tandem of LeBron James and (his) coach Chris Jent???
If it were my call, I’d go small, and just hope to out-do them with 3-pointers. Let’s do Boobie, Mo Williams, Anthony Parker, Anderson Varejao and . . . Danny Ferry.
[No guarantees.]
Who Is the Screeching Woman That Gets Picked Up on the Court Mics at The Q???
A woman’s voice was picked up on (what I assume to be) the on-court, hoop mics at The Q during Saturday night’s win over Philadelphia. And she was awesome!
In the third quarter, when the Cavs were down by two or three, the woman became very frustrated. She loudly and distinctly shouted, quote, “C’mon you guys! Let’s go! C’mon LeBron!!!”
It might not seem exciting in print, but her tone was great: She was clearly fed up. And maybe it worked. Maybe she should sit closer to the bench.
Her voice popped up several times on the “Fox Sports Ohio” feed. One time, she was yelling about a foul that she didn’t see . . . that they were apparently not re-showing on the score board, and another time she was warning someone not to step on her pizza.