Happy LeBron Day!

Well, it's December 30th and as sports fans it's time for us to celebrate a mega-star's birthday. No not Tiger Woods silly, it's our own LeBron James. Today is the King's 24th birthday and he will celebrate it down in sunny Miami, hopefully with a win against the Heat and not too much daydreaming about the post-game festivities.

Enjoy your 24th in Miami LBJ

This should be another good test for the Cavs since it is a national TV game on the road against a solid opponent. LeBron likes this kind of spotlight so I'm sure he'll be ready to play. The Cavs have hit a little bit of adversity in their last four wins, so they are getting more accustomed to perfoming under a little more pressure late in tight games. As fans we of course prefer them blowing their opponents out of the water, but they need to play some close ones too. I expect this to be another tight, defensive game.

And since today is LeBron's birthday it got me thinking to about a blog I've neglected to visit for a while. They've had some entertaining LeBron Day entries in the past (2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007) so I'm looking forward to this year's entry.

Still perfect

Still perfect, and no I'm not talking about Romeo Crennel's sparkling 0-8 record vs. the Steelers (more on that later). The Cavaliers remain a perfect 16-0 at the Q after their 93-86 win (highlights) over the Heat last night. Casual sports fans of Cleveland, I'm now begging you... please start paying attention to these Cavaliers. Somehow after their 26-4 start, I still don't think this city has fully embraced this team. But now that another Browns season is officially in the can, hopefully that will change. If you're not following them consistently, you're really missing out on something special.

Last night was just another example of how many different ways the Cavs can win now. They again looked sluggish through the first 3+ quarters of this one, much like the Wizards game on Christmas Day. But again, they turned it on when they had to, turning a nine-point deficit after three quarters into a 7-point win while outscoring the Heat 35-19 in the final quarter. They did it with their defense, timely shots, and some good free-throw shooting down the stretch. And I'd like to point out that even though Dywane Wade ended up with 29 points, Delonte West's defense was relentless. Plays like this highlight how valuable a player West can be. I also thought that LeBron and Ben Wallace were especially active on defense in that final quarter, as was Anderson Varejao (no different than how Andy always is). And Mo Williams proved how capable a sidekick to the King he can be by notching his third straight 20+ scoring night.

Smiles and hugs all around again on Sunday night

All in all, it wasn't a particularly pretty victory for the Cavs but they can't blow out teams every night. The league has taken notice of just how good this Cavs team is and they are really getting the best of most opponents on a nightly basis now. And I also think being home for the holidays might play a little into their sluggish starts the past two games. We'll see if that changes when they face the Heat again tomorrow night in Miami on LBJ's 24th birthday. To calm your Cavalier craving you can watch NBA TV all day today with their '24 Hours of LeBron' programming

Browns Update: On the uglier side of Cleveland sports, the Browns' 2008 season finally came to a merciful end. The embarrassing 31-0 loss marked the franchise's first back-to-back shutouts ever. I believe they have also gone an astonishing 24 consecutive quarters without an offensive touchdown. I'm not sure if that's an NFL record (probably because I stopped really paying attention a long time ago) but I would this level of ineptitude has to rank them up there with the all-time greats.

After a 4-12 season that began with lofty expectations (remember the 'Super Bowl' chants in training camp?) heads were sure to roll. And the team wasted no time last night, with Phil Savage the first man to the chopping block. Romeo Crennel is sure to follow today. Then Rebuild #4 can finally be underway. I heard a bunch of the coach/GM rumors last night and it was enough to make my head spin. My favorite was Bill Parcells & Scott Pioli. Why in the world would either one of them want to come here??? I'm sure Tony Grossi's head is about to explode today. I can't wait to listen to the cleveland.com podcast. Just another day in Berea for our Browns...

***Update*** Apparently as I was writing today's entry, Romeo Crennel was indeed fired. No surprises there, but just wanted to make sure everyone knew it was official.

And ugly win, but still a win

Last night's 93-89 victory (highlights) by the Cavs over the Wizards at the Q had all the makings of an enormous Christmas Day letdown. Trailing by 7 points with 1:40 left in the 4th, I even said the game was over. The Cavs looked lethargic all night long against one of the worst teams in the NBA. But they still had some fight left, finished the game with an 11-0 run and stole one of the uglier wins I can remember in a long time. The did it with defense down the stretch and some good free throw shooting (8-for-9 in that final 1:40).

The Christmas Day pre-game chalk toss was a sight to behold

We've come to expect so much of these Cavaliers that at first glance such a win can appear troubling. But when you factor in the fact that this was Christmas Day against a bad team that dislikes the Cavs and played hard, you can forgive the Cavs for throwing out a clunker. What's important is that they woke up just in the nick of time, kept the home streak alive (now 15-0 in the friendly confines of the Q), and most importantly they were able to gain a game on Boston after their loss in LA. So now the Cavs sit at 25-4, just 1-1/2 games behind the Celtics. Of course it's still way to early to be scoreboard watching like this, but how can you resist? The Cavs look to keep things rolling on Sunday night at the Q when they start a home-and-home series against the Heat. I expect them to be much sharper in this one.

And I wanted to note how fun the "LeBron chalk" pre-game ceremony ended up last night. At first it seemed like it would be just another silly Nike promotion. But I have to say that the view from inside the Q was very cool and the crowd was really into it. And I actually think the crowd collectively helped will the Cavs to that victory last night. The Q has become a very intimidating place for road teams to play and it is a great thing to behold. I also enjoyed seeing Brian Windhorst's comments on the subject this morning:

LeBron seemed genuinely emotional about the pregame mass chalk toss. Some great pictures came out of it. He said it was something he'll remember the rest of his life. There is no doubt he has a special relationship with the fans here. The only guys not happy were the janitors.
- Brian Windhorst

A great test

Last night's game vs. the Rockets at the Q gave us another chance to see just how good these Cavaliers are. They answered the call with a decisive 99-90 victory (highlights) to push their home record to 14-0 and their latest winning streak to four games. Again, the formula was solid defense and timely offense in a tough, physical matchup.

At one point in the fourth quarter the Cavs pushed their lead to 14 points, but some hot outside shooting and non-stop calls in Houston's favor (Yao Ming had 12 free throws in the 4th quarter alone) got the Rockets right back into the game. That point was the first time in a while that the Cavs have really been tested at home, clinging to a two-point lead with 5:34 remaining. But Boobie Gibson stepped up with two huge threes, Anderson Varejao hit a running hook shot, and Mo Williams buried two dagger shots down the stretch. And LeBron capped things off with a highlight-reel rejection of Yao to whip the home crowd into a frenzy.

LBJ and Mo again led the way for the Cavs

Houston is a much better team than I thought going into this one. Their defense forced the Cavs off balance at times, but the coaching staff made some nice adjustments in the second half. Make no mistake about it - this was a quality win over a quality opponent. The going should get easier over the next couple weeks for the Cavs, starting tomorrow night against the Wizards and old friend DeShawn Stevenson. I'm looking forward to spending Christmas night in the Q watching him get schooled by the King yet again...

Holiday update

OK, I'm back from the city that never sleeps, a.k.a. NYC. You know, the place where LeBron won't be playing his home games in 2010, despite the endless rumors to the contrary over the last few years? It was a fun diversion from all the holiday madness but I'm happy to be back home now. And I'm eternally grateful I was able to avoid witnessing anything that happened at the Stadium on Sunday between two god-awful Ohio football teams. I was disappointed I didn't get to see the Cavs' 102-91 win (highlights) on Sunday night in Oklahoma City. But at least I did get to watch their impressive 105-88 smackdown (highlights) of a good Nuggets team in Denver on Friday night. Our flight into LaGuardia was delayed a long time in Cleveland so we arrived late into New York on Friday night. I snuck in the game on ESPN (ugh) while my wife took in a nap in our hotel room...

So anyway, I'm excited about the possibilities brewing with our Cavaliers and their upcoming three-game homestand. Tonight will be another good test against a solid Rockets team. And that will be followed up by very winnable games against the Wizards and Heat. The Cavs really have a chance to string together a lot more wins over their next 8 games, leading up to the January 9th showdown at the Q against the Celtics. As is the case when your favorite team is 23-4, it will be fun to watch how it unfolds.

That's more like it

On the heels of their close loss in Atlanta on Saturday, last night's matchup in Minnesota had the makings of a a perfect "trap" game, especially considering the Cavaliers have another tough battle looming ahead on Friday night in Denver. It would have been easy to overlook the Timberwolves, losers of 10 straight and sporting just a 4-20 record. Last year's version of the Cavaliers probably would have overlooked them. But you get the sense that this year's team is much different and much more focused. Instead of looking past Minnesota, the Cavs took care of business in much the same fashion they have all year with a 93-70 rout (highlights) in the Target Center.

LeBron James had another brilliant performance on his way to 32 points on a ridiculous 10-for-14 shooting. His dazzling array of passing and tough fallaway shots led to the Cavs outscoring Minnesota 30-14 in the fourth quarter and culminated in the rare road standing ovation. Definitely a classy move by the Minnesota crowd. And Delonte West also shook of a recent shooting slump by chipping in a personal Cavalier-high 21 points on 9-of-16 from the floor.

The King acknowledges the classy Minnesota crowd on Wednesday night

The 70 points scored by Minnesota marks the lowest by any Cavs' opponent so far this season. It also drops the Cavalier defensive average to 89.2 ppg, the best in the NBA and the only team allowing under 90 a night. At the 25 game point last season the Cavs were just 11-14. They are 21-4 now. And this was already their 17th double-digit victory on the season, compared to just 10 of them all last year. Again, barring some catastrophic injuries this team is on pace to do something very special.

Speaking of injuries, Bob Finnan gives an injury update. I had a feeling the toe problem might linger for Boobie. And I'm OK with him resting up and getting himself 100% healthy. Sasha Pavlovic has done an admirable job stepping into the rotation and buying into Mike Brown's 'defense-first' mentality. And he appears to have learned to stop the out-of-control drives to the basket where a turnover seemed to be the only possible outcome. I'm not saying that Sasha is anything spectacular - and I've certainly learned over the years to not fall for his flashes of talent amid maddening inconsistency - but his controlled play of late has been a pleasant surprise. Now if Z really can give it a go on Friday night I will feel much better about our offensive flow in Denver. I'm just glad he survived this back in '95...

Back in action

I apologize for my extended absence this week. Work has dragged me away from the more pressing need of talking Cleveland sports. But work does pay the bills, so unfortunately it is required to be my #1 priority. Thankfully the Cavs are back in action tonight in just three short hours when they are in Minnesota to take on the Timberwolves. Even without Z and Boobie in the line-up this should be a surefire, no excuses win. I just hope they don't look past tonight's game in anticipation of a tough matchup in Denver vs. the Nuggets Friday night. The good news is that Z and maybe even Boobie will be available for that one... more tomorrow morning, hopefully to recap another win for the 'Wine & Golders' (as Fred McLeod fondly refers to them).

It couldn't last forever

A great man once said, "no good thing ever dies." After the Cavs' 88-72 win (highlights) over the 76ers on Friday night they reached a franchise milestone by tying a club record for 11 consecutive wins. But before it could become another team record, the streak died on Saturday night with a 97-92 setback in Atlanta. Of course the Cavs can't win every game they play but this one was rather frustrating, especially given the torrid pace that the Celtics are setting in the East.

It was one of Those Games. You know the ones where your team is playing on the road, shorthanded, with the refs making a lot of terrible calls in favor of the home team, and every loose ball seeming to bounce the home team's way? Yep, that's how it went on Saturday. The free throw disparity doesn't even begin to tell the story, with the Hawks getting to the line 39 times compared to just 23 for the Cavs. And don't be fooled by LeBron's 12 free throw attempts in the box score. He was hacked on numerous other drives to the rim that resulted in non-calls. So given the lopsided officiating, coupled with the fact that we were playing without two of our top six rotation guys (Z and Boobie) I'm actually quite pleased that we almost pulled it out in the end.

One of the few times LBJ wasn't fouled on his way to the rim

Thankfully for the Cavs they get to rest up for a bit before returning to the court to take on a bad Timberwolves team in Minnesota on Wednesday night. With a little luck Z can take the next few days to rest that ankle up and maybe he can even be ready to go on Friday night when the Cavs have another tough road test in Denver. It's obvious that we're missing the big guy in many of our offensive sets. Speaking of that, here's a great in-depth look at the Cavalier offense. Interesting stuff if you really want to see the different sets that can run from something that seems so simple, yet so hard to defend...

Unfortunately until the Cavs play again we are relegated to watching the Browns tonight in Philadelphia to take on the Eagles on Monday night football. Ugh. $20 for the first person that can give me one solid reason to watch this game tonight.

Streak stretches to 10

With last night's 101-93 win (highlights) over the 76ers in Philadelphia, the Cavaliers ran their winning streak to 10 games. But in the process they may have lost another huge part of their line-up for a few games. Following Boobie Gibson's toe injury on Tuesday, Zydrunas Ilgauskas had a nasty looking roll of his ankle last night. X-rays after the game proved to be negative, but it looks like Z may be put on the shelf for a little stretch to make sure he returns to health.

Mo continues to impress with his ability to creat off the dribble

But aside from the Z injury it was another good night for the Cavaliers. They didn't play their best ball, looked sloppy on both offense and defense at times, but they still got a much-needed win on the road. They basically won the game with their play in the third quarter when they outscored the 76ers 36-19. As I've said before, it seems like this Cavs team can turn up the defensive pressure whenever they feel like it. They did so in the third and at one point the lead swelled to 21 points. They proceeded to let Philly back in the game with a clunker of a 4th quarter (likely affected by the Z injury - after which they were outscored 23-15), but made enough plays down the stretch to win the game.

Mo Williams, LeBron, and Ben Wallace shined in particular for me last night. Mo continues to impress with his ball-handling through traffic and ability to create shots for himself when nothing else seems to be working. LeBron was his usual self, showing off a combination of strong drives to the rim, ball-hawking blocked shots from behind in transition, and a nice, long buzzer-beating three to end a sluggish first quarter for the Cavs. And Ben Wallace was all over the court again, collection 10 rebounds, 2 blocks (seemed like more though), and 6 points (even swishing a wide open baseline jumper).

It will be interesting to see how the team responds to a little adversity now with Z and Boobie out of the rotation. Four of their next five games will be on the road and it will be a good opportunity for the team to use that "bunker mentality" that Mike Brown is always talking about. I expect LeBron and Mo to shoulder more of the load now offensively, something they are both very capable of. And now that Mo is part of this group it won't be such a scary thought to insert Anderson Varejao into the starting line-up and have him play long stretches on the court with Ben Wallace. And aside from Mo's arrival, Andy has proven himself a capable part of the offense so far this season. We will need contributions from all the guys to weather these injuries that seem to always crop up at the worst time...

Broken records

I hate to sound like a broken record, but the Cavs were firing on all cylinders again last night as they cruised to another easy 114-94 victory (highlights) over the Raptors. It was a night of broken records as LeBron got his record-breaking steal out of the way early, Z got his record-breaking rebound (perhaps the most non-descript rebound of his career) out of the way in the 2nd quarter, and the Cavs became the first team in NBA history to win nine straight games by at least 12 points. The latest win brings them to 18-3 on the year and coupled with another ugly Pistons' loss puts the Cavaliers now 6-1/2 games in first place in the Central Division.

Records fell at the Q on Tuesday night

It was more of the same inside the Q as the Cavs seemed to turn up the defensive intensity whenever they wanted to. They held Chris Bosh to just 9 points, tying a season low the 24.9 ppg scorer, and only one Raptor starter (PG Jose Calderon) even reached double figures. For the season the Cavs have only surrendered 100 points 3 times in 21 games and are holding their opponents to a league-low 90.4 average.

Offensively the Cavs also seemed to get whatever they wanted. LeBron had an amazing 7 dunks on the night by my own unofficial count. And Mo Williams is just incredible to watch, especially in person. He takes so much pressure off of LeBron. The Cavs again shot well overall from the floor (49.4%) and from long-distance (8-for-22). And they continued their stellar play at the Q, raising their home record to a perfect 12-0, now the only undefeated team at home in the league. The only downer was Boobie Gibson's toe injury. Let's hope that doesn't linger for too long.

The Cavaliers are again in action tonight in Philadelphia to face the Sixers at 8:00pm. This will be a good road test, especially if we are shorthanded without Boobie in the rotation. Do yourselves a favor when watching this one if you can - turn down the volume on the ESPN broadcast and flip on Joe Tait for the call. If you're watching the best team in the NBA, you might as well listen to the best play-by-play man in the NBA, right?

Tribe Update: The Indians are reportedly close to signing Cubs closer Kerry Wood to a two-year deal. This is the type of low-risk/high-reward type of signing by GM Mark Shapiro that we have grown accustomed to over the years with the current set up of Major League Baseball (don't get me started on Sabathia and the Yankees). But I actually think this one will pay off well for the Tribe if it goes down. If healthy, Wood can be the dominant type of closer that we've been craving here in Cleveland since the good old days of Jose Mesa (pre-World Series Game 7 meltdown) and Mike Jackson. But I hope the Tribe isn't done with just this signing. The second base/shortstop situation needs to be addressed. I don't think I'll be able to handle another spring with hopeful Cleveland newspaper articles about Josh Barfield's re-emergence...

More milestones?

This has already been a season of milestones for the Cavaliers with their best start in franchise history at home (11-0), best overall start in franchise history (17-3), not to mention their +13.3 ppg differential and already two 8-game winning streaks. But tonight marks a chance to give them three more milestones and they are all significant.

First, with another big victory tonight (very possible against a team like the Raptors who have just fired their coach and are riding a 4-game losing streak) the Cavs can become the first team in NBA history to win 9 consecutive games by at least 12 points. But that stat doesn't tell the whole story of just how dominant the Cavs have been this season. In these 8 wins the Cavs are outscoring their opponents by an average of 21.7 points. That is complete domination.

Second, with one more steal LeBron James will become the franchise's all-time leader in that category. This would surpass the current record of 734 set by Mark Price over his stellar 9-year career with the Cavs. Keep in mind that LeBron is only a quarter of the way through his sixth season with the wine and gold. Before it's all said and done he will hold possibly all of these records. There aren't enough superlatives to describe just how good he really is.

And finally and most importantly, with four more rebounds Zydrunas Ilgauskas will set the all-time Cavalier record for rebounds in a career. Barring anything bizarre this will definitely happen tonight and I'm glad I will be there at the Q to see it. I know Z doesn't like any fanfare and would rather not get the public recognition, but I really hope they stop the game and give us fans a chance to show how much we appreciate Z's hard work. He has gone through so much with the foot injuries and the terrible teams. He deserves a moment in the sun like this.

Enjoy your moment tonight big fella, you've earned it

Tonight begins another important stretch of four games in five nights for the Cavaliers. This will be a bigger test than the one at the end of November against better competition. But if their recent play is any indication, we should excited about the opportunity that lies ahead. This is a chance to really open up a big lead on the Pistons and enjoy the milestones along the way.

Polar opposites

At this exact moment can you think of two sports franchises that are more opposite than the Cavs and Browns? While the Browns continue to flounder through another lost season the Cavaliers are only getting stronger. They extended their impressive run with two more easy wins over the weekend, running their current winning streak to 8 and their overall record to 17-3. On Friday night the Indiana Pacers were the victims of a 97-73 drubbing (highlights) at the Q. Then the Cavs followed it up on Saturday night in Charlotte with a 94-74 thumping (highlights) of the Bobcats. Their routine blowouts of the opposition are reaching historic proportions - the Charlotte victory was the team's 8th straight win by at least 12 points. That ties an NBA record with one team you may recall... the 95-96 Chicago Bulls that finished the year 72-10.

LBJ and the Cavs are soaring to new heights this year

That's not to say the Cavs are going to win 72 this year. I just don't see any reason to push the pedal that hard all year long, especially given their already swelling 5-game lead in the Central division over the Pistons. But with the Celtics at 20-2 and showing no signs of slowing down, the Cavs will likely be pushed all year. Both teams will be gunning for the all-important #1 seed in the East, and home court advantage that goes along with it. So it will be interesting to see just how high the win total can get this year. And to put this season into perspective, when the Cavs finally reached 17 wins last season (not until January 6th) they also already had 17 losses. Buckle your seatbelts Cleveland, we're only a quarter of the way through the regular season and this is going to be a long, enjoyable ride.

Browns Update: As I said, at the opposite end of the sports spectrum you have our Cleveland Browns. Pathetic in every way, now 4-9 after their 28-9 loss in Tennessee. I know that Ken Dorsey is our starting QB now and of course I didn't expect a win over the far superior Titans yesterday. But is it too much to ask for the coaching staff to mix things up a bit? Try something new offensively (before the 4th quarter when the game is out of reach) and make it at least bearable to watch?

Some of my favorite highlights from yesterday's game:

• Jamal Lewis' 7 total rushing yards on 7 carries.
• The Browns' total offense of 178 yards.
• Romeo Crennel's flat-out refusal (or disinterest?) in challenging a close call in which Josh Cribbs actually threw a great pass that Braylon Edwards appeared to catch on the sideline for a long gain in the fourth quarter.
• Crennel's insistence in calling a timeout in the last minute of the game when the Browns were still near midfield and Tennessee just wanted to celebrate winning the AFC South title.
• The Browns then following that timeout up by not even getting a Hail Mary pass off as the final seconds ticked off the clock.

The mess of this organization is now visible in virtually every aspect of the game for this team. From the front office, to the coaching staff, to the undisciplined and quitting players (save for a handful of them) this franchise is everything the Cavaliers are not. Let's hope some of this speculation is accurate and we can get some professionalism and control back on this team.

Cruising along

The Cavaliers continued their dominant ways again last night with a 118-82 pasting (highlights) of the New York Knicks. The win is the sixth straight for the Cavs, their 14th in their last 15 (first time the franchise has ever done that), and 10th straight at the Q (first time they have ever opened a season 10-0 at home). It was another laugher, with all the Cavaliers starters able to comfortably rest on the bench for much of the second half. And the reserves got lots of playing time with everyone able to get into the scorebook.

Not that smashing this pathetic Knicks team twice in 8 days is some great achievement, but it is deeply satisfying. Even if their roster is currently depleted due to injuries, the way the team is being run is really an insult to the league. Openly tanking two seasons before July 2010, playing absolutely no defense, routinely jacking up 30+ threes a game, having a player that refuses to enter games then gets suspended (Stephon Marbury), having another player that is too fat to actually be allowed to enter a game (Jerome James), etc., etc. I'll just say it once - I can't imagine why on earth LeBron would want to be a part of that mess when he becomes a free agent. The team and franchise are truly a joke.

10-0 at home, 14 out of 15, 15-3 overall... and just scratching the surface

So the Cavs now sit at 15-3. And even though I shouldn't even be looking at this or considering it valid, I can't help myself. ESPN's John Hollinger has a complicated formula to determine the NBA's best team and playoff odds. The Cavs firmly sit at #1 in the current daily rankings, ahead of the Lakers and Celtics. They also now have a 46% chance of winning it all this year according to the current playoff odds. After reading that I'm sitting here waiting for the sky to fall or for me just to have a massive heart attack. The sports gods won't actually let Cleveland enjoy this will they? Stay tuned... the Cavaliers will be back on the court Friday night to take on the surprisingly dangerous Pacers who have already taken down the Celtics and Lakers this season. But I don't think focus will be a problem for these Cavaliers, especially in the friendly confines of the Q.

Bobblehead Update: Last night also marked my sixth annual pilgrimmage to the Q to collect the LeBron bobblehead. I have to say this year's version is possibly the best yet, definitely bearing the most resemblence to the actual King than any of them so far. It will look nice behind the yet-to-be-constructed bar in my yet-to-be-finished basement (hopefully work will commence this summer). I think it will fit with the others nicely:

Newsflash: LeBron is really good

As if we needed further validation to prove what we already know, LeBron James won the 8th Eastern Conference Player of the Month award of his career. The King's numbers for the month? 28.6 points on 49.7% shooting, 7.1 rebounds, 6.2 assists, and 2.1 steals per game. And the Cavaliers finished the month at 13-2 en route to their franchise best 14-3 start to the season. For some strange reason I have a feeling this won't be the last of these awards for LBJ this season...

Hey, this guy is pretty good

And you know the Cavs are playing well when they just finished a four-games-in-five-nights set and I'm already dying to see them on the court again. When was the last time they won four games in five nights? I can't remember and right now I'm too lazy to try to look it up, but I'm willing to bet it was quite a while ago.

So how good can these Cavaliers be this year? I probably shouldn't go down this road but... barring any major injuries I think they can easily set the franchise record for wins in a season of 58. My own modest pre-season prediction of 56 wins seems too low right now. But with the Celtics not showing any signs of letting up this year (they currently sit at 17-2) the Cavs will probably have to get to at least 60 wins to have any reasonable shot at home court advantage through the Eastern Conference Finals. I know I'm getting way ahead of myself here, but these are the things you think about during three off days when your favorite team is playing .823 basketball.

Key dates for the Cavaliers' quest for #1 in the East:

• Fri Jan 9 vs. Boston
• Thu Jan 29 @ Orlando
• Sun Feb 1 @ Detroit
• Sun Feb 22 vs. Detroit
• Fri Mar 6 @ Boston
• Tue Mar 17 vs. Orlando
• Tue Mar 31 vs. Detroit
• Fri Apr 3 @ Orlando
• Sun Apr 12 vs. Boston

I can't wait to see how it all unfolds...

Sinking to new lows

We've known the Browns' season has basically been over for weeks now. But they may have hit a new low, even for their own crappy standards yesterday. Their defense somehow managed to hold the powerful Colts to just 10 points, yet the Browns still found a way to lose the game 10-6. And in the process they also lost beleaguered QB Derek Anderson probably for the remainder of the season to a knee injury. Let the Ken Dorsey era begin in Cleveland!

DA's knee injury will pave the way for a possible 4-12 finish

We might as well go out and sign Tim Couch and Ty Detmer at this point because we have come full circle, all the way back to the expansion mess of 1999. I now have visions of Doug Pederson running the Browns offense in 2000, followed by the Dennis Northcutt experiment under center in that game against the Eagles. Maybe we can do the same with Josh Cribbs when the Bengals visit the Stadium on December 21st. At least that would give us some reason to actually tune into that mess of a game.

This was the first Browns home game that I personally did not attend this season, so I can't verify the magnitude of this - but it was troubling to me to hear that the fans in attendance actually cheered Derek Anderson's knee injury. Even if you're not a fan of this guy, that is just wrong. It seems that our own ineptitude and resulting inferiority complex has driven us against our own players again. But again, I wasn't there so I don't know how much this has been blown out of proportion by the papers. Either way, it's just another mess involving the Browns. And as I touched on last week, the fans' apathy is growing, as evidenced by the 20,000 or so empty orange seats.

I hope Randy Lerner hears/sees that message loud and clear. This is a team that was 7-1 at home last year and gave us reason for hope and optimism. They are now 1-6 at home, with the real prospect of going 1-7 with Ken Dorsey taking snaps against Cincinnati in the home finale. The only year they did worse at home was their 0-8 season of 1999 when they could at least lean on the crutch of being an expansion team. Ladies and gentlemen, your 2008 Cleveland Browns! Pathetic.

Cavs Update: On to brighter news, as always seems to be the case when transitioning away from Browns talk... the Cavs are now 14-3. They extended their current winning streak to five with impressive wins over the Warriors (highlights) and Bucks (highlights) over the holiday weekend. This has to feel good for newcomer Mo Williams, whose longest winning streak last year in Milwaukee was two. He already has streaks of eight and five wins under his belts with the Cavs.

Mo has to be happy he's out of Milwaukee and now winning with the Cavs

And just looking at the schedule and the Cavaliers' next seven opponents (all .500 or worse) this streak could balloon even more. So do yourself a favor my fellow Cleveland fans. Go out and support this team. Start with LeBron bobblehead night Wednesday vs. the Knicks. Go have fun and watch a dominant team whose last 8 wins have come by at least 11 points. This is going to be a special season and you really shouldn't miss out on it.

The Cavs are dominating

What more can you say about the Cavaliers at this point? They are 12-3, 2-1/2 games ahead of the Pistons in the Central, their last six wins have all been by at least 11 points, they are outscoring their opponents by 10.6 points per night, and they haven't trailed for one second of their last three games. Just stop and think about that last stat for a second. That's tough to do in basketball regardless of the opposition. Yes, the Cavaliers have feasted on lesser opponents in the last week, but what are they supposed to do? Play down to the competition as they used to? No thanks, and gladly those days seem to be over.

J.J. notched a career-high 14 on Wednesday night

There were a couple of times during Wednesday night's 117-82 drubbing (highlights) of the Oklahoma City Thunder that I actually felt bad for OKC. That's not a feeling I'm used to as a Cleveland fan. But that was one of the worst beatdowns I've seen in the NBA in quite some time. I specifically felt bad for our old friend Joe Smith who is stuck on a terrible 1-14 Thunder roster after the late-summer trade that netted us Mo Williams. I loved Joe Smith's game the short time he was in a Cavalier uniform and I saw the way he interacted with his former teammates before the tipoff on Wednesday night. I'm still holding out hope that the Thunder will agree to buy his contract out sometime soon and allow him to chase a ring.

I think the Cavs would take him back in a heartbeat, especially given our open flirtation with free agent Antonio McDyess... although our frontcourt situation does seem a little rosier with the new and improved healthy back of Ben Wallace coupled with the emergence of rookies J.J. Hickson (14 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 blocks on Wednesday) and Darnell Jackson (4 points, 5 rebounds). The recent lopsided wins have afforded Mike Brown a chance to really rest his key players and give the younger guys a lot of court time. And that will come in doubly handy with two more games this weekend to complete four games in five nights for the Cavs. It's time to get greedy and take these last two before a three-day rest. The Warriors and their 5-10 record are in town tonight. I hope the Cavs are still hungry the day after Thanksgiving. I know my Tryptophan and pie-induced drowsiness is still wearing off...

Time to give thanks

I have a lot of things to be thankful for in my life right now... my wife, my family and friends, my health, my job, my home, just to name a few. But there are also things in Cleveland sports that I'm truly thankful for. And not surprisingly, none of them have to do with the Browns. Here's a quick list on this day before Thanksgiving:

• LeBron James - I've been thankful for LBJ for quite some time now. He is truly a one-in-a-generation athlete and we have him here for this season and next season at the very least. Don't forget that Cleveland, despite whatever you read, see, or hear anywhere else.
• Mo Williams - How great is it to finally have someone on the Cavaliers that can initiate his own offense independently from LeBron? Mo is taking this offense to another level.
• Delonte West - His hideous occasional cornrows aside, what Delonte is doing this year at the starting 2 guard spot is nothing short of brilliant. I love his game.
• A healthy Ben Wallace. Enough said right there. He is an animal.
• Zydrunas Ilgauskas - Basically for just being Z. He is a model of consistency and professionalism. Is he the perfect player? Of course not. But he's pretty damn good at what he does and he is so dependable. Many people forget this is the same player that missed almost three full seasons due to various foot injuries/surgeries/rehab.
• Mike Brown - In a town where it is always fashionable to dislike the head coach/manager, Mike Brown is bucking the trend. He is a players' coach that values defense first and has done quite a job in his first pro gig. A .600 winning percentage is nothing to sneeze at. And it will only get better this season.
• Dan Gilbert - Finally an owner that seems to care about winning as much as us fans. He is willing to do whatever it takes to keep LBJ in a wine and gold uniform and win multiple championships. We are blessed that Mr. Gilbert came along when he did.
• Danny Ferry - Always the hard worker in his playing days, he seems to be putting even more effort into his GM duties. He is methodical and calculating, but also not afraid to make a big splash. I'm very curious to see where the Szczerbiak expiring contract takes us this season.
• Cliff Lee - For the hell of a season turned out by the lefty. Winning the AL Cy Young was just icing on the cake in Cliff's turnaround year. I'm excited to see what he can do as the ace of this staff next year. And if you would have told me last Thanksgiving that I'd be thankful for Lee this year I would have said you were nuts. Bravo Cliff.
• Grady Sizemore - For playing every game like it's his last. There are quite a few athletes on a certain team headquartered in Berea that could take notes on the way Grady leaves it all on the field in every game.

You may have noticed that a certain team dominated the above list. They are currently plowing their way through the Eastern Conference and only seem to be getting better with each game. With their 119-101 dismantling (highlights) of the Knicks last night in New York the Cavaliers improved to 11-3 on the season. And the score wasn't nearly as close as that. The Cavs were up by more than 30 at one point, while the Knicks continued to make a mockery of the game of basketball. Why in the world LeBron would ever consider playing for that joke of a franchise is completely beyond me. But New Yorkers seem to eat it up so whatever. I'll just continue listening to Brian Windhorst on the subject:

Tonight he ruled nothing out and told the Knicks fans "to have an open mind." There is no doubt a basis for all this hype, LeBron has been thinking about his options. One of them is surely to play in New York in the future. But right now -- and everything can and maybe will change -- the needle is firmly pointed toward staying home no matter what anyone says.

I enjoyed this sign in the Garden last night

Of course this saga will continue for another 20 months until a merciful end to all the speculation in July 2010. Until then I'll choose to enjoy LeBron and the Cavs working their way towards a goal that seems to be more attainable than ever for this franchise - an NBA title.

Browns Update: A fitting end to the 2008 Browns season, even with five games remaining. Go Cavs.

Romeo's swan song

Another day at the Stadium, another embarrassing defeat. This time at the hands of the lowly Houston Texans 16-6, themselves bringing in a 3-7 record and a road losing streak stretching over a year. It was another game filled with dropped passes, desperate coaching moves, terrible play calling, and more defensive ineptitude. The Browns are now 1-5 at home after being 7-1 there last year, including winning 7 straight. And they 4-7 on the season overall, one in which they entered with such hope.

Thankfully and finally the fans' patience has run out with this team. I've been inside the Stadium for every home game this year and I honestly didn't think it would happen. I've looked around me and seen blind support for a team of losers while they inexcusably pissed away second half leads against the Ravens and Broncos. I think there were still a lot of believers even before yesterday's game when a win would have brought the Browns to only 5-6. But this pathetic performance finally sapped all support from the fans here in Cleveland. Congratulations Browns, I didn't think you could do it. But I'm glad you finally did.

One of the better signs in the Stadium yesterday shows
just how these fans feel about #17's play this year

This moment had to come. Something needs to change with this franchise. This season has been filled with as much nonsense off the field as on it. The Kellen Winslow staph infection adventure, followed by his one-game suspension. The text messaging saga to Winslow's phone from Browns staffers urging him to keep quiet. GM Phil Savage's email-gate. Players talking about quitting. I'm so sick of all of it. And then yesterday came Romeo Crennel's decision to pull Brady Quinn after two interceptions and insert the embattled Derek Anderson. It was a desperate move by a desperate coach of a desperate team. And likely one of Crennel's final moves as the head man on the Browns' sidelines.

Please Browns, if you're going to rebuild again (and you definitely should), please, please, please do it the right way this time. Don't bring in another guy that has never been an NFL head coach before. Back up the Brinks truck to Bill Cowher's home in North Carolina or Strongsville (I loved that dumb rumor) or wherever the hell he is living now. Make him an offer he can't refuse. Show the fans you care about this team's image as much as they do (or did). The current state of the franchise is beyond embarrassing and Cowher can instantly restore some credibility.

Other Browns Notes: Brady Quinn reacts to his benching... Terry Pluto talks about how the Browns torment their own fans... Braylon Edwards hears and accepts the boos... And don't forget about Tony Grossi's noon chat today. This should be a fun one to recap.

Cavs Update: Now for a team that actually rewards you for being a fan: the Cavaliers laid the wood to the Hawks on Saturday night with a 110-96 win at the Q. If you didn't see the game, check out the highlights here. LeBron made three plays that were simply jawdropping to me, and luckily all three of them made that highlight reel. The first is around the 1:25 mark after Ben Wallace blocks a shot, Delonte West picks up the loose ball and thows an alley-oop to LeBron from nearly half court. Just watch LBJ streak past the defense. His speed in the open court is unbelievable. The second play is featured right after that one when LeBron drives through two Hawks defenders in the paint, gets hammered and still throws it down left-handed while losing his headband. His strength is ridiculous. And the third play is shown right after that dunk when LeBron drives through the lane, fakes a behind the back pass, cocks his right arm back and as Austin Carr would say, "throws the hammer down!" Just listen to the sound of the rim. And watch Mo Evans scurry to get out of the way.

So with the win the Cavs are now a perfect 7-0 at home, their best start ever at the Q. And they are 10-3 overall with a two game cushion in the Central over the Pistons. They will have a big stretch of games this week with four games in five nights beginning tomorrow night in New York (where we will surely hear more rumors of LeBron bolting for the pathetic Knicks). Three of the four games will be against sub-.500 teams. In fact, 6 of the Cavs' next 8 games will come against teams that currently have losing records. I feel another streak coming on...

Mike Brown credits his "Committee" for helping the Cavs get off to a fast start this season... And Coach Brown isn't a big fan of gambling for steals... And LeBron isn't tired of the 2010 rumors (yet).

Eight straight

The Cavaliers continued their stellar play last night, notching their eighth straight win with a 106-82 beatdown (highlights) of the Nets in New Jersey. The victory included the usual stellar play of LeBron (31 points in 35 minutes), as well as some outstanding contributions from the starting backcourt tandem of Delonte West (16 points, 4-for-4 from 3-pt range) and Mo Williams (16 points, 6 assists, 6 rebounds).

But the real key to last night's win was the team's play in the second half. The Nets led at halftime 52-49. From then on it was all Cavaliers. Their suffocating defense and timely outside shooting (10-for-17 from behind the arc) led to the Cavs outscoring the Nets 57-30 in the second half. So much for those dreary third quarters I guess. This is now three straight games in which the Cavs have outscored their opponents by double digits in the third quarter. The average margin in the third quarter in that span is Cavs +12.

And I have to make a special mention of just how great Ben Wallace has been playing lately. He looks like a new man now that he is healthy again. I don't know how long he can keep his back from acting up, but if it continues throughout the season we are in for quite a year defensively. Big Ben put up a typical Big Ben stat line last night - 3 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 blocked shots in his 26 minutes on the court. But that doesn't tell the entire story. He was running all over the court, basically guarding any and all positions, even denying the inbounds pass after made baskets will full-court pressure on the Nets point guards. And my personal favorite moment of the game - the Nets decided to go with the 'hack-a-Ben' strategy when the Cavs were on a big run in the second half, trying to take advantage of his poor free throw shooting. Wallace detests when teams do this, so he calmly stepped to the line and swished both attempts. He ended the night 3-for-4 from the line.

Big Ben collects one of his 4 blocks Tuesday night

So the Cavaliers now sit at 9-2 with an Eastern Conference-best +9.0 ppg differential. They will face a big test tonight in Detroit where they will square off with the Pistons on the second night of a road back-to-back. But if their recent play is any indication, the Pistons won't be able to simply chalk up what would have been an easy home victory in years past. It should be a good one tonight.

Browns win?

I know I should abide by my own made-up rule that a win is a win, especially in Cleveland. But I just can't help tearing apart last night's 29-27 win (highlights) over the Bills. I just can't. First, those were two really bad teams playing each other last night. That's not to say that each side doesn't have individual talent... but when looking at the overall team aspect of football, the Browns and the Bills are equally bad. Good thing for us that it resulted in an entertaining (for reasons both good and bad) game on national TV. But if you really stop and think about it, this is what today's NFL has become. A bunch of teams that are pretty close in talent level, battling it out. How many really good teams would you say there are in this league? Three? Four?

There are so many things that you could criticize both the Browns and Bills for last night. Here are just a few off the top of my head:

• With Trent Edwards basically handing the game to the Browns in the first quarter with three interceptions, how do we only capitalize with two field goals? The Browns took possession on each drive at the Bills' 44, 40, and 10 yard lines. Six points? Really?
• The Bills exploited the inexperience of Brady Quinn by consistently blitzing him. And linebacker Kawika Mitchell ran seemingly untouched through the Browns' line about a dozen times. Was anyone paying attention to him? Would it hurt to keep Jamal Lewis or Charles Ali as an extra blocker back there so Quinn doesn't get killed?
• After Trent Edwards' awful start the Bills rightfully handcuffed him by only allowing him to throw the ball near the line of scrimmage for almost the entire remainder of the game. This meant that any pass was basically going to Marshawn Lynch. And of course the Browns couldn't tackle him to save their lives. How is an NFL team so inept at something as fundamental as proper tackling?
• With Marshawn Lynch and Fred Jackson basically ripping the Browns' defense a new one, how did the Bills only rush 35 times? I would have handed off 50 times if I was them, especially considering how bad a QB Edwards is.
• What was up with the Browns' play-calling when they kind of got into field goal range late in the fourth quarter. It was like they saw the imaginary line drawn on the field by Monday Night Football to indicate Phil Dawson's career-long field goal and decided that they were close enough right there. They followed it with three awful pass plays to the sideline, forcing Dawson to hammer home a 56-yard field goal with 1:44 left. Kudos to Phil for that kick (and his other four on the night) - as Doug Dieken said, "If Phil doesn't make the Pro Bowl this year, then no one deserves to be there."

Dawson was money from 56 yards on Monday night

• In true Browns fashion, they decided to squib the ensuing kickoff and the Bills took over at their own 44. I know they were gunshy after the kickoff return for a touchdown earlier in the quarter, but come on.
• Of course Trent Edwards made his one good throw of the night on that drive, getting the Bills into their own long field goal range at the Browns' 38. The the Bills decided to tear a page out of the Browns' playbook by playing it safe and opting for their own long field goal, except this one was going into the swirling wind.
• Also on that drive, Romeo Crennel and the Browns' coaching staff made another really boneheaded move. After Edwards' one good pass there was about 1:15 left on the game clock and the Browns still had all three timeouts. Instead of calling one immediately after that play to preserve the clock in case the Bills made that field goal, Romeo decided to let the Bills run another play and then call a timeout, effectively losing another 20 seconds. Brilliant.

I'm sure there are other things I missed, but like I said these are just off the top of my head after a late night. And I didn't even mention the continued drops by Braylon Edwards, coupled with another procedure penalty against him as well. These are mistakes that a good football team just doesn't make. But thankfully the Bills aren't a good football team either. The saddest part of all of this is that without two epic fourth quarter collapses at home (where the Browns are 1-4) this team would now be at 6-4 fighting for a playoff spot, or maybe even the division title. Only in today's NFL...

There were some good things to take away from last night's game for the Browns, aside from a much-needed win. Jerome Harrison showed outstanding speed on his 72-yard TD run and again is making a case for more carries. Brady Quinn knows how to manage a game and avoid costly turnovers in just his second NFL start (he really should be 2-0 now). Despite his drops and mental errors, Braylon Edwards still was able haul in 8 catches for 104 yards. And I loved the play that Chud called with the 'Flash' package for the Josh Cribbs TD. More of that, please.

Cavs Update: The Cavaliers look to add on to their 7-game win streak when they face the Nets at 7:30 tonight in New Jersey. It will be the first of a tough back-to-back on the road before heading to Detroit tomorrow night. So it's imperative for the Cavs to try to get a win tonight. Mike Brown is ignoring the win streak in an effort to keep the team focused... LeBron isn't satisfied with just winning seven in a row... The team needs to be successful on the road and this will be a good test... You'll never guess who was again named Eastern Conference player of the week... And don't look now but there's a new #1 on NBA.com's latest power rankings. Uh-oh.

"We don't want to get too far ahead of ourselves because when you start thinking, 'We've got to take care of our road trip,' or 'We've got to handle this winning streak,' that feels like an enormous burden. If you just think, 'Let's go handle our business this next game,' to me that's simplistic and you go out there and do what you do and you have a chance to win if you do it right."
- Mike Brown

Another good weekend

Although greatly aided by the fact that the Browns didn't play yesterday, we made it through another Cleveland sports weekend without a blemish. The Cavaliers took care of the Jazz on Saturday night with a 105-93 win (highlights here) at the Q. That makes seven in a row for the good guys and they now sit atop the Central Division at 8-2, one game ahead of the Pissed-ons.

1/8th of the way home and looking good...

This was one of the funner regular season games that I can remember attending in quite some time. It probably had a lot to do with the fact that old friend Carlos Boozer was in the building (his team now 0-5 in Cleveland since his backstabbing departure). My personal favorite moment of the night was when LeBron soared high to reject a shot attempt by Boozer midway through the fourth quarter. It was part of a highlight-reel fourth quarter by James and Mo Williams that had the Q rocking.

LBJ hit some daggers in the 4th on his way to 39 on Saturday night

I've said it before, and I'll say it again - stick with this team. Enjoy them. They won't disappoint you. This is truly a talented squad, ready to reach new heights for this franchise and this city. And for those of you that like to complain about Mike Brown and his lack of offense, this team currently sits fifth in the league in scoring at 101.1 ppg. Mo Williams and Delonte West in the starting line-up make this a very formidable bunch. And the bench is contributing greatly to the cause. And they will get better too.

Other Cavs Notes: Just to expand on what I touched on last week, the Cavs can offer LeBron one more year and $31.5M more than any other NBA team in the summer of 2010. How do I know this? Because the great Brian Windhorst laid out all the numbers today. So suck on that national media... Bob Finnan has a nice piece today on Boobie and his unwavering confidence... And George Thomas gives some more details on the Cavs' new high-powered offense.

Browns Update: The orange and brown continue the beginning of the Brady Quinn era tonight as the kid gets his first taste of Monday Night Football at 8:30 in Buffalo. I've been avoiding talking about the Browns for the last week because frankly, I'm a little sick of all the blind love they get in this town. That's not to say I don't love this team and root for them no matter what... but I just think they get too many free passes for their bumbling ways.

There aren't many things to look forward to when watching a 3-6 team that actually had Super Bowl-type expectations a few short months ago. But we can be excited about Quinn finally getting his shot now that the season is officially in the toilet. The Bills have also been somewhat of a disappointment, losing four of their last five after starting the season 4-0.

So what should we expect when a 5-4 team hosts a 3-6 team tonight in what could be some very sloppy conditions? Perhaps a replay of the Ice Bowl last year in the Stadium which resulted in an 8-0 Browns victory? Probably not that bad, even though that was one of the more memorable sports experiences of my lifelong Cleveland fanhood. The Browns are obviously (to me anyway) a much more talented team than the Bills. We are certainly better than our 3-6 would indicate. But there's also a reason we are 3-6... we just can't finish teams off as evidenced in the last two fourth quarter debacles. So taking all that into account I still think the Browns will find a way to win this one tonight. I'll go with Browns 20, Bills 17. And I'm also going with Billick on the sidelines in '09.

Six in a row

The Cavaliers kept rolling along last night, winning their sixth straight game with an impressive 110-99 victory over the Denver Nuggets (highlights here). It was the team's best offensive performance of the young season (57% shooting) and they really clamped down on defense when they had to. After allowing Denver to pile up 61 first half points on 60% shooting, they held the Nuggets to just 38 points in the second half en route to their fifth consecutive home win.

Offensive Game Balls of the Night:

• LeBron James - As usual he stuffed the stat sheet with 22 points, 11 assists, and 8 rebounds in just 38 minutes. I can't stress how important it is to this team that they can now afford to rest the King for long stretches. This will pay huge dividends in May and June.
• Mo Williams - This was Mo's first real offensive outburst of the season. It reminded me of those hot shooting nights he would have as a Buck playing against the Cavs. And his 24 points meant that LeBron didn't have to shoulder the scoring load again tonight.
• Boobie Gibson - After going 0-for-8 in the win over the Bucks, Boobie really turned things around. He went 7-for-11 last night on his way to 15 points and showed off a vast array of strong drives to the basket, not settling for outside jumpers. His improved ball handling is a really pleasant surprise so far this season.
• Ben Wallace - No that's not a typo, Big Ben had a great offensive game tonight. He chipped in with 11 points on 4-of-4 from the field and 3-of-3 from the line (!!!) including his first one that he accidentally banked off the glass. I love what Ben brings defensively and you'll take these nights from him whenever you can get them because they are few and far between.
  

Mo is quickly becoming the Robin to LeBron's Batman

Defensive Game Balls of the Night:

• Delonte West - Delonte only tallied 8 points in his 33 minutes on the floor, but played stellar defense for long stretches when he was on Chauncey Billups. Billups torched Mo for 16 first quarter points and that's when Mike Brown switched Delonte to him. Billups ended up with 26 points, but it likely would have been much worse if Delonte wasn't making him work so hard.
• Sasha Pavlovic - You wouldn't know it from the box score (zero points on zero shot attempts in 11 minutes, but Sasha stepped in and played some nice spot defense in the fourth quarter. Mike Brown is still tinkering with his rotation, but as long as Sasha can come in and play tough defense and not turn the ball over I'm all for it. Wally Szczerbiak got burned pretty badly on a few drives last night and at least when Sasha comes in the game you know he'll stay in front of his man.
• Anderson Varejao - The mop-topped Brazilian was at it again last night. He baited Kenyon Martin into a flagrant foul-2 and an ejection late in the game when Martin threw a pretty tame elbow at Andy and he worked his flop to perfection. Martin then blew up when he was tossed out and it was a nice exclamation point to the night.

Overall, it was another solid win for the Cavs and a fun game to attend. This team is starting to understand the importance of winning at home and winning in November. They look to be hitting their stride offensively and can turn it up whenever they need to defensively. This has been a very good start to the season and they will again be tested when our good buddy Carlos Loozer pays a visit to the Q on Saturday night. I'm looking forward to being there for that one...

Tribe Update: Congrats to Cliff Lee for winning the AL Cy Young, an honor that should surprise no one that followed the Indians this year. I've written about it enough here this season - Lee was better than anyone could have ever imagined. I'm looking forward to seeing how he can follow it up next season... And congratulations are also in order for Grady Sizemore who won his first Silver Slugger award yesterday. Lee and Sizemore are two reasons (other than the start of Cavalier playoff basketball) that I'm looking forward to next April.

Winning

The Cavaliers are winning. That's the bottom line. Yet I hear a lot of complaining around the web about how they are doing it. No matter how aesthetically pleasing it may or may not be, they are WINNING. 6-2 now, first in the Central, 4-0 at home, and 4-0 in their own division. What more do you want? They extended their current WINNING streak to five last night with a 99-93 win (highlights here) over the Bucks at the Q.

The Cavs are beating the teams they are supposed to beat. And I honestly think sometimes they get bored during these games they are supposed to win. You could see it in both Chicago wins, the win over Indy, and again last night against Milwaukee. Build a big lead in the first quarter, slowly let the other team creep back into it, keep it close until the fourth quarter, then apply smothering defense and timely offensive execution for the win. That and a heaping dose of LeBron dominating offensively. It's been the Cavs' formula for success for years now and even with the increased talent on the roster, I wouldn't expect Mike Brown to put the reigns on the King. Of course we would all love the Cavs to run their offense to perfection, with everyone moving around creating easy opportunities. We've seen flashes of that early this season but then some were complaining that LeBron wasn't scoring enough. So he puts up three games of 40+ points in the past week and now it's time to criticize the Cavs for their 'LeIso' offense? As long as they keep winning I'm fine with whatever the formula entails. It certainly beats the alternative...

One thing that bugged me about last night's game had nothing to do with the Cavaliers. Why does FSN always go to their court-level baseline camera shot on breakaway dunks? If someone can give me a logical answer then I'll never complain about it again. Last night LeBron stole the ball late in the fourth quarter. It looked like any one of three Bucks could converge on him and foul him before he had a chance for a breakaway dunk to ignite the crowd. But LeBron turned on the burners and flew past everyone for a wide open dunk that looked pretty normal, at least by his standards, from FSN's shitty baseline camera angle (which can be seen in the highlight link above, around the 1:40 mark). It wasn't until the postgame highlights that I realized just how amazing the dunk really was. LBJ took off from literally one step inside the foul line and threw it down with ease. Just ridiculous.

I hate you FSN baseline cam

And I wanted to clear another thing up while I'm on the Cavs. I'm not sure how many 'not-so-knowledgable' fans there are out there, but I have a feeling there are many. I overheard a conversation in the locker room of my gym yesterday and it really dismayed me. I'm paraphrasing the gist of it:

Guy 1: How about those Cavs? They're looking good!
Guy 2: Yeah they are playing well. Fun to watch.
Guy 1: They might have the best shot of any Cleveland team to win a title in a long time.
Guy 2: They better get one either this year or next year. You know LeBron will probably leave.
Guy 1: Yeah, someone out there will probably give him as much money as he wants. No way we can compete with that.
Guy 2: Yep, you know the Knicks will probably offer him like $40M/year. It would be worth it for them just to draw the fans!

Now it took everything in my power to not jump into that conversation and right the many wrongs I was hearing, but I didn't want to be that know-it-all guy that eavesdrops on other people's business. So I didn't say a word but I made a mental note to refer to it here this morning.

This is not Major League Baseball (a.k.a. the only professional sport with no salary cap and spiraling contracts that increase based on market size). This is the NBA where there are such things as hard salary caps and max contracts. You can read all about them in the league's collective bargaining agreement. I prefer to go here when I really have a question about something regarding NBA contracts. Bottom line - the Cavs can offer one more guaranteed year at around $20M more than any other team. So when the Cavaliers offer LeBron the max contract in June of 2010 it will be for one more year and millions more than any other team can offer. Please stop panicking about him leaving. Enjoy him for the next two years. And rest easy knowing Cleveland (yes Cleveland!) can give LeBron more than any other city. OK, I'm done talking about this. At least until the next silly conversation I overhear on this topic...

Other Cavs Notes: We have officially begun flirting with the NBA's newest free agent Antonio McDyess. I still think it's a longshot that he leaves the Pistons, but if we can start building a lead on them I guess anything is possible... The Cavs' bench is making its mark. I'm loving the newfound enthusiasm... And LeBron knows that winning games against division foes is important.

Tribe Note: It's with great sadness that I'm referencing the passing of Herb Score today. Growing up in Cleveland, Herb's voice always reminded me of the care-free summer days and nights of my childhood. We should have won Game 7 against the Marlins in the 1997 World Series, which also happened to be his last game broadcasting for the team he loved. R.I.P. Mr. Score.