50 games in... time for a breather

Unbelievably, the Cavaliers have already hit the 50-game checkpoint in their schedule. It's almost time for the All-Star break and now is as good a time as any to take a look at their body of work thus far. After last night's 105-89 drubbing of the Grizzlies at the Q (ho-hum, just their 9th consecutive win) the Cavs now stand at 39-11 - just one game off their torrid 66 win pace of last season. That means after their sky-is-falling 0-2 start, the team has rallied to play .812 basketball over its last 48 games. Not too shabby. And the general consensus is that there is still room for improvement.

My two main gripes are still free-throw shooting and turnovers. As a team the Cavs shoot just 72.9%, which ranks 27th in the NBA. And they average 14.8 turnovers a game, which puts them just about right in the middle of the pack compared to the rest of the league. But I can live with missed free throws (of course a lot of them come from Shaq) because this team gets to the line a lot (8th in the league at 26.8 attempts per game), which means the fouls are piling up for the opposition. And the turnovers mostly come from a lack of focus. There has been some horrendous passing into the post at certain points this season. It seems to have improved lately, but it's still something to keep an eye on. It also should be easily corrected. Now on to the good numbers:

• The Cavs are 20-3 at home. They have outscored their opponents by an average of 9.4 points in those games. And all 23 home games have been sellouts.
• The Cavs are 19-8 on the road. They have outscored their opponents by an average of 5.3 points in those games.
• They are 19-5 against teams from the West and 20-6 against teams from the East. Consistency.
• They are 22-3 when the game is decided by 10 points or more... just 5-5 when it's 3 points or less. And 20-10 vs. teams currently above .500... 19-1 vs. teams that are not. By contrast, against plus-.500 teams the Celtics are 17-11, the Magic 16-13, and the Lakers 19-11.
• The Cavs own the league's best point differential (+7.3), best opponent FG% (.430), and best rebounding differential (+4.5).
  

In short, the Cavs are beating teams anywhere they play them, whomever they play, and they usually do it with relative ease. There is still a lot of basketball left to be played but we've seen this team battle through a rough start, a tough schedule, and injuries to key players. All the while they have done this while incorporating new guys into the rotation (Shaq, Moon, Parker, Jawad) and putting old guys in unfamiliar places (Z & Delonte off the bench, Boobie with a diminished role then forced to start). And I haven't even mentioned LeBron's nightly brilliance yet.

The King is well on his way to a second consecutive MVP trophy. But more importantly, the team seems to be on a mission. They are winning in all different styles this year against both the elite teams and the bottom-feeders. And there's still plenty left to be seen with the trade deadline approaching and 32 games remaining on the schedule. Stay tuned, this should be a fun ride.

One week in

OK, so it's been nearly a week since the Cavs started their season. It's been sort of a roller coaster with the opening losses to the Celtics and Raptors, the ensuing panic from everyone in northeast Ohio, and then the nice bounce back wins against the Timberwolves and Bobcats. The team now sits at 2-2, the identical record of last year's squad through the season's first four games.

While there were some alarming things that took place in the first two games (complete defensive collapses at times, suspect shot selection, turnovers, tentative play), I'm willing to chalk that up to early season kinks due to a lack of preseason preparation. The good news is that LeBron is still LeBron, Mo seems to be back on track offensively (20 and 24 points his last two games), Anthony Parker appears to be settling into his role, and Andy hasn't let the contract get to his head and still exhibits all-out hustle. Oh, and DELONTE IS BACK!!! I can't express how great it was to see him return to the floor on Saturday night and put together a very solid game on both ends of the floor. The Cavs are just an entirely different team with Red in the mix. Who knows how long things can last with him in such a fragile mental state, but here's to hoping for the best.

Delonte returned to the court on Halloween night

I'm still anxious to see how Shaq and Z are going to mesh. It's been mildly shocking to see how willing Mike Brown has been to play the plodding twin towers on the court together at the same time. He's apparently still tinkering with his big man rotation, brought on by the fact that JJ Hickson still cannot be counted on for big minutes. Shaq definitely brings a defensive presence that the team has never had with Z. But I prefer Z's spot up shots from mid-range as opposed to Shaq's backboard-rattling shots from six feet that have almost no chance of going in. Hopefully it's just a case of Shaq trying to do too much for his new team and rushing things a bit. But I've been a little put off by his close-range misses when he has great position under the basket, where he is almost unguardable. And of course his free throw shooting will be a concern as long as he is still playing in the NBA.

Overall there is no reason to panic after the slow start. We as Cavs fans need to remember that this is still very much a work in progress. And we need to look for this team to peak in March/April/May/June, not October/November. Another tricky week lies ahead with the Wizards and the Bulls visiting the Q on Tuesday and Thursday, followed by the media circus event of LeBron and the Cavs visiting NYC on Friday night. I'm taking everything one game at a time.

Random Browns Note: This is seriously worse than 1999. How has it gotten this bad? Now we have Randy Lerner finally showing some emotion? Whether his frustration is genuine or PR-related, the fact remains that Lerner has allowed all this to come to pass. This is exactly why I refused to pony up for season tix again this season. There will surely be many more once-loyal fans that will give up on financing this mess going into next season. Hopefully all the empty orange seats will finally send a message that we are tired of this. This bye week couldn't have come fast enough. It almost makes me wonder why I wanted the Browns back in the league so badly when we didn't have them around. Is this what we were waiting for?

I'm back baby

In the words of the immortal Frank Costanza, "I'm back babyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!" But what could rouse me from my self-imposed Cleveland sports silence? Summer '09 has been somewhat like a purgatory for me... major happenings like Eric Wedge getting the axe, Braylon Edwards heading to NYC, Brady Quinn putting his house up for sale, Delonte West going all Desperado on us... even the LeBron corn maze... none of them could bring me to post here. I was in a waiting period. Stuck between the sickeningly empty feeling of letdown in June and filling the time watching (or trying not to watch) the mess that is/was this year's version of the Browns and Indians. Just waiting for the NBA season to start and our beloved Cavaliers to get their revenge on the Magic and the rest of the league. And finally the wait is almost over. Only 12 more days until Game #1 and there's an excitement in the air.

So did anyone else out there catch last night's preseason game vs. the Wizards? To my delight, I was able to watch it even though it wasn't on FSN. NBAHD (recently added to my cable lineup) had the game in crystal clear HD.... only problem was that it was the Comcast Washington broadcast. So instead of my favorite Cavaliers homers calling the game I was stuck with the Wizards' awful version - Steve Buckhantz and Phil Chenier. Words cannot describe how awful this duo is. Buckhantz acted like it was a playoff game and neglected to point out that in the 2nd half the Wizards starters were mostly going against a lineup of which 80% won't even make the final Cavs roster (I'm talking about you Andre Barrett, Russell Robinson, Rob Kurz, and Luke Nevill). And at one point Chenier actually said that we gave up a lot of vital pieces to obtain Shaq. He uttered something about us now missing Sasha, Big Ben, Lorenzen Wright, and Joe Smith, all of whom were starters and huge contributors(???). Wow. And these guys are paid to do this.

All I can say is that the regular season can't get here fast enough. Watching DeShawn Stevenson do the ridiculous hand wave in front of his face got me fired up and ready to blog again. Watching Gilbert Arenas hobble around on one leg has me already excited for another first round sweep. And watching Brendan Haywood injured on the Wizards' bench just made me feel good. The Wiz are to the Cavs what the Browns probably are to the Steelers. An annoying "rival" that makes a meaningless mid-season beatdown seem a little more fun because of the endless yapping from them, despite the utter domination you have over them. Can't wait to play these guys again on November 3rd. I only wish I had the Comcast Washington feed for that one.

My impressions from the bit I saw of the Cavs regular rotational players:

• Shaq looks really good. Having a true low-post big man is such a sight for sore eyes. He will put up the same solid numbers and strong play that he did for Phoenix, but for us as Cavs fans it will seem like so much more because we haven't seen it in so long.
• And forget about this popular notion that seems to be coming from everywhere that Shaq will "clog the lane" for LeBron. Not sure where that started but all Shaq will do is command a double-team and open things up a little for LeBron and a lot for our perimeter shooters.
• Andy is going to get a lot of easy baskets this year, even more so than in the past. Shaq will find him cutting under the hoop for many easy hoops. You can etch that one in stone.
• Anthony Parker is a player. We're gonna love watching this guy shoot that corner three this year. And I like how he approaches things on the defensive side. He's not afraid to body anyone up.
  
• Jamario Moon is a streaky shooter but can hit from the outside. I just don't want him falling in love with that shot, because he will get a lot of easy looks inside - especially in transition - when playing with LBJ.
• Z is Z. I'm so happy for him that he's finally a father. And I'm happy he is accepting his role off the bench. He should be fresher this season and will be his same consistent self. He and Shaq will both provide each other with lots of rest. Forget all the talk about them both being older players... both will be consistent major contributors.
  
• Boobie still looks like Boobie to me... an uncomfortable 2-guard being forced to play point guard in Mo and Delonte's absence. I'm starting to really agree with Brian Windhorst's uneasy feelings about our point guard depth. Although that won't really derail anything during the regular season, if unresolved it could present some problems come playoff-time.
  
• J.J. Hickson still seems wildly inconsistent to me. Maybe I just caught him on a bad night, but he looked out of control when he was in there. Not that it isn't to be expected given his age and lack of experience... but I think a lot of people have outrageously high hopes for him this year. I'm curbing my enthusiasm a bit.
• Finally, Jawad Williams will definitely make the team. His 21 points last night sealed the deal. And I'm secretly pulling for Coby Karl to get that final spot, unless a veteran PG is signed. And these guys will get some playing time this year because I'm anticipating a lot of lopsided Cavalier wins. More to come as we get closer to 10/27... in the meantime, try not to look directly at the carnage on Sunday when the Browns pay a visit to Pittsburgh. It probably won't be pretty.
  

Wow, it's been too long

I've been too lazy to enter any good updates here in a while - I found Twitter and it's been my ultra-lazy way of jotting down thoughts this summer. But after yesterday's Tribe trade I had to come back and enter something more than just 140 characters of broken English...

So the Indians traded Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco to the Phillies for four minor leaguers yesterday, and to me it was the final signal that I really shouldn't care about MLB or its broken system anymore. It was the second consecutive season that our tight-pursed team was inclined to trade a defending Cy Young winner in July, hopelessly out of contention in a mediocre division. If that doesn't trouble fans everywhere that something is seriously wrong, then nothing ever will. The sport is broken and only another lockout can fix it.

In the meantime, we are forced to face the reality of our beloved Tribe already raising the white flag of surrender on the 2010 season. Who will be the ace of the staff next season? A broken down and rebuilt Jake Westbrook? A highly unreliable Fausto Carmona? One of these young kids that we have no idea whether we can count on? A veteran band-aid (probably the most likely choice being someone claimed off the injury scrap heap on a one-year deal). Thinking about it just depresses me. The Central division is so winnable and we are basically already giving up. I say this because we all know the reality of the situation - we are in yet another rebuild mode, payroll will be trimmed again, and attendance will be shockingly low.

It's been nice knowing you and you will be missed

For Victor Martinez's sake I hope he is traded. But my inner-Tribe fan wishes that it didn't have to be this way. Victor has been the face/heart/soul of this franchise in this latest "era"... and for as much frustration as this era has caused us, it also gave us the highly entertaining 2005 season, and the oh-so-close 2007 season where we were basically one win away from a championship. That was just 21 months ago. So how did we get here today? Because the sport is broken and we have an owner more worried about the bottom line than winning... any chance you can save us Dan Gilbert?

Speaking of Dan, this should help get us through things a little easier: the Cavs are only 89 days away from returning to the court. Hard to believe it, but it's true. Just hang in there Cleveland, there is light at the end of the dark tunnel of misery laid out by the Tribe and Browns. And yes, I'm very happy that Anthony Parker and Jamario Moon are on board. More on them later... for now I'm mourning the loss of our Tribe and the sport I once loved.

Christmas in July

July 1st is officially the start of something big in Cleveland sports. No, not the annual fire sale at Progressive Field... it's the start of the summer free agent signing period in the NBA. And the Cavaliers will be looking to round out their roster with the hopes that the upcoming season will finally put an end to the championship drought in this city. With the mid-level exception (around $5.6 million), the bi-annual exception (around $2 million), and trades still a possibility, expect the Cavs to be active around midnight Tuesday.

First, they will need to decide what to do with restricted free agent Anderson Varejao. I fully expect him to remain a Cavalier, and he has indicated as much in the past saying that he would love to remain on this team. But his agent is Dan Fegan, and if the price gets too high a sign-and-trade could always be a possibility here.

Another pressing need is a power forward that can score. This would allow the Cavs to send Andy (if he is re-signed) back to his natural role of bringing energy off the bench. There may be some intriguing opportunities out there to fill this spot, but I already have my heart set on Charlie Villanueva of the Bucks. He's young (25), has great size (6' 11"), is athletic, and can stretch the floor with his ability to shoot from the perimeter. And he may already be my favorite Twittering (or is it Tweeting?) athlete out there. The Bucks have till Wednesday to extend him the qualifying offer or else he becomes a restricted free agent, and he can sign anywhere he prefers. Please stay cheap Milwaukee. If CV doesn't become available, other options at the 4 include Rasheed Wallace, Antonio McDyess, and Joe Smith.

The Cavs will also look to secure a bigger, more athletic wing player to lessen the impact of some of the matchup problems that arise with the currently undersized back court of Mo and Delonte. My top choices here are Matt Barnes and Anthony Parker, in that order. Both can probably be had for relatively cheap and both would fill a need. Barnes is a lot younger and certainly has more in the tank. But Parker is still a quality role player and would also do well in that sport for this team. I'm still dreaming of a chance at restricted free agent Josh Childress, but I'm not sure how much of a possibility he will really be.

Tomorrow will be an interesting and probably late night as we follow the proceedings. But it will certainly be more entertaining to watch the off-season exploits of the Cavs than it would be to torture yourself with the daily happenings of the Indians or the annual false hope offered by the guys from Berea. Only about 120 more days until Cavs basketball...