Let's see what these guys are made of...

And when I say "these guys", I'm referring to both the Celtics and the Cavaliers. I say that because I'm not convinced the Celtics are ready to be an elite team. I think they are vulnerable, but the time to pounce on them is tonight. I don't want to see this go to a Game 7. But I also want to see what the Cavaliers are made of, because you never really know what you will get from them on the road. Tonight will tell a lot about the make up of both of these teams. If the Cavaliers can pull this one out, I don't see any way the Celtics can win on Friday night.

I've been saying it for a couple games now, but LeBron still hasn't exploded in this series. And 'The Dunk' at the end of Game 4 just might be foreshadowing things to come tonight. I know the Celtics will do everything in their power to stop him from beating them, but the Pistons tried that too in Game 5 last year and look what happened (and yes, I do enjoy repeatedly linking to that box score).

I still feel the best recipe for success tonight is what the Cavaliers usually bring in the playoffs. Good defense, hitting the open shots, keeping the turnovers under control, and winning the rebounding battle. If they can do those things and keep it close, the pressure will really increase for the Celtics at home. And I think this is a team that might crack under all that pressure. Or at least that's what I hope. We'll see in about 10 hours...

Did 'The Dunk' unleash Game 5 LeBron? We'll know soon...

Tribe Update: The Indians have now won 6 of their last 8 games after last night's 4-0 win over Oakland. We knew this team had good pitching coming into this season, but I'm not sure even the most optimistic Tribe fan could have expected this: Indians starting pitchers have not given up a run in their last 34 innings. That number is just mind-boggling. The team is now back over .500 and let's hope it stays that way for the rest of the year. Only a half game out of first now and a (hopefully) rejuvenated CC Sabathia on the mound tonight.

Big sports Friday

Tonight is a big sports Friday in Cleveland. Most importantly, the Cavaliers travel to Chicago holding onto a 2-game lead for the #4 spot (home court advantage in the first round) in the East. The next two games are very winnable (Chicago and Miami), but anyone who has followed the Cavs this year knows that you can't predict anything with this team. Our magic number is really 3 with four games remaining. Any combination of Washington losses and Cleveland wins equaling three will clinch home court in the first round. So we'll keep watch here and hope that we can get LeBron some rest in the process.

Also, the Tribe returns home tonight to face the A's after a 2-4 West coast trip. I will be attending that game and will post some pictures afterward. I'm somewhat looking forward to and somewhat dreading attending a game that CC is pitching. He looked pretty shaky in his previous two outings so hopefully he can right the ship tonight.

And I wouldn't be a good Cleveland sports blogger without mentioning this little nugget involving the Browns and yet another staph infection. Let's hope it's not as serious as some of the others and Joe J can return soon. He is one of my favorite Browns.

Here we go again with the staph infections...