Overview: The Boston Celtics dominated the Cavaliers with defense, holding the Cavs to 38.4% shooting en route to a 94-85 victory. LeBron James led all scorers with a line of 27/19/10, but missed 13 shots from the field and turned the ball over nine times. Kevin Garnett led the Celtics with 22 points and 12 rebounds.
Game Summary:
The game started out with some bad omens. Mike Brown’s defensive adjustment for game six was to switch Shaq onto Kevin Garnett to stop KG from destroying Jamison in the post. Garnett adjusted to that move by taking some tough step-back jumpers from midrange, which he calmly swished. Ray Allen and Paul Pierce tossed in contested mid-range jumpers of their own, and it was 8-2 Celtics after the first four Boston possessions. Once again, the Cavs found themselves playing from behind early.
When Varejao replaced Shaq in the first quarter, Cleveland started playing defense like they haven’t done all series. Boston’s first eight possessions after Varejao came in the game resulted in one made basket, no free throws, and five turnovers. However, that momentum was lost when LeBron went to the bench with his second foul, one of the first times he’s been in foul trouble all season. During the two minutes LeBron sat, the Celtics pushed the lead from three to seven.
The Cavs were able to keep the game competitive throughout the second quarter. That was mostly due to the fact Mo Williams was playing like a man possessed. He scored 20 points in the first half alone; I don’t think I’ve ever seen him take the ball to the hole that aggressively as a Cavalier. Mo earned a lot of points with me tonight. He didn’t have all that many coming into the game, but he left it all out there.
In the third quarter, the Celtics tightened the screws defensively. Every time the Cavs drove to the basket, there weare two or three defenders waiting for them. When they tried to drive and kick, the Celtics rotated effortlessly and instantly. LeBron tried to work pick and roll with Varejao, but the Celtics were a step ahead of whatever he did.
With that kind of defensive dominance working for them, all the Celtics needed to do to break the game open was hit a couple of shots. With 4:39 remaining in the third, they got their run. Paul Pierce hit a pair of free throws, followed that up with a three, and Kevin Garnett hit a deep jumper to put the Celtics up nine and the Cavs officially on the ropes. After a timeout, Rasheed and Pierce hit threes to put the Celtics up 12, and from there it was just a matter of time. The Cavs got it close a few times in the fourth, but every time they did the Celtics had an answer. After giving up three offensive rebounds in the final two minutes, the Cavs conceded the game and ended yet another disappointing season.
For me, the (in-game) story of the game was Boston’s defense. The Cavs were aggressive throughout, attacking the basket at all times and looking for home run plays. The problem was that every time the Cavs tried to go at the basket, the Celtics were waiting for them. Playing from behind, the Cavs didn’t have enough options or confidence to mix things up, allowing the Celtics to sit in the paint. The Cavs turned it over 24 times in game six, and most of those turnovers came from being overly aggressive rather than nonchalant. It was like watching a drunk throw haymakers and a karate expert calmly moving out of the way and countering. When this Celtic team plays defense like they’re capable of doing, there’s no way a one-dimensional attack is going to work. Absolutely dominant performance by Boston’s D.
Cavs-Related Bullets:
-LeBron James. This may well have been his last game in Cleveland, and you can’t fault his effort. He was trying to make everything happen, but he didn’t mix his game up enough to make it work. He tied a career-high in rebounding and got his triple-double, but forced way too many plays and always seemed a step behind what the Boston defense was doing. When he looked to drive, the defense was in between him and the basket. When he looked to pass, the defense was hawking the passing lanes. When he looked to shoot, they didn’t let him step into a good look. He finished 6-14 on shots at the basket and had 9 turnovers, all products of the fact he was playing on tilt.
He dominated game three with his jump shot; when he wasn’t hitting that jumper, there wasn’t much he could do against Boston’s defense. If it wasn’t clear in 2007, it should be now: it would be in LeBron’s best interest to develop a post game or some go-to moves from midrange to succeed against defenses like Boston without having to rely on the long jumper. Not a strong series from LeBron, and one that will haunt him until he gets that ring.
-Antawn Jamison and Shaquille O’Neal is the perfect frontline — for an Orlando series. Shaq would have done a good job against Howard defensively, and Jamison would have been able to guard Lewis on the perimeter. The problem is that the Cavs didn’t get to play Orlando, and Boston absolutely murdered this frontline. The KG/Jamison matchup was a disaster, and in game six Antawn didn’t come close to making up for it on the offensive end. Shaq had his moments offensively, but Boston doesn’t run anything through Perkins, he got beat to rebound after rebound, and he got shredded defensively more than a few times on the pick-and-roll.
I don’t know what the attitude in the locker room was; all I know is that from a team-building point of view, this team looked past Boston. Instead of making sure Shaq was ready to go against Orlando, this team should’ve spent time developing confidence in some small-ball lineups featuring LeBron at the four. By the time they realized their lack of athleticism was hurting them in this series, it was far too late.
-Varejao made some great hustle plays, and really changed the game when he came in early. That said, Boston rotated to contest what are usually easy layups for him in the regular season, and he had no idea how to adjust. Guys whose only job offensively is to convert high-percentage looks should not have nights where they shoot 2-7 from the floor.
-I loved Mo Williams’ aggression, but he still finished with a fairly pedestrian line. At some point, you have to wonder if he’s talented enough to be a top-three player on a championship team.
-I cannot envision a scenario that involves Mike Brown and LeBron both returning to the team next year.
Bullets of Randomness:
-KG’s still got it — the Celtics are now 6-0 in playoff series when KG plays. That mid-range game is insane.
-Rajon Rondo. What a series. Unquestionably the series MVP. Very interested to see what he’ll do against Orlando.
-Paul Pierce and Rasheed Wallace’s box scores don’t look great, but they hit all five of Boston’s threes, and each one was big.
-I bet Rasheed has been waiting a long time for this.
Well, that’s all for me tonight. There will be much more on all of this coming in the future. For now, I just want to say I’ve had a great time writing about this team this season. If I had the chance to do it all over again, I would in a heartbeat. Thank all of you so much for reading and commenting. If this was LeBron’s last game in Cleveland, it’s been a great run.
Big LOL at p for talking to himself like the no life loser he his and also at the retard Joey thinking that Olajuwon and drexler (two in prime HOF) don’t count as a supporting cast to each other. What a moron.
Hey guys, another celtics fan here. I’ve been reading this blog for purely schadenfraude reasons, and I know the universe will punish me, but alas.
The Cavs have Bron and so many great role players. You guys literally could start a line up to play ANY STYLE of basketball. You could have a big defense set, a small offensive set and everything in between. This team was built to win a championship and compete against any team. But, maybe the problem is exactly that, it seems to me that the Cavs can’t IMPOSE their style of play on a team. I’m frankly not sure what the Cavs style of play is. To me, this clearly falls on the coach. This team was schizophrenic, and I agree with everyone that they should have played Moon. In fact, when Moon came into the game I exclaimed “Who the hell is that!”, thats how little we saw him, but he was good. From my experience watching games, the first way you can impose a style of play is through defense, it starts there. Its not like the Celtics are a great offensive team, if you watched our regular season, you know that we go through looooong droughts of scoring. In the last 3 games, we always had an answer, and the reason for that was that we always had a overwhelming mismatch. Doc Rivers kept it simple.
The second way you impose a style IMHO is through a point guard, you guys don’t have one (maybe delonte? but he was always iffy). Mo, to me, seems to be a SG. You guys need a PG that can straight out pass that can create for not only LBJ, but for the other guys.
Get a point guard, start playing your defensive players.
On a final note, I really really hope that Bron doesn’t go to the Knicks, I hope he resigns with the Cavs. Not only is it the honorable thing to do, and I don’t think D’antoni is a championship coach, but I feel that in NY Bron will be so distracted that he will fall off his pedestal.
good luck next year,
-m
Here’s the other thing that frustrated me about the playoffs: Mike Brown was a defense coach. And for much of the past two years, the Cavs were a good, if not great defensive team. In the fourth quarter, if they needed to, they really tightened things down. Holding opponents to under 20 points in the last period was routine. But in this series, the only time they really locked down in the fourth was in game 1. They gave up 100 ppg on average throughout the postseason, 5 more than they averaged during the regular season. And it’s not like they were playing offensive powerhouses. So while I could see the offensive struggles coming (and then magnified by James’ injury, whether it’s the elbow or mind or something else), I was blindsided by the defensive ones. Sure, some of that is on the players, but I never saw a great defensive scheme. As Simmons said in his retro diary, it was panic coaching 101. Things like changing up your entire gameplan because Rondo goes off for an historic performance. Pretty sure he wasn’t doing that again. Never figuring out how to guard KG. I would have been better with the losses had they simply beat our defense, but too often, there was no defense to beat.
Mike in Boston good post and I complete agree with you about Mo. Last night he was much improved but generally he isn’t a pure enough point guard which is what this team desperately needs.
Sure people will argue that with the offense running through Lebron so often that a point guard like Mo who is a shooter and scorer is the perfect fit but the past two postseasons have shown that the Cavs need a distributor at the position and Mo just isn’t good enough.
John, as always, delivers great work. And yes, Mo is not good enough to be the 2nd or 3rd best player on a championship team. He’s basically Jason Terry, but not as clutch (and not as streaky). Neither is a 33 year-old Jamison (hell, Jamison might never have been… his teams have never done anything in the playoffs). The ’95 Rockets didn’t have a supporting cast, apparently, except they had a young Cassell, Robert Horry, Mario Elie, Vernon Maxwell, all guys from a previous championship year. Add that to two alpha dogs, one of them being the first or second best center in the league in the last 30 years, and a great center can still affect the game like no other position when they’re on the floor (tip to Dwight: STAY ON THE FLOOR PLEASE). You might look at the talent level discrepancy between the two rosters and not think much, but the championship pedigree in those guys count for everything. They swept a VASTLY more talented Orlando team (vastly more talented than this Cavs team) because of that mentality.
The Cavs mortgaged its future to win now, and without winning now… who knows what will happen. I, along with many others, was just shocked at how it ended for you guys. Ever since the last season ended, I was waiting for the Cavs-Magic rematch, which should’ve been an all-timer. Would’ve never in a million years thought that things would fall apart so quickly for you guys. Good luck in the summer.
LeBron’s is just a guy being given the keys to a car he doesn’t know how to drive yet.
Mo is actually really good. You just can’t tell while Lebron’s on the floor because Lebron sucks in the ball so much. A prediction; if Lebron goes to Chicago, Derrick Rose’s numbers will also go down.
Take our win against the Spurs- Lebron didn’t play. Mo had 17 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists.
No Lebron against the Magic, our loss late in the season. We lost that game (We didn’t have Shaq, for starters) but Mo’s numbers? 19 points, 9 assists. 5-13 shooting. This is against a strong Orlando defense.
Against the Chicago Bulls, still no Lebron- (it was a loss, but bear with me) 35 points off of 50% shooting, 10 assists.
Mo is certainly capable of putting up these kinds of games- he just doesn’t get the opportunity to show off too often.
Ouch. I hate to be moving into wait-for-next-year mode so soon. Thanks John, Mark and Tom for all the good work on this blog. The regular season was a fun ride.
I’m also looking for that glimmer of hope to get me through the off season … wonder if Eyenga or Kaun will be playing in the World Championships.
I agree that Mike Brown is gone, but I don’t know if all of the hating is justified. He’s a very young coach in his first coaching job, and he took a team that didn’t care a bit about defense and made them very good defensively. He was simply outclassed on offense. All of the defense problems that were exposed in this series (mo vs rondo, antawn vs kg, ap staying with ray) were all directly caused by Brown trying to stimulate the offense. He made switch after switch trying to fix the defense, when the reality is that he wasn’t able to fix it with his offense skills. I think this was a great first coaching job for him, and I really appreciate the culture of defense he brought to the Cleveland (see Varejao and LeBron), and I think that his tutelage continue to help this team in the future. He just didn’t have the offensive skill as a coach to get this team to win.
Even more than that, he didn’t have the experience to deal with LeBron. Look at the great teams of the past: Celtics had Red, Lakers had Riley, Pistons had Chuck Daly, Bulls and Lakers had Phil Jackson, Spurs had Popovich. They were all dominant personalities who kept their players in line and forced them into their systems. They took the players natural abilities and sculpted them, molding them into championship teams. Mike Brown was too young to do that, instead trying to assist LeBron. People are always talking about LeBron’s basketball IQ; Shaq said LeBron was ready to be an NBA coach right now. Have you watched LeBron on offense? He passes incredibly well sure, but he doesn’t understand sets and plays to the level that an NBA coach does. Mike wasn’t able to tell LeBron off for doing what he does on offense, and it showed very clearly in this series. I think Brown has a bright future coaching in the NBA and I wish him luck, but he just isn’t the right fit for this team.
We can nitpick all we want about match-ups and minutes, but what it comes down to is that this Cavaliers team had no real offense besides LeBron driving and kicking or pick and rolls, and it showed. @Juni your point is good, but it’s not because of LeBron, it’s because of the offense as a whole. He put up numbers last night because LeBron was tentative and passive, letting Mo run pick-and-rolls instead of just standing on the wing and waiting for the ball from LeBron. The same exact thing happened with Jordan in his early years – there was a disconnect between his output and his teammates, because the offense they were running only involved 2 or 3 players at a time. If LeBron does decide to come back next year, which I’m praying he does, the cav’s need an offense that utilizes LeBron’s skills while still getting everyone else involved.
To wrap up this increasingly long-winded post, this past series was so heartbreaking because we could literally see the Cav’s players realize that this system wasn’t working and give up. They stopped trying, because you can only ask LeBron to drive to the basket or make a 24 fall-away jumper so many times. There was no system to fall back upon, no foundation on which to build. It wasn’t that our role players weren’t good enough, it was just that the system was wrong. I really hope LeBron comes back and they bring in an experienced, strong coach to lift up this team to the potential it has. Sorry for the length of this post again, I’m just pretty frustrated at the whole situation. Thanks for everything JK, it’s been a real pleasure reading this blog all year
Well Juni, I agree with that, but I think that problem falls directly on MIke Brown too. Mike Brown is the one who sets the offense up to run right through LeBron at all times, and because of that the other guys on the team who actually have some offensive skills are left to fend for themselves on offense.
Sam, totally agree. It’s so funny that Mike Brown makes panic moves against Rondo, like bringing in a guy who hasn’t played in months, but refuses to do what everyone else can see against Garnett. Why did he not simply start Varejao against Garnett the last couple of games? Could he not see what everyone else saw? Why did he not start Moon so he could chase ALlen instead of tiny Mo Williams? These were all things that we ALL saw, yet Mike Brown was afraid to do it.
Moon played fantastic defense last night…but never saw anytime at all in the 2nd half. Inexplicable.
Eh, if I just waited 3 more minutes I could have just read Steve’s post, as it is the exact same thing I just typed. Lol.
Mike Woodson was let go today. Let’s hope another Mike hits the road.
2:30 p.m. people–book it.
@ Steve and Rich – Your points are all true, but I think that Lebron should take a good potion of the blame for the inefficient offensive scheme. We all know that Lebron basically runs that franchise, and if he wanted something to change it would have. For all his being a great passer and a good teammate, Lebron is very much preoccupied with his stats, and he knows that a iso offensive leading to a large number of drive and kicks is the best way to put up huge numbers. But as we’ve all seen the last two years, it’s not an offensive that works well against top teams in the playoffs. He’ll still put up large numbers but the style of the offensive puts everyone else in position where it is harder to succeed rather than easier. There’s a reason the triangle offensive has been so successful even as it limits the numbers of the star players that have played within it. Sacrificing individual numbers in favor of a higher-level team offensive is the most important lesson I think Lebron should take away from this series. Well, maybe also to show a little more humility to other players and teams in the league. Cheers.
So, imagine you are Dirk Nowitzki, desperate to win a title. Imagine LeBron James comes to visit you and says “Listen, come to Cleveland, take less money along with me taking less money. We have the talent that if the two of us play together, we will for sure win a title.” DO you do it? No1 is talking about it, but I truly think Dirk is going to bounce. For all of the times we talk about players not having the team around them, Dirk has talent around him but his team shrinks time and time again w/o fail.
Well jonathan, I’m just not sure if I can blame a player when that is the coaches job to design a scheme and plays for that scheme. If LeBron really is allowed to run the franchise, then again that is on the coach for not being strong enough to say no. Simple as that really.
Yeah, I guess it was Mike Brown’s fault in the end.
Hire Bill Lambier! We need a mean son of a bitch. That dude will locker check underachievers.
I agree with squigg. We need a guy who simply puts his foot down and is rough with the players..and mainly rough with LeBron. He can no longer be allowed to call the shots and get his own way all the time. Coaches coach, managers manage, and players play. For to long LeBron has done all three, and it will never work unless your name is Bill Russell.
Rich, getting Dirk to come to Cleveland and play with Lebron sounds awesome in theory. But I’ll wager a weeks paycheck (my paycheck, not Lebrons) that in practice, Dirk turns into another Jamison. I mean, all the players we’ve picked up since Mo have sounded exciting, have sounded like a difference maker but Mike Brown did not know how to get them to play together.
Lebron needs the triangle offense or something radically different than the current offense to get others involved and have them do their thing. Mike Brown needed to understand the strengths and weaknesses of his own team or the weaknesses of the other team rather than trying to match up to the strengths of the other team and trying to stop that.
For 3 years, all MB did in the playoffs is try to match up to the opposition. Other than Lebron, we had no other strengths that we even tried to exploit. Moon getting a chance to play more. Andy playing KG more than he did. Etc.
The front office would go into every offseason with the goal to match up to the team we had just lost to and use it for the following year. But we would never face those teams again the following year. How bout getting your own offensive and defensive identities and force other teams to match up to us instead. There’s a thought. All the other team had to do was stop or slow down LBJ and it was over. We were ALWAYS outcoached, outclassed and outplayed. The tribe has spoken.
Jordan played in the triangle offense and he put up the best numbers of all time.
Jimmy and others-
Jamison’s numbers were almost identical to what he did this year in Washington. His FG% was higher but his FT% tanked, so his True Shooting % was almost the same. His production didn’t drop because he came to Cleveland. Jamison not panning out wasn’t on Mike Brown. It was in all y’all trying to tell me he was going to finally be the #2 when I said he wasn’t going to be. He played exactly like he played in Washington, which again, wasn’t good enough in the first place.
The Mike Brown sucks camp should drop the Jamison thing. Focus that effort on the fact Moon couldn’t see the court in this series even though he was great every time he played. And the fact we didn’t bust out the small lineup more often for a team that clearly got ran out of the gym with it earlier in the year.
thanks for writing this john.
Reports are surfacing that Mike Brown has been fired.
He’s not fired yet, says Dan Gilbert, but they’re thinking about firing him.
@jonathan, i understand your point, because like Rich says, LeBron has been a coach and a player for years now. But it’s the coach’s job to make sure that he isn’t that role, that he just focuses on running the system and making the team better. That’s what I was trying to say with the Mike-Brown-was-too-inexperienced thing, just that he wasn’t confident and accomplished enough to be able to handle the LeBron situation. You cannot ask any player to see things from the coaches seat, because unless you’ve already won 9 titles under one of the best coaches in the league, you see things from the floor. LeBron sees himself as the best player in the world and does what he thinks helps his team win, which is getting assists, playing defense, rebounding, and scoring. But he can’t see the other aspects to it, like playing match-ups, using the system to better himself and his teammates, and the need for him to sometimes use his natural advantages off the ball to open up teammates. Jordan quickly understood that the triangle could benefit his style of play and help him win, and it allowed him to win 6 championships. But that was only because Jackson brought it. He couldn’t have done it himself.
I think maybe it’s time to start questioning something we didn’t want to face…is LeBron as good as we think? Sure, the stats measure up, but maybe he isn’t the type of leader he needs to be to lead a team like the Cavs to a title. Maybe he has to have a real leader brought in to help him..or just a lot more talent. We all see it. He doesn’t have the same drive in the off-season that the Kobe’s of the world have. I’m not saying that is bad. I’m not saying he shouldn’t be allowed to live his life. But to be the greatest ever you need to have the same drive the others have, and he doesn’t have it. He can still win titles w/o it, but he will need more help to do it.
Give LeBron James the drive of Kobe Bryant and this Cavs team is still playing. That is honestly how I feel.
The difference between guys like Magic, Bird and Jordan and guys like Malone, Webber, and Barkley isn’t that one worked harder than the other. Sure Jordan’s work ethic was legendary, but so was Karl Malone’s. The difference is that while the second group wants to win, and wants it bad, the first group hates to lose. Losing is torture to them. It is a crippling pain that is unbearable. It is the reason that Kobe’s post game comments were “Do something and do it now!… Three years and we’re still at ground zero” then demanded a trade a few weeks later following his last early playoff exit. He can’t take losing. Lebron, though, doesn’t hate losing. It doesn’t eat at his soul. He clearly doesn’t suffer in the same way that many of the all-time greats did. That doesn’t mean he wont win. He wants to win, and obviously he is talented enough to win titles. But at the very least, it makes it unlikely that he will win at the level of Jordan, Magic, Kobe etc. Faced with losing, he just doesn’t have that same sense of desperation. That desperation drives teams, not just players. When your leader doesn’t have it, your team doesn’t have it.
Hey JK
I enjoyed your blog this year. I hope to read it again next year.
I think the writing’s on the wall that Mike Brown will not be back next year. I would love for LBJ to be back. Favorite player from my home state. Will he? Part of me says yes, part of me says no. As a competitor, I think he’d be hard pressed to leave w/o bringing a championship to the Cavs. But at the same time, I see him exploring his multiple options. He said last night that the Cavs are an organization that has proved that they’re willing to spend what it takes to be a contender. But I’m just questioning what deciding factor will be his ultimate one to stay or go. A short term 3 year contract may not be out of the question rather than a long term one…
One thing I believe is true: Either LBJ goes or Brown goes (if not both).
has anyone heard of the chicago blacksoxs the last two games looks fishy to me.unless hes queen james
This loss is much more disturbing that heartbreaking. My team, a team i watched through 82 games learnt alot about decided, yes i use that word, decided to pack their bags and leave town. In place they left a shell of a team that i couldnt recognize. Boston played well. Very well. But they didnt beat the Cavs. I dont believe that and any Cavs fan who has known this team well enough would know that the Cavs simply were never there. They didnt play.Something happened in the past week that caused a complete disconnect with everyone, so bad that nobody cared anymore. I will never understand why. I dont understand why they dindt fight to the end I wish i did it would make this summer much more settling.And now we go into a really long summer wondering what happens. What else can we do to get out of the east.I wish Lebron well. I love the guy and inspite of some of this loss being on him he has done amazing things and he will keep doing them.If he leaves i will cheer him on even if he in LA. i hope he gets that elusive ring someday.
Absolutely LOVE the internet rumor floating around today that Delonte banged LeBrons mom and LeBron found out about it. Ahhhh man…the internet truly is a wonderful place.
Also, never have I looked so forward to an eventual interview. But at some point, Shaq is going to spill the beans on wtf happened in that locker room. Either the team hated Mike Brown. Either they knew LeBron was leaving as he told them or something. maybe delonte threatened the team with a bunch of weapons one night in Boston. Who knows, but what I do know is shaq will tell us sooner rather than later.
how can anyone cheer for a guy like like LEBRON he has almost everthing mony can buy except a heart . he should be ashame . LEBRON is nothing but a big baby.Cleveland fan should be glad to see a loser leave.
Well, except he is the best thing Cleveland baksetball has seen. So if LeBron is a loser, than every single Cavalier before him are bigger losers. People need to have some ability to see the big picture past just this series. He is the best the franchise has seen…you don’t just get really happy about him leaving because he had a bad series.
@Rich
Haha saw that Delonte/Ms. James rumor earlier today too and laughed. Though if it did turn out to be true it would definitely explain a lot. How could we have not considered it!?!?!?! Haha.
I wonder if Gloria was as finger-licking good as the hot sauce in his bag?
I’ve actually been wondering if Shaq had anything to do with it. Here’s the scenario I’ve been kicking around in my head since last night:
(1) Shaq gets injured, team continues to play well, he gets worried that he’ll lose his minutes and starts working his ass off to lose weight and look like he’s getting ready for the playoffs
(2) Shaq does lose weight, feels like he’s 5 years younger, but plays at his current ability level. Still, he thinks he’s 2006 Shaq instead of 2010 Shaq.
(3) It’s obvious to everyone else, including Mike Brown, that Shaq is overmatched in these first two series. Mike Brown responds by not giving him the amount of minutes he thinks he deserves.
(4) Shaq throws a fit behind the scenes, starts questioning Mike Brown’s capabilities, and starts to create a rift in the locker room. Rather than using his veteran leverage for good, he uses it for evil.
This plays into Bill Simmons new Shaq archetype as the team destroyer. Was BS perhaps more prescient than I gave him credit for?
Another solid speculation, ben. I was so hurt at first watching LeBron’s performance in game 5 that I acted out in rage toward him. But the more I think about game 6 and the apparent disharmony on the court, it’s clear something cleaved that locker room in two.
Well, the theory would first require Mike Brown realizing Shaq wasn’t the answer in this series, and I’m not sure if I can give that man enough credit for realizing it.
I agree, Rich, that I wish Mike Brown had realized more that he wasn’t the answer. But I do remember either game 2 or 4 it was reported that Shaq was complaining about not getting in in the fourth. Plus, just because we thought it was too much, doesn’t mean Shaq didn’t think it was still too little.
He played 22 mintues a game in the playoffs this year. In 2008 (his last playoffs), he played 30 mpg. In 2007, he played 30 mpg. In 2006, he played 33 minutes a game, and on upward through the years. The point being, just because we thought he played too much doesn’t mean that Shaq didn’t suddenly feel like it was 2006 again and think he should have been out there for 30 minutes (or at least every minute of a 4th quarter when they’re down).
And Kevin, I think we’ll definitely find out something was wrong in the locker room. Maybe not right away, but at least when Windy gets his book published, whichever one he ends up writing.
There were a lot of reasons why the Cavs lost, but the biggest one is MIKE BROWN. At the start of his tenure, I’ve always defended Mike Brown due to the great defense the Cavs play. But the last 2 years, he has been the main reason for the Cavs playoff failures.
In the Orlando series, he was simply outcoached by SVG. He couldn’t find the RIGHT adjustments. This wouldn’t have happened with a Popovich or a Jackson.
In this series, he was again outcoached in addition to a BAD ROTATION. This team was versatile, and he refused to run with an athletic small ball lineup that would have negated Boston’s D or playing big defensive lineup (not including SHAQ!) that wouldv’e turned this series into a complete brutal slugfest.
No need for LeBron to leave. They just have to sack Mike Brown and trade Hickson along with Shaq’s contract for Chris Bosh. Problem solved! haha.
I don’t know ben, Windy was so devastated by this early exit (he truly thought the Cavs were going all the way) that I don’t even think he knows what happened. Probably never will. Who wants to buy some dvds?
John, thank you for your insightful, entertaining blog. Win or lose, your words capped the emotions of the season for me, and you have a talent for picking up the pulse of your audience, You deserved the chance to write more.
Difficult to admit, but the posts above offer more successful possibilities for the Cavs-Celts series than our own staff had drawn up, I hear the same themes: forcing the ball through Shaq couldn’t possibly be an effective offensive philosophy, Jamison could not guard KG, and Mo on Ray Allen hurt this team’s defense. I say true to all three of those statements, with one caveat: these are the players you have, and the alternatives would require some serious bench time for guys who usually get 30+ minutes a game… to do this in the playoffs is to risk a chemistry shakeup that dispirits a team or has them openly questioning the coach. In keeping his stars aligned, Mike Brown may have actually fired himself. I see no other alternative, considering how inept they appeared when attempting to follow his gameplan.
Random thoughts: Why Z in this series? Z should have gotten his championship ring in a courtside recliner sipping a Baltic porter, not handing the ball to LeBron 22 feet out off a curl. Jamario was balling the last two weeks of the season–against teams still trying to win, I might add–and deserved more minutes. With all D West has on his plate, I still wish he could have come up with something more than Game Three. And perhaps all that depth during the regular season–I counted fourteen useful players on the roster, including Powe and Jawad Williams–actually worked against them in the playoffs, as again Brown mixed and matched without getting much consistency. He used the word “rhythm” a bunch of times in the postgame press conference, and establishing that is his responsibility. I liked Mike Brown more than others when he was hired–a Popovich pedigree will always endear me to a coach–but his time has passed.
Lastly, on LeBron: anyone who has watched the Cavs for the last seven years knows that his elbow is hurting. He didn’t trust his jumper in any game but game three, and that was after four days off and treatment. Every other “second day game” he looked off his jumper, and the Celtics gave it to him. In fact, the series looked oddly like on of theose old Pistons series, where they were daring him to shoot and he had Flip Murray and Larry Hughes as his co-pilots. He is hurt. He put it out in the media, didn’t want to look like an excuse maker, and went back to work. His drives were ineffective not because he was afraid to draw contact but because the Celts clogged the lane and dared him to stick jumpers. Why is this important to Mike Brown? Because the Cavs should have been running more to get him easier layups. With Shaq and Z on the floor, this wasn’t happening.
Wasted opportunities. I do not believe in a Cleveland curse. I do believe in poorly matched players, poorly designed offensive gameplans, and overreliance on one player. Remember Butch Davis’ “Kellen Winslow playbook”? I feel Paul Silas deserves a bit of blame for making LeBron the center of the Cavs universe from the start, but there is little doubt no one in the league (definitely not Kobe in the triangle, D12, Nash, A’mare or any Celtic) has had to work harder to elevate his team to its level of success, and ultimately, I think we have to stop saying that the surrounding cast is weak. No, this team could beat the Celtics–they already have. Just remember HOW they beat them. Mike Brown, you did the best job you could–I don’t doubt your heart of basketball IQ. It isn’t enough for this team at this time.
Happy summer, all.
I agree with most of Chris K’s post, except that I really wonder about Mike Brown’s basketball IQ. It is hard not to given some of the baffling decisions he made in this series, when it was obvious to many sportswriters and fans (at the time, not just after the fact) that these were poor decisions. He has a reputation as a great defensive mind, but I saw little evidence of that in this series. This may be just wishful thinking, because this is one way I can see Lebron re-signing – if MB is actually a terrible coach and Lebron believes this and believes this team is good enough to win a championship under the right coach. If he thinks his teammates are the problem, I don’t see why he would come back.
lebron is staying !!!!!! just say it to yourselves clevelend fans is you want him to stay from everyday til his signs. cause if you can wake up everyday and drink the same awful coffee by the cups. you should be able to wake up everyday with this montra. hahahahahaahaha
the cavs lost because
1.Lebron is a point guard, NOT a small forward, therefor He and Mo williams play the same position. They do not compliment each other, the can’t/don’t play off of the ball.
2. The celtics crowed the paint, the solution was too post up Lebron, but he isn’t comfortable yet, I suppose he will be in a couple years, Shaq woul have sufficed but his defense was terrible.
3.PERCEPTION…the whole world acts like it was Lebrons title to lose, as if other teams don’t have stars, its as if he has 7 championships and was waiting on the 8th, the media is suppose to report, but they took sides, mainly its Lebron against “kobe is so inferior why o we even compare so win Lebron wins we can really disregard kobe bryants career” its a sad commentary but thats why they are “Disappointed”
4.Mike brown isn’t coaching the team, his job was to let Lebron do whatever he wants so he signs with the cavs this summer, the only thing Lebron is guilty of is holding the team hostage, and the whole team felt it, even Shaq…
I’ll add to what LeBron needs to improve on, and it is learning to play off the ball. This means being dangerous even if the play isn’t designed for him and the ball isn’t in his hands. He doesn’t/hasn’t had to do that because in a MIke Brown offense, nearly every play is meant to involve LeBron in a heavy way.
MISSING PERSON ALERT!! LeBron Raymone James, Age 25, DOB12/30/ 84, Cleveland, OH
Reported missing 5/11/10. Last seen being taken to school by Rajon Rondo (Boston Celtics), Not heard from since Nike stopped running puppet commercials. May be headed to Chicago or New York area. Last seen in false NBA Crown. James may be in need of medical attention for elbow. Please help authorities find LeBron or his game. ****G.R.Bradley
I’m a cavs fan from California. Actually, I think I’m more of a Lebron fan. I can’t stand to see Lebron lose. I’m sure he feels the same way. I hope he makes his way to a winning team. Cleveland just isn’t big enough for him