Notes and Errata: May 18th, 2010
2010-05-17-This much has become clear over the last three years: you can hang with, maybe even beat, the Kobe/Gasol Lakers if you focus on defense. Trying to outscore them has not gone well at all. The Celtics beat them, the Rockets took them to seven, and the Thunder gave them all they could handle. They’ve rolled through everyone else. That team has too many weapons for any team that tries to go at them guns blazing.
-The Celtics’ defense: it’s really good. And yes, part of me is happy that Orlando fans know how they made Cleveland fans feel last season. However, I like the Magic a lot more than I like the Celtics. I’m conflicted.
-So, explain to me how John Calipari is the guy to fix a talented team with a great player that keeps losing big games and can’t make free throws.
-Draft lottery tomorrow: important. If New Jersey/Brooklyn grabs that #1 pick, do the Cavs have any young players who can hold a candle to a potential Wall/LeBron/Lopez core?
-Beautiful piece on LeBron by Joey of Straight Bangin‘.
-So, when is Dwight Howard due for an MRI on his elbow?
Well I’ll certainly agree there is no doubt that Gasol is the best number 2 guy in the league. But I’m not gonna say Odom is better than Allen/Pierce as a number 3. Odom, when he plays like he feels like trying, is a freaking beast that could seriously be a top 15 player, if not top 10 player in the league. However, it seems he rarely feels like doing that.
What makes it even harder to judge how the Cavs’ talent level stacks up is that, this season, they didn’t play their best lineup combinations enough. Just for example, how we would perceive the “talent” if the team had gone with Varejao/Jamison/Lebron/Moon/Williams as its starting five? And then actually made use of the players’ best strengths? I do think you have to look at that Celtics team very differently now, because of KG. He wasn’t even playing when they lost in 7 to the Magic last year, and he wasn’t healthy for much of this season. When he’s healthy, the… Read more »
My point is I think we as fans always think the grass is always greener. For instance, right now, who is the better player..Rashard Lewis, or Antawn Jamison? I bet if I polled most of the Cavs fans, and fans around the league, you’d hear Rashard Lewis. After all, I am being sold that he is one the Magic’s prime pieces and Jamison isn’t a 2nd star or even close. Look closely though. Rashard Lewis made 18 million dollars this year. He is owed over 60 million in the next three years. You’d think a guy getting paid like that,… Read more »
I wish Rondo wasn’t such a tool so I could actually like him. I want to throw-up every time I think about the story of him talking trash to Chris Paul about winning a championship. Why does anyone have to take back anything about what they said about the terrible Cavs roster? Isn’t it possible that Boston > Orlando > Cleveland? I surely don’t think the roster is terrible. This roster was absolutely capable of winning it this year, although both Lebron and his teammates played terribly. If you’re honestly evaluating the roster though, you have a few older dudes… Read more »
And no Colin, you aren’t crazy. It is not overstating at this point that Rondo is more than in the discussion for best PG in the league.
Seriously, I’m taking him over Deron Williams right now, and quite frankly I’m taking him over Paul. Maybe that opinion changes next year when Paul plays healthy again, but Rondo is a top 3 PG in the league at the very minimum.
I waiting for the natl. media, and maybe even Brian Windhorst, to either take back what they said about this “terrible” cavs roster, or change their opinion on the Magic roster. I’m guessing they’ll do neither and just chalk it up to Boston being great.
For w/e reason, everyone is sold on the fact taht this Cavs team has no talent. When Orlando gets swept, will they same? No. I dunno know why, unless it is true that the natl. media just wants LeBron to leave, so they try to play up his supposed lack of help.
Am I crazy if I would take Rondo over Howard at this point? I realize Rondo’s jumper isn’t that great, but…. Dwight still has NO legit post moves. He can be shut down. Rondo without a jumper still can’t be shut down because that guy can get to the rim and break people down at will. Plus, he plays defense… maybe not at the level Dwight does, but his D is closer to Dwight than Dwight’s O is to Rondo’s…. if that makes sense.
And this Boston Orlando series is going just like I thought. Orlando isn’t nearly as talented as people think they are. No, Rashard Lewis is NOT a legit all-star. He is a one dimensional player in every sense of the word. No, Nelson is not on par with Rondo. No VC is not a legit guy that you can’t count on in the playoffs to come through. Said this after the Cavs series…the Celtics, again, do not have the best player in the series. But after number 1, they have the next 4. Now, who out there will question Orlando’s… Read more »
Of course Reddick would make the boneheaded advance of the ball late in the game.
I’d like to toot Rich’s horn for him. Here is what Rich said after Game One: “Here will a be “is SVG a better coach than Mike Brown” game over the next week. It seems clear Matt Barnes is hurt. He is going to struggle and struggle mightily to stick to Ray Allen. Kind of like Anthony Parker (Although he wasn’t hurt). Let us see if SVG sees this and increases Reddicks minutes (much like Mike Brown could/should have done with Moon) or if he goes MIke Brown and just puts his head down and changes nothing. My money is… Read more »
^ lulz FTW, wish they played those commercials again before the fall
@Chip P
I heard he is retiring to take a full time position as a DVD salesman
JK, how ’bout mentioning something about Zydrunas Ilgauskas and his future? He plan on retiring? Wazup?
bye bye bron bron
@Eric, with all due respect, you lost any credibility by including the words “Derek Fisher” and “talented” in the same sentence. Fisher is a modern day Eric Snow with a somewhat better jump shot. At one time he was a solid player but he certainly is a weakness for that team. Now it may not matter because the Lakers have the size to just pound any team inside (sans maybe the Cavs if they were, you know, still playing) and they have Kobe. As for the Cavs roster, Jamison is still a very good player. We just didn’t put him… Read more »
Don’t really agree with lebron being characterised as a player who ‘keeps losing big games.’ That doesn’t sound like the lebron iv been watching for the last 7 years. One bad series shouldn’t define a career.
He meant the Calipari-Bulls scenario, or really any scenario where some other team sign Calipari and Lebron. I’ve never heard the rumor that Calipari would come to Cleveland.
I dunno Eric, maybe you are just more optimistic in some way than me. When JK said “talented team” I just assumed he meant someone else besides the Cavs.
@Eric
The Cavs have talent. I’d rather have Jamison on my roster (a no. 4 pick, former all-star, former Team USA) than Carter. I’d rather have Mo (1st round pick, all-star) than a 35 year old Fisher.
Heck Shaq is HOF. He may be old but he was MVP at the all-star game last year.
AV even made the all-defense teams this year.
This roster did not lack talent. It just lacked a coach who could use it when plan A (a 100% LeBron) didn’t work out.
Please explain ” A talented team” comment. Where is the talent? It’s amazing to me anyone could look at the Cavs roster and claim “it’s talented” In comparison to the teams left in the playoffs, the Cavs are by far the least talented. Who on the Cavs has the talent of Derek fisher,Pau Gasol,Amare,Rashard Lewis,Jameer Nelson,Vince Carter,or Rondo and Ray Allen. the Cavs didn’t flame out of the playoffs because of Lebron, the Cavs lost because Lebron is all the team has. It doesn’t matter how talented the superstar player is, if all you do is surround him with 2nd… Read more »