SB Nation - Jamario Moon

Preview: Cavaliers at Kings

Ziller — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:00:52 -0000

More photos » by Gary Dineen - NBAE/Getty Images

THE OPPONENT

The Cavaliers are really good, a popular pick for NBA champion the last, what?, four years or so. The team sits at 21-8, just 4th in the East but probably 5th in the entire league. This is a really, really good team. It was, this week, the first to beat the Suns in Phoenix, and is working toward its mammoth Christmas showdown against the L*kers.

Cleveland bakes its bread in several key categories: it is fourth in the league in shooting, second in shooting defense and second in defensive rebounding. That, frankly, spells a bit of doom for our Kings, who need to shoot well (currently 7th) and rebound on offense (currently 6th) to get that offense humming -- you'd prefer if the Cavs did other defensive things well. One nice feature of this arrangement is that Cleveland isn't good at forcing turnovers (committing turnovers being a major Kings problem); however, it's plausible the Kings don't need the opponent forcing any turnovers, because they can force themselves to commit them just fine.

The huge problem, as it always is with the Kings, is on defense. Again, the Cavaliers shoot brilliantly, with almost every rotation player boasting an effective field goal percentage above league average. (Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Delonte West are the exceptions.) LeBron James is of course the amazing Alpha -- know that he is remarkably shooting at a 50 percent clip from the field. Add in his threes (4-1/2 per game at 37 percent) and free throws (nine at 79 percent) and, yes, he is at a remarkable 60 percent True Shooting, Kevin Martin territory while soaking up 34 percent of the Cavs offense while on the floor. Remarkable is just the beginning.

Beyond James, Mo Williams shoots brilliantly, Anthony Parker has been effective, and even Jamario Moon and J.J. Hickson have come up roses. That's a lot of Cavs to cover, and the Kings have a dearth of quality defenders. That's a problem. Expect, perhaps, some early zone, buckets of help on LeBron, and pray for luck.

THE KEY BATTLE

Tyreke Evans vs. Mo Williams. LeBron will be matching up against two and maybe three Kings at many points, so it's vital that those who aren't helping down (Evans to start, Beno at some point) make sure to limit shooters like Williams. At the other end, that's where this becomes most key: the Kings cannot afford to fall in any sort of hole to Cleveland, so Evans can't just turn it on in the second half. He needs to attack the smaller, weaker Williams early early early. LeBron will be there to help, and I suspect James will have at least one "Welcome to the league, son" weakside block, but that's no deterrent: attack, young Padowan. Attack.

			FG			3PT			FT			Rebounds			Misc
	G	M	M	A	Pct	M	A	Pct	M	A	Pct	Off	Def	Tot	Ast	TO	Stl	Blk	PF	PPG
LeBron James	29	38.1	9.9	19.7	50.2	1.7	4.5	36.9	7.2	9.1	78.9	0.9	5.9	6.8	7.8	3.7	1.3	0.8	1.9	28.7
Mo Williams	29	35.6	5.8	13.0	44.2	2.2	5.1	43.9	2.8	3.1	87.9	0.3	3.0	3.3	4.8	2.4	1.4	0.2	2.8	16.5
Shaquille O`Neal	23	23.0	4.2	8.3	50.3	0.0	0.0	0.0	2.0	4.0	48.4	1.7	5.2	6.9	1.4	2.0	0.3	1.3	3.3	10.3
Anderson Varejao	27	29.9	3.3	6.5	50.9	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.5	2.4	64.1	2.5	5.4	7.9	1.0	0.7	1.0	0.9	3.2	8.1
Anthony Parker	29	28.7	2.7	6.0	44.3	1.6	3.2	50.0	0.5	0.7	78.9	0.4	2.3	2.7	1.7	1.0	0.8	0.2	1.7	7.4
J.J. Hickson	29	19.1	3.0	5.3	56.9	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.4	2.1	64.5	1.1	2.7	3.8	0.2	1.1	0.4	0.4	1.7	7.4
Zydrunas Ilgauskas	28	21.9	3.0	7.0	43.1	0.0	0.0	100.0	1.2	1.6	73.3	1.9	3.7	5.6	0.6	1.0	0.3	1.0	3.2	7.3
Delonte West	20	21.7	2.8	6.1	45.5	0.1	0.6	8.3	1.6	1.9	86.5	0.2	1.8	2.0	3.2	1.4	1.0	0.5	1.4	7.2
Daniel Gibson	27	19.7	2.5	5.3	46.5	1.4	2.9	49.4	0.6	0.9	70.8	0.2	1.1	1.3	1.1	0.6	0.6	0.0	1.7	7.0
Jamario Moon	24	18.6	2.1	4.3	48.5	0.6	1.8	34.1	0.8	0.9	85.7	0.5	3.4	4.0	0.5	0.4	0.4	0.6	1.5	5.5
Darnell Jackson	14	4.7	0.6	1.2	47.1	0.1	0.1	50.0	0.1	0.1	50.0	0.5	0.5	1.0	0.2	0.6	0.1	0.2	0.7	1.3
Danny Green	6	2.3	0.3	1.0	33.3	0.2	0.8	20.0	0.3	0.3	100.0	0.3	0.3	0.7	0.0	0.0	0.2	0.0	0.3	1.2
Jawad Williams	8	1.4	0.0	0.1	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.1	0.0
Coby Karl	3	1.7	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.7	0.7	0.0	1.3	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0

INTERESTING SIDESHOW

I'm telling you, when Jon Brockman checks in ... you may want to turn the volume down a few notches if you have a sleeping baby in the room. Evans and Ime Udoka deserve kudos for their role in the Comeback Heard 'Round the Greater Chicago Metropolitan Area And Also Sacramento, but Brockman is already a mascot fan favorite of sorts, and his game actually embodies the steez of this squad. It's easy to love this kid, and Sacramento clearly does. He will be rewarded for his effort tonight.

BOLD PROCLAMATION

Shaquille O'Neal will be widely booed. And not just by Spencer Hawes.

DETAILS

7PM, ladies and germs, the only late-late game on the NBA slate. Game thread at 7, sequel at 8, post-gamer at 9:45, recap on Christmas Eve.

Game 22: Cleveland at Oklahoma City

daddydai — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 17:39:41 -0000

More photos » by Joe Murphy - NBAE/Getty Images

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This also counts as an open thread, so feel free to post your thoughts during the game here.

Time: 6:00 PM Central Standard Time

Place: The Ford Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma

Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1)

Enemy Blog(s): Fear the Sword

Backstory: But first a disclaimer.

When it comes to Thunder basketball, I am an eternal optimist. Positive thought equals positive results, right? So being unbiased is a rough task for me. After the Thunder defeated the Orlando Magic, I feel OKC proved that they can beat any team. So let's continue with the task at hand.

The Cavs added Shaq to their roster in order to "Bring the King a ring". With the extra strength inside somehow the Cavs have already tallied up seven losses. Not to mention losses to teams that the Thunder have already defeated (Washington & Memphis). So should we be encouraged? I'd say yes. Plus we all know that KD and the boys like to step up to the top teams in the league.

Of course Cleveland has plenty of bigs that can contend with our paltry front court. So expect Krispy to jump start his jump shot in hopes to pull the Shaq away from the basket. Cleveland also has a nice outside game that OKC has to be aware of. Expect some nice cuts to the basket by Williams and Lebron. In order for the Thunder to pull this one off shots have to fall and rebounds must be collected.

Since, I'm always bouncing about the internet here are a few more thoughts about the game:

Cavs Hit the Road, Travel to OKC | King James Gospel | A Cleveland Cavs Blog
Cleveland’s starting shooting guard Anthony Parker played basketball in Israel for Macabbi Tel Aviv before entering the NBA and is very accustomed to the celebrations of Hanukkah. And AP comes out hot right from the opening tip. Parker picks up four of LeBron’s seven first quarter assists and pours in 12 early points to lead the Cavs to an early 14 point lead. Cleveland withstands a late second quarter run by the Thunder and goes into the locker room with an eight point advantage, 54 – 46.

The King takes matters into his own hands to start the third quarter and pours in 8 consecutive points and finished the quarter with a game-high 27. After sitting the first six minutes of the fourth quarter, James checks back in with his team

clinging to a four point lead. Kevin Durant tries to steal the King’s throne but LeBron matches him point-for-point. Jeff Green cans two from long distance in the last two minutes and the Cavs trail by 2 with 11 seconds.

LeBron takes the inbound pass from Delonte West and dribbles to his right. Anderson Varejao levels Green on a screen but LeBron runs out of room at the foul line. He swings out to Mo who feeds Parker with a touch pass in the corner. And Anthony Parker celebrates day three of Hanukkah with a game winning tre. Cavs win 103-102.

Cavaliers-Thunder Preview - STATS Senior Writer - NBA - Sporting News
The Thunder are three games over .500 for the first time since 2004-05, when the team was based in Seattle and finished 52-30. Oklahoma City, the second-youngest team in the NBA, has reached 12 wins after needing 50 games to accomplish that feat last season. "They have a very, very good young (group) of basketball players that love to play the game of basketball," James said. "We are looking forward to the challenge. It is going to be a good road test for us against a young, explosive team in their home building, and we have to come out with the same fire we did in the second half (Friday)."

Star Power: Comparisons grow between Kevin Durant and LeBron James | NewsOK.com
At first glance, it’s easy to think LeBron James and Kevin Durant aren’t in the same league. Simply suggesting the two players are seemed silly this summer when the connection first gained steam. Durant’s Thunder was coming off a shameful 23-win season. James’ Cavs, meanwhile, were fresh off yet another deep playoff run. But the comparison now seems credible as the two meet for the first time this season tonight inside the Ford Center. Durant, in his third season, is blossoming into the star many projected him to become and has his Thunder off to a surprising 12-9 start. Durant also ranks fourth in the league in scoring, sitting .1 point ahead of James.

Cavs (16-7)	Matchups	Thunder (12-9)
Mo Williams Some people call me Maurice	Point Guard Tonight's point guard match up will be overlooked since we will have a superstar match up on our hands. Williams is 44% from beyond the arc. Westbrook shoots 66% from three-land while facing Cleveland. One important note, Mo often leaves the ball handling responsibility to LeBron. Slight Advantage: Thunder	Russell Westbrook The Constant Evolver

Anthony Parker Not Tony	Shooting Guard Parker is a legitimate threat with the 3-ball. He has shot over 50% this season. Thabo can contain Parker, but Thabo will likely be spending time helping guard LeBron. Just how much time Thabo spends with James will determine the result of this match up. Advantage: Thunder	Thabo Sefolosha Swiss Army Defender

Bron Bron The King	Small Forward Here it is! The match up we all waited for. The summer long discussions of who is better will be re-sparked if KD can hold his own against Cleveland's Dancing Queen. Unfortunately LeBron is much quicker and stronger than Durant. Advantage: Cavs	Kevin Durant The Kid

J.J. Hickson Ze Son of Hick	Power Forward Hickson's rebounding average is only 3.8 rebounds per game. Green should us this to his advantage, even though Green isn't a rebounding machine himself. Who ever wins this match up will decide the game. Advantage: Thunder	Jeff Green Green Energy

Shaquille O'Neil The Big Question	Center So the Vanilla Gorilla poked Shaq in the eye, and the Big Whateva is listed as questionable. Either way, I don't see Krstic winning against anyone from the Cav's front court. Perhaps Thomas will get minutes tonight? Advantage: Cavs	Nenad Krstic Mr. Comb Over

Anderson Varejao Curly Fries	Bench & Role Players Serge Ibaka and Nick Collison will face off against Curly Fries and Nosferatu (better known as Varejao and Ilgauskas). While Lucky Harden and Shaun Livingston will compete against the really athletic Jamario Moon and gun-toting Delonte West. If Harden's shots fall we will be fine, otherwise I'm expecting Moon to defy gravity. Advantage: Cavs	James Harden Wonder Beard

Mike Brown Former COY	Coach I could be completely wrong, but I believe LeBron won Brown's coach of the year. Brooks on the other hand has done a great job harnessing the Thunder. Oh yeah, don't forget the Thunder also have Mo Cheeks and Ron Adams helping from the bench. Advantage: Thunder	Scott Brooks Next COY
	images via yahoo.com

	Other Factors
	Injuries Shaq might be out with a poked eye. Daniel Gibson injured his finger in Battier's jersey the other night. Of course Leon Powe, Kyle Weaver, and Kevin Ollie are out of commission for awhile.
	Intangibles If the Thunder keep this game close, LeBron will likely wear himself out. Can Sefolosha's defense and Collison's rebounding keep this game close? Will Westbrook maintain his composure?
	Prediction Expected a very energetic game from both teams. In the long run the Cavs will dominate the game with dribble penetration, while the Thunder will rely on mid-range shooting. Prediction: Cavs 98 - Thunder 93

Poll

Who will win tonight's game?

Oklahoma City Thunder

16 votes

Cleveland Cavaliers

13 votes

29 votes | Poll has closed

Game 21 Preview: Houston Rockets vs. Cleveland Cavaliers - 12/09/2009 7:30PM CST

UofTOrange — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 18:24:59 -0000

Point Guard
Aaron Brooks - A 5 to 3 Assist to Turnover ratio has to be fixed, but that is to be expected when he's being asked to be the team leader for the first time in his career. Brooks had 3 solid games before a tough game against a team he typically torches in Portland. He'll bounce back tonight as Mo Williams isn't big enough to body him off of his shot.
vs.
Mo Williams - Williams is not the assists man that I thought he would become playing with LeBron. A lot of that has to do with James wanting the ball in his hands to create (who could blame him given his results). He's doing everything on the court well, however. Solid shooter (great 3 point shooter), and is automatic from the free throw line. Toss in 1.48 steals a night and you have the makings of a very good point guard for the Cavs.
Edge: Even

Shooting Guard
Trevor Ariza - He's shooting too much, but therein lies the problem, because he's doing exactly what he is being asked by Rick Adelman to do. The Rockets have said all along that they want to see what they have in Ariza so they are going to force this one him. It's a work in progress, but you can see him making a little better decisions with how he sets up for his shot every night. I do wish that he would never, ever shoot a three without being set. I think I've seen exactly one of those go in all season.
vs.
Anthony Parker - In complete honesty I had no idea that Parker was with the Cavs. I've even watched a couple of their games this year. Daniel Gibson is statistically having the best season shooting of his career (save from the free throw line on only 70 attempts), so I guess the Cavs just like having him come off the bench.
Edge: Rockets

Small Forward
Shane Battier - It would be crazy to expect another defensive performance by Shane like he had last year against LeBron, or would it? Did LeBron learn from last year? Because I guarantee you Battier studied the film and saw what he did differently the rest of the season and what he's done different this year.
vs.
LeBron James- When his team has an off night it is rarely due to James not playing well. He's shotting 51% from the field this year, by far a career high. Add that to his career high 8.2 assists per game and 7 rebounds and the man could legitimately challenge the triple double average in another 2 seasons. All in all, I'm finally saying it, he's better than Kobe (but not by very much).
Edge: Cavaliers

Power Forward
Luis Scola - With Carl Landry seemingly scoring 20 a night, it has been lost how good Scola has been on the defensive end as well as fitting in perfectly on the offensive end. He scores when he gets the ball and is averaging 9.2 rebounds a game. If anyone doesn't know why Landry doesn't start, there you go. I've overestimated Scola's scoring this year, but that is more due to the way he is used in the offense. For a guy that shots a lot of elbow jumpers, 51% shooting is exceptionally good.
vs.
JJ Hickson- Hickson was a strong player at NC State and continues to show why the Cavs were high on him. He still has a long way to go, but 56.85 shooting is going to keep him on the court in a starters role.
Edge: Rockets

Center
Chuck Hayes - Chuck has been shooting the ball exceptionally poorly, even for him as of late. The Rockets have to have him hit the majority of his 3-5 shots to beat a team like the Cavs. They simply cannot be wasted possessions. His defense is still very good. There is one problem...
vs.
Shaquille O'Neal - is one of the few players in the league that Chuck simply cannot guard without Shaq having an off game on his own. If O'Neal is being his typical last 2 seasons self, there is nothing Hayes can do. If he is being his 2002 self Shaq could score 100. That's not a knock on Chuck, he's a great defender, not all matchups are going to go his way though.
Edge: Cavaliers

Injuries/Suspensions
Houston Rockets
OUT - Tracy McGrady, well I don't know if he's still hurt, just that he isn't playing
Cleveland Cavaliers
DTD - Jamario Moon

My Prediction: Cavaliers win by 7, the Rockets simply are not the defensive team they were the last two years

Game Preview - Phoenix Suns vs. Cleveland Cavaliers

Mike Lisboa — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 20:11:43 -0000

Amar'e Stoudemire must start AND FINISH with his gorilla game for the Suns to have a chance in Cleveland tonight. (Photo by Max Simbron)

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Hopefully the Suns can make like Alando Tucker and wash the icky residue of last night's loss to the Knicks off their hands before mixing it up with the Cavaliers in Cleveland tonight.

The Suns head into Cleveland 2-1 with a chance at salvaging a winning record on this eastern road swing before coming home to face the Kings on Saturday. Last night the Suns came out flat on both ends of the court and despite rallying to get within 6, never recovered offensively or defensively.

So, which Suns team will show up tonight? The 14-3 power rankings darlings or that group of zombies that took the court in New York last night.

The Cavaliers come into tonight's game riding a 4 game winning streak, including a 16-point thumping of the Mavericks on Saturday. That's right: Saturday. In addition to being at home, Lebron and company have 3 days of rest. For their part, after taking most of yesterday's game off, the Suns should be plenty rested as well *rimshot*.

Match-ups

Guards

At the point, we have Steve Nash going up against Mo Williams. On paper, this would seem to be a clear advantage for the Suns, but last season Mo torched the Suns for 30 points in their meeting in Phoenix and 44 in Cleveland (Nash missed this game with an injury). Off the bench, it's Daniel Gibson vs. Goran Dragic. While Boobie is capable of getting hot, in 8 games this year, he's only averaging 6.8 point per game. If Dragic can bounce back from a terrible performance in New York, they should basically cancel each other out.

I thought it was the 30-somethings that were supposed to struggle with back-to-backs? Jason Richardson has been a key ingredient to the Suns potent offense this year, averaging 17.4 points per game, good for 2nd on the team behind Amare Stoudemire. However on the 2nd night of back-to-backs, all of J-Rich's offensive numbers have taken a hit: -7.7% on FG%, -4.9% on 3PT%, -32.1% on FT% (yipes!), and -6.1 PPG. There's no reason he shouldn't reverse that trend against Anthony Parker (and you thought the Suns had cornered the market on lesser siblings! He has to play in the shadow of his sister Candace.) and he'll have to if the Suns want to win this one.

Off the bench at the 2, it will be interesting to see who the Suns go with in Barbosa's absence. After pouring it in (14 points on 4-7 shooting), Alando Tucker may have earned some increased minutes. Equally mysterious is who the Cavs will bring off their bench behind Parker. After seeing limited use thus far this season due to personal and health reasons, Delonte West played a season-high 29 minutes against the Mavs, scoring 10 points and grabbing 10 boards.

Forwards

Grant Hill will have his hands full with LeBron James. If he and Jared Dudley can combine to keep LBJ around his averages, the Suns will probably consider that a success. I don't think anyone has any illusions of stopping him.

Off the bench, Jamario Moon is something of a Matrix-Lite, so he and Jared Dudley will engage in some kind of sideshow hustle competition.

At power forward, the Suns have what should be their clearest advantage, offensively at least. Amare Stoudemire needs to bring his vaunted Gorilla Game to exploit Cleveland's tandem of Anderson Varejao and J.J. Hickson. If he can stay out of foul trouble, look for Amare to log heavy minutes and heap piles of offensive abuse on the Cavs while not having to worry too much about being challenged on the other end. Except for rebounds.

Center

Here's where line-up and strategy will come into some serious play. It's entirely possible the Cavs elect to send Varejao and Hickson out on Frye at the perimeter, keeping Shaquille O'Neal and Zydrunas Ilgauskas in the lane to defend Amare on the pick and roll. If that's the case, look for Amare to log heavy minutes and heap piles of offensive abuse on the Cavs. (See what I did there?)

Defensively, Channing Frye doesn't have the bulk to keep up with Shaq in the post and the Cavs will probably go to this mis-match early and often, much like the Lakers did with Andrew Bynum earlier in the season against the Suns.

Robin Lopez will probably get some early minutes on the defensive end to see if he can help stop the bleeding in the paint against the much larger Shaq. Robin vs. Shaq has the potential to be explosive as Robin looks to heap some punishment on the The Big Mentor who rode his Fuzzy-head pretty hard last season.

Of course, that's just wishful thinking. Shaq will destroy Robin given the chance.

Predictions

Offensively, the Suns will look to spread the floor against the Cavs using their dead-eye shooting (which hopefully they bring with them tonight) to exploit the lack of speed of the Cavs big men. If his shot his falling, Channing Frye could have a career night. Similarly, if the Cavaliers lumbering bigs stay at home on Stoudemire, he and Nash should have a field day running the pick and roll till the cows come home.

Defensively, the Suns will have to find a way to limit Cleveland's opportunities in the paint AND contain the speedy Williams AND contain LeBron James. If the Lopez and Frye struggle with Shaq, look for Jarron Collins to come in and provide 6 additional fouls against O'Neal. I'm pretty sure Robin will use his up fairly quickly.

In a perfect world, the Suns draw the Cavaliers into an up-tempo shoot-out, regain their accuracy and out-run the Cavs. For their part, Cleveland and their 8th ranked defense (100.6 points per 100 possessions) will look to keep things slow as molasses (7th slowest pace in the NBA), bogging the Suns down in a half-court game. Look for them to pound it inside and run plenty of isolations for LeBron James. Like, 70 of them.

While I think the Suns will come out more focused than they did last night in New York, I don't see them winning this game. They'll keep it close in the first half, but their porous defense will be their undoing as the game wears on.

Final score 105-93, Cavs.

Suns vs Cavaliers coverage

Suns vs Cavaliers preview

Fear The Sword

Gameday Preview vs Cleveland Cavaliers

David Arnott — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 14:48:32 -0000

Pump Up Music: Motorhead -- "Ace of Spades"

The Big Picture: The Bobcats are coming off two impressive wins and the Cavaliers are coming off three straight victories. I'm still on board the Cavs Will Win It All Bandwagon, even though the Shaquille O'Neal experiment isn't going as swimmingly as they'd hoped, but that's primarily because I wouldn't bet against LeBron James in any scenario, at this point.

At this stage of his career, Shaq should be a depth player in Cleveland. What I mean by that is that while he's perfectly capable of starting and producing for a lot of teams in the league (for instance, Boston would swap out Perkins for him instantly, cost aside), on this particular team, he should only get big minutes when the matchup determines it or Zydrunas Ilgauskas is unable to split minutes with him. They haven't missed a beat without Shaq the past few games, and he's questionable for tonight's game, so we'll see if the Cavs play it safe with the Older Aristotle and sit him out again.

As for the rest of the team, I've mentioned this before, but I think it bears repeating: The Cavs have the personnel to play any style successfully. They've got shooters, runners, and bangers. They don't play any single style better than anyone else, but they can hang with any kind of game that's dictated to them. The thing is, I'm convinced that if they embraced an up-tempo game, they'd be playing to their strengths.

Specifically, I'd play LeBron at the nominal power forward position along with Mo, Delonte, Parker, and a center,or if they want more size, Moon at small forward with Parker moved to guard. Basically, I get why they didn't want to trade Z for Stephen Jackson, but from a purely basketball point of view, I'd be slobbering over the chance to play S-Jax at the three with LBJ at the four, and I think Cleveland missed an opportunity to upgrade significantly when we snatched Cap'n Jack before they could.

Key Matchup: I'm not too concerned with any of the individual matchups in this game. We know Crash and S-Jax are going to have their hands full with LeBron, and there really isn't anything they can do about it. A Shaq/Z combo scares me a lot more than a Z/Sideshow Bob combo because Varejao doesn't provide the kind of offensive variation from Z that Shaq does. Similarly, Boris Diaw is reasonably equipped to deal with J.J.Hickson or Varejao.

If I had to pick one to worry about, I'd choose the point guard battle. Mo Williams is a much more comfortable point guard to watch than any of the guys we throw out there at the position. First, it should be noted that Raymond Felton has had his minutes cut over the past few games in favor of more minutes for Ronald Murray. Felton is probably the best defensive PG we have, but I'm not sure that Murray's defensive deficiencies outweigh the offensive potential he brings. The hell of it is that Murray can't be trusted to actually be productive on any given night. Such is the gift and the curse of the gunner. It would be nice to have confidence in Felton's offense, but his entire career has eroded that confidence. It would be nice to think about turning to D.J. Augustin, but D.J.'s regressed so dramatically this season that I'm not entirely sure that sticking him out there is necessarily the best course of action any more.

Detail That Might Interest .08% of You: Gerald Wallace and Jamario Moon were on opposite sides of a fierce high school hoops rivalry in rural Alabama.

Battered and bruised Cavaliers head to Washington

John Bena (aka CavsBlogger) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:09:59 -0000

More photos » by Mark Duncan - AP

about 1 month ago: Cleveland Cavaliers' Shaquille O'Neal, center, jokes on the bench with Mo Williams, right, and Jawad Williams during an NBA basketball game against the Golden State Warriors Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009, in Cleveland. O'Neal sat out the game with a shoulder strain but the Cavaliers won 114-108. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan)

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After some computer troubles of my own, and with the network - the latter which killed the open thread last night - I am back and better than ever. Hopefully, we'll be saying that about some of the injured Cavaliers, especially across the front-line.

Here is the latest -

Jamario Moon -- Moon left last night's game vs. the Golden State Warriors with 11:03 remaining in the 3rd quarter with a sprained left ankle. He did not return to the game. He traveled with the team to Washington and is listed as QUESTIONABLE for tomorrow night's game versus the Wizards.

That's the good news. Now for the not so good.

Anderson Varejao - Varejao did not play in the game vs. Golden State (hip contusion). He traveled with the team to Washington but is listed as OUT for tomorrow night's game.

Shaquille O'Neal - Shaq also missed the game vs. the Warriors (shoulder strain). He did not travel with the team to Washington and will remain in Cleveland to receive treatment.

Leon Powe - Powe is still rehabbing his left knee.

Delonte West - Your guess is as good as mine. West is due in court in a couple days, so I'd imagine we won't be seeing him for awhile. At what point do the Cavaliers simply move on without West??

Cavaliers sleepwalk to 86-85 loss to Bulls

John Bena (aka CavsBlogger) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 04:17:34 -0000

More photos » by Tony Dejak - AP

about 1 month ago: Chicago Bulls' Derrick Rose, center, jumps to the basket against Cleveland Cavaliers' Shaquille O'Neal, right, and Mo Williams in the first quarter of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

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Maybe this is the new motivation for the Cavaliers this season. Last year, the Cavaliers seemed to be on a mission the entire regular season to get the 1 seed in the East, to win every game they played. The result was 66 wins, 39 of those at The Q. It also ended in a loss in the Eastern Conference Finals.

No need to worry about that this season - at least through 6 games.

In a game that the Cavaliers seemed disinterested in playing for large parts of the final 3 quarters, a late LeBron James energy boost was not enough to beat a young Chicago Bulls team. First of, credit the Bulls. There were several times a young team could have folded - they didn't. Instead it was the Cavs that played poor perimeter defense. It was the Cavs that turned the ball over at key times and it was the Cavs that couldn't hit the big shot when needed.

Even the final play was flawed - especially in design. With 4.3 seconds remaining and the Cavaliers trailing by one, Mo Williams inbounded the ball to LeBron, with Shaq setting the pick to clear him. Nothing wrong there - except for the one guy I would imaging Shaq was supposed to get to - Joakim Noah - was the weakside help that caused LeBron to lose the ball out of bounds, ending any hopes the Cavs had of winning.

Many will say there should have been a foul called - and in truth we have seen less get called at times. Fairly speaking, however, the officials did a good job of swallowing their whistles for both sides late in the game and there was very little contact - just a lot of long arms.

Even if you think there was a foul, the Cavaliers played poorly enough - for long stretches - to hardly deserve the win. The Wine and Gold had plenty of opportunities to take the game over in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd quarters but failed to pt the Bulls away. It was a team effort for Chicago, with 5 players in double figures lead by Luol Deng's 15. Derrick Rose added 14 points and 11 assists.

For the Cavaliers, it was LeBron leading the way with 25-7-6. His play, at times, seemed uninspired, perhaps because of two nasty falls - one when he rolled his ankle running off the court after a foul - the second when he landed hard on a seat diving for a ball out of bounds. Both shots seemed to take LeBron's energy away, at least until the final seconds when LeBron single-handedly nearly pulled it out for the Cavs.

There was more trouble for an offense that looks more and more like it misses John Kuester. Kuester, now the Head Coach in Detroit, ran the Cavaliers offense last season. The offense lacks creativity and movement, either focusing on giving the ball to Shaq, or LeBron.

The Cavaliers shot just 40.7% from the field, and just 12-20 from the FT line. The Cavs committed 12 turnovers as well. Chicago turned the abll over just 7 times, leading to ZERO points for the Cavs. The Bulls were the faster team right from the start.

The struggles for the bench continued as well - Daniel Gibson scored 8 points on 3-4 shooting. Everyone else? A combined 1-18 for Z, Delonte and J.J. Hickson. Z was 0-9 from the field and once again appeared to have no clue on either end of the floor when paired with Shaq.

Meanwhiles, Jamario Moon was a DNP. Wasn't Moon brought to Cleveland to match up with teams like Chicago that are long and athletic? Something has Moon firmly planted on Mike Brown's bench while Ilgauskas and Anthony Parker(4-9, 11 points) waste their minutes on the floor(Z played 21 minutes, Parker played 35).

One bright spot for the Cavaliers was Anderson Varejao. Andy seems to have found his groove playing next to Shaq, putting together back-to-back double-doubles. Tonight's 12 points, 13 rebounds was a solid effort. Varejao also lead the team with a +11. Shaq added 14 points and 10 boards, along with 5 blocks.

All in all it was an ugly loss. Perhaps it was the way the Cavaliers lost the game - sleepwalking - that bothers me the most. we have heard many times this summer that the Cavaliers can't do anything during the season to make up for their playoff loss. I agree, to a point, but Champions play championship basketball all the time - not just in April, May and June.

Up next is my favorite time of year - LeBron's yearly flirtation with the New York media as the Cavs get right back on the florr tomorrow night against the Knicks.

Bulls vs Cavaliers recap; Bulls vs Cavaliers boxscore

3 In the Key: Toronto Raptors Game Day Preview vs. Cavaliers

RaptorsHQ - Howland — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:00:26 -0000

More photos » by LM OTERO - AP

The Raps have quite a duo to deal with opening night. Who do you double team or in the case of Lebron, triple team? (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)

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With the regular season upon us it’s time for the first preview of the season. In game number 1 the Raps face a Cleveland Cavaliers team with some very familiar faces including Anthony Parker and Jamario Moon. Oh, and let’s not forget the Cavs also acquired some guy named Shaq in the off-season.

Tonight at the ACC the Raptors 2009-2010 regular season will get under way.

It should be a rocking good time and if you have a ticket feel fortunate. Last time I checked the cheapest ticket on Stubhub was $85 and that’s for a single in row 16 of the upper deck. Not surprisingly it’s a hot ticket, in particular with Lebron and Shaq in town.

Make no mistake about it, even though the Cavs will be playing for the second time in two nights, this is going to be a mighty challenge for the new look Raps. It is also going to be a pretty good indication of where this team is after the month long preseason.

It’s hard to say what we are in for or what we should expect from the Raps tonight. Coach Triano played with a variety of different lineups during the preseason and by his own admission, was not running a lot of the offensive sets that the team intends to run from this point forward.

Tonight we will get our first real flavor of this season’s squad (shy Reggie Evans, who on a night like tonight where the team faces a rather massive front court will be greatly missed).

I will be focused, in particular on the new guys. It will be particularly interesting to watch the former Raptors in action. Both Parker and Moon were were heavy minute/rotation players while in Toronto. With the Cavs? Not so much. Parker, although starting is not being asked to do more than he is capable of and Moon is the 8th or 9th guy. This was far from being the case when these guys were in TO. Actually, wouldn't Parker and Moon be considered key guys if they were still here? I think so and that's pretty telling.

On the Raps side of things my eyes will be squarely on Hedo Turkoglu. Given his skill sets it will be interesting to see just how much Hedo handles the rock, how much he is involved in a pick and roll and more importantly how the Raps plan on masking his defensive flaws against Lebron.

It’s hard not to be excited about Raps ball being back. Unfortunately the home opener is against a team whose name is in the championship mix and just got beat on their own home court. I don't think anyone expects to see the Cavs start the season 0-2. Nevertheless, what’s it going to take for the Raps to secure an unlikely W?

The Crowd: The crowd is going to have to play the role of sixth man this evening. There will be a few key points in tonight’s game which will dictate the outcome and the fans have to rise to the occasion and give this team a lift. Under no circumstances, no matter what the expectations, can the fans turn on the team should things not start to go the Raps way. If the Raps have any chance to win they will need to feed off the energy of the crowd as the Cavs start to feel the effects of playing the first back-to-back of the season. If the crowd was going to really get revved up tonight hopefully it will be when the bench players get into the mix. It was clear that the Cavs bench is a work in progress and the Raps need to take advantage at that moment.

Gang Rebounding: Shaquille O’Neal, Anderson Varejao and Zydrunas Ilglauskas combined make for a sizable front court and when put alongside the likes of Lebron James one that should, on most occasions, destroy their opponent on the glass. These are the types of teams that the Raps will struggle with. I have little doubt that the Raps are going to get beat on the glass and therefore the question is whether they can keep the rebounding differential at a respectable number. Giving the Cavs extra opportunities is a recipe for suffering the first loss of the season. I noted on a number of occasions through the preseason that the only players willing to crash the boards on a regular basis were Reggie Evans and Sonny Weems as the rest of the team just seemed satisfied hanging out on the perimeter or making their way back down the court. With Evans still on the shelf and Weems on the inactive list, someone is going to have to step-up and make a difference on the glass. I am just not sure who, if anyone, will.

Withstand the Punishment: By all accounts King James feels like he has improved his game over the summer. That is a scary thought. Arguably the most dominant and explosive player in the game it’s almost impossible to imagine Lebron being any better than he has been over the course of the past two seasons. The Raps will get their first taste of Lebron this evening and it’s going to take a serious effort to prevent him from completely dominating this game. Lebron is going to punish this Raps team, the question really is whether the Raps can somehow withstand it. Defensive rotations are going to be absolutely key in this game. No-one on the Raps can come anywhere near defending the King so expect numerous double teams. That of course means someone is going to be left open. If the Raps are not quick to adjust and rotate then it could make for a long night. We have all seen Parker nail the three and he, along with Mo Williams and others could have a field day from beyond the arc should the Raps be even a half a step slow.

It’s going to be a test and the first of many over the course of the next month. Hopefully this team can start off on the right foot.

Go Raps!

3QC Roundtable Discussion: Previewing the 2009-2010 Season for the Orlando Magic

erivera7 — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:01:03 -0000

More photos » by John Raoux - AP

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"Runnin' mad games as if your name was Scott Skiles." - A Tribe Called Quest

After months of trading for players, signing free-agents, and playing pre-season games, the NBA is officially underway tonight for several teams. The Orlando Magic are not one of them, which is bad and good. Bad, because people have to wait one more day. Good, because it allows Third Quarter Collapse to fit in one more preview before the Magic begin its quest to return to the NBA Finals this year (and win it all).

As has been my custom in the past, I was able to corral some of the brightest minds around the internet and in the APBRmetrics community to provide their thoughts on Orlando this year. For regular 3QC readers, you'll recognize the names fairly quickly:

Bradford Doolitte, Basketball Prospectus

Neil Paine, Basketball-Reference

Ryan J. Parker, Basketball Geek

Kevin Pelton, Basketball Prospectus

Each individual provided his opinion on the Magic's busy off-season, ascertained which Eastern Conference rival matches up the best with Orlando, and more.

Recently, the NBA released it's annual GM survey and only 7.1% believe the Orlando Magic will win the Eastern Conference. Likewise, Ian Thomsen of Sports Illustrated polled a half-dozen scouts and all of them agreed that the Magic were the consensus #3 team in the East. Even Orlando was ranked #8 by Sporting News in a power ranking a couple weeks ago. In your time covering the NBA, have you ever seen a team receive less respect after reaching the Finals just a few months ago? To what you would attribute it to?

Neil Paine: I don't know, it seemed like the East's representative was constantly being slept on after losing the Finals at the beginning of the 2000s, too -- Philly, New Jersey, etc. I think the general feeling (and I can't say it's totally wrong, to be honest) is that Orlando caught lightning in a bottle last spring, and that the burden of proof is on them to show that it wasn't a one-year thing. Boston obviously has proven themselves two years ago, and they very nearly beat Orlando even without Garnett, so it's easy to see them ranking ahead of the Magic. Cleveland is better on paper and they have the best player in the game -- but that was true last year and Orlando still won, so their ranking above the Magic is harder to justify. Maybe it's the Shaq addition, maybe it's (undeserved) disrespect for Vince Carter, exactly why I can't say. The stats obviously say to go with Cleveland, but you'd think the sportswriters would go with the team that won last year.

Ryan J. Parker: Historical preseason rankings aren't really relevant here. The reality is that there are other good teams in the East that are getting more respect. People like the Magic, they just like Cleveland and Boston more. I personally see Cleveland as the team to beat, with Boston and Orlando behind them. Simply getting to the Finals shouldn't give the Magic a sense of entitlement. It's probably better that way, since SVG doesn't have to worry about the guys getting big heads. They get to play the disrespect card, however useful that may be.

Kevin Pelton: Well, the 1998-99 Chicago Bulls (who were a little before my time actively covering the NBA) and the 2004-05 L.A. Lakers come to mind. Now, a team that brought back the majority of its roster and arguably improved its talent? No, certainly not. I think a lot of it is that people never completely bought into Orlando's playoff run. The win over the Celtics can be written off as due to Kevin Garnett's injury (never mind Jameer Nelson's injury), while the Cleveland series could be viewed as something of a fluke. The other factor, which you guys have discussed from all angles, is this surprising notion that going from Hedo Turkoglu to Vince Carter is a huge negative for the Magic.

Bradford Doolittle: A lot of it comes from the belief that the Celtics would have beaten them had Kevin Garnett would be healthy. Now Garnett is back the Celtics have added Rasheed Wallace. As for Cleveland -- the Cavaliers did win 66 games last season and it was an upset when the Magic knocked them out last spring. I wouldn't take it as a lack of respect. The league is really top heavy right now and I think everyone agrees the Magic are part of the upper crust. Also playing into this, I believe, is that Jameer Nelson's importance to the Magic is underrated. It's amazing that they made the Finals without him and were competitive in the Finals even with Nelson playing at about 60 percent of his capacity.

More after the jump.

Out of all the moves general manager Otis Smith and the Magic made in the off-season, which one did you like the most and why?

NP: I liked the headline move, the Vince Carter pickup. He gets a lot of flak from the press for not being what they wanted him to be (he isn't the next Michael Jordan, and he never was), and it's true that he quit on the Raps a few years ago, but I can see him being an important piece on a winning team like the Magic because of his ability to both create off the dribble and shoot from long-range. He's also an underrated defender, which will fit in very well with Van Gundy and the Magic. All in all, I think he's a terrific fit and hands down one of the off-season's best pickups.

RP: The addition of Vince will be interesting to see, but I believe that managing to keep Gortat and add Bass helps to give the team depth that any real championship contender needs.

KP: I think it is tough to pick out one specific move because they were all interconnected. For example, if the Magic would have lost Courtney Lee as part of the Carter trade and failed to replace him, that initial deal would have been much worse. Therefore, getting Matt Barnes is not only useful in and of itself but also as it fits in with the Carter trade. That said, if I'm picking just one move, it's not only getting Carter for expiring contracts and Lee but adding Ryan Anderson as something of a throw-in with that deal. Already, demanding Anderson is looking genius.

BD: It's awesome that he was able to pry Ryan Anderson away from New Jersey in the V.C. deal. I really like Anderson's game and he'll be able to replace many of the things that they got from Turkoglu. I saw where Dwight Howard is now referring to him as 'Pat Garrity' which is funny, but Anderson's a more well-rounded player than Garrity.

Isn't Stan Van Gundy due for a Coach of the Year award? Could this be the season when he finally gets recognition for the work he's been doing in Orlando?

NP: You definitely could make a case that he deserved it last year, even before outmatching Mike Brown as a tactician in the Conference Finals. The way he turned Orlando into a legitimately great defensive team, with that personnel -- I know Howard is a complete beast and would anchor any D to an above-average ranking, but think about the rest of his lineup: Rashard Lewis at the 4? Turkoglu manning up on the perimeter? On the best defensive team in the league? That, to me, has been one of the best coaching performances of the past few years.

RP: After taking a quick look at last year's voting, I see SVG placed 3rd. Only one coach can win the award, so it's not likely he gets it, but it seems like he is being recognized in some form, even if he doesn't have the hardware to show off.

KP: I definitely think Van Gundy should have won a year ago. Like his team as a whole, he seems to have a hard time convincing the national media that he is a world-class coach. If the Magic challenges for first place in the Eastern Conference during the regular season, it will be hard to deny Van Gundy this year.

BD: SVG deserves the award someday, but not until Jerry Sloan gets one.

Between the Boston Celtics and the Cleveland Cavaliers, which team presents more problems for the Magic when looking at possible playoff matchups?

NP: It's still Boston just in terms of individual matchups; if healthy, they've got more than enough talent at all the right places to take Orlando out. Cleveland's the wild card, though -- we know Orlando manhandled them inside w/ Howard and destroyed them on the pick-n-roll last year, and I'm not even close to being sold on this idea that Shaq cures the first problem. Moon and Parker, though, those guys were terrific additions because they can defend the wing as well as anybody Cleveland had. Besides, James is so good that he could have carried Cleveland to a win if his teammates had made just a few more shots.

RP: Cleveland.

KP: I would say the Celtics right now. I think both teams made moves that allow them to better match up with Rashard Lewis and his ability to stretch the floor. Boston can put a healthy Kevin Garnett at the four as well as Rasheed Wallace, which is a massive upgrade on the minutes Brian Scalabrine played in the series a year ago. The Cavaliers had the problem of trying to find a fifth guy to put on the floor because they had a hard time playing two bigs together against Lewis. Depending on the situation with Delonte West, Cleveland could have two strong options this year in Jamario Moon and Anthony Parker, as well as potentially a healthy Leon Powe by playing time. That said, I still think Dwight Howard can present more problems for the Cavaliers than the Celtics. While Shaquille O'Neal can handle Howard in the post in a way Anderson Varejao was unable to last spring, the Magic will be content to play pick-and-roll basketball against O'Neal. That should mean a steady stream of easy jumpers for Nelson, who is more than capable of knocking them down.

BD: If the Celtics are fully healthy, they have an answer for everything that the Magic can throw at them, especially now that Wallace is on board to help pound on Dwight.

What are the chances Orlando wins a title this year? What is your official prediction for the team?

NP: The Southeast is going to be a cakewalk again, so pencil them in for at least 50 wins, and I think they'll be right there in the end, playing a major role in the Conference Semis or even the Conference Finals again. That said, I don't know if they can take care of both Boston and Cleveland if those teams are at 100%. Barring some kind of injury problems, the Magic are going to be the 3 seed again, they're going to have to go through the Celtics and the Cavs, and I don't think they'll take care of both in the same postseason for a 2nd straight year. The East hasn't sent the same team to the Finals in back-to-back years since Detroit in '05, and I think when the dust settles, we'll see that streak continue in 2010.

KP: Our official preseason SCHOENE projections, released Monday, have Orlando as co-favorites in the East and in the entire league with Cleveland. They give the Magic a whopping 36-percent chance of finishing the regular season with the NBA's best record. That's not quite the same as winning the championship, so I'd put the odds at about one in four. Subjectively, I'm taking Orlando to win it all. West's status troubles me, and I think the Magic matches up better this year with the Lakers or whoever might come out of the other conference.

BD: Given the ultra-competitiveness of the top of the NBA right now, I'd put Orlando sixth the overall league pecking order, with maybe a seven to 10 percent shot at a title. My subjective pick is 52 wins and a six-game loss to Cleveland in the East semifinals.

I like to thank Mr. Doolittle, Mr. Paine, Mr. Parker, and Mr. Pelton for answering my questions.

The Road to the Promised Land is Fraught With Difficulty

C.A. Clark — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:12:58 -0000

We here at Silver Screen and Roll have done just about everything we can to prepare you for the upcoming season. We’ve looked at everybody on the team, all 5 positions, and even the coaches. We’ve identified the important and telling statistical features to pay attention to in the upcoming season. We’ve even taken you on a bit of a history lesson, looking at how things played out every other time the Lakers have attempted to defend a championship. The only thing left to do is spend some time talking about the teams that are the most likely to keep L.A. from reaching the intended destination: Repeat champions.

In former seasons, a Contenders preview might have been a short piece. Earlier this decade, for example, one would really only have to mention the Kings and the Spurs, and perhaps pay lip service to whichever Eastern Conference teams were likely to be served up as sacrificial lambs to the almighty Western Conference. In the 80’s, the entire piece would probably be about Boston (until Detroit got involved later in the decade). Philadelphia was good in the early part of the decade, and Milwaukee was always pretty strong, but in the end, it was likely going to be Boston and L.A. This year is different. This year, there are four main contenders the Lakers will have to deal with, and each one of them has a legitimate chance to win the title, at least on paper. And paper is all that we can deal with at this point.

What does the paper tell us? It tells us this season is going to be something special. Historically special, if you ask me. So many circumstances have come together to create a perfect storm of ridiculously talented teams.

The Summer of 2010 has created a very unique free agency situation, where the only teams interested in adding players are those who think they can win a title. All other teams are content to sit this season out so that they have the necessary cap space to go after the big name free agents next season. That’s why you’ve seen deals like Artest and Sheed for the Mid Level Exception, Brandon Bass for less than the MLE. Hell, even Odom’s 8 mil per year probably wouldn’t happen in a normal year, somebody would have out bid us for Odom’s services, but nobody wants to commit long term money this year, unless they are going for broke.
Adding to this "Contenders will spend, everyone else will not" mode is that the economy sucks (both in general, and specifically related to the NBA). There are lots of small market teams who are losing a lot of money, and they don’t want to shell out for anything. In fact, they are pretty much willing to give you anybody on their team for a contract that won’t last as long, or isn’t fully guaranteed.
There are three teams who are legitimately in "This is our last chance, we have to give it everything we have" mode. Boston and San Antonio have aging core players who will only get worse as seasons pass. And Cleveland has to win this year so that they can convince The King not to jump ship in the offseason. That, combined with factor #1 and #2, has led to deals like Richard Jefferson and Shaq being traded for expiring contracts. And Boston and Cleveland signed an entire roster’s worth of decent players to come off the bench.
Further adding to the economic uncertainty of the entire league, the current Collective Bargaining Agreement is set to expire in 2011, and there is a very decent chance that a work stoppage will occur at that time, because the owners have made it clear that many things will have to change, or the smaller market teams may go out of business. The main point here is: If you aren’t building a team that can win in the next two seasons, you might as well not even bother.

The result of all of these collective circumstances coming together is not one, but 5 incredibly good teams. If you don’t believe me, consider this statement. Every team that has participated in the NBA Finals in the last three seasons is entering this season with a team which is better than the one that won a championship, or came close. There are 5 teams this year which might all be better than the champions of the past three seasons. I can’t verify it with research, but I’d be willing to bet a small fortune that this has never happened before. In fact, taking it one step further, if you assume that San Antonio is a better version of their own previous championship-winning teams this year, you could make a legitimate case that any one of the 5 best teams from this year might be better than ALL of the past champions dating back to the beginning of the post Lakers dynasty. There is simply no precedent for this level of improvement in so many championship quality teams.

I think this will go down as the most top heavy season in NBA history. All four of these teams (plus the Lakers of course) could win 60 games. If (and this is of course the big if) all 5 teams stay relatively healthy, I think all 5 will do it, because these teams are all that good, and they all know that there are 4 other teams which are just as good as they are. Everyone will be looking for every advantage they can get, and home court advantage is the biggest prize that can be had. They say that the regular season is a marathon, not a sprint. This year, such an attitude will see you get left in the dust. All these teams know it, and all of them (except maybe San Antonio) will come out of the gate hard and never turn back. As I’ve written before, I think that it is possible a team could win 70 games this season, and NOT win the NBA championship. There are simply no impossible scenarios this year.

Sorry for the extremely long intro. In truth, it could and should be treated as its own piece regarding the nature of the NBA this season. Now, without further ado, here’s a breakdown of the four main contenders to the Lakers throne (in alphabetical order, so as to not stir up additional argument).

Boston Celtics

On paper, this may be the most formidable team of the bunch. Their starting 5 contains 3 Hall of Famers, a point guard who nearly averaged a triple double in a playoff series last year and is generally considered an All-Star in the making, and a brick wall for a center who’s only job is to rebound and block shots. In case you are wondering, he’s pretty good at his job. Their bench has turned from a weakness into a strength with the signings of Rasheed Wallace and Marquis Daniels to a unit already boasting a very good shooter in Eddie House, and a decent backup power forward in Big Baby Davis.

The Celtics’ defense is what makes this team so potentially special. Two years ago, they were one of the better defenses of all time (statistically proven). They still have the same core of guys, although the loss of James Posey definitely hurts them on that side of the ball. With the addition of Rasheed Wallace (in his prime, a very good defender), the potential exists for this team to be even better on defense than they were two years ago, which is a scary thought.

Unfortunately for the C’s, the regular season and the playoffs aren’t played out on paper. While the Celtics have the best potential for greatness of the four teams previewed here, they also have the biggest question marks. I’m sorry, I meant question mark. Because any analysis of the Celtics’ potential boils down to one question, what are they getting from KG? If KG is at his best, returning to the form he had two years ago, captaining the Celtics’ defense and instilling them with the intensity and mentality for which he is known, the Celtics become an extremely difficult team to beat. If he remains limited, because his knee injury isn’t an injury at all, instead just wear and tear at the end of a very long career, then the Celtics become very beatable. Not as vulnerable as last year, because picking up Sheed should help them if Garnett turns out to be limited again, but not a favorite, especially in this stacked field. The Celtics’ entire season hinges almost entirely on the health of Kevin Garnett. There are other questions (will Pierce and Allen decline at all? Was Sheed’s failure last season due to lack of motivation, or deterioration of skill and athleticism), but in the end, KG decides almost everything for them.

A Lakers-Celtics matchup in this year’s Finals would be almost as if envisioned by God himself. Sure, there’s the rivalry itself, the major media markets involved, but the main factor is the style of play these two teams possess. They are the NBA’s Yin and Yang. Kelly Dwyer described these two teams so perfectly at the beginning of last season (before KG went down) that I simply have to use that description.

The Lakers are a devastating offensive team who play defense so well you can’t possibly hope to outscore them. The Celtics are a devastating defensive team who play offense so well you can’t possibly hope to keep them from outscoring you.

That’s why, in terms of being able to observe a legendary matchup, Lakers-Celtics should be what you root for. In terms of who the matchups favor, that’s a tough, tough question. If KG is what he should be, Pau will have to prove once and for all that he can handle KG’s physicality, and Bynum will have to have success against a very good post defender in Perkins. Also, the Lakers ability to handle the pick and roll will be vital to success against Boston, because the PG position is the only place where the Celtics have a clear cut advantage on the floor.

Cleveland Cavaliers

The truth is, no one really knows what to make of this Cavaliers team, because their regular season and the end of their playoff run were so incongruous. Is the real Cavaliers team the one that won 66 games, good for home court advantage throughout the playoffs? Or is it the team that crashed out to the Orlando Magic, lucky to extend that series even 6 games, even though the Magic were without their All-Star point guard and the Cavs had no serious injuries?

The answer to that question? None of the above, because this year’s team bears little resemblance to last year’s squad. Gone are Ben Wallace and Sasha Pavlovic, entering are Shaq, Anthony Parker, Jamario Moon, and Leon Powe (once he recovers from injury). This is a completely different team, which is why the Cavs have the greatest potential of any of the 5 to fail. The addition of Shaq cost them basically nothing, in terms of player personnel. But Shaq changes the way a team plays offense, and it will be interesting to see how well he is incorporated to the offense, while maintaining the same model which enjoyed success last season. Also, the addition of Shaq does little to address the matchup problems which Orlando created for Cleveland last season. They still appear to be a team that can be pick and rolled to death, as neither Shaq nor Big Z have the quickness to be able to do much with a quick guard coming off the screen. But the biggest question, the biggest problem, facing this Cavaliers team doesn’t have to do with players at all. The Cavs might struggle more this season because they lost Jon Kuester, who was the offensive mastermind that turned the Cavs offense from a slightly upgraded version of the Los Angeles Kobes (circa 2005) into a very decent offensive team last year. Kuester is now the head coach for the Pistons, and his offensive mind has not been replaced. That, combined with head coach Mike Brown’s lack of offensive acumen, and the addition of an offense changing force like Shaq, could be the biggest issue with the Cavs recapturing even last season’s success.

Still, this is a team that won 66 games last season, and they have improved their depth over last season’s squad. And they have LeBron James. Regardless of where you fall on the James scale, there is simply no denying that he is a dynamic force that is capable of carrying a team. If the Cavs overachieved last season, he’s the reason why. No team with LeBron is going to be a bad one, and he has more talent around him than he’s ever had before.

A Lakers-Cavs matchup would have a ton of storylines attached to it. Kobe vs. LeBron. Shaq vs. the Lakers (and Shaq vs. Kobe specifically). Nike (and something like 10 other sponsors) would have an absolute field day. That said, for me the Lakers cause far more matchup problems with the Cavs than the Cavs do with the Lakers. They played twice last season and the Lakers won relatively comfortably both times. Despite all their success, one never got the impression that the Cavs were better than the Lakers in a head to head matchup last season, and I see too many questions this season to believe that has changed.

Orlando Magic

More than any other team on this list, the Orlando Magic are in a similar situation to the Los Angeles Lakers. They will be good next year, there is no doubt. But they will also be good the year after that, and the year after that, and so on. Unlike Boston and San Antonio, Orlando’s core are young players. Vince Carter is no spring chicken, but Dwight Howard and Jameer Nelson are both still in the ascension phase of their careers, and Rashard Lewis isn’t on the way down. Unlike Cleveland, there’s no doubt regarding their young star’s presence on this team for years to come. Like LA (with Bynum, Farmar, Brown etc.), Orlando has the greatest possibility of improvement simply because their players are still improving. Howard should continue to develop an offensive game, and Nelson was having a truly breakout year before he got seriously injured.

However, unlike LA, Orlando was very busy in the offseason. They allowed Hedo Turkoglu to sign with another team, but they traded for Vince Carter, who is theoretically an upgrade over what Hedo provided. They also signed Brandon Bass, and pimp slapped the Dallas Mavericks by matching Dallas’ offer for Marcin Gortat, after Dallas did not match Orlando’s offer for Bass. It remains to be seen, but they appear to have significantly improved upon a very good team, especially considering they made the Finals with Jameer Nelson playing the role of "The Shell of Jameer Nelson". A healthy Nelson alone would be reason for this team to be optimistic about their chances. However, they were taken to 7 games by a depleted Celtics roster, and Boston does have the personnel to deal with Orlando’s matchup nightmare, Rashard Lewis. So it’s easy to see why the Magic felt the need to make so many plays to try and keep ahead of the curve in the Eastern Conference.

Similar to the Lakers situation, the Magic’s season will be defined by how well they incorporate their new star player into a very successful, and somewhat unorthodox, offensive system. If the ball gets sticky in Vince Carter’s hands, and he isn’t as successful a playmaker as Turkoglu was, Orlando might not be as successful. Then again, Vince Carter’s best is far beyond Hedo’s best, so it seems likely that everything gets worked out. VC isn’t the best defender in the world, and Orlando was a very good defensive team last season, but Howard is the best backstop in the league, so VC’s defensive weaknesses will be somewhat masked. Besides, when was Hedo ever known as a defensive juggernaut.

A matchup between Orlando and LA doesn’t seem particularly interesting to me, if only because we have seen it so recently. Yes, a few of the faces have changed, but the core matchup problems still exist, and those matchups seem to be heavily in favor of L.A. Although Bass should help them in the rebounding category, he is still very undersized, and the Lakers should be able to take advantage of their very good length, regardless of whether Bass or Lewis is playing PF. The only area that the Magic truly have the advantage against LA is at the PG position, and Jameer Nelson was definitely the main reason why Orlando swept LA during the regular season, but Orlando has gotten worse, not better, at defending on the perimeter, so if the two do end up re-matching last year’s Finals, look for Kobe to have even more success than he had the year previous.

San Antonio Spurs

Always included in a list of contenders, the Spurs are the only team on this list that weren’t particularly good last year. They limped into the playoffs (literally and figuratively) before exiting in Round One to a Dallas Mavericks team that seems to consistently have their number. So, if they are to truly be included in this list, they clearly have the furthest to travel from last season’s mediocrity. And yet, here they are, undisputedly included amongst the league’s best. I guess a core that has won 3 championships, and is led by one of, if not the, greatest power forwards of all time, gives you a little bit of street cred.

And yet San Antonio would probably not be on this list if they didn’t make what has to be the most one sided trade since Pau to the Lakers. The terms of that trade with the Milwaukee Bucks? Richard Jefferson, a former All-Star, for Bruce Bowen, Fabricio Oberto, and Kurt Thomas. Of the three, only Thomas is still on the Bucks roster. And that’s not all San Antonio did. They signed Antonio McDyess to be their big man off the bench. They drafted Dejuan Blair, despite the fact that he apparently has no knees, and are making every team who let him slide through the first round look foolish as Blair looks like an absolute beast. The kid may not last 5 years in the league, but the Spurs are going to get a huge Return on Investment while he’s here. It’s quite possible the Spurs have had the most successful summer of all, but they needed to do so in order to even be included on this list.

Like Boston, San Antonio’s entire season is defined by how healthy their stars are. I guess all teams can be defined this way, but San Antonio’s case is special, because they have the most injury prone star of any of these teams, Manu Ginobli. A healthy Ginobli is a game changing force, fearlessly driving the lane, getting layups at ridiculous angles, hitting 3’s and making plays for his entire team. A Ginobli hampered by injury is depressing, trying to do all the things he knows he can do, and having no success. San Antonio hasn’t seen healthy Ginobli in the playoffs since their last championship, three years ago. That’s why the Lakers beat San Antonio with little trouble in 2008, and why the Spurs were dispatched in the first round in 2009. If anything, trading for Jefferson has better prepared the Spurs to deal with an injury to Ginobli, but if he isn’t 100% come playoff time, it’s hard to imagine the Spurs making it through the Gauntlet to give TD a 5^th ring. But Ginobli isn’t even the Spurs most important health concern, just the most troubling. The most important is, of course, Tim Duncan. Duncan is getting up in years, and in games played, and he definitely took a step back in 2009, the type of step back that won’t be reversed by another step forward. If Duncan continues on the slow, steady decline rate, and Ginobli is healthy, the Spurs are a force to be reckoned with, backed by more Championship experience than any other team in the mix. But if Duncan drops off considerably, or even worse, his body starts giving up on him, the Spurs simply can’t be successful without their anchor in the middle.

A Spurs-Lakers matchup is extremely likely, as they do seem to be the cream of the crop in the Western Conference. It’s a matchup that always excites, but the new faces this time around make it a bit tough to analyze properly. Tony Parker will always kill LA, and his speed is absolute death to Derek Fisher. However, the Spurs no longer have a Bruce Bowen type to even slow down Kobe Bryant. Ginobli will need to be at his absolute peak to even have a chance at matching up with Kobe, and if he isn’t, Bryant will be able to dominate enough to counter-balance the Spurs advantage at the point. Artest should be able to do alright with Jefferson, and you have to like the Lakers front court depth over the Spurs’, even if Duncan is close to as good as he is capable of at this point.

Some quick snippets on the sleepers

Portland has the greatest potential of any team to crash this Big 5. They have a ton of young talent, and they made a huge jump from two years ago to last year. Another huge jump is quite possible. But, in the end, they need too many people to improve, and have to change their entire team mentality regarding defense, so it seems unlikely. Besides, even if they do join the ranks of the elite, it will be their first time on the dance floor when they come up against the championship experience of the Lakers or the Spurs, and it’s a pretty safe bet they won’t be able to handle the pressure, even if everything else is equal. They are still 1-2 years away.
Dallas has made improvements, but they have serious holes on the defensive side of things. Besides, I’m not sold at all on Shawn Marion’s ability to change the dynamic of a team that, even at its best, was a step behind a few other teams in the West
Denver seems likely to fall back down to earth this season. I don’t see any particular reason to expect dramatic improvement over last year’s squad, and last year’s squad had a great deal of things go right for them. I expect them to take a step back.
Washington is an interesting team in the East. They’ve added a bunch of pieces, and getting a player like Arenas back is nothing to sneeze at. They have to prove to be worth their salt on defense before anybody will consider them a threat to the 3 powers already residing in the East.

Sorry for the tome, but this subject just keeps on going and going. Did anybody even make it to the end? Who do you think poses the biggest threat to the Lakers’ repeat aspirations?

Poll

Who poses the greatest threat to the Lakers in 2009-2010?

Boston Celtics

459 votes

Cleveland Cavaliers

122 votes

Orlando Magic

165 votes

San Antonio Spurs

275 votes

Somebody else

125 votes

1146 votes | Poll has closed

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Point Guard

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Power Forward

Center

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Coach

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Prediction

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Cleveland Cavaliers

Orlando Magic

San Antonio Spurs

Who poses the greatest threat to the Lakers in 2009-2010?

Boston Celtics

Cleveland Cavaliers

Orlando Magic

San Antonio Spurs

Somebody else