The Cleveland Cavaliers got up big against the Chicago Bulls and never looked backed. But the performance of Derrick Rose was something to watch.
The Cavs beat the Bulls 96-83 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference series at the Q. LeBron James did his best on both sides of the ball finishing with 24 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 BLOCKS! The Cavs as a team swatted 12 balls, 10 in the second half. Mo Williams carried a heavy load at point guard dropping in 19 points with 10 dimes. Newly acquired Antawn Jamison was his ever-steady, quiet self, adding 15 points, 10 rebounds, and an impressive 3 blocks.
It was the depth of Cleveland that was the real difference. For once, it was not the LeBron + 4 game. Shaq, having not played since late February, came back with a strong performance, posting 12 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 blocks. Varejao brought the energy with 15 rebounds and helped counter his bizarro self, Joakim Noah.
The offense of Chicago went through Derrick Rose. He had 28 points on 28 attempts and added 10 assists. His 7 TOs cost the Bulls but Rose has shown that he plays better in big games. The loss of another big scorer, losing Ben Gordon last year and John Salmons at the trade deadline, reduce the options of Chicago. Luol Deng was only 5-15 shooting, finishing with 12 points.
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Most basketball players are either long gone from the NBA or buried deep on someone’s bench at 35 years of age. But Steve Nash is showing that his skills are far from gone.
Steve Nash took his time opening night, scoring 15 points of his 24 points in the final quarter leading the Phoenix Suns to an opening night win of the Golden State Warriors. He followed this up with an eye-popping 20 assists in a romp over the Golden Warriors. Is Nash’s performance a mirage in the desert? Is it simply what good point guards do against two lowly Western Conference opponents? Or is this a wake-up call to the rest of the NBA that Nash & the Suns are back?
The Terry Porter experiment was a disaster. The Shaq trade did nothing but relegate the Suns to an also-ran team. Steve Kerr has two strikes. One more and he is out! Returning to the “7 Seconds or Less” philosophy that propelled the Suns to one of the elite teams in the NBA seems to have also woken up Nash.
Amare Stoudemire is back and Jason Richardson returns from suspension soon. Channing Frye mans the post last held by Shaq. Though certainly a downgrade on defense and low-post offense, Channing allows this team to run at max speed. The Brazilian Blur, Leandro Barbosa, is poised to wipe away last year’s disappointing season and return to his fast break ways.
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The much-anticipated debut pairing of LeBron & Shaq had fans in Cleveland thinking NBA Championship. But the veteran-laden Celtics team had other plans, winning the first contest between two of the Eastern powers 95-89.
The story in this game was one of balance, or lack thereof. The Cavaliers have 2 superstars — LeBron & Shaq — and then a bunch of decent players. I know, Mo Williams was an All-Star last year, but I would take Rajon Rondo over him any day of the week. Troubled wing player, Delonte West, is sorely missed for his on-ball defense and outside shooting. The new energy guy, Jamario Moon, has yet to takeoff, and Anthony Parker was more or less held in check. The Celtics, however, have quality at every position. The Big 3 might be the Big 4 with the addition of Rasheed Wallace…and I think Rondo deserves a ton of credit for driving this offense. If it weren’t for a dumb decision by Big Baby Davis, this team would be stacked.
LeBron James did little to quiet any talk of a second straight MVP, as his stat line looked like an all-you-can-eat buffet at Morrison’s cafeteria: 38 pts, 4 3s, 4 rebs, 8 asts, 2 stls, 4 blks. Shaq did his part but was not as effective in the low post as you would like. But it was Paul Pierce down the stretch that kept hitting big shot after big shot. He paced the Celtics with 23 pts & 11 rebs.
It may have only been the first game of the NBA season, but the Celtics getting a victory in Cleveland sent a clear message to the rest of the league: we are back!
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Leon Powe was released by the Boston Celtics…and fell in the lap of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Yahoo! Sports reports:
Powe signed a two-year deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday, even though he isn’t expected back on the court until sometime around the All-Star break. The Cavaliers are paying Powe the league minimum for a three-year veteran.
Reuniting with old AAU teammate, LeBron James, is certainly attractive to Leon. Staying in the Eastern Conference means he gets to show the Celtics what they passed on. Powe is still recovering from ACL surgery and not expected back until February of next year.
There is some risk on the part of the Cavs as they must wait for Powe’s full recovery. But the upside is certainly there. Powe torched the Cavs in two games last year, and was a very effective player for the Celtics during their Championship run. And to get him for the league minimum is akin to stealing.
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The NBA loves drama. In fact, that is the tag line for TNT who shows a lot of games, “we love drama.”
In their infinite wisdom, David Stern and the rest of the NBA brass has scheduled for Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal to meet on Christmas Day! Wow, nothing exemplifies the yuletide spirit more than two guys that, despite their best efforts to fake it on TV, really don’t like each other.
Shaq has just switched over to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a trade from Phoenix. Cleveland got a Hall-of-Famer, albeit an old one; Phoenix got a stick of gum and salary cap flexibility. The Cavs, now with Shaq, are a legitimate threat in the East. Though they will be not be a clear favorite, they will certainly match up better against the Celtics and Magic. Just having Shaq’s presence on offense will open up the floor for shooters. On defense, the Big Diesel can still bang with the best of them.
Kobe is fresh of this 4th NBA Championship, the first he earned solo. Sure, he had help from Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, etc…but this championship was his. Now that they resigned Odom, all the pieces are in place for another big run…and they will remain the favorites in the West.
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To no one’s surprise, and you can certainly count David Stern and every NBA executive, Zydrunas Ilgauskas is set to rejoin the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Despite being traded to the Washington Wizards for Antawn Jamison just a month ago, Big Z is back in Cleveland and ready to resign. How did it happen? Simple: every NBA executive knows the obvious loopholes in cap system and tacitly agrees to follow along. That is not to say that Washington shouldn’t have waived Ilgauskas. He is an aging veteran on the backside of a good career. But given the utter disarray for the Wiz, cutting salary, ushering a youth movement, and ** shhh ** TANKING are in full effect.
The “loophole” is not that Washington waived Z, it is that no other playoff team picked him up. Legally, Cleveland is not allowed to resign Ilgauskas until he clears waivers. Are you telling me that teams like San Antonio, Atlanta, even Boston couldn’t use another big body for the playoffs? Of course they could. But all NBA execs know not to touch a guy like this because someday it will be their star hanging on waivers waiting to clear.
The upside of the buffoonery is that LeBron James is closer to his first NBA ring. With Shaq sidelined with injury, Z is needed now more than ever. Maybe they should’ve traded Shaq for Amare, then claimed him again after he cleared waivers…
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