Actually, the only scenario is for LeBron James to put his entire team on his ailing back and carrying the Cavaliers past the Wizards. It’s sad to say, but it’s the only way the Cavs can win this series. Right now, this squad looks like they just met yesterday, instead of being together for six weeks. They have had injuries to key people, but that is just an excuse. As was written shortly after the deal, the two contributors the Cavs picked up in the deal are Delonte West and Joe Smith.
Ben Wallace does his best defensive work 20 feet away from the basket pressuring point guards. Friday night’s game against Chicago turned into a dunk fest by Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas in the third quarter. Where was Big Ben? The reason the Cavs traded for Wallace was for interior defense, but that area of the team has not improved since his arrival. Wally Szczerbiak seemingly left his jump shot in Seattle, although to be fair, he played well against New Jersey, but logged less than 20 minutes in each of the next two games.
Mike Brown needs to have another sparking playoff coaching performance, or the second guessers will be out in full force. All of a sudden, Sasha Pavlovic is getting meaningful minutes. The constant switching of the playing time with less than a week to go before the playoffs start is a worry to those who watch the Cavs, but how do you think the players feel about it. They have to be shaking their heads. And that doesn’t count Damon Jones, who can’t seem to figure out that the reason his time gets reduced is because he cannot guard a phone booth.
Also, the so-called revamped offense is not working. The attack has reverted back to LeBron dribbling and trying to penetrate, while everyone else stands around watching. It doesn’t appear there are any plays being run, nor does anyone have a clue as to how to get the ball to the King attacking the basket.
The deal also did not improve the team’s physicality. When Wallace arrived, fans thought the wine and gold finally got the tough presence is has been lacking since James arrived. However, no matter how hard you think #23 gets hit on his drives to the hoop, he does take some shots. Still, there have been no hard fouls in retaliation. You can’t expect a finesse player like Zydrunas Ilgauskas to give a hard foul, but that is Wallace’s reputation, and another thing he has not delivered on.
It would be a miraculous turnaround if the Cavs advanced to the second round of the NBA playoffs. They have shown no inclination that they can beat a quality opponent, nor can they win on the road. Danny Ferry will have to go back to the drawing board to get the wine and gold back to the NBA Finals in the 2008-09 season. Because it’s not going to happen this spring.
JK
Cleveland Sports Perspective 