The one thing that is consistent with the Cleveland Cavaliers is that you never no who is going to contribute to victories other than LeBron James. Last night, in a virtual must win situation, the wine and gold got key contributions from Anderson Varajao and Daniel Gibson in an 88-77 victory to square the best of seven series with the Boston Celtics at two games apiece.
Varajao had been a huge disappointment throughout the post-season in the nine games played prior to yesterday, and actually was questionable for the game with a bruised knee. However, he clearly played his best game of the playoffs, scoring 12 points on 6 of 8 shooting, grabbing 6 rebounds, and playing outstanding defense on Kevin Garnett, helping hold him to 15 points, only 7 after the first quarter. The Brazilian finally showed the energy he had the first three years with the team. The Cavs need more outings like this from him in rest of the series, because the more guys they can run at Garnett, the better.
Gibson seems to make more of a contribution as a series goes on. After not looking for his shot in the first two games, Boobie was huge in Game 4. He scored 14 points, had 6 rebounds, and passed out 4 assists in 28 minutes. He hit two three pointers, but it was his scoring in the paint off the dribble that was a key to the offense. The Cavs need someone who can make shots like this on a regular basis, and the second year pro came to the rescue last night. It was needed since Zydrunas Ilgauskas played a rare subpar game.
There are two things that are constant for the Cleveland Cavaliers. One is their defensive effort, especially when it comes to the playoffs. Paul Pierce shot 6 for 17 from the floor, and outside of a brief moment in the third quarter, Ray Allen has not been a factor in this series. The combination of having to shadow James (they play a lot of zone, so he’s not really guarding him) and having #23 guard him is taking a toll on Pierce. He hit three shots in a row late in the first half with LBJ on the bench with three fouls. The Celtics shot 39% as a team, and hit only 3 of 14 from behind the three-point line. Outside of P.J. Brown, no one off the bench for Boston hit a field goal.
The other constant is James, who didn’t shoot well again, going just 7 for 20 from the floor, but dished out 13 assists and grabbed 6 rebounds. He took advantage of the swarming Celtic defense to find open teammates, and instead of finding them on the perimeter, he found them underneath the basket for lay ups. One very nice play had LeBron hitting a cutting Joe Smith, who delivered a touch pass to Varajao for an easy two. When the Cavs move the ball against the Boston zone, a lot of good things happen. Professional players are too good to show them a zone defense over and over again.
With the success rate of winning a potential Game 7 on the road very low, the Cavaliers face another must win challenge on Wednesday night in Boston. The wine and gold need to continue to attack the Celtic zone defense, and they need LeBron James to have one of those nights where he controls the entire game. He is definitely capable of this; we saw it last season against Detroit. If he can make some shots early, he could have a 40-50 point night and carry the Cavs to victory. Or, they need another hot shooting night from a Delonte West, Wally Szczerbiak, or Gibson. That’s what it is going to take to come back here Friday night with a chance to win the series.
JK
Cleveland Sports Perspective 