The national pundits are already showing no love to the Cleveland Cavaliers. I’ve already seen national magazines picking the wine and gold for 5th or 6th in the Eastern Conference. The new object of these writers’ affection is the Philadelphia 76ers, which acquired Elton Brand as a free agent. They also love how the oft-injured Jermaine O’Neal will boost the Toronto Raptors to the elite teams in the conference. I just shake my head.
The Cleveland Cavaliers went to the NBA Finals in 2006-07, and took last year’s champs, the Celtics, to a seventh game in their conference semi-final series last year. Plus, they employ the league’s best player, LeBron James. Now, I’m rolling my eyes.
These idiots have no idea what they are talking about. The only writer who shows the Cavs any love is ESPN The Magazine’s Chris Broussard, who used to cover the team for the Akron Beacon-Journal. He picks the wine and gold to go to back to The Finals. He knows better. And I agree with him. It will be a fun winter and spring at The “Q” in 2008-09.
Here is one thing to remember, LeBron James is just 23 years old and will not turn 24 until the end of this calendar year. That means he is still improving as a player. And that, my friends, is a scary proposition for the rest of the NBA.
The addition of Mo Williams gives the team another player who can create his own shot, and that will help #23 in a big way. Williams also likes to push the ball, and there is no question that when The King is in the open court, he is all but unstoppable. I believe James will come as close as anyone to averaging a triple double since Oscar Robertson in 1962. Figure 30 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists per night for the gold medal winning James.
The Cavs are not a perfect team. They have some age in the frontcourt where Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Ben Wallace are on the wrong side of 30, and the only proven offensive performer is Big Z. However, they have the very tradable commodity of Wally Szczerbiak’s expiring contract to trade during the season to bolster any weak areas that creep up during the season.
This is the most athletic team the wine and gold have put on the floor in the James era. Besides #23, Williams, Delonte West, Daniel Gibson, Anderson Varajao, and Sasha Pavlovic can all get up and down the floor, meaning if the Cavs can play good defense, they can create easy opportunities to score. Remember that they have the best finisher in the game in James.
This city should be excited by what is starting tonight. The Cleveland Cavaliers are a legitimate contender for an NBA championship, and their season starts this evening in Boston. The last time we had this level of anticipation was with the Indians in the late 90’s, but even those teams didn’t have the best player in his sport.
JK
Cleveland Sports Perspective 