The Cleveland Cavaliers needed to improve their team after being eliminated in the Eastern Conference finals by the Orlando Magic. A tough task, considering the wine and gold went 66-16 during the regular season, and swept through the first two series of the playoffs. Although the off-season still has a little over two months remaining, it appears that GM Danny Ferry is well on the way to achieving his goal.
The Cavs needed to get longer and more athletic, and it appears they have with the trade for Shaquille O’Neal, and the signings of free agents Anthony Parker and possibly Jamario Moon. Let me ask you this, would you trade Ben Wallace, Sasha Pavlovic, and Wally Szczerbiak for the trio of O’Neal, Parker, and Moon? Of course you would.
Indeed, the Cavaliers are more athletic. Imagine a lineup of Shaq in the middle, LeBron James at power forward, Moon at the three spot, and Parker and West in the backcourt. There will not be a lot of open perimeter shots with that group on the floor. And that’s what killed Cleveland in the Orlando series, the inability to cover the Magic’s three point shooters.
Moon, assuming the Heat do not match the order, is a better rebounder and defender that both Pavlovic and Szczerbiak, something you know Mike Brown likes a lot.
However, with Parker and possibly Moon on the roster, it likely means that Delonte West will be getting more time at the point guard spot. What does this mean for Daniel Gibson, whose production fell off last season, in terms of playing time? It doesn’t seem Gibson has a meaningful spot on this team, especially with Parker and Moon being pretty good three point shooters.
It would not be surprising to see Ferry make another move with Gibson as the trading piece.
The team also will probably have to replace Joe Smith, whose delusional agent is looking for a three-year contract. Smith’s minutes could go to second year men J.J. Hickson and Darnell Jackson, who at times looked good in their rookie campaigns. They are a younger alternative, which with O’Neal and Zydrunas Ilgauskas being in the rotation, is badly needed.
The only thing left for the front office is to offer the contract extension to James, which he will most probably turn down, and perhaps find another athletic big man, another veteran who can defend inside would be nice, and a third alternative at the point, besides Williams and West.
They didn’t do it with big splashes outside of getting Shaq, but certainly the Cleveland Cavaliers are a better team than the one eliminated by Orlando. However, the Eastern Conference as a whole is much better than it was in 2008-09. It will be a tougher road for the 2009-10 edition of the wine and gold.
JK
Cleveland Sports Perspective 