Post Up: Raps Ruin Bron’s 3×2
And Damien Wilkins saves the TWolves at the buzzer.
What a day, what a night. It’s just after 3 a.m. and I’m an exhausted girl. Accomplished girl, too. Finally managed to link up with Drake at halftime of the Raptors/Cavs game for a future project. That made my week right there.
The Raptors defeating the Cavs was just silly. 101-91. Lovely surprise, that one. Getting to write a feel good story for these amazing Raptors fans who read my daily stuff over at The Score was/is pretty awesome. So was the game. It was my first nba.com recap and, wow. After the Raptors were up 18 at the half, rather than feeling content in the victory, I felt like I was waiting for LeBron to become LeBron James and score 45 points in a half or something foolish like that to break Raptor hearts.
While he did end up with his 25th career triple-double (23/11/12), he also ended up with the “L” as the Raptors used a strong fourth quarter to bounce back after the Cavs tied the game up at 69 with 2:22 seconds left in the third quarter. With Bron on the bench to start the final quarter, Toronto pushed the lead to 13 before he returned and went on to the victory from there.
Andrea Bargnani opening the game with a baseline dunk was fantastic. The entire first half from Bargnani was exactly what the team needs from him. 21 points on 8-11 field goals at the half. Sure, he kind of disappeared in the third, but he finished with 28 points on 11-15 from the floor. I’ll take that every night. Especially when he’s working against Shaq on the defensive end of things.
One thing to notice about LeBron: Even when his new teammates don’t know where to go for a particular play and when they are lagging behind, trying to figure out the right cut or position to be in, James is entirely calm and composed. He DOES possess the patience of a point guard, motioning and gesturing to his guys where they need to be, then waiting for them to get there for the play to properly unfold.
He’s pretty impressive. And I don’t even mean on the court. Sure people will say he gives cliche answers, but give him a question that’s not a cliche. Ask something he hasn’t heard 20 times and I bet you’ll get something great from him in return.
Also impressive was the orchestra set up at half court playing “You Can Hate Me Now” for the Raptors player intros. Absolutely loved it. The Raptors staff definitely stepped their game up this season. The crowd here in Toronto was insane. The scout sitting beside me said it felt more like a college game during March Madness than an NBA game. Thought that was cool to hear. As someone who will be covering the games this season, I hope the energy level stays up, because it gets you jacked.
I missed everything not relating to this Raptors game tonight, but I was told that Carmelo Anthony had what Dwight Howard is already deeming, “dunk of the year.” Here’s a link. I’m going to check this out myself as well. Okay, okay, Mr. Melo, that was wild. After the season last year, the amazing donation to Syracuse this summer and then the cover story Lang did with him for SLAM, it’s been pretty awesme to see Carmelo grow from boy, to basketball star, to man.
He finished with 30 points, by the way. Denver took down Utah 115-104. Deron Williams led the way for the Jazz, scoring 28 points to go with 13 assists.
21 and 15 for Dwight in a 120-106 Orlando victory over Philly. Marreese Speights led the way for Philadelphia with 26 points off of the bench. My pick for most improved player of the year, Ryan Anderson had 16 points for the Magic.
Danny Granger with 31 for the Pacers who fell 120-109 to the Atlanta Hawks, thanks to Al Horford’s 24 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocked shots. Joe Johnson added 25 for the Hawks.
Charlotte and Boston was so ulgy it’s almost better not mentioning, sorry BETCats. Charlotte became the lowest scoring team in NBA history for a home opener, managing just 59 points in the game against the Celtics. Rajon Rondo had 10 points and 11 assists for the C’s.
Jermaine O’Neal had 22 points and 12 rebounds, Michael Beasley scored 21 and Dwyane Wade added 26 points as the Heat throttled the Knicks, 115-93 in Miami last night. David Lee had 22 points and nine rebounds for the Knicks as Danile Gallinari added 22 off of the bench and Wilson Chandler scored 21 in the loss.
Oklahoma City stand up! OKC with the 102-89 victory over the Sacramento Kings. Jeff Green put in 24 points, KD added 25 and 11 and Russell Westbrook had a 14-point, 13-assist, seven-rebound evening as the Thunder shot 51% from the floor. Kevin Martin scored 27 to lead the Kings, but shot just 5-of-19 from the floor.
Minnesota got the 95-93 win against New Jersey and one of my faves, Mr. Jonny Flynn scored 13 in the fourth quarter to help his team come back from 19-down. Flynn finished with 18 points, but it was Damien Wilkins who saved the TWolves, scoring on a putback at the buzzer. Brook Lopez continues to be pretty awesome with 27 points and 15 rebounds for the Nets. Rough night for one of my other faves, as Courtney Lee shot just 2-of-11 from the floor for five points.
Without Allen Iverson (and probably with him, as well), the Pistons pounded the Grizzlies, 96-74. Rip Hamilton scored 25 points while Ben Gordon added 22 off of the bench. six UConn alums in this game. Kinda nutty. Marc Gasol was one of the few bright spots for the Grizz, scoring 21 points to go with 15 rebounds.
While Chris Paul had 26 points and nine assists (and also five turnovers), the Spurs were smoother, taking the 113-96 victory as they had six players reach double figures, led by Tony Parker’s 17 points and Manu Ginobili’s 16 off of the bench. Emeka Okafor scored 18 points to go with 10 rebounds in his New Orleans debut.
It was Steve Nash who saved the Suns in a 109-107 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. 15 points in the fourth for Nash, none more important than the layup he hit with five seconds remaining to give his squad the victory. Nash finished with 24 points and eight assists, Grant Hill had 19 points and 13 rebounds and Leandro Barbosa added 17 points. The Clippers were led by Marcus Camby’s 23 points and 11 rebounds as Chris Kaman added 22 points and nine boards. Baron Davis added 12 points and 12 assists in the loss.
The Warriors lost a close one to Houston, falling 108-107. Monta Ellis scored 26 points, Stephen Jackson scored 17 and Steph Curry added 14 but it wasn’t enough to counteract Luis Scola’s 21 points and 11 rebounds, Trevor Ariza’s 25 points and an 18-point, 12-assist performance from Aaron Brooks.
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- Checking in on Kevin Martin Trade Watch
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you’ll have to put 50 - 15 - 15 to win at leat a game
LET’S GO ROCKETS!
Yeah.. Good try Knicks! …
welcome back whit eboy
@tadone: true the spurs are boring, but ginobili was pilling off some ridiculous ish yesterday…. the bahind the back move… the shamgod in traffic.. too nasty
@Eboy: LOOOOOOL that story was hiariousss.
and where the hell was sonny weems??
So, you still riding with 70?
That comment from the drive-thru was classic, homie. I didn’t know the Seed worked at Taco Bell. He should hook a brotha up with some free gorditas.
The problem with the Cavs is the same problem they’ve had for the past four years.
They suck donkey balls on offense.
Until they get respectable on offense, not great, but respectable, they are going to have problems. I actually think it’s not all on Mike Brown. I think Lebron likes running the 1-4 too damn much.
Shaq: “Shut up, dumbass.”
Mike Brown: “What’d you say?”
LeBron: “He said shut up.”
Mike Brown: “Uhhh yes sir. Very good, sir.”
Shaq: “Listen up, n00bs. I got 17 years under my huge belt, so do this: Mo - go to the lost and found and look for your jump shot. Try to find your swag, too. Don’t come back until you do.
King - Drive and kick straight to me. I got you. Try playin off the ball and have some fun at the 4.
AP - stop moving around. Spot the f*** up.
Z - when you see me on the floor, don’t substitute in. I don’t care what the dumbass says.
Delonte - man up. I got your back.
Hickson - stay in the game. I don’t care what the dumbass says.
Gibson - For every turnover you get Imma shave something else into your body Got it? Ring for the King on 3.”
The atmosphere was amazing, and the team was a different superlative!
Cuse let’s go!!!!!!!!!!
Doesn’t Dejuan blair remind anybody of Malik rose?
Brown sucks on offense, but he handles the defense. He’s the one behind their killer defense, can’t slight him on that.
Z
I’ve seen Bron back it out a reset that high screen way too many times for me to think it’s something he doesn’t like. I don’t know what Brown is calling, but I’m getting the feeling that Bron feels more comfortable attacking from the top with the ball in his hands, rather than doing damage from the wing.
It’s not like he’s playing with Darius Miles, Eric Williams, Ricky Davis and Jeff McInnis. Cleveland has some solid offensive talent and ball handlers, and they have two outstanding passing big men.
I think everybody is wondering about that, which is why I’m inclined to believe that it can’t be just Mike Brown. I mean, the team actually ran more stuff with Bron on the wing early last year and they were KILLING! Then, it sorta disappeared. I gotta wonder about that. Was it Brown or Lebron who pulled the plug?
You guys think it’s the absence of Kuester that’s making the difference? Or maybe with Shaq on the team now Mike Brown just can’t figure it out?
Maybe Lebron pulled the plug? Wow. I don’t know.
I can’t defend Mike Brown, but I think people are really refusing to consider the fact that Mike Brown can do NOTHING that Lebron doesn’t approve of. If Lebron wanted to attack from the post or mid-post, or come of screens, or whatever, that’s what Lebron would be doing.
Mike Brown has never had the juice of somebody like Phil Jackson who can dictate to players what they have to do. He’s basically along for the ride on offense and dicatating on defense. Hell, it wasn’t that long ago that the Cavs main problem on defense was that Lebron wasn’t buying in, and Brown rarely called him out for that.
Personally, I think that while Lebron might be frustrated with having to attack 1 on 5, he’s also comfortable running the 1-4. I’m not convinced he really wants to change, or that he trust Brown to be the one to institute the change. But, that’s all speculation.
How you gonna bring up that shot and not note that the refs let Nash absolutely mug Eric Gordon on that initial in bounds play. They called a foul the second time, but Gordon should have been shooting two earlier.
Although, Nash did get fouled on that last second shot, so it’s crazy that he made it.
The fast break thing, isn’t that kind of on Lebron?
I’m telling, y’all the more I read what y’all write, the more I’m convinced that Bron is part of the problem here.
Z
Bryan has a point. Lebron has more say so than your average superstar, and I think to a certain extend he coaches the team, just like every other superstar in the league. Some do it more than others, but everybody does it.
Basically, if your star wants things a certain way, you have to have more juice than him to go against him. So he doens’t have to defy you outright, he just has to let it be known that he wants things a certain way.
I don’t know if this is what’s happening with lebron. But, I find it hard to believe that a student of the game like Mike Brown, and he is a student of the game, can’t figure out simple offensive sets to get his best player the ball in better scoring position. Most of the time, it’s not that simple.
Reminds me of George Karl and Iverson. Karl ran certain stuff because he felt like that’s how he had to coach Iverson.
Have Lebron run the break while Z/Shaq/Vajinow rebound? NONE OF THEM CAN THROW A LOB PASS! Shaq and Z are excellent passers in the post but they cannot throw lobs. Shaq tried this during Phoenix, claiming he was going to “Kareem it up” and it was an absolute failure and he was commanded to stop it almost immediately. He once threw a perfect lob pass on Phoenix to KOBE F’ING BRYANT. Kobe actually was shocked, and paused for a second before running the other way to dunk it.
Lebron HAS to rebound, he HAS to pass the ball… and yeah, I agree with some criticism, dude should be working off the ball more, we saw him do it in the Olympics, I don’t know why he’s just waiting on that left-side wing… but man, the other s**t that’s being said over here is downright crazy. Lebron is the best rebounder there right now, period! Lebron is the best passer there right now, period! It doesn’t matter if Lebron runs down the court in a full sprint, if no one can grab the ball and no one can pass it, Lebron’s not going to get it!
Just to say, Delonte was their best passer, he’s not there. Mo works great on teams with spread out defense but close it in and he’s worthless. I also think Z rebounds better than Shaq in the low post, but Z is spread out when Shaq is in there, and Shaq is being outrebounded by some young cats… so Lebron needs to do both.
Man, I really think some people MUST not watch the Cavaliers. That is all really insane.
“4- I don’t find it hard to believe at all that Mike Brown doesn’t know how to utilize his players to the best of their capabilities. That’s why Kuester was holding the pad in the playoffs last year”
Now Kuester sucked pretty badly in crunch time, but he had Lebron running off screens and posting and doing SOMETHING. Lebron did all of this with not a peep. So why NOW is Lebron controlling the offense? This makes no sense to me.
Lebron should be reprimanded for lack of off-the-ball movement in the crunch, for not setting picks for other players like any other guy on his team… but all this other talk is junk!
You know how Magic Johnson had to play all five positions in the finals to win his first title? The Cavs basically need LeBron to do the same thing from Small Forward position, in order for them to have even a chance at a second round appearance. The Cavaliers do not have many other players who can help him out and I think you are really overrating the help he has around him.
But seriously, the Cavs offense has to be the most predictable offense to play against among contenders, even with Shaq in the starting line-up.
…He averages a good SIX defensive boards per game. Now, I’m fine with Lebron crashing the defensive boards and starting the break, but would you rather have Bron starting the break - or ending it? Won’t the Cavs be a better offensive team, even without the addition of these basic halfcourt sets (which, FIVE years in, continue to elude Mike Brown), if they utilized Lebron as the literally unstoppable fast break finisher that he is a BIT more?…
To me, you’re saying you want Lebron to work on rebounds less and head more on the fast break to finish things off. I’m saying, if Lebron did this, and averaged let’s say three or four rebounds instead of seven or eight, people would be saying ‘oh man, Lebron really should rebound more, with such athleticism he should be averaging WAY more!’
You’re right, he’s NOT omnipotent, but you’re hating on ridiculous things. If no one on the team can pass (and no one on the team outside of Mo, who never rebounds, can) then Lebron can’t run on the break. It’s that simple.
This is why the team is missing Delonte, and sadly, Sasha… cause both dudes could run the break.
And I’m still down on you for saying that the Cavs had great passing bigmen, Joel. What Z and Shaq can do in the post does NOT work in the open court.
You don’t seem to get this concept. On the Lakers, people can pass the ball: Brown, Farmar, Odom, and Fisher are all better passers than ANYONE outside of maybe Delonte on the Cavaliers. Yes, they are all better than Mo Williams. Williams overdribbles and has trouble doing anything in the half-court. You’re overrating the cavaliers offensive abilities.
(I’m talking on offense here only, the Cavaliers are one of the best defensive teams in the NBA)
Again, I’m not “hating” on Lebron. I’m saying that he can only do so much. Let’s ignore for a fact that Lebron is Lebron, and look at the Cavs’ roster as a whole and their collective defensive rebounding prowess. Now think about this: should a team - one of the best defensive teams in the NBA - with Shaq, Big Z, Varejao and Jamario Moon ever NEED its star offensive small forward to routinely pull down double-digit rebounds?
As I’ve mentioned before, the people who could get it to Lebron, West and Sasha, are out. None of the bigs can throw outlet passes that would hit Lebron. Moon and Parker are clearly not getting the Cavalier offense yet.
Also, if Shaq and Big Z and Varejao are such great rebounders, maybe they should be outrebounding Lebron.
The concern is their predictable half-court offense right now.
The rebound argument is wack. People whine that Melo doesn’t rebound enough, and they whine that Lebron rebounds too much… they are the same position and get the same boards. Just crazy!
ps. the raps finally bit hard
This is mostly a coach problem, but there are some parts teammates who have absolutely no idea what to do, failed dominate ball handlers that can’t really create in the offense, and Lebron, who REALLY isn’t working off the ball the way we saw him work in the Olympics.
The suggestion of “letting someone else do it” seems unreasonable to me. That’s like saying the Philidelphia 76ers lost to the Lakers in 2001 because they didn’t run their offense through Eric Snow and Motumbo enough.
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