Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Curl Up in a Ball

It looks like it's that time of the year when as a Cleveland fan, I'm forced to curl up in a ball and cry myself to sleep.

I wasn't going to blog anything tonight, not after the worst bout of self-inflicted pain on a basketball court that I've seen since... the Dallas Mavericks blowing a double digit lead in Game 3 against the Miami Heat and then blowing an entire series.

Thoughts going into Game 6:

1) Throughout the season, the Cavs had one of the best offenses. No joke. Tons of 3-point shooters (Parker, Mo, Moon, Gibson). Great ball movement. And... the play that no one can stop, setting a pick for LeBron when he is OFF-THE-BALL allowing LeBron to run free to the hoop. Once the Cavs hit panic mode though (see last year's Orlando series), the Cavs stop running plays, as LeBron decides to do literally everything on his own. I love LeBron, but I can think of no rational reason why the coaching staff calls plays all season (during 2008-2009 and 2009-2010) but does not call plays during extended periods of play (vs. Orlando in 2009 and now Boston in 2010). So... I blame LeBron. He can do everything but coach. He needs to let them call plays... we need to see them getting LeBron free off the ball.
2) Throughout the season, the Cavs still outrebounded opponents. This is the key to their success. Please box out. Please. Don't let balls just bounce to Rondo.
3) I pray Games 4 and 5 are a "Hello! McFly!" moment. The Cavs have been the best team in the regular season the last 2 years. This year's team would have absolutely demolished last year's team (Shaq/Parker/Moon is a HUGE upgrade over Ben Wallace/Wally/Sasha). In the end... it's up to Coach Mike Brown to pick up the pieces and remind this team that they are the favorites.

2 comments:

Jeff Lazarus said...

Shock and chagrined, mortified and stupified.... I can't believe what I've witnessed the last two games. A team that comes out of the gate and seems to be firing on all cylinders for the first 4 or 5 minutes, then just seems to metaphrically put their feet up and phone it in for the last 3 and a half quarters.
The Cavs did NOTHING to establish an inside game whatsoever. Mo's defense and offense were, once again garbage. They had no flow, no hustle, no rebounding. The celtics dominated the offensive boards, which is the key to success.
Pure Sangry!

Gutsy Goldberg said...

I just want Varejao to play like 35 minutes. Cut down on Jamison's minutes (since he gets destroyed by KG). Eesh. This series is a nightmare... on my street!