CAVALIERS NOTES

• The statline won't really indicate it, but Mo Williams finally showed the Cavaliers, and the League, wahat he can do, hitting big shot after big shot in an early 4th quarter run that put the game away.  More importantly, perhaps, was the fact that Williams carries to offense in the 4th quarter while LeBron was getting his typical rest after the 3rd quarter.  Most times, that rest only last a couple minutes before Mike Brown is forced to get LeBron back in the game.  Last night, Brown was able to keep James on the bench an extended period of time while Williams and Co. put the game on ice.
• Speaking of James, it was his energy level, especially at the end of the 3rd quarter, that was the difference.  After a subpar performance in New Orleans on Saturday, James came out looking to attack the basket and get to the line.  The Cavs fed off the energy and raced to a 16 point advantage that sat at 9 at halftime.  The Cavs extended the lead at the beginning of the 3rd quarter before the Mavericks made the run every team makes against Cleveland in the 3rd quarter.  All of a sudden the game was tied at 63, and the Cavs had been outscored 21-12 in the period.  3:36 remained.  The Mavericks had gotten the Cavs to play their style and it was starting to show.  The next 3 minutes decided the outcome, and it was LeBron that led the way.  LeBron scored 7 straight, including 3 from the free throw line and the Cavs finished the quarter on a 9-3 run.
• The best move Danny Ferry made all summer was keeping Delonte West in a Cavaliers uniform.  West is doing a little bit of everything for the Cavaliers, and is playing the best ball of his career.  I have a feeling the $3.5 million the Cavs are paying him this year is going to look like cump change compared to the production the team is going to get each and every night -- 14 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals -- solid performance from the starting two guard.  Think about it.  What West is providing the Cavaliers is all the Cavs wanted from Larry Hughes, and they paid him ALOT more money and got none of it.
• Ben Wallace is back.  he has been a force defensively this year and last night was no exception.  Matched up with Dirk Nowitzki, Wallace grabbed 13 boards while holding Nowitzki to 8 points on 3/11 shooting.  Even more impressive when considering Nowitzki likes to play away form the basket.  Ben isn't playing the huge minutes he once did, but 13 boards(8 offensive) in just 22 minutes is efficient if you ask me.
• Cavaliers once again did a good job protecting the 3-point line.  The Mavericks were held to 20%(3-15)  shooting from deep, while the Cavaliers shot 35.7%(5/14).
• Every game the Cavaliers can play, and win, with LeBron playing less than 35 minutes is like buying time later in the season.  LeBron has played alot of basketball the past 3 years, and the Cavs need to get himas much rest as they can, especially early in the season when the team endures alot of road trips.

NEXT UP -- Home game Vs. Chicago (11/5)

MAVERICKS NOTES

Jason Kidd can still get up and down the floor, and while his shot isn't what it once was he can still hit it if you leave him open. 

The Mavericks fell to 0-2 at home and after watching both their losses I have to start wondering about their conditioning.  In both contests they were in the game in the 4th quarter only to see a team run away in the final 9 minutes.  Avery Johnson had his team ready to play, especially on the defensive end, but now under Rick Carliske the Mavs seem to be moving towards running the floor like they did with Steve Nash.  Kidd isn't Nash, however, and most of the parts of this team are 3 or 4 years older.

The Mavericks simply had no answer for the passion and energy the Cavaliers showed during the final 15 minutes of the game, being outscored 37-18.