Cavs Lose, Lakers Lose, Cavs Win
by John Bena (aka CavsBlogger) on Apr 4, 2010 5:45 PM CDT
in Cleveland Cavaliers in the News
Email
PrintWhile vacationing here in Florida I was unable to see much of the Cavaliers/Celtics game. Looking at the highlights, however, it looked like a classic - especially in the 4th Quarter. LeBron going 0-9 from 3 is a bit troubling, as is the Cavaliers continued struggles from the free throw line.
More on those tidbits another time. Despite the Cavs loss, the Lakers fell to the Spurs in San Antonio 100-81 clinching Home Court advantage throughout the playoffs for the Wine and Gold. Sure, that is a nice accomplishment, but it didn't help the Cavaliers last season.
The Cavaliers are a year older, a year wiser, and filled with playoffs experience. With 13 days until the playoffs begin, the Cavaliers can now do whatever it takes to get their minds - and most importantly their bodies - ready for the long run - a run to a Championship!
58 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
FT shooting was horrendous
Had they made half of their misses(just 7), they most likely would’ve won this game. So it looks like FT misses has caught up with them. They better get this worked out before the playoffs or it will cost them more games.
im a celtics fan
y wont you just admit it we were the better team overall and diserved the win.I have when use dominated us in the last 3 games but tonight we had a point to proved it against the best team in the league,and the celtics will be ready to bring banner 18 home.Weird things can happen come play-off time.Use should know from last year
the cavs had NO point to prove and you did and you ALMOST blew it. I was expecting the cavs to lose anyways. they had nothing to play for, and were on the road against the celtics. the fact that you almost collapsed in the 4th and the fact that we almost won should be more troubling to you than us losing was to us.
weird things can happen during playoff time, like the Celtics finally being a good team? doubt that…
stop trolling on here and shut up.
I teach good life choices. That’s why I almost didn’t graduate High School.
really?
Try convincing me that the Cavs didn’t want this game. If this were so, LeQueen could win an oscar with his drama queen diva antics….he wanted a statement win BADLY.
The Cavs are hollow paper dragons. They have proven nothing except the ability to win a lot of regular season games. Honestly, the Magic are a larger concern to anybody in the East than the Cavs are.
Before you start saying “the Cavs didn’t care about this”, wait until you start hanging championship banners rather than division banners. The Lakers and Celtics don’t even have room in their arenas for trinket trophy clothe like that. Until that time comes, fans of the Lakers, Celtics, Spurs and Magic won’t be fooled by the bravado. The regular season record is a source of pride in the face of (another) potential playoff flop of epic proportions.
Seriously, last year was one of the biggest chokes in modern sports. What has changed since then?
Ashtray Bouquet
sounds like you need to some attention. here ya go, the cavs cared, the celtics played better for the first 3 quarters and hit the shots to win. good job.
yes
thank you
Seriously, I’ve heard the Lakers and Celtics say this all year…the whole “we don’t care about this game against (insert opponent) because we already beat them/they’re in a different conference/we clinched some regular season milestone”
It just sounds too familiar.
Ashtray Bouquet
this team didn’t put forth the effort it does when a game ACTUALLY matters. the fact is, the team half assed it on D and they still almost beat your Celtics ON THE ROAD.
you know what, I could just dissect how much of an ignoramus troll you are, but its late, and I am really tired of trolls with absolutely no minds on here. go fuck yourself and have a nice day.
I teach good life choices. That’s why I almost didn’t graduate High School.
What changed since last year?
What changed since the Cavs lost last year because they didn’t have a low-post presence?
They went and got the most dominant low-post presence of the modern era.
Just go ahead and cling to the Celtics’ titles of the past, cause its gonna be a long time before they’re getting on again….
"I’m tired of hearing about money, money, money, money, money. I just want to play the game, drink Pepsi, wear Reebok." ~Shaq
by Max_in_Missouri on Apr 6, 2010 11:41 AM CDT up reply actions
Lebron James wants to win his 1st ring and the Lakers want there 16th championship, honestly the celtics are out of the box.
by 15xtimeNBAchamps on Apr 4, 2010 8:23 PM CDT up reply actions
You are even going to presume to equate THIS team with last years team?
Face it…the Cavs are better, bigger, faster, stronger, hungrier.
You’re done.
The Celtics are old and tired. You know it, THEY know it, CelticsBlog knows it. The sooner YOU can accept it the sooner YOU can begin preparing for next year. We have bigger fish to fry.
by johnnyphoenix on Apr 5, 2010 5:24 PM CDT up reply actions
You're joking right?
What makes this cavs team any different from last year? Yeah, they’ve got Shaq. That means they’re bigger, and SLOWER….and still just as unclutch in the playoffs.
The Celtics…old and tired? Remind me who your INJURED 37 year old center is again. Besides him, the Cavs are the very definition of young and dumb. Their one fatal flaw is one that LA took care of long ago, and one that’ll doom them against them, Boston or Orlando…maybe even Atlanta…they cannot win in the playoffs against GREAT defense. Need I remind you which team has the #1 overall defense in the league?
The Cavs’ only chance of beating Boston is having one of the Big 3 injured. That’s sad.
I can’t blame the Cavs for being so hungry though…choking does that to you.
Ashtray Bouquet
I'm sorry, but you must be joking.
I’m a Magic fan, so I’m not defending the Cavs or anything like that. I just can’t let an ignoramous like you continue to post garbage. I’m not going to comment on anything you said about the Cavs because their fans can defend their own team and I don’t care. But, you coming on another teams blogs is something fans of the 07/08 Celtics did. Not fans of the 09/10 Celtics.
Your squad is not the same. They’re old and slow. They lost to the Nets. THE NETS! The 11 wins team! Then, lost to the Spurs. And if any team could beat your team in a battle of the geriatrics, it would be the Spurs. Sad, so sad. Now, let’s get to your points. Defense: Congratulations, your team has defense. So does every single other elite team in the league. EXCEPT the other elite teams also have this other little thing called offense. Next: “The Cavs only chance of beating Boston is having one of the Big 3 injured. That’s sad.” You know what’s really sad, is the fact that you’re still referring to those 3 as the “Big 3”. And let’s not even get into the injuries. You’re lucky if one of your “Big 3” doesn’t break his hip before the 2nd round.
All in all, everyone knows that the Celtics are a 2nd round exit waiting to happen. And if they get a tough opponent in the 1st round, they’ll be out. They are just not the same team, and you sir need to stop living in the past. The chance of the Celtics making it to the ECF, let alone the Finals is about 2%. So hey, I guess you can still cling to that hope and continue making a fool of yourself, or you could just calm down and stop being a little troll.
the cavs are a BETTER defensive team than the Celtics. the Magic are good too. Both the magic and the Cavs are significantly better on D this year than boston. boston’s D isn’t the same anymore. their offense at times is painful to watch (but not for me since I don’t care about them)
I teach good life choices. That’s why I almost didn’t graduate High School.
You’re lucky if one of your "Big 3" doesn’t break his hip before the 2nd round.
Ah..I see..I was wondering what those little thingys the ‘big 3’ were wearing around their necks were….
Life Alert Emergency Response System. I’m betting Garnett used it after he got rejected and planted on his boney ass by Manu…
by johnnyphoenix on Apr 7, 2010 3:50 PM CDT up reply actions
wow…the cavs are young and dumb? is Lebron an ignoramus on the court? is Jamison inexperienced? oh yeah, mo williams is a rookie too right?
The celtics ARE old and tired. the average age of players on your team is about 31. the team only has 2 (or maybe 3 if you include tony allen) key players (out of their 7-8 man rotation) that are UNDER 30. the celtics have the oldest team in the league and are SLOW. The cavs got more athletic by getting jamison. the celtics got older by adding Sheed and Michael Finley.
What team has the best defense? We can look at this several ways. Lets look at this by simple opponent points per game.
the Cavs rank 5th and the Celtics rank 6th. the league leader is charlotte.
We can look at this by Opposing FG%.
The Cavs Rank 3rd while boston ranks 9th. Miami who is first is only .001% better on D in this category than the Cavs.
We can look at out rebounding teams. The Cavs are 2nd in the league while boston is 25. rebounding can be key to defense and boston doesn’t do it well.
The cavs also have the largest margin of victory, largest margin of victory when adjusted to opponent, and they are one of the best shooting teams in the league, inside and outside the 3 point line…
How is boston better? or even the best in the league? point me out SOMETHING.
I teach good life choices. That’s why I almost didn’t graduate High School.
What makes this cavs team any different from last year?
Um..Shaq, Anthony Parker, Jamario Moon, Leon Powe, and some guy named Antawn Jamison (you might have heard of him, he’s pretty decent), the emergence of JJ hickson and Jawad Williams as players who must be accounted for, and Varajao’s dramatic improvement on the offensive side of the ball.
you telling me thats similar to Sczerbiak, Ben Wallace, Pavlovic, and joe smith?
by johnnyphoenix on Apr 7, 2010 3:43 PM CDT up reply actions
The game itself i don’t care, we are well and truly into meaningless games territory. But there are things within the game we can use to improve ourselves.
0-9 from 3, while that’s disappointing it’s not what makes me mad. Because even the best 3 point shooters will have bad nights every now and then. What makes me mad is FT shooting. If we lose even a single playoff game because of FT’s i think i’ll punch a hole through something. There is no excuse for 65% for 40 ft’s! I really we hope we practice them for when it counts. We want to be a champion, maybe if we hit FT’s like a champion, then we’ll win it all.
And the D was terrible, but hopefully that’s just the fact the game didn’t count for anything and our D will be back to it’s best when the playoffs start.
Agree..they need to really improve the FT shooting
a bad game here and there with the D is ok considering it was a meaningless game. Same of 3pt shooting, but why does Lebron need to shoot so many 3s. He needs to penetrate more and post up more. NOBODY…I MEAN NOBODY..CAN STOP HIM IF HE DECIDES TO DO THIS…he is not a good 3pt shooter, so he needs to tone it down. Hopefully, he can start posting up more and drive to the hoop during the playoffs. If the Cavs can hit 70% of their FTs every game in the playoffs, i would be satisfied. I don’t think i’m asking too much there.
by inquisitiveman on Apr 4, 2010 7:18 PM CDT up reply actions
Lebron's 3-pt shooting
Seeing as how the Celtics failed to stop Lebron inside, was there any reason for him to take 9 3’s? I think Lebron’s good enough to make/take 3 pointers, but there’s no reason for him to take nine. None. He’s too athletic to waste 9 shots on 3 pointers. Take the 3 to keep the defense honest, but why pull up for a 3 pointer in transition while being down only 2 ? Drive into the lane, force the defense to try to stop you inside/foul you, and go for the tie.
I think that Lebron’s decision-making needs to improve in order to get the Cavs to win a championship. As a superstar, he needs to know what his strengths are, and only turn to his 3 pt shot/jump shot when he’s not getting it done in the paint.
Anyway, it’s great that the Cavs have home court, no matter how they got it, and it should help, even just a little.
Yeah he made a bad decision on that play. But i don’t think it indicates he’s a bad overall decision maker. Look at the bucks game, he was great in the clutch there. For the season he’s been great in the 4th quarter and i have no problem with him running the show in crunch time.
As for the 3’s, yeah 9 is too much. If he didn’t take half of those and went inside we’d win. The only explanation i can think of is he wanted to protect his body by going inside as little as possible. I’d take 0-9 and a loss when we’re assured of the best record in the league rather than have the risk of him getting injured.
by CavsLebronFan on Apr 4, 2010 8:40 PM CDT up reply actions
Laker Fan
Why the hell do the Lakers and Cavs ALWAYS lose on the same time! I think Stern is up to something
by 15xtimeNBAchamps on Apr 4, 2010 8:21 PM CDT reply actions
ah lebron, i dont know what to think of your late game decisions.
you apparently called the best final play ive ever seen the cavs run in that MIL game; you single-handedly willed your team into this game tonight by driving relentlessly to the hoop (it looked so much like that Detroit game in ’07, Boston had no idea what to do); and then you cant make FTs and pull up for a seriously dumb 3 for a final shot. i dont know if you just wanted to get out of there, but i do know one thing: Boston was going to loose that game in OT if it got there, and it could have if you went to the hoop instead of missing your millionth 3 of the game.
there is something awesome about Pargo, though.
Seriously. It’s kind of awe inspiring: he WILL shoot. He has no conscience. No remorse. He will shoot – the situation, the opponent, the country. He could be in zero gravity floating in orbit. The dude would be jacking up shots. And missing.
-MPG
I’m going to play devil’s advocate. Not that I agree with the shot.
On the road conventional wisdom tells you to go for the win on the road. He makes that 3 people praise him for his ruthlessness (and ballsiness). Yes it was a remarkable game and the Cavs had momentum, but overtime can swing that in the home team’s advantage.
I think we can all agree that LeBron has amazing court vision. JJ was camped out under the hoop with inside position on the Celtics defender. So, in LeBron’s mind he could have thought. I take the 3 and make it “game over”. If I miss JJ is there to clean up and tie the game. The rewards may have outweighed the risks in that situation.Law of averages says one of those 3s should have fallen.
If people can dismiss Belicheck’s 4th down flub against the Colts we can get past this. The missed FTs are indefensible though.
I agree. it is the FTs that matter and that is indefensible.
I agree, if he took the 2 and made it, someone would have said ‘well you go for the win on the road’. Just like back when he would pass the ball in that situation. if the guy made an open shot, he would get praised for his decision making, if the guy missed, they would say that he wasn’t aggressive enough.
I teach good life choices. That’s why I almost didn’t graduate High School.
Yay! Next stepping stone reached...
although it wasn’t in the fashion we all hoped for (i.e. the Lakers losing tonight as well). Playoffs…I’m getting butterflies already.
here bross09
i dont think your in a position to say whos bad and whos not.You do know that we have 17 banners hanging in the TD Garden.Youse still have to prove that youse can win one.We all thought the Cavs were doing that last year and look what happen.Lebron got into a wee huff and didnt talk to anyone haha.Pathetic.You have no right to start yappin away until use win something.
yeah. banners in your arena REALLY proves how good of a team you are RIGHT NOW…
The Oakland raiders stink but they have won some super bowls.
You know whats pathetic, stupid trolls like you that are bandwagon fans and think your team is all that b/c they won championships before you were born.
I teach good life choices. That’s why I almost didn’t graduate High School.
The past is the past..let’s look at this year…that’s really all you care about, and WE care about, and everyone else in the league cares about…amirite?
by johnnyphoenix on Apr 5, 2010 5:26 PM CDT up reply actions
You can go on and on about you’re ‘storied’ history…but really….ALL that history is going to mean jack-SHIT come playoff time. Who’s horse you going to hitch your wagon to this year? The Celtics? Good luck with that…
by johnnyphoenix on Apr 5, 2010 5:28 PM CDT up reply actions
can't have it both ways
my sentiments exactly. in the playoffs a few years ago against detroit, people criticized lebron for when he passed to a wide open donyell marshall who missed the potential game winning shot at the buzzer. but then in a later game, he drove the lane in the final seconds and was fouled at least 6 or 7 times by rip hamilton but no call was made and since he missed the shot himself this time, they again criticized him. damned if you do, damned if you don’t. some people are just never satisfied. i swear there are some people in this world that you could go buy them a brand new car and give it to them completely free and they will still bitch about you not filling the gas tank up for them.
Cavs proved all they needed to prove
22 points down. Best 6th man of the year injured. Shaq not playing. Team misses tons of FTs. Lebron misses 8 straight 3 pointers. And we are 2.7 seconds from winning the game. I am glad Lebron tried to win the game. We did not need the extra overtime minutes or the win for this team. We proved all that was necessary. The Celtics are not our play-off problem.
Hopefully we will prove the same thing against Orlando soon.
"Is it normal to wake up in the morning in a sweat because you can't wait to beat another human's guts out?"
Joe Kapp
by lifelongvike on Apr 5, 2010 12:33 PM CDT reply actions 1 recs
No excuse
I am a new follower of the blog and while I love and appreciate the fact that someone is taking the time to write about the best team in the NBA, I have a few comments to make about your post yesterday. First of all- the game took place in BOSTON, contrary to what your preview said. Secondly, while being on vacation means you skip work, it doesn’t mean that you have an excuse to miss this game. It was nationally televised, and was a premiere match-up at the end of the season. You have NO excuse to not have watched the game, especially since you are the creator of this blog.
so you are criticizing a guy for not taking time out of his vacation to watch one game? you know this is sort of a job for many of the guys that run these sites.
No reason to criticize because a guy didn’t get to watch a game b/c he was on vacation.
I teach good life choices. That’s why I almost didn’t graduate High School.
Laker fan
Im no one to be talking but alot (not all cavs fans) yap about winning when they havn’t won anything big in the postseason. Please dont send hate comments because I truly respect what the Cavs have been doing this season.
by 15xtimeNBAchamps on Apr 5, 2010 10:45 PM CDT reply actions
Celtics fan
I agree with the Laker fan above.
(First thing we’ve probably ever agreed on)
Ashtray Bouquet
Laker fan
haha I guess Celtic fan. But you have to respect what the Cavaliers are doing this year, they are the best team this season (record wise) but they have yet to prove it in the postseason. I want to advise Cavs fans…the post season is a new state of mind, no team cares about what one has done in the regular season.
by 15xtimeNBAchamps on Apr 5, 2010 11:00 PM CDT up reply actions
I don’t think it is as much yapping about winning as it is people from other sites trolling and us defending the great season. They haven’t won anything in the postseason, but lets just wait till june…
The cavs are the best team in the NBA right now, but do i consider them a lock for the championship? No one here does. We are cleveland fans. we will be heartbroken somewhere. just don’t think that we are some arrogant fanbase that is yapping their mouth and not having won anything…that would be all the magic fans that came out of the woodwork when they started to be good.
I teach good life choices. That’s why I almost didn’t graduate High School.
All this heated talk ...
Must mean the playoffs are around the corner!
"This is not a game for boys. This is a game for men." - Phil Jackson
yeah, everyone's using long subject lines...
instead of using some nice message space
Atlanta will win a championship....someday
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
NBA Playoffs Content Module
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recent FanPosts
Socialize With FearTheSword
In Association With
Ball Don't Lie - NBA - Yahoo! Sport
- Jrue Holiday attacked, attacked, attacked, and the Sixers won Game 6 (VIDEO)
- Could the ‘Shaquille O’Neal-as-Orlando GM’ story have come from … Shaq?
- Behind the Box Score, where the Philadelphia 76ers refuse to go quietly. If at all
- Allen Iverson presented the game ball for Sixers’ Game 6, talked about his future (VIDEO)
- Can the Lakers improve with Kobe Bryant making $30 million?
