The Cavaliers got the win. That's all that matters. Watching the game, however, a few things kept punching me right in the face. Instead of re-creating the wheel, though, I'll let Brian Windhorst say it better than I ever could --
It was a fun game to watch but this is not how the Cavs should be playing. Really, it is more of a testament to how far the Suns have fallen. Had they tried this act against PHX two years ago, the Suns would've won by 35 points. It is the here and now and the Cavs needed the win so it worked. But boy, I wouldn't get too excited about it.
Phoenix is a shell of it's former self and both Amare Stoudemire and Shaq look like they have packed it in, simply waiting to find out where they will be playing a week from now at the NBA Trade Deadline. Even with Steve Nash missing the contest, the Suns play little defense and their offensive sets are a hodge-podge of blacktop ball and rec league, Sunday Afternoon basketball. It really looks like they got 5 guys together and decided to run for a bit. Sad, sad testament to what was once a really fun team to watch.
As for the Cavaliers, it wass nice to see Mo Williams go off again, scoring a career-high 44 points. A couple weeks ago, Williams scored 43, but it wasn;t in the flow of the offense and many of the shots were early in the shot clock. Mike Brown wasn't pleased. Last night, Mo was getting good looks, within the flwo, and burying them.
Another Windhorst observation was something I had written down --
The Cavs' big men look pretty tired, especially Zydrunas Ilgauskas. I will certainly be checking around the league after the All-Star break to get updates, but again for now it sounds like the Cavs feel like they'll be standing pat. Perhaps the week off will help out, but they still look like they are a big short. Even if a guy would only play a few minutes some nights. Perhaps they are banking on being able to sign a player on a buyout. I know there are some concerns about how Andy Varejao and Ben Wallace would deal with increased competition for minutes and that is part of the equation
Again, I agree. While Wallace played with more spark than in the past 3 or 4 games, I just don't know if he has enough in the tank to help this team in the playoffs, especially against the Lakers/Magic/Celtics. Same with Anderson Varejao, who was worn down when Big Z was hurt and has yet to get his legs back either. I think the Cavaliers need to rethink a few things as we approach the deadline, but I'll get into that more during the Break.
All in all, a good win to take us to All-Star Weekend. At 40-11, the Cavaliers have their best record ever heading into the break and I hope they use the time to recharge their batteries. LeBron James said it best after the game --
"The season hasn't really stated for us. It has for some other teams, but not for us. We have alot of work left to do."
GO CAVS!