Cavs 08-09 Season - Central Div Champs (official thread)

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

Cavaliers' West returns after handling personal matter

Thursday, October 16, 2008 6:26 AM
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Delonte West returned to practice yesterday after missing nearly two weeks to address a personal matter. West left the Cavaliers on Oct. 4 and missed three preseason games. The Cavaliers did not disclose the reason for his absence.

 

[osugrad21]

ABJ

Cavaliers' shooting shaky West rusty after long absence, but Brown says he played well
By George M. Thomas
Beacon Journal sports writer

Published on Friday, Oct 17, 2008
CLEVELAND: After playing two consecutive squeakers in the preseason, the Cavaliers didn't have to worry about the possibility of overtime or causing fans' hearts to race.
They lost to the San Antonio Spurs 91-70.
Coach Mike Brown continued his experimentation at the shooting guard spot by starting Daniel Gibson and the game saw the return of backup point guard Delonte West after an extended absence from training camp. West left camp Oct. 3 and didn't return until Wednesday.
He showed the rust from not being with the team for a large portion of training camp. Brown played him for 28 minutes and he hit on just 2-of-12 shots finishing the game with seven points. But he did involve his teammates in the game adding five assists.
''I wanted to get him out on the floor just to let him sweat and getting him used to being in a game,'' Brown said.
Overall Brown said he thought West performed well. Forward LeBron James (6 points, 2 rebounds and 5 assists) agreed.
''He rebounded. He shared the basketball. He had some nice drives. He got into the teeth of the defense and made some great plays for his teammates,'' he said. ''He didn't shoot the ball particularly well, but nobody really did. It's not something you worry about. He looked very comfortable and very quick.''
Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

CPD

LeBron has keys, but needs his teammates to unlock a title

by [email protected] Friday October 17, 2008, 1:05 AM



LeBron James stood at halfcourt, arms raised above his head, waving the key to the city of Cleveland.
The Quicken Loans Arena crowd gave him a standing ovation as thousands of red and white balloons drifted down from the ceiling at halftime of the Cavaliers' 91-70 preseason loss to San Antonio on Thursday night.
At midcourt, the true home court for the Northeast Ohio native, was his family -- mother Gloria James, his two young children, LeBron Jr. and Bryce, and longtime girlfriend Savannah Brinson. The 6-9 James leaned down oh-so-low to give high-5s to his two sons.
For those keeping score at home, this was his second key to a city in about two weeks -- James having received one from Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic when the Cavaliers scrimmaged at the University of Akron. All this because James came home from China with an Olympic gold medal.
The NBA's leading scorer didn't play the second half against the Spurs. In his 17 minutes, he took only three shots, scored six points but impressed with his five assists. One was a terrific no-look, behind-the-back bounce pass from the low post to Anderson Varejao under the basket for a layup.
Another memorable play was when Delonte West threw a 50-foot pass to James, who tipped it out of the air to a sprinting J.J. Hickson -- the Cavs' rookie catching the ball in stride and delivering a rim-rattling slam dunk.

Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

Canton

Progress, not wins, priority for Cavs
Friday, October 17, 2008
BY MIKE POPOVICH
[email protected]

CLEVELAND No one measures a team by the number of wins and losses in the preseason. If everyone did, the Cavaliers would be in panic mode now.

Halfway through the NBA games that don't count, they're still looking for their first win. Making progress is the ultimate goal.

"The main thing in preseason is getting something out of it, trying not to take a step backward," LeBron James said after Thursday's 91-70 loss to San Antonio at The Q. "And we haven't done that."

Head Coach Mike Brown again followed the pattern of giving his starters extended minutes early and giving his backups and those on the bubble for roster spots a chance to close out the game.

James played only 17 minutes ? all in the first half ? and scored 6 points. Delonte West, who was making his first preseason appearance, and Daniel Gibson were the only rotation players from last season on the court in the fourth quarter.

The Spurs outscored the Cavs 44-28 in a second half that must have felt like a snoozer for most of the announced crowd of 18,410.

"None of our big guys are really playing in the fourth quarter when it's closing time," James said. "... Once we get to the last couple preseason games and start playing some more minutes, we'll try to get a win."
Cont...

 

[Brutus1]

Hickson has been playing pretty well. His defense is still a problem, but he seems to be catching on to the Mike Brown system. That's great to hear, considering Ben Wallace has a sore back already.

On a related note, I see that Derrick Rose lost the starting spot in Chicago to Larry Hughes. The Heat are also talking about not starting Beasley becasue of his lack of defense.

Brown is going to start playing the starters longer against the Sixers this Saturday.

 

[exhawg]

Hickson has been playing pretty well. His defense is still a problem, but he seems to be catching on to the Mike Brown system. That's great to hear, considering Ben Wallace has a sore back already.

On a related note, I see that Derrick Rose lost the starting spot in Chicago to Larry Hughes. The Heat are also talking about not starting Beasley becasue of his lack of defense.

Brown is going to start playing the starters longer against the Sixers this Saturday.

Hickson and Big Ben need to be attached at the hip. He has the body to be a defensive presence like Ben, but with greater offensive production. Especially with Ben's back already being gimpy they are going to need more out of Hickson this year than they were probably planning on when they drafted him.
If Ben misses some time this year I wouldn't be surprised to see the Cavs go small more often with Lebron and Wally/Pavs at the forwards. A 3 man rotation of Williams, Boobie, and West would work at the guards. It is nice to actually have some depth at PG for the first time in the Lebron era.

 

[Brutus1]

Yes. Very nice. I may have to go up to the Q tomorrow since the starters are going to start playing more minutes.

 

[BuckNutty]

Anyone know the deal with West?

Cavs' West taking medication, undergoing therapy for mood disorder

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

NBA
Cavs' West gets help for mood disorder

Saturday, October 18, 2008 3:21 AM



From wire reports

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Delonte West contemplated quitting the team before leaving training camp to seek help for depression and "a mood disorder" he has been battling his entire life.
West, who recently signed a two-year contract with Cleveland, said he removed himself from the team to "get my thoughts back together." He missed three preseason games during his absence from Oct. 4 to Oct. 15.
"I felt a feeling of anger and I just wanted to throw it all away and quit the team," he said.
The 25-year-old candidly discussed his condition after practice yesterday. West said he had been troubled by his behavior toward a high school referee during a scrimmage at the Cavs' training facility on Oct. 3. West took out his frustrations on the official and said the incident was a warning signal for him to seek treatment for an illness that has troubled him for years.

Continued............

 

[osugrad21]

ABJ

Ejection diminishes Cavs' Mo-mentum Team-building plan requires adjustment after Williams departs
By George M. Thomas
Beacon Journal sports writer

Published on Monday, Oct 20, 2008
CLEVELAND: Saturday night's 100-93 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers was supposed to be the first for Cleveland Cavaliers starters to put it all together on the floor.
That was until point guard Mo Williams found himself in the locker room, ejected for having words with Philadelphia's Andre Miller.
Williams reacted to Miller tossing a ball on him as he was on the floor near midcourt after a play. He said it wasn't the first time the 76ers point guard had tossed a ball at him. It happened once before while Williams played for the Milwaukee Bucks, he said.
''I don't know who else he was throwing it at. I think I was at least a little bit . . . away from him where he could have dropped it,'' he said. ''Obviously, I kind of took it personal; any man would in that situation. We didn't have any verbal disputes; we didn't have any physical disputes.''
Williams sounded genuinely bewildered by what happened.
''The first time it was like that, I kind of kept playing and let it ride and said, 'OK, I'm not going to let it into my head.' This time, I'm kind of taking it personal,'' Williams said. ''Now I'm starting to think it's something else. Talk to me, because if I need to have some sort of vendetta against you, let me know so I can approach it that way.''
Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

CPD

Out of the limelight, Cavaliers' Ben Wallace content to be a starter, not a star

by Brian Windhorst Sunday October 19, 2008, 8:42 PM

John Kuntz/The Plain DealerContent to be a role player and allowed to concentrate on defense and rebounding, Ben Wallace is enjoying a quiet training camp with the Cavaliers.
In the natural order of things in professional sports, the highest-paid player gets the most scrutiny from the first day of the season on. That is not the case for the Cavaliers, which is a refreshing change for the man in question. Ben Wallace will earn $14.5 million this season, about $100,000 more than LeBron James, but he's been able to operate in relative anonymity.
After carving out an image of a quiet, yet fierce, defensive force in Detroit, Wallace's perception and bank account changed when he signed a $60 million free-agent deal with the Bulls in 2006. Within days of showing up at training camp, Wallace was immersed in controversy for challenging the Bulls' rules banning headbands and loud music in the locker room, among others. The sub-par season that followed only increased the heat.
Last year, as the Bulls got off to a rocky start, his relationship with coach Scott Skiles went under the microscope. Neither ended up finishing the season with the team.
Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

ABJ

Rivalry could heat up for Cavs Mo Williams says he won't change his game after incident with 76ers
By George M. Thomas
Beacon Journal sports writer

Published on Tuesday, Oct 21, 2008
INDEPENDENCE: Rivalries have been built on less than what happened at Quicken Loans Arena Saturday night.
A little over six minutes into the game, Cavaliers point guard Mo Williams found himself in the locker room watching the game on in-house television after being ejected.
Philadelphia 76ers point guard Andre Miller had tossed a ball at Williams as he lay on a floor after referees called Miller for an offensive foul. The two had words and both received technical fouls.
On the ensuing Cavs' possession, Miller fouled Williams again and the Cavs' guard said something to him. The referee sent Williams packing.
Could that intensify a rivalry?
Anything is possible, but Cavs coach Mike Brown has his thoughts.
Cont...

 

[exhawg]

Just realized that the preseason game is on FSN. JJ Hickson with a monster last 30 seconds of the half. This kid has the ability to be really good.

 

[Bucks21]

Just realized that the preseason game is on FSN. JJ Hickson with a monster last 30 seconds of the half. This kid has the ability to be really good.

A lot of people were very skeptical of pick of JJ on draft night but the kid has serious potential.

 

[crazybuckfan40]

I am a big fan...Honestly I would see it as a blessing in disguise if say Z, Andy, Big Ben were to miss a couple games, because i forsee the problem of Hickson not seeing as much time as he should...that is just what Mike Brown does, and if he decides to play someone like Lorezen Wright over Hickson i am going to be very pissed...

His potential is very high, I really like the fact that he has a little bit of an inbetween game for a big guy...He has the ability to put the ball on the floor, which is something that Z and Big Ben can't do and Wild Thing looks terrible when he does it...But that spin move he had off the dribble last night, and the reverse layup he had off the dribble are things that LBJ need out of a big guy playing along side of him...because there are always wide open lanes when Z catches the ball, but he always has to just settle for the jumper or be right at the rim to catch and make the shot...he can't catch on the run and then put the ball down and finish in traffic...