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Cavs Regular Season

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ABJ

3/27/06

James finishes Rockets

By Tom Reed

Beacon Journal sportswriter

<!-- begin body-content -->HOUSTON - Memo to ABC Sports executives: Passing on a chance to televise LeBron James is probably never a good idea.
You don't know what you might miss. Take, for instance, Sunday afternoon.
The Cavaliers were trailing by three points with 22 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. That's when James decided to drive the ball directly at 7-foot-6 Houston Rockets center Yao Ming and scale him like a human Matterhorn. James converted the layup, drew the foul and made the free throw to tie the score.
Oh, yeah, James also stole the ball from Yao at the other end in the final seconds to force overtime where the Cavs prevailed 104-102 at the Toyota Center.
Hey, America, how did you enjoy the Indiana Pacers' 92-79 win over the Philadelphia 76ers?
You could have watched James score 36 points and continue to demonstrate the kind of late-game leadership that some said he lacked. James and the Cavs won for the fifth consecutive time and showed again that they possess the fourth-quarter mettle required of playoff teams.
``We have really found out how to execute down the stretch,'' James said
The network opted to bump Cavs-Rockets from its national lineup because the injury to the Rockets' Tracy McGrady and Houston's general struggles figured to make for less than scintillating television.
What it missed was another sublime James performance and strong contributions from guard Damon Jones (a season-high 22 points on 8-of-10 shooting) and center Zydrunas Ilgauskas (21 points, eight rebounds). The Cavs rallied from a 13-point, third-quarter deficit to beat Houston for the first time in the James' era.
The win enabled the Cavs to reduce their magic number for clinching a playoff spot to two. This team, however, is more focused on maintaining its five-game lead for first-round, homecourt advantage and winning games in the clutch.
``To be able to close out games and execute both offensively and defensively is huge,'' said Cavs coach Mike Brown, whose team was 15-of-28 from the field in the fourth quarter and overtime.
``We've had a few games like this already where our guys did not panic, stayed with the game plan and found a way to win.''
James has been at the center of it all. Whether he's assisting on buzzer-beaters (Toronto, Chicago, Charlotte) or hitting them himself (Charlotte in OT) James is buoying his league MVP candidacy. After scoring 19 points in the fourth quarter against the Boston Celtics on Friday, he tallied 11 points versus the Rockets.
With the Cavs trailing 91-88, James accelerated through the lane and challenged Yao after seeing no-double team materialize. He felt contact and kissed the ball off the backboard before calmly depositing the free throw. James finished the game 14-of-34 from the floor -- he missed 10 consecutive shots during one stretch -- and was 8-of-11 from the free-throw line.
The Rockets pounded the ball inside to Yao (27 points, seven rebounds) throughout the fourth quarter and OT. Yao caught the ball with his back to basket and started to make his move on Ilgauskas with six seconds left when James reached in and batted it away. ``If I couldn't get the strip, I, at least, wanted to get a hand on the ball,'' James said.
The Cavs never trailed in OT. The deciding play was another James drive which this time produced a double team and a quick pass to Ilgauskas, who dunked the ball with nine seconds left to make it 103-99.
``Last year we didn't make plays at the end, and it cost us close games,'' Ilgauskas said. ``This year, with more experience, we are starting to win games at the end. LeBron is just unbelievable.''
Go tell that to ABC Sports.
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With 12 games to go, I figured very conservatively that they could go
5-7. Even if they go 5-7, the Pacers would need to go 12-2, which will not happen. The Bulltes, on the other hand, have the series lead against the Cavs, and still play them one more time, in Washington. If they(Wash.) win all their home games (4), they would still need to win 7 of their remaining 10 on the road, to pass the Cavs. To this point, they have only won 11 of their first 31 road games. Expecting them to win 7 of their next 10 on the road will not happen. The 4th spot will be very, very hard to lose at this point.
 
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Brutus1 said:
With 12 games to go, I figured very conservatively that they could go
5-7. Even if they go 5-7, the Pacers would need to go 12-2, which will not happen. The Bulltes, on the other hand, have the series lead against the Cavs, and still play them one more time, in Washington. If they(Wash.) win all their home games (4), they would still need to win 7 of their remaining 10 on the road, to pass the Cavs. To this point, they have only won 11 of their first 31 road games. Expecting them to win 7 of their next 10 on the road will not happen. The 4th spot will be very, very hard to lose at this point.
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I agree with that, but I hope that the Cavs have turned the corner now and will play better than 5-7 for the rest or the season. The next 2 games are huge. I would really like to see the Cavs beat Dallas and/or Miami in the Q. If the Cavs do only manage 5-7 for the rest of the season I don't feel good about their chances in the playoffs. If everyone can stay hot the Cavs are going to be hard to stop.
 
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exhawg said:
I agree with that, but I hope that the Cavs have turned the corner now and will play better than 5-7 for the rest or the season. The next 2 games are huge. I would really like to see the Cavs beat Dallas and/or Miami in the Q. If the Cavs do only manage 5-7 for the rest of the season I don't feel good about their chances in the playoffs. If everyone can stay hot the Cavs are going to be hard to stop.
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The Cavs can win these games. They clearly showed they could play with these teams on the road, even know they collapsed, but I think they have confidence now and I would be happy with 1-1 and wouldnt be that suprised to see us go 2-0. I would be extremely dissapointed in 0-2.
 
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scarletngrey77 said:
How long do you guys think they sign Lebron for at the end of the season? Is there a limit to how many years a single contract can cover?
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I think the new max contract is 5 years. Fortunately they will always have the ability to offer him max deals and an extra year. (If I understand the soft cap correctly.) The Cavs are the only team that can offer him a contract right now.
 
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exhawg said:
I think the new max contract is 5 years. Fortunately they will always have the ability to offer him max deals and an extra year. (If I understand the soft cap correctly.) The Cavs are the only team that can offer him a contract right now.
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That is the way it should be. :biggrin:

Screw all the Espin talking heads and everyone else that wants to see him in LA or NY. He is going to bring championships to Cleveland.
 
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crazybuckfan40 said:
That is the way it should be. :biggrin:

Screw all the Espin talking heads and everyone else that wants to see him in LA or NY. He is going to bring championships to Cleveland.
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Game winning shot aside Lebron looks like he has grown up some as a leader and a ball player in the last couple weeks. I think teams are starting to realize that if they want to beat the Cavs they better close them out before there are only a few minutes left. The Cavs still seem to play to the level of their opponent, but at least they are turning it on at the end and winning the games. I would be happy if they would start putting together 48 minutes every night, but as long as they can win I won't complain too much. :p
 
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ironically I am semi-hoping we can have a slump before the playoffs and still end up in great shape... reasoning is that the Cavs are a very streaky team.. both ways... so I'm hoping to get the slump out of the way.. just in time for the hot streak to commence in the playoffs..
 
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NJ-Buckeye said:
ironically I am semi-hoping we can have a slump before the playoffs and still end up in great shape... reasoning is that the Cavs are a very streaky team.. both ways... so I'm hoping to get the slump out of the way.. just in time for the hot streak to commence in the playoffs..
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You have a point, but can't they just stay hot the rest of the way? I think we might be too close to the playoffs for them to recover from a slump. I'm hoping the point I made about Lebron growing up recently might be the end of the streakiness.
 
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I agree with Hawg. I think the streakiness is almost a thing of the past.

I am sure we are going to have our ups and downs, but I think there will be more ups, due to the fact that our leader is growing up and the vetrans seem to be takin on more of a role down the stretch.
 
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I wouldn't be suprised to see Gilbert dangle a piece of the team to LBJ to secure his services for his entire career. LBJ, like Jordan was, is much more valuable to the team, than a max contract could pay him. If he continues to improve like he has the first few years, I could see Gilbert offering that in the future.

I'm not expecting a 5-7 finish to the season. I was just using that example as a worst case scenario.
 
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ABJ

3/28/06

Lost expectations

Marshall forgets pleasing fans, just plays his game

By Tom Reed

Beacon Journal sportswriter

<!-- begin body-content -->HOUSTON - Donyell Marshall found himself in a baseline scrum battling for a loose ball that he helped create two minutes into Sunday's overtime period against the Houston Rockets.
The Cavaliers presumably signed Marshall to add a perimeter presence offensively, not engage in such dirty work on the defensive end.
Freeing himself from the shackles of expectation, however, has been liberating in recent games. The veteran forward concedes he and fellow free-agent signee Damon Jones got caught up in trying to be the 3-point shooters Cavs fans thought they were getting in the offseason.
``We were trying to make an impression, trying to wow people,'' Marshall said following the Cavs' 104-102 overtime win against the Rockets.
``We wanted people to think, `Yeah, they made a great signing,' instead of just playing our game. We were trying to live up to (the expectation).''
Each has had a subpar season. Each is playing better of late as the Cavs have won five consecutive games.
Marshall collected 12 points and a season-high three steals against the Rockets. The reserve forward had 14 points Friday in a win over the Boston Celtics.
Marshall's fourth-quarter 3-point shot against the Celtics caused the outgoing Jones to leap into the arms of the 6-foot-9 forward who rarely shows emotion. He and Jones have backed each other through their struggles.
``It was a good moment for both of us,'' said Marshall, who signed a four-year, $22 million deal last August. ``We have taken the brunt of (the criticism). We are sticking together and creating an `us versus everyone else' (mentality).''
Marshall, an 11-year veteran, is on pace to finish with the worst field-goal percentage since his rookie season. He is shooting 38.7 percent, which is tied with Jones for the lowest percentage among the Cavs' top 10 players. Marshall has said he let the protracted slump affect him.
He has managed to contribute in other ways, though, particularly on the boards, where his 6.2 rebounds per game rank among the NBA's top 40 players.
The coaching staff has encouraged Marshall to become more aggressive offensively and not limit himself to 3-point shots, something he admits to doing the past two seasons. He missed four 3-point attempts in the fourth quarter Sunday before going to the basket, grabbing an rebound and dunking.
Marshall did convert a 21-foot jumper in OT to help the Cavs maintain a lead they didn't surrender.
His production in the past two games has been key as starting power forward Drew Gooden has scored a combined four points.
Cavs coach Mike Brown sees Marshall and Jones as integral in securing home-court advantage and playing well in the playoffs.
``Down the stretch, Damon and Donyell will be huge for us,'' Brown said. ``They will give us a different look against opponents not only offensively, but defensively.''
LeBron honored
LeBron James was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for a second consecutive week. He averaged 36.3 points, 8.3 rebounds and 8.0 assists as the Cavs went 3-0 last week. James and Kobe Bryant are the only players to earn four player of the week honors this season.
Dribbles
The Cavs improved to 5-0 in overtime games this season... James won for the first time in nine tries in Texas -- excluding last month's All-Star Game in Houston, where he earned MVP honors.
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