Cavs Wire

January 2008 - Posts

• No LeBron vs. Sonics

  According to Brian Windhorst, LeBron James will not be able to play against the Sonics this evening in Seattle. Given that the Cavs record without Lebron is exactly 0-5 in the five games he missed, this doesn't bode well for the Wine and Gold... Posted Jan 31 2008, 09:57 PM by barrymcbride with no comments

• Re-Cap / Gallery: Cavs 84, Blazers 83

  What the heck can you say about a player who just proves he's the best in the game over and over? Nothing except: "He's ours. Suck it, New York". LeBron James did yesterday what he was born to do. The King slashed the Blazers - who had won 13 of their last 14 at home - with 37 points, including 17 in the fourth quarter and the game-winner with less than a second left. Oh, and he had a turned right ankle and a jammed finger. LeBron James helps make up for having to endure years and years of Michael Jordan. Maybe a little karma is coming back to Cleveland. Let's be cautious, though. The King is questionable for the Cavs game tonight due to his ankle. Here's a photo gallery from last night, and links to stories about the King's continuing NBA reign: LeBron scorches Blazers (ABJ) Cavs beat Blazers 84-83 on James'  layup with under a second to go (AP) Whew! (Bob Finnan Blog) My Teams Are Cursed: MVP (Blog) How good is LeBron: J-Beanie Sports (Blog) Of Fair Hooker, Elmer Flick and World B. Free: The King reigns (Blog) Youth is Served: WaitingForNextYear (Blog) Game 44: 18%: Hey Larry Hughes, Please Stop Taking So Many Bad Shots (Blog) Random Thoughts: Cleveland 84, Portland 83 (Blog) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers drives to the hoop. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) Brandon Roy #7 of the Portland Trail Blazers dribbles against Devin Brown #33 of the Cleveland Cavaliers. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) Larry Hughes #32 of the Cleveland Cavaliers shoots the ball against Joel Przybilla #10 of the Portland Trail Blazers. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers thorws talcum power in the air before the start of the game. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers shoots the game winning basket against Travis Outlaw #25 of the Portland Trail Blazers. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers shoots the game winning basket against LaMarcus Aldridge #12, Travis Outlaw #25 and Brandon Roy #7 of the Portland Trail Blazers. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers battles Brandon Roy #7 of the Portland Trail Blazers. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers shoots the game winning basket against Travis Outlaw #25 and Brandon Roy #7 of the Portland Trail Blazers. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers celebrates making the winning basket. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers shoots the game winning basket against Travis Outlaw #25 and Brandon Roy #7 of the Portland Trail Blazers at the Rose Garden on January 30, 2008 in Portland, Oregon. . (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers watches the game againstthe Portland Trail Blazers. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers shoots a basket against LaMarcus Aldridge #12 and Travis Outlaw #25. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) Brandon Roy #7 of the Portland Trail Blazers drives to the hoop against Zydrunas Ilgauskas. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers battles Martell Webster #8 of the Portland Trail Blazers. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) Brandon Roy #7 of the Portland Trail Blazers drives to the hoop against LeBron James #23 and Zydrunas Ilgauskas #11 of the Cleveland Cavaliers. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers battles Brandon Roy #7 of the Portland Trail Blazers. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) Cleveland Cavaliers LeBron James, left, drives to the basket as Portland Trail Blazers' LaMarcus Aldridge (12) looks on in the first quarter. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) goes to the basket as Portland Trail Blazers' James Jones (33) defends in the second quarter. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) and Portland Trail Blazers' Joel Przybilla (10) battle for a rebound in the first quarter. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Cleveland Cavaliers' Drew Gooden (90) battle for a rebound with Portland Trail Blazers' Joel Przybilla (10) in the first quarter. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Cleveland Cavaliers LeBron James (23) celebrates with teammate Drew Gooden (90) after scoring the winning shot against the Portland Trail Blazers in the fourth quarter. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James, right, and Portland Trail Blazers' Brandon Roy battle for position in the fourth quarter. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Cleveland Cavaliers LeBron James (23) leans back after throwing chalk into the air before the start of an NBA basketball game with the Portland Trail Blazers. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Posted Jan 31 2008, 02:39 PM by barrymcbride with no comments

• Andy Gone 3-4 Weeks

  Anderson Varejao will be out of action for 3-4 weeks, which will make him unavailable until after the All-Star break. Varejao suffered a high ankle sprain of LeBron's the Cavs victory over Kobe the Lakers on Sunday. And just when the Cavs were rolling, too. Of course, I'm still upset about Jim Chones getting hurt in 1976, so I nurse some bitterness over injuries in the world of Cleveland basketball. The Cavs take on the Portland Trailblazers at 9PM tonight at the Rose Garden in Portland, seemingly on a "road roll" witih four straight wins under their belt. Unfortunately, Portland is brutal on opponents at home, where they've won thirteen of their last fourteen games. Here are some links regarding Varejao's injury if you want to read up on the latest: Cavaliers' Varejao out until after All-Star break - Canton Rep Varejao's ankle sprain costly - ABJ Andy sidelined - Bob Finnan Varajao's Injury Means Trouble - Cleveland Sports Perspective (blog) Talk about it in the C-Town Sports Forum! Posted Jan 30 2008, 03:59 PM by barrymcbride with no comments

• LeBron Wants Kidd. Lebron Gets Kidd?

  So far, the reaction from Cleveland teams when they get close enough to sniff a championship is the following:   (squat)   Based on what we've seen from the Browns Phil Savage, I don't expect that would be the case once the Browns get close, but he's not at that point (yet). It's up to Cavs GM Danny Ferry to break the tendency, since the Dolans are too busy running dull cable channels and conning Peter Lewis out of millions of dollars. LeBron James, a guy we might want to keep happy, is making it pretty clear what it is that he wants. This guy: Brian Windhorst and a Plain Dealer reporter cornered James and extracted his belief that acquiring his friend Jason Kidd would be enough to bring the Cavs a championship. "Yeah... it's that easy", James told the media folks. Of course, conducting a trade in the NBA is just a little less complex than eating a boiled copy of all US Income Tax regulations. Even if you try to eat the ones with the paper bindings instead of the leather ones. Be that as it may, Danny Ferry needs to publicly demonstrate sweat flying off his bald scalp if he expects to earn his money this year. The King has laid it out there. Now get the King what he wants. Talk about it in the C-Town Sports Forum! Posted Jan 30 2008, 08:03 AM by barrymcbride with 4 comment(s) Filed under: Cavs, JasonKidd, DannyFerry, LeBronJames

• Varejao To Miss Next Two Games

  Published reports this evening are saying that Cavaliers forward Anderson Varejao will miss at least the next two games with a sprained ankle. Varejao is returning to Cleveland from the west coast on Tuesday morning. The Cavaliers play in Portland on Wednesday and then travel to Seattle on their west coast trip. It is unlikely that Varejao would be sent back to Cleveland if the team expected him to play in either of those two games. Varejao hurt his ankle on Sunday against the Lakers late in the third quarter. Both X-Rays and an MRI showed no additional problems beyond the sprained ankle, but the Cavaliers are obviously playing it safe with the important role-player. Talk about it in the C-Town Sports Forum! LINKS: The News-Herald  Sports Network Posted Jan 28 2008, 11:49 PM by barrymcbride with no comments

• Any More Doubters?

  I was going to round up all the articles today that extol the virtues of LeBron James relative to Kobe Bryant, to make the point (again) that #23 is the best player in basketball. (And he plays for our team... WTF?). As I started to surf around, I realized that the folks at The Big Lead blog did a better job of it than I probably could, so I'm just going to their blog and have done with it. So, click this, and pretend that I put an hour into gathering up links and writing it. Link: The Big Lead Also, we've got a photo gallery and some game recap links from last night. Posted Jan 28 2008, 03:05 PM by barrymcbride with no comments Filed under: Cavs

• LeBron Does Not Like Losing

  Of all the inanimate objects in the world, those most at risk from LeBron James after a Cavs loss would be trash cans. Also, the sensitive ears of folks who don't like to hear cussin'. Like your boss, for instance. So if you watch this, turn off the sound before you play it. Via MixMakers and Awful Announcing. Talk about it in the C-Town Sports Forum! Also worth noting... Kobe Bryant does not like missing free throws and the folks at ABC can bleep out the sound with reflexes not seen since Liam Neeson grabbed Jar-Jar Binks computer-generated tongue out of the air in that first Star Wars prequel. Yes, the one with the annoying kid. This was also found by the folks at Awful Announcing (very good blog, BTW). Posted Jan 28 2008, 02:49 PM by barrymcbride with 2 comment(s) Filed under: Cavs

• Gallery/Recap: Cavs Defeat Lakers

  Talk about it in the C-Town Sports Forum! Another thrilling afternoon of NBA basketball came out of Los Angeles today, as the Cleveland Cavaliers won their fourth straight road game with a 98-95 triumph over the Lakers. The match-up between LeBron and Kobe was everything you could have hoped for, with the extra touch being James' 41-point effort, with 14 points coming in the final quarter. Bryant finished with 33 points on the day, along with 12 rebounds. The Cavaliers are clearly now in a groove, as their record goes to 24-19. Dates in Portland and Seattle await them as they continue a west coast swing. Here are some links to game coverage, and photographs licensed from the Associated Press: Fox Sports: Box Score, Game Trax Associated Press Plain Dealer Blog: Van Gundy Ruins Game Referee Mike Callahan, right, who temporarily stopped the game because of a roof leak, talks with Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant, left, and Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James in the first half. (AP Photo/Ric Francis) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) passes the ball around Los Angeles Lakers' Kwame Brown (54) to Zydrunas IIgauskas as Lakers' Kobe Bryant, right, watches.(AP Photo/Ric Francis) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James, center, slips through Los Angeles Lakers' Ronny Turiaf, left, Luke Walton (4) and Lamar Odom to give his team the lead with just over one minute left. (AP Photo/Ric Francis) Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant, left, is defended by Cleveland Cavaliers' Drew Gooden in the first half. (AP Photo/Ric Francis) Los Angeles Lakers' Lamar Odom (7) drives against Cleveland Cavaliers' Drew Gooden, left, with Larry Hughes standing nearby, in the first half. (AP Photo/Ric Francis) Cleveland Cavaliers' Ira Newble (14) dunks over Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant, left, and Ronny Turiaf (21) in the second half. (AP Photo/Ric Francis) Cleveland Cavaliers' Zydrunas Ilgauskas draws a foul on Los Angeles Lakers' Kwame Brown in the second half.(AP Photo/Ric Francis) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) drives towards Los Angeles Lakers' Lamar Odom in the second half. (AP Photo/Ric Francis) Los Angeles Lakers' Derek Fisher, left, Kobe Bryant, second from right, and Ronny Turiaf, surround Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James in the second half. (AP Photo/Ric Francis) Posted Jan 27 2008, 11:56 PM by barrymcbride with 2 comment(s) Filed under: Cavs

• Gallery: Cavs Lose Close One

  The Cavaliers let one get away on Friday night at the Q, as a last-second shot by Shawn Marion allowed the Suns to escape with a 110-108 victory. Larry Hughes stunned the Cavs fans in attendance by knocking down 25 points, and LeBron James led all scorers with 36. The Suns were unreal from three-point range. Steve Nash was a standout for the winners with nine assists and 26 points. Here are some links to game wrap-ups and a photo gallery from the Associated Press (thank you, OBR subscribers, for making our use of these photos possible). Talk about it in the C-Town Sports Forum! Associated Press Fox Sports Plain Dealer Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James shoots over Phoenix Suns' Raja Bell (19) during the first quarter. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Cleveland Cavaliers' Zydrunas Ilgauskas shoots against Phoenix Suns' Amare Stoudemire during the first quarter. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) pokes the ball away from Phoenix Suns' Steve Nash during the first quarter. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Phoenix Suns' Amare Stoudemire dunks against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first quarter. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Phoenix Suns coach Mike D'Antoni reacts to a call during the first quarter. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Phoenix Suns' Steve Nash goes up for a 3-point shot in the third quarter. Nash scored 26 points to help Phoenix to a 110-108 win. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Phoenix Suns' Raja Bell (19) tries to drive past Cleveland Cavaliers' Zydrunas Ilgauskas during the third quarter. Bell led the Suns with 27 points in their 110-108 win. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James, left, and Phoenix Suns' Shawn Marion chase down a loose ball during the fourth quarter. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Phoenix Suns' Steve Nash (13) celebrates with Shawn Marion after the Suns beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 110-108. Marion scored with one second left in the game to put the Suns on top. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) is fouled by Phoenix Suns' Shawn Marion (31) during the first quarter. James scored 36 points, but Marion's basket with about a second left gave Phoenix a 110-108 win. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Posted Jan 26 2008, 12:09 AM by barrymcbride with 2 comment(s) Filed under: Cavs

• Pavlovic Out 6-8 Weeks?

  This is being reported on Scout's Cleveland Cavaliers forum, via radio reports on WKNR. It's apparently a left foot sprain. Pavlovic has struggled a bit this season after missing the Cavs pre-season. His scoring average has dropped about two points a game from 2006, but he seemed to be coming back a bit. Here's a link from RealGM.com as well: Pavlovic Out 6 To 8 Weeks With Foot Injury Posted Jan 24 2008, 06:16 PM by barrymcbride with no comments Filed under: Cavs

• Gallery: Cavs Whomp Wizards Senseless

  Here's a photo gallery and links of the Cavaliers nearly-perfect 121-85 shallacking of the Washington Wizards. Z was pretty much unstoppable as he went 10-for-10 from the floor for 24 points, and Lebron added 23. It was an ass-beating, pure and simple. Here are photos and links... LOCAL RECAPS: Akron Beacon-Journal Chronicle-Telegram News-Herald News Journal Plain Dealer PHOTOS: Washington Wizards' Caron Butler (3) is fouled by Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James under the basket during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Washington Wizards' Antawn Jamison (4), top, shoots over Cleveland Cavaliers' Drew Gooden during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) NBA Hall of Fame coach and player Lenny Wilkens, right, greets former baseball executive Bill White, left, after they were honored at halftime of an NBA basketball game between the Washington Wizards and Cleveland Cavaliers Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) NBA Hall of Fame coach and player Lenny Wilkens, right, greets former baseball executive Bill White, left, after they were honored at halftime of an NBA basketball game between the Washington Wizards and Cleveland Cavaliers Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) is fouled by Washington Wizards' Caron Butler as he tries to score during the third quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Cleveland Cavaliers' Larry Hughes (32) dunks against Washington Wizards' Caron Butler during the thirds quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Cleveland Cavaliers' Devin Brown (33) puts up a running shot against Washington Wizards' Nick Young, center, as Cavaliers' Dwayne Jones watches during the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Cleveland Cavaliers' Zydrunas Ilgauskas, left, from Lithuania, is fouled by Washington Wizards' Oleksiy Percherov, from Ukraine, on a shot-attempt in the third quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. Ilgauskas was 10-for-10 from the floor, scoring 24 points in the Cavaliers' 121-85 win. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Washington Wizards' Nick Young (1) struggles past Cleveland Cavaliers' Damon Jones during the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. Cleveland won, 121-85. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Washington Wizards' Darius Songaila, third from left, from Lithuania, tries to find a passing lane against Cleveland Cavaliers' Eric Snow (20) and Ira Newble (14), right, during the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. Cleveland won 121-85. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) is fouled by Washington Wizards' Darius Songaila, from Lithuania, after grabibng a third-quarter rebound in an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008, in Cleveland. James scored 23 points in Cleveland's 121-85 win. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan) Posted Jan 24 2008, 12:24 PM by barrymcbride with 1 comment(s) Filed under: Cavs