Cleveland Sports Forum

Bennett FG PCT up to 319. Still awful but not that far behind other 2013 draft picks like McLemore.

For the month he's at 474. Of course he shot 368 in December and then dropped back to 244 in January.

TFIR wrote:Obviously Asik is a wreck right now. But would be a very nice large body in the long run.

I don't see Andy as a fit in Houston though, they really want a stretch guy. Maybe as a bench guy I guess.

Now Deng, he would make Parsons their stretch 4. I could obviously see that one.

PS - would wonder about Terrence Jones in that scenario though. Been playing really well, wouldn't mind him coming north.

Their GM Morey has been chasing Andy for years.

Tristan Thompson puts the Cavs on his back in the 4th quarter and the Cavs rally back to win their 4th straight game.

Great win. Looked dismal most of the game.

For Cavs, culture change leading to cool results

Sam Amico

FOX Sports Ohio

FEB 13, 2014 3:53a

Cavaliers forward Tristan Thompson, left, and point guard Kyrie Irving paved the way in a come-from-behind win at Detroit, the Cavs' fourth straight victory heading into the All-Star break.
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Random stuff following the Cavaliers'€™ 93-89 comeback victory over the Detroit Pistons in Auburn Hills, Mich., on Wednesday:

-- There's something different about the Cavs, something that's making you start to believe, something that goes beyond the fact they're winning. But let's start with that, because winning is the bottom line in this business. And the Cavs have won four straight for the first time since 2009-10, when LeBron James was on the team.

-- It should be noted Mike Brown was the coach then, too. I think we tend to overlook that a lot. We tend to bash Brown a lot. We tend to make Brown out to be the villain when the Cavs lose, and ignore him when they win. You may hate Brown's defense-first and sometimes-ugly brand of basketball. But you gotta love the results lately.

-- During the first quarter Wednesday, the Cavs looked lost. (Actually, you could say that about the first three.) But it was during the first that I tweeted they had "no chance"€ if they tried to play a grind-it-out game. I implied they needed to run and get down the floor before the Pistons' large and athletic frontcourt of Andre Drummond, Josh Smith and Greg Monroe. I was wrong. There's a reason my coaching career lasted all of one season as a 19-year old assistant at Akron Christian School.

-- Later, I sort of backtracked by making fun of myself in the next tweet, as the Cavs kept it close for most of the first half. Still, they trailed 51-40 at halftime and looked entirely out of sorts. I assumed, "Here we go again."€ I even got a little angry. It's not like the Pistons are a great defensive team, I thought. And the Cavs could only manage 40 points in a half? C'mon.

-- When the Cavs took their first lead at 83-82 with 2:06 remaining, I tweeted that "I know nothing about basketball."€ I don't really believe that. I think I know something. But I probably don't know as much as I sometimes think I know.

-- The point of all this is, yes, Brown has a clue. That became increasingly difficult to believe when we watched the Cavs lose eight of nine prior to the winning streak. That was capped by an awful defeat to the undermanned Lakers at home. Former general manager Chris Grant was fired the next morning.

-- So what happened? Did Brown suddenly become smarter after his good friend was let go? Uh, not likely. Chances are, Brown has known what he's doing all along. It's just that over the past four games, the players finally started to execute better. They've started to trust their coach, trust each other, and play harder and smarter.

-- So while we all give a lot of credit to acting GM David Griffin for the sudden surge (and rightfully so), we shouldn't forget about Brown. His message is finally getting across.

-- As for Griffin, sources close to the team said he got the job and immediately made it a priority to change the culture in the locker room. It sounds silly, but he let the players know it was about having fun. Yes, it's a business, but it's also a game. Griffin wanted to remind the team, sources said, that people ought to enjoy themselves.

-- Griffin also worked to repair what appeared to be a broken relationship between Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters. That's a big key, since those two are the Cavs' most gifted players. If they can't get along, the whole thing is bound to be a mess. But according to sources, Griffin told Irving and Waiters to ignore the rumors, that the Cavs aren't looking to trade them. And if Irving and Waiters aren't going anywhere, they may as well get used to (and again, enjoy) each other.

-- A lot of this Griffin talk sounds like an indictment of Grant. That's not the case. Grant had his own management style, but it was more of the tough-love variety. At the end of Grant's tenure, some players seemed to be on edge. Griffin's approach may not be better, but it is different, and so far, it's working.

-- OK, about those players. Out of all the heralded big men on the floor Wednesday, guess who was the best? Well, how about Cavs power forward Tristan Thompson? He compiled his second double-double in two nights, finishing with a game-high 25 points and 15 rebounds. No one was saying Grant should have drafted Drummond instead of Waiters in 2012 on this night. Thompson looked just fine, thank you very much.

-- Of course, Waiters had one of those nights, scoring just nine points without an assist. He also went 0-of-4 on free throws in a close game. But he leaped off the bench and cheered wildly when Irving hit a big 3-pointer late in the game. And it's OK to struggle through a less-than-stellar performance when you're supporting your teammates. Waiters and the Cavs suddenly seem to be grasping that. They are having fun as a team even when they play poorly individually. That's basically what Griffin is looking for.

-- Irving (23 points) joined the Cavs Radio Network with play-by-play man John Michael and color analyst Jim Chones right after the game. "I'm on the radio!" Irving repeatedly said, playfully. Then he mentioned the "turmoil"€ experienced by the Cavs leading up to the previous four games. He strongly suggested that all that junk is a thing of the past.

-- You could go on and on about this team as it heads into the All-Star break. No one outside of Thompson and Irving was very good, and some guys were downright atrocious, at least statistically. Yet for the fourth straight time, the Cavs won as a team. That's quite promising. And to think in the previous two games, the Cavs were without Anderson Varejao, who's suffering from a sore back. Also, C.J. Miles is battling a sore foot (although he played nine minutes Wednesday).

-- The Cavs return from the break to visit Philadelphia on Tuesday, then host Orlando on Wednesday. They are three games out of the final playoff spot with 29 left. If they continue to play like this, you can bank on it, they will get in.

CAVS PURSUING SHOOTERS, LIKELY TO MAKE TRADE

Chris Grant is fired. Mike Brown might be soon. Kyrie Irving seems to want out. It’s not a great time in Cleveland. And yet they’re still only three games out of the playoffs, so there’s an argument that they should be buyers at the deadline. Via Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer:

Expect David Griffin to make some type of trade by Thursday’s deadline. The interim general manager believes the Cavs are close to a playoff team — three games out of the final spot thanks to the current four-game winning streak. Griffin also would love to have the interim title taken away from his name, and he works for an owner (Dan Gilbert) who wants his general manager to be aggressive.

The Cavs are looking for outside shooting. A big problem is spacing. Teams tend to clog the middle on the Cavs because they don’t have a power forward — or even a small forward — with 3-point shooting range.

Former General Manager Chris Grant saw the same weakness, which is why he tried very hard to sign Kyle Korver and Mike Dunleavy last summer. But free agents took a little less money to sign elsewhere — Korver with Atlanta, Dunleavy to Chicago.

I am bringing this post over from the Browns forum because I am too lazy to type this again.


BaronVG wrote:
So Kyrie won the MVP…….how long until he "Takes his Talents" elsewhere?


How long until "Takes his Talents elsewhere" comes back to Cleveland to play with Kyrie ?


Rusty says :

Durant wants to get LeBron in a gunfight over best player and best team.

Does LeBron bring a rusty old knife like D Wade or a 21 year old gun like Kyrie ? check !

LeBron needs an owner with deep pockets to pay the luxury tax needed to surround him with the talent to win multiple championships. check ! Dan Gilbert.

LeBron has said to Brian Windhorst and others that he will return to play in Cleveland sometime in the future before his career is over.

Where else would LeBron go ?

Stay in Miami ? Why ? D Wade is done.

LA Clippers ? Why ? Chris Paul is not getting younger.

NY Knicks ? Really ?

Bulls ? Not sure he wants to work like Thibs would require night in and out.

No folks it is time to realize that the "Chosen One" is headed back to Cleveland in the next 400 days +.

Why 400 days + ? LeBron can opt out of his contract this summer or he could just finish out his contract next year. Either way I am saying he heads to Cleveland.

I expect Miami will not make it to the Finals this year so I think he will opt out this summer.

2014 has been the year of surprises for Cleveland sports fans. The biggest one is coming this summer !

Turn on the radio and the national guys are talking about Kyrie leaving instead of LeBron returning.

Just remember who told you that LeBron would end up in Miami if he left Cleveland way before anyone was even thinking about it.

rusty2 wrote:Turn on the radio and the national guys are talking about Kyrie leaving instead of LeBron returning.

Just remember who told you that LeBron would end up in Miami if he left Cleveland way before anyone was even thinking about it.

That is because the national guys including Woj Berger and the idiot Golic are still working off last weeks narrative when the CAVS were a joke. Now that they are good with lots of talent the narrative is different but these guys who make a living writing about sports I guess dont read the box scores and certainly dont watch the games.

Cavs are in a good place with Irving. Irving has to tip his hand this summer and the Cavs still have him under team control for at least two more years. Plenty of time to get excellent trade value especially in a sign and trade....

Bigger problem is finding a legit C who can protect the paint and a legit 3...