Well, it seems as though I missed quite the week in the world of OH. Instead I was forced to watch Brazilian basketball, futbol, and even some curling..not sure why the curling was on, but whatever. Oh and that Brazilian basketball game vs. Spain seriously included 3 travel calls in under 30 secs..no joke. It was pathetic and on that note, no one recognized the Varejao jersey.
So onto the goods..here is what went down in the past week:
*****As I am sure all of you know by now Jim ‘conservative’ Paxson is no longer with our beloved Cavs. You gave us 7 good..strong..well you gave us 7 years. You brought in the worst draft picks, lost Loozer, changed coaches 23 times, and guided us to the playoffs a total of zero times. So Paxson thanks for trying but we need to move on thus the hunt begins. Also, Malone will not be our coach next year…real big shocker..anyways there are now rumors that LeKing wants Nate McMillan. Finally, check out this article on RealGM in which he gives a crazy prediction for our lineup next year (thx everyone for contributing your lineup predictions)...
the 05/06 Starting Lineup:
PG - LeBron James
SG - Ray Allen
SF - Luke Jackson
PF - Drew Gooden
C - Anderson Varejao
I'll follow the sign going forward..
*****In another not joking around move, the Tribe locked up CC for the next championship era of Indians era. First Victor, then Haf-dog, and now CC. Not a bad April Shapiro. So CC is finally getting in shape, but personally the weight can stay just don’t lose the tilt. So about this season..well it’s not going to well given we are 8-12, but since we are in the Central time is always on our side. Our pitching is doing pretty well but our bats are quiet. Check out these averages as of 4/28: Victor Martinez (.208), Casey Blake (.207), Ben Broussard (.203), Aaron Boone (.138) and Grady Sizemore (.238). Ouch..well there are stil 142 games..gotta love baseball.
*****Check out pretty cool article from a Purdue student regarding the OSU vs. Purdue game in ’02..yeah 4th and 1..you remember…what a season.. So anyways the kid just said it was his favorite sports moment while at Purdue. As you will read, Mr. Denver Bronco limped off the field like a baby.
*****Speaking of the newest member of the Denver Broncos, the NFL draft was this past weekend. Only 2 and a 1/3 Buckeyes were drafted with NUGE going to the Jets in the 2nd round and Fox off to Minnesota in the 3rd round. Big difference from a record setting 14 picks last year huh.. Oh and Clarett went in the 3rd round to the Denver...nice move Broncos and for once I rather enjoyed what Jim Rome had to say about that one. So the Browns took a freakin scUM player as the 3rd pick. Man another receiver from the enemy..K2 now Braylon. We did get rid of Butch so at least the enemy won’t be handing down orders. So we also picked up another hometown LeAkron stud in Charlie Frye. Hell yes.. A sleeper pick in the 3rd round. I think he will enjoy being home and once again LeAkron produces another talent..
*****Finally, the Q&A with Dan Gilbert was sent to me multiple times while I was away and now I know why. In case you missed it, the Plain Dealer sat down (in email) with Dan Gilbert for a little Q & A session. Now, Mr. Gilbert I believe in your plan, but after your words in this article you are seriously the man (while not Marc Cuban the man, you’re getting close). Look at this:
The "LeBron is disgruntled/is leaving stories" did not come from LeBron or anyone else in his camp. It came from short-term thinkers and media entertainers posing as journalists. These people want to boost ratings, sell more newspapers or believe the west and east coast cities are in some way superior to places like "Cleveland" or "Detroit" and can't figure out why anyone (with a big name) would want to stay there. They are dead wrong and we will prove them wrong.
Hell yes..I love how Gilbert basically admits all decisions are ‘What’s good for LeBron’. He goes on to discuss the 50/50 chance of keeping Z and that Silas wanted out as well.
So you thought the comments above were money, check this out...Dan you gaining points fast..
Q: Is it true that you passed notes to Silas during a game asking him to play certain players? Why have rumors persisted about you as a meddlesome owner?
A: Obviously, that is completely false. Can you imagine an owner doing that? It is so absurd, you have to laugh at it. Then again, the "ESPN Entertainer" who said it is the same guy who made up the story about "Jim Paxson being fired within 48 hours" when it was completely untrue and never even discussed here at all. He is also the same guy who made up stories about "LeBron's mother not liking the new ownership team." This guy, lets call him "John A. Doe" is an entertainer, not a journalist. Most people who know basketball realize what a phony this guy is and how he primarily blurts out fantasy on a daily basis. Unfortunately, the Internet has sprung up a bunch of these lazy characters that just read each other's nonsense and rewrite the same story with a few new adjectives. They don't do any real work. They never called me or anyone else for comment. They never asked me if any of this BS was true or not.
WOW..that brings a tear to my eye..it seems as though Gilbert and I are on the same wavelength regarding this media nonsense. Definetely read this whole article..very very good.
So there you go..I am back and ready for a very exciting Cavs offseason, a Tribe turnaround, and Buckeye talk to heat up.
5 comments:
One Other Buckeye Comment:
6) Buckeyes ranked #4 in the preseaon by Stewart "I hate OSU" Mandel. Thanks man. But the one thing that worries me this year is the punter and the long snapper. I am fairly certain our kicker (Huston, who just got his eligibility) won't be as good as Nuge, but he will still be solid and make 75% of his kicks with deep kickoffs. But we have a new longsnapper after having the best in the country. And we have all new punters (which means an all new holder). Our Special Teams played more like Special Ed in the kick scrimmage. One ray of hope: TG7 on the FG block team.
Wow... that is a good recap of the week's events. Here is my take:
1) RealGM is nuts. You can't have Bron play the point full-time. He will then have to guard smaller, quicker players. That was the Cavs weakness this year- could not defend PGs on the pick and roll. I still say Earl Watson would be a steal. A steal.
2) As of 4/28, the Tribe is not doing well. But we will hit the ball eventually. It will happen. For sake of comparison, Victor last April hit .246, with 7 walks and 7 Ks. This year he is hitting .208 with 9 walks and 9 Ks. What does that tell us? He is not swinging at bad pitches, he is seeing the ball, but that he hasn't hit the groove yet. If I am in a fantasy league with Victor, I buy low. Now. Right now, Travis is hitting well too, but without any power. When the weather gets warmer, Travis will heat up too. Buy him low while you can.
3) When your best moment at a school is a loss to THE Ohio State University, this tells me two things: (a) TOSU is sweet and (b) your school stinks. Get some pride loser.
4) Wow. Braylon is too much. I mean, he will get numbers. But we better get a clutch WR for those big, gotta-have moments (can anyone say 4th and 1?). And Frye will hold up the LeAK name in a few years. Give him the chance to learn and be patient. And go Nuge. Make us proud, even if you are playing for the J-E-T-S sucks sucks sucks.
5) John A. Doe is a windbag.
I completely agree with Paul regarding RealGM. Even with LeBron and Jesus Shuttlesworth in our backcourt, a starting frontcourt of Gooden and Varejao would likely leave us one game out of the playoffs again. I also agree about the PG situation, but will say this: I like LeBron running the point in the fourth quarter. Eric Snow isn't quite the crunchtime PG the Cavs need distributing down the stretch. That 4th quarter lineup of LeBron, Newble, Pavlovic, Varejao and Traylor was NASTY at times. Insert Ray Allen for Newble or Sasha and I don't see the Cavs losing too many double digit leads in the fourth quarter anymore.
I will give RealGM credit for pointing out one thing that every sports writer (even Terry Pluto) fails to mention. Luke Jackson is going to be a stud. We talk about the lack of outside shooting and defense off the bench, which is what Mr. Jackson was made for. Remember that in his limited minutes at the onset of the season, he was playing with a bad back that he hadn't told anyone about. The kid worked his ass off at Oregon and works his ass off for the Cavs. RealGM gives him too much credit by putting him in the starting lineup, but he will be a force off the bench by the end of next year.
Anyone know how Nate McMillin's relationship with Jesus (Shuttlesworth, not Christ) is? If Gilbert can grant LeBron his wish and get McMillin, will we have a better chance of signing Allen? Conspiracy theory: Maybe Ray Allen told Lebron that if McMillin goes to Cleveland, so will he. If Ray Allen comes here, we could call outselves the Holy Trinity... the King, the Jesus, and the Usher.
Very insightful comments by masug. I will say this: I like the idea of using LeBron at the point in the fourth. But we still need another PG on the court to play D against quick points. Maybe use Snow down the stretch in this fashion on offense-defense substitutions.
I think Luke Jackson will be a great shooter, but will he be able to play D against NBA SF's? That is the magic question.
I don't think Allen's relationship with McMillan matters. I think Jesus justs wants the money.
Just a quick comment on the NFL draft... How 'bout them COWBOYS!!!!!!!!!
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