Hey Cavs fans! It's A.C. checking in. What's happening?

The Cavaliers have a big stretch coming up - five of the next six at home, with four of those games coming against the Central Division. I'm really hoping that they can carry the momentum from Monday night into the next few games.

To this point, the win in Dallas was the best game the Cavaliers have played on both ends of the floor. Defensively, if they come out like that every night, we could win 60 games this year. Every possible position that they needed to be in, they were there. And what really validates the Dallas win is that the Mavericks went out and beat San Antonio the next game. So, beating Dallas at home the way we beat them tells us what type of team we really have the potential to become.

I was worried that when they lost the lead in the third quarter, that would really damage them. But you could feel a relief at the end of the quarter when they withstood the run and got the lead back up. And then they returned to the intensity of the first quarter and put the game away. I loved how the entire team was up on the bench for most of the game, rooting on the guys on the floor.

It's an all for one, one for all team, now. It's not just a slogan.

It's so great to see Ben Wallace healthy again, because you're starting to see his dominance on the defensive end of the floor now. He makes you feel him, and Dirk Nowitzki wanted no part of it. And then Andy came in and just finished him off.

One concern that I do have, though - (and this is something that might hurt us because of our size in the backcourt) - is that we do a lot of switching positions where little guys are forced to guard big guys around the basket. And that could come back to bite us in the end. But right now, our defense on the ball is pretty good, so teams don't really get a good look at the guys who they're wanting to post up. So, that's something the Cavaliers will work on, moving through this.

Wally Szczerbiak is one of the players who's going through this right now. It's going to be tough for him, because he's guarding bigger players. But Wally's a strong guy, and what he's figuring out now is how he can be effective against guys who are larger than him.

That fourth-quarter baseline dunk was so nice to see, because I think he's realizing now that he can beat these bigger guys with his quickness, and that's something he's not really used to. Blocking out and putting a body on guys is going to be something he'll get used to, also.

Wally's a rugged guy, and he realizes that he's undersized. But our guards are undersized, too. So is Ben Wallace. You just go out and play the game. And I think he'll end up doing well at the position. His shooting around the basket is already better. His long-range shooting is still a little off, but around the basket, he's pretty efficient.

Right now, I'm really pleased that the Cavaliers are at 2-2, with three very tough road games already behind them. I actually was looking for 1-3, because I know how we usually start out. But their focus is on becoming a better team without losing focus on winning ballgames.

And it was good to see them finish the Dallas game because that's the only thing they were missing on the road. They were playing three-and-a-half good quarters, and they'd give the other six minutes away with turnovers and bad shots. But that Dallas game showed them how to get across the finish line. And I'm hoping that will give them the understanding of what it takes to cross the finish line on the road.

The big news while we were in Dallas was the Allen Iverson trade to our Division rivals in Detroit.

Iverson always wears us out. And his presence is going to change the Pistons in a profound way. They'll probably start him and bring Stuckey off the bench. But the Pistons are going to have to play to a difference cadence now. Chauncey Billups is more of a calculating guard, whereas Iverson is all over the place. They're going to have to figure out how to run the offense with A.I. at the one. Hamilton might be running off a screen and Iverson will be off doing his own thing. Billups would sit there and wait for the play to open up; I'm not sure Iverson will have the patience for that. They have some work to do.

I don't think he'll be any problem for Detroit. Players all have their issues with their hangers-on and posse and I don't think that'll be a problem. Iverson's been in the league long enough now where he knows how to deal with that stuff. Iverson's going to come in like an angel. He's getting close to the end of his career and he wants to win. I don't think he's going to disrupt anything.

As far as the Central Division, we'll get our first taste of it this week and into next. That why that win in Dallas was so big for the Cavaliers' confidence. Because now that we're home - with all the games coming up at The Q - we can establish our home dominance right now.

And even when you have a road game thrown in the middle of your homestretch - like we do on Saturday night in Chicago - that can be a good thing, IF you're winning. Because they can carry that momentum with them and come back home and keep it going.

If they play their cards right during this stretch, they can create some separation early in the season.