Daniel Gibson, where have you been? And more importantly, don't go anywhere! Boobie lit it up tonight and led the team in scoring as the Cavaliers used an early 22 point lead to coast to an easy victory over the Grizzlies at the Q.
The Cavaliers were once again without Delonte West, who sat out tonight's contest as a precaution after some soreness in his wrist and a four game in five night road trip coming up starting Thursday. Instead, Tarence Kinsey got the start and filled in admirably. TK used his slashing ability to rack up 11 points and 3 rebounds in 27 minutes. Gibson, however, provided the real spark for the wine and gold. Gibson used a run early in the second quarter with the second unit to increase the Cavalier lead from 11 to 20. While Boobie hit 3 of 5 treys, I was more impressed with his 5-of-7 from inside the arc. Gibson's overall field goal percentage has plummeted this season to 39 percent. While his three point percentage is down, he is still shooting it at a very respectable 37% clip from deep. Gibson used a couple of long jumpers and a pair of layups to get himself in the scoring column tonight from inside the arc. Gibson was in danger of seeing his minutes shrink with his struggles and the return of TK and Delonte, but Boobie will be very important on the upcoming road trip, especially if they need to rest West for any of those games. Here's to Boobie turning his season around, starting tonight.
The Cavaliers got another incredible effort off the bench from J.J. Hickson. Hickson made a couple of highlight-reel plays tonight, and he got big minutes one game after being entirely out of the rotation for the first three quarters. In almost 28 minutes, J.J. scored 10 points, grabbed 9 rebounds, and sent one amazing block out to halfcourt. Hickson's other fantastic play was off a missed LBJ mid-range jumper; J.J. was fully extended coming across the front of the rim, and put the ball up and in falling away from the basket. Coach Mike Brown seemed willing to extend his rotation a little bit tonight considering the opponent. I still think time will tell if MB extends the healthy rotation from eight to nine or ten.
The Grizzlies are incredibly young, and they make a ton of mistakes as a result. They don't seem to have a consistent rotation with a new coach in place as Lionel Hollins played 11 players in the first quarter. There is really no veteran presence on this team, and their starting lineup is inexperienced. The Grizzlies made only five threes and got to the line only 11 times, making 6 of them. They do have a bright future with O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay as their core.
The free throw disparity was incredible tonight. Amazingly, the Cavaliers had a decided advantage in a game where Joe Crawford was officiating. The Cavaliers went to the line 29 times compared to 11 trips for the Grizz. "Ego Joe" did manage to get his One-a-Day technical foul in there on Anderson Varejao for a pretty light nudge after he had already committed a foul.
This game just had the feeling that it was over at halftime. The Cavaliers held a 22-point lead at intermission, and they basically coasted through the third, giving back only two points of that lead. The 20-point advantage was enough for LeBron to sit out his second straight fourth quarter, the ninth of the season. I'm not saying the Cavaliers did anything wrong, but they just didn't put the exclamation point on this one like they could have.
goes to: Daniel "Boobie" Gibson. The Gibson of old made an appearance tonight as Boobie shot 8-of-14 from the field and added 3 rebounds, an assist, and a steal.
Team Grade: A
I think this is where the Cavaliers get their A back from the other night. J.V. rightly took the top grade away from them, but on this coin-flip-esque night, I'm going to make an executive decision to give them the benefit of the doubt in this one. The Cavaliers owned the boards 42-33, and they had 24 assists on 31 field goals. Of those 24 assists, LeBron had eight and Mo Williams and Wally Szczerbiak each added six assists. Only one player, Mo Williams, had over 30 minutes, and the Cavaliers coasted to a 15-point win. They held the Grizzlies to 20 points or less in the first three quarters. It was an all-around solid effort.
One final note, J.V. and I were talking the other night about the Cavaliers not making a move and buyout possibilities, and we came up with a pretty reassuring statement. "Why rob the bank when you have a key to the vault?" This team is well on its way to be the best regular season team in franchise history. They were so close the last two seasons, and that was with far less help for LBJ. This team has great chemistry and an amazing advantage at home. If they can get the best record, I don't see anyone stopping them. So, we may just look back and be glad the Cavs held onto Wally's contract and did not make any earth-shattering moves to alter their chemistry.
The Cavaliers head to the Lone Star State for a back-to-back with the Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs. J.V. will bring you coverage of the Rockets game on Thursday night, and I will be back in action on Friday for the Spurs.
Get PuMped!
Kirk