Everything is ok!!! As in everything possible in OKC - from LeBron scoring and munching on a french fry, to Mo deep frying the thunder from 48 feet!!! That's the official long distance dialed (snap, I missed by a foot). Mike Brown joked that it must be the halfcourt shooting coach (himself) who deserves the credit for Mo gunning and getting that 3 to beat the shot clock and essentially steal the Thunder on this night.
LBJ couldn't pass up the smell of some hot fries, as his momentum carried him into the front row of seats behind the hoop. I wonder if that will be considered excessive celebration too by some in the Windy City? Or was his 44 point smorgasbord enough food for thought on this night. The King had it going again, especially from distance, hitting 5 out of 8.
But two of them strung together would be just shy of MoGotti's heave. It wasn't quite as far as Mo's 67 footer he drilled against Orlando during Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, but a spectacular shot none the less, that had this reporter out of his seat.
How about that bench...4 straight games of 40 plus points and not only because of blowouts. The reserves are making their own impact.
This time against the Bucks, it was Delonte's mesmerizing run of 14-0 by himself...he was dealin' and getting where he wanted, and how he wanted to get there.
Mike Brown also singled out Anderson for his usual work...his rebounding activity was again sensational. It's amazing how that one move, putting Andy back to his 6th man role, has balanced out this team, allowing J.J. to emerge as a piece, as a starter.
A quarter of the season is already in the books, and the Cavs are on a 60+ win pace, and still have plenty of room to grow.
It's on to Memphis and the first chance to actually hold a practice on the road.
Chicago rolls into town, already tired of lugging their bags since they played just one home game after their annual "circus trip" which saw them go 1-5. Still, they are in 7th place in the East, despite some injuries to Tyrus Thomas and Kirk Hinrich. Joakim Noah comes in as the #2 rebounder in the NBA at over 12 a game, a major jump for him. As Mike Brown said, Noah has figured it out, playing with confidence, knowing he can do the job. I always love watching Anderson and Noah mixing it up because of their similarity in styles.
The Cavs are back to rebounding the ball better and it's no coincidence Shaq's return has fueled it. With The Big Witness Protection in the lineup, the Cavs are +4 on the total rebounding side, and in the 6 games he sat out, the Cavs were out rebounded by 5 a night. As Mike says Shaq's presence is a huge factor here, not only the rebounds he gets (7 a game) but the ones he effects by taking up so much space.
It gets busy now with 13 games over 22 days through Christmas Day. So, you've only got 9 Non-Cavs shopping days left!
The guys are ready to run off their turkey, stuffing and everything else consumed at the Gilbert residence, as the Thanksgiving on the road was a huge success. So much food in fact, that deserts were difficult to squeeze in (Are you kidding me?? -No, I'm not). It was that good.
Shaq finished his meal in time to then become server, as he waited on his teammates who had not yet sat down to feast (not sure how his tips were??).
The day included a little Lions/Packers viewing of course. I'm sure Mo had to stick up for the Pack since he spent four years in Wisconsin. You get these guys together and eventually competition creeps in and in this case, it was on to the ping-pong table, or (table tennis as I had to refer to it in play-by-play assignments). Jamario against AP...spirited back and forth they went...both claiming victory of course.
LeBron then took on J.J. in some Madden football. LBJ brought his video "A" game as his protégé found out. No contest!
At shootaround, the 2nd team always faces the "Wine" team in shooting games. At one stage they changed ends, the "White" shirts took the lead, to Z's joy, he said "Hey, it's black Friday!", meaning an upset in the making. But LeBron and the gang pulled it out, for more bragging rights.
See you on the broadcast on FOX Sports Ohio at 6:30 p.m.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009, 02:21 PM EST
[General]
It's a Thanksgiving Holiday, Michigan style for the Cavs, with the Pistons tonight, and a team dinner at the home of Dan and Jennifer Gilbert on Turkey Day.
This game will feature a different style meeting than in years past. The Pistons will no longer try to grind it out, although new coach, John Kuester has emphasized defense, and the Pistons have responded by allowing under 95 points a game, which is 6th best in the NBA.
The guys from the Motor City have lost 5 in a row, 4 of them on a nasty road trip of Los Angeles (Lakers), Portland, Utah, and Phoenix. But this team is better than that, and I think will make the playoffs, once Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince get healthy.
Rookie, Jonas Jerebko, the first Swedish player to play in the NBA draws the assignment of LeBron James. He's 6-10, athletic and hard nosed...so, LBJ will be a good test for him tonight..
Everything is ok!!! As in everything possible in OKC - from LeBron scoring and munching on a french fry, to Mo deep frying the thunder from 48 feet!!! That's the official long distance dialed (snap, I missed by a foot). Mike Brown joked that it must be the halfcourt shooting coach (himself) who deserves the credit for Mo gunning and getting that 3 to beat the shot clock and essentially steal the Thunder on this night.
