Wednesday, February 27, 2008

In the Mix

Hey, everyone! AC, checking in from Boston! What’s happening?

Tough loss last night, but what can you do about a guy hitting a 30-footer at the buzzer. You tip your hat to the Bucks and move on, especially with such a critical game against Boston.

Well, like most of you, I really like the big trade. Granted, you become attached to guys like Larry and Drew because you spend so much time with them and you’re in the trenches and the wars with them. But I like the trade because it brings us guys who have a little more focus on the day-to-day reality of getting the job done.

You can go down the list …

Ben Wallace being here puts him back at his normal position. Playing power forward away from the center position is where he had all his success years ago. So I think that’s going to be a big plus. On top of that, he’s a no-nonsense kind of guy and that will carry over to our other bigs as far as how they prepare for games.

And I really believe that once Ben gets familiar with what the team is like – everybody’s personality, and so forth – that he will pretty much become the team’s leader, along with LeBron.

Ben will play the role of enforcer, but it’s not like it used to be. When I played, you had to have a guy was a true enforcer. Now, you just need a guy who looks like it and acts like it. Because you’re not going to get kicked out of the game. And Ben has that aura about him. So that’s a good thing for teams to see; those who are intending to beat LeBron up, anyway.

That toughness is going to permeate through the whole team, because everybody’s going to follow his lead. We NEEDED somebody that was going to bring that type of attitude to the game, because everybody else is going to follow behind him.

LeBron was starting to bring it on, but LeBron is like the “glamour guy.” We needed somebody who was in the trenches. And now we have it.

Ben’s presence will free Z up most of the time, because you don’t have to worry about Ben covering up the backside. So now Z can take a few more chances and get involved in plays because he’ll have somebody on the backside defense who is going to be there, and excels in that respect.

And on offense, Z will get more shots facing the basket because Ben is a post-up guy – jump-shooting is where he struggles. He won’t have to worry about that too much here.

Joe Smith is just a quality big man who plays hard every night – and he brings it. He’s the type of guy who every team wants. I don’t really understand how he’s been on so many teams throughout his career.

He’s a solid player, a solid person. And he’s the kind of guy who has your back when you’re out there. He loves that baseline and elbow shot and with LeBron, he’s going to get a lot of them.

Now, as far as the frontline, Coach Brown has to figure some things out.

You’re not going to make everybody happy, but that’s a good thing, because it’s positive competition. That’s how you get your team better. But initially, he’s going to have a tough time figuring out how to play these guys. The best thing about all this, is that we should be able to still win ballgames while we figure this out.

With guys competing for minutes, you’re pretty much guaranteed to get a quality effort every night. Mike Brown can easily say: ‘If you’re not going to give me big effort, come next to me and I’ll find somebody who will.’

Wally had a rough shooting night in Milwaukee, but he brings us consistent shooting from the outside, especially on the opposite side of LeBron.

And because Coach Brown stresses defense, his work on the defensive end should get better, because the only thing he has to worry about is getting beat off the dribble. Most of the defensive stuff we do is not one-on-one. So, if he could just shore up his one-on-one defense – even though he’s not going to be asked to do it a lot – then he’ll be able to fit in on the defensive end.

On the offensive end, he should have a ball. Because, again, they all want shots with just one man to beat. He’ll be getting open looks he hasn’t gotten in five years. He’s going to have a good time.

And of course, I really like Delonte West. He makes quick decisions. And what I like about him – he wants to penetrate. He wants to get into the teeth of the defense and he’s looking to pass first. He can shoot it. He’s not a bad shooter, although he struggled on Sunday.

Delonte played well when he started with the Celtics, but he got lost out in Seattle. I really think he’s going to be a solid player in this league for a long time. And I think he’ll be our point guard of the future.

A lot of the pundits do not believe that the trade is going to help us. I personally think it will. Those writers and so-called experts are not with us every day and they don’t see what’s going on.

This is going to make us a much tougher team – a team that’s going to give you a certain type of effort every night. And if you do that, you have a great chance of winning in this league. We have skilled guys. Some may be one-dimensional, but they have skills that we need. We’re a better perimeter team right away, for example. And those are the types of things that you have to have.

Our interior is going to get better once these guys understand how to play together. We didn’t have anybody of Joe Smith’s ability coming off the bench. Now we have a guy coming off the bench who could actually be a starter, and he’s having one of his best years in a pretty good 12-year career.

I think with this move that we’re in the mix with Detroit and Boston now. They may not think so, but they’ll find out when we get our whole team healthy on the floor. With these guys in the lineup – not even considering Boobie and Sasha – any combination of these guys on the floor with LeBron, will be extremely tough.

2 comments:

Derek D. Sec. 230 Row 1 said...

WOW 5:15 AM!!?? Let me guess, you wrote this after your morning jog? LOL! I see some real good things with this new team. Early in the Bucks game when nobody could drive the lane against us with Andy and Ben in the paint. Things will get better soon! I saw Wally trying too hard. That will change. LeBron has to show the new guys that this is his team and they're here to "HELP"! See you Thursday on the Cavs court for the fantasy game!! Go Cavs!!
Derek D.

Unknown said...

Austin,

With your dedication to the Cavaliers, have you ever thought about coaching? I think you would be an awesome coach. Your vast experiences and having been a team member in the pass, would make you a "slam dunk" for the position.