And It Starts…
May 14, 2008Live Blog: Eastern Conference Semis Game Five
May 14, 2008This question has been brought up several times recently: Will Zydrunas Ilgauskas have his jersey retired when his career is over? I’ve always thought the question was interesting and worth looking into a little deeper.
Statistical analysis in sports is definitely a popular trend in the blogosphere. It has given bloggers, writers, and even some front office members valuable tools to compare players and to find ways to measure the intangibles (yes, I realize that’s an oxymoron). So I was fascinated when I saw TrueHoop’s Wednesday Bullets today and found a link to a GREAT post on Blazer’s Edge. Basically, Ben from Blazer’s Edge created a basic “formula”, if you will, to determine whether or not a player deserves to have his jersey retired. So I thought, hey, lets have some fun as we wait for tonight’s game to tipoff and look at whether or not Big Z deserves to have his jersey hang from the Q when he’s done.
Criterion #1) Connection With The Franchise
This one is probably the most straight forward criterion. Ben writes,
“To determine how closely a player is connected with a franchise, one generally assesses 4 conditions:
1) Did the player play his most important years with the team?
2) Did the player play the majority of his career with the team?
3) Was the player drafted by the team?
4) Did the player retire with the team?
I awarded 5 points for players who met all 4 of the above conditions, 4 points for those who met 3 of the conditions and 3 points for those who met 2 of the conditions.”
Simple enough. For #1, the answer is yes. Some might argue Z was injured for his most important years, but I think you could also argue that these last 3 playoff runs have been the most important years. Either way, he’s always been with the Cavaliers, so we’re checking yes for this one. For #2, the answer is yes. For #3, the answer is yes. For #4, we don’t know for sure yet, but I’m going to assume he does, indeed, retire in Cleveland. So we’ll give him a yes. Four “yes” responses means he gets 5 points for this category.
Criterion #2) Success With The Franchise
Ok, another somewhat straight forward one.
“Ask yourself, “Can the story of the franchise’s glory days be told without mentioning this player?”
To weigh both the team’s success and the player’s role in that sucess, I gave 5 points to a star on a championship team, 5 points to a starter on championship team, 5 points to a star on a finalist team, 4 points to a role player on a finalist team and 4 points to a starter on a finalist team. I gave 2 courtesy points to Geoff Petrie as he was traded for Maurice Lucas and therefore missed out on the winning.”
For this one, you really have to look at what Z did in the playoffs last year when the Cavaliers made their run to the Finals. I don’t think anyone in their right mind could say that without Z in the middle the Cavs would have still made the Finals. Z averaged a solid, but not spectacular, 12.6 points and 9.7 rebounds per game in the postseason last year. However, in the NBA Finals, he only averaged 7.8 points per game. I don’t think we could say Z has been a star in the playoffs in his career, but he’s been very, very close and was frequently the 2nd best player on the team. I can’t quite give him 5 points in this category, but I can comfortably give him 4 points in this one.
Criterion #3) Statistical Body Of Work
Now we start getting a little more vague and subjective.
“Ask yourself, “How dominant (and for how long) was this player?”
In assigning the points in this category, I took into account: league-leading tallies, franchise/league records, double-doubles, 10+ year careers, and anything else that truly jumps out of the box score/ stat sheet.”
For Z’s career, he averaged 14.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game while shooting 47.7% from the field. Furthermore, when you look at where he ranks in franchise history, you really see his worth to the team. He is currently 4th in games played, 5th in minutes played, 5th in field goals, 3rd in free throws, 1st in offensive rebounds, 2nd in total rebounds, 2nd in blocks, and 6th in points. His name is all over the Cavaliers career leaderboard. So for this reason, I have to give Z 5 points in this category.
Criterion #4) Individual Awards
This one is probably Z’s weakest category.
“Ask, “What are the standout individual achievements on this player’s resume and how do they compare to other franchise greats?”
Assigning points here was simple: the more individual achievements, the more points earned out of 5. Achievements taken into consideration include: all-star appearances; end of season awards (MVP, All-NBA first team, etc.); franchise records.”
I really went back and forth between 3 and 4 points for this one. Z has been to two all-star games and was NBA All-Rookie First Team. Other than that, though, Z hasn’t won any individual awards or been in the voting for any individual awards. He led the league in Offensive Rebounding one season. Going to multiple All-Star games with Cleveland is impressive for this franchise, but not by the standards of most other franchises. So in the end, I had to go with just 3 points in this category.
Criterion #5) The Intangibles
One last category to tie up any loose ends.
“Ask yourself, “Is the player a credit to the organization, the city and the league?”
In assigning points, I included achievements such as being a: founding member; local legend; fan favorites; playoff hero; active Portland community member; a coach or front office member for the Blazers or in the NBA as a whole.”
If this one doesn’t scream “FIVE POINTS” to you, then you simply haven’t been paying attention to Z’s career in Cleveland. The franchise stuck with the guy through his injuries to his feet early in his career, and thus a symbiotic relationship of respect and loyalty was born between both Z and the franchise as well as with Z and the city of Cleveland. He’s been the one constant on this team for as long as most of us care to remember. He’s been a fan favorite, is extremely active in the community, and he is completely identifiable with this franchise. As much as LeBron has certainly, and justifiably so, taken on the spotlight, it’s still not easy to forget what Z has meant to the Cavaliers for the entirety of his 10 years in the NBA. No question I’m giving Z 5 points on this one.
Summing Up The Points
- Criterion 1 – 5 Points
- Criterion 2 – 4 Points
- Criterion 3 – 5 Points
- Criterion 4 – 3 Points
- Criterion 5 – 5 Points
- TOTAL – 22 Points
Conclusions
Here’s how Ben breaks down the totals,
“Clearly there are two groups: 1) Those at or above 20 points and 2) those below 20 points.”
And by that standard of measurement, as of right now, Zydrunas Ilgauskas is easily in the 20+ points category, which means that by this formula, Z should without question have his jersey retired when he walks away from basketball.
I would have to agree with this. Zydrunas has been an important member of the Cavaliers for a decade now. He provided hope to a franchise so down and desperate for stars after the devastating losses of Brad Daugherty and Mark Price. Z has represented the franchise with class and dignity. He has never embarrassed himself or the team, his teammates love him, and the fans love him. I would be happy to see the name Ilgauskas hanging from the rafters of the Q when he retires, but I’ll turn it over to you readers now. What are your thoughts? Do you agree with this? Do you think Z should have his jersey retired, or are we stretching this a bit because of the lack of true superstars in the history of this franchise?
16 Comments
[Nodding and smiling]
Excellent work. I have no doubt that he’ll be up there… I just hope it’s next to a banner that has a trophy on it.
Amen to that.
Nice read…..I think the fact that the Cavs tracked Z down in airport shows his importance to the team.
I hope that Lebron is in the Cavs starting lneup when they retire Z’s jersey. 🙂
I’m not a Cavaliers fan, but I think Z has earned that recognition.
Hard to argue with anything you have written there. I think the criteria for the Cavs as far as retiring players numbers are different than some other teams like maybe the Celtics, simply because we don’t have the history of championships (or a championship) that other teams may have. That said, Z definitely has been important to this franchise and when we think back on these past few years, after Lebron the player we will all remember is Z and no one comes even close
I brought it up in the Game 3 blog, and I definitely think Z deserves to have his number retire. To stick with this team after so many troubles and horrible years is a testament to the guy. And now that the team is turning into a real yearly contender, Z is becoming a solid #2 option next to LeBron. 100% YES they should retire his number.
Its such a great number, but there is no doubt whatsoever. Z has earned this honor.
He absolutely gets his number retired. Who was the first person LeBron hugged after knocking off the Pistons last year? That’s right: Big Z.
There is no doubt that Z should have his number retired.
Again, with all of you guys on this one
I think the one reason he gets in is due to his presence throught the good years and bad, and how he’s been able to establish himself as a 2nd option so well with LeBron
I think it is well earned, and one of my greatest hopes. I never really followed the Cavs until LeBron came along, but I immediatly feel in love with Z. I’m wearing #11 right now. Such class, determination, and love for the community.
I agree…hang em’ up. The guy could have easily retired years ago due to all the injuries and nobody would have blamed him. He’s busted his ass for this franchise and he actually likes it here.
Any chance we’re going to get a blow-out piece analyzing the other Cavalier numbers which have been retired to see how they rate in comparison to Z, and each other?
Could also be fun to throw some other recent Cavaliers with a chance to have their numbers retired to see how they stack up, like Shawn Kemp, Ricky Davis, Dajuan Wagner, Luke Jackson, and Z’s draft mate Vitaly Potopenko
Z is an absolute “no-brainer”….if Nate Thurmond is retired after having a cup of coffee with the Cavs, then Z is definitely “in”…I would argue that Hot Rod Williams has a legit case to make as well—again, if Thurmond and Bingo Smith are retired, HRW’s name is all over the top 5 of any major statistical category for the team history…
[…] a father, Ilgauskas will have to balance family with basketball. But while the debate on if the team should retire his jersey upon career completion will debate until the decision is made, there is no denying the impact that […]
It is funny how nobody wanted z in cleveland as little as four years ago and now everybody loves the guy.