No Blackout: Browns Game Will Be Televised!
December 4, 2009While We’re Waiting – Return of the Puppets, Kory Wiita, LeBron not being PC, OSU jerseys
December 5, 2009
Chicago Bulls (7-9) vs
Cleveland Cavaliers (13-5)
Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, OH
Friday, December 4, 2009
8:00 PM EST
ESPN/FSOH, WTAM
A tale of two teams. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Wait a minute, strike that. Reverse it. Whatever the case may be, the Cavaliers have endured their growing pains and early struggles and are starting to put things together. The offense has been moving the ball well again and the defense has started to pick up some intensity as well. Shaq is still somewhat of a work in progress, but we’re beginning to see Delonte West start to look like the player he was last year. 2 games is too small of a sample to be a proper microcosm of a season, but the feeling about this team right now is better, DNP-Gate not withstanding. Tonight, the Cavaliers seek revenge on the Bulls and look to keep the momentum going.
Projected Starting Lineups
Chicago Bulls:
-G Derrick Rose (15.8 ppg, 5.3 apg, 1.0 spg, 14.84 PER)
-G John Salmons (14.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.6 apg, 12.62 PER)
-F Luol Deng (18.1 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 1.6 apg, 17.63 PER)
-F Taj Gibson (7.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.1 bpg, 11.16 PER)
-C Joakim Noah (11.2 ppg, 12.2 rpg, 1.7 bpg, 17.95 PER)
Key Reserves: Brad Miller, Jannero Pargo, Aaron Gray, Lindsey Hunter
Injuries: Tyrus Thomas (out), Kirk Hinrich (out), James Johnson (out), Jannero Pargo (probable), Aaron Gray (probable)
Cleveland Cavaliers:
-G Mo Williams (17.4 ppg, 4.6 apg, 1.2 spg, 16.23 PER)
-G Anthony Parker (8.4 ppg, 1.7 apg, .508 3P%, 9.93 PER)
-F LeBron James (28.2 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 8.1 apg, 30.15 PER)
-F JJ Hickson (7.9 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 0.3 bpg, 13.71 PER)
-C Shaquille O’Neal (11.2 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 1.3 bpg, 15.73 PER)
Key Reserves: Anderson Varejao, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Daniel Gibson, Delonte West, Jamario Moon
Injuries: Leon Powe (out)
Team Efficiency Stats
Chicago Bulls:
-Off (91.4 ppg, 42.9 rpg, .435 FG%, 19.8 apg, 14.6 TOpg, Eff-97.9, Rank-27)
-Def (96.8 ppg, 43.7 rpg, .453 FG%, Eff-102.6, Rank-11)
Cleveland Cavaliers:
-Off (99.5 ppg, 40.6 rpg, .478 FG%, 21.2 apg, 14.1 TOpg, Eff-106.8, Rank-9)
-Def (94.3 ppg, 39.6 rpg, .441 FG%, Eff-100.3, Rank-5)
Previous Matchups
- Chicago 86 at Cleveland 85 – 11/05/09 [box]
Future Matchups
- Fri, Mar 19 at Chicago
- Thu, Apr 8 at Chicago
Game Notes
Whereas last season the Cavaliers took care of business against the weaker teams but sometimes struggled a bit with the elite teams, this year the Cavaliers are doing the opposite it seems. They have played some of their best games this year against the elite teams, but they have allowed the weaker teams to lull them to sleep. This plays quite nicely into the Bulls’ hands. It also happens to be the Bulls’ best chance in this game.
Facing a whole mess of injuries, the Bulls are extremely short handed and will need to rely more on their starters. Amongst their starters they have 2 solid players (Deng and Noah), 1 inconsistent rookie (Gibson), and 2 seriously struggling players (Rose and Salmons). After a remarkable rookie year, we’re seeing Derrick Rose come back to earth a bit. He’s down a whole assists from last year’s average, although a good part of that could be Salmons.
When Brad Miller and John Salmons were traded from Sacramento to Chicago last year, they really seemed to breathe some invigorating life into the Bulls. But now, without the instant scoring machine Ben Gordon coming off their bench, the Bulls are lacking a consistent half court threat on offense. Salmons was supposed to shoulder some of that load, but his numbers are down across the board and his shooting numbers are downright frightening in how bad they are by his own standards.
There was some hope, too, that Rose would carry some of the load in the place of Gordon, but it’s just not happening right now. It’s not like he’s been terrible or anything like that, but his signature burst off his first step is seriously lacking this year and his confidence looks shaken. When the Cavaliers played the Bulls last time, they did not have a fully functioning Delonte West to help with Rose, and he put up 14 pts and 11 assists. This time around, the Cavaliers will ideally be able to use West a little more on Rose, and let Williams and Gibson take turns on Salmons, whose size advantage is mitigated by his shooting woes.
On offense, ideally the Cavaliers will continue to selectively break out and run a bit more, and keep the beautiful ball movement going. Watching this team pass the ball all over the court these last 2 games has been like watching poetry in motion. Michael Malone is showing us that John Kuester wasn’t the only guy on the staff who understands how an offense should work, and he deserves a lot of credit for getting the Cavaliers back on track.
Having Aaron Gray back is a big help for the Bulls in defending Shaq and Z. They also have Noah, who is a crafty defender. It will be interesting to see how the Bulls defend JJ Hickson. Last time out, Taj Gibson by far outshined Hickson, but it was after that Bulls game that Hickson moved into the starting lineup and started to become the player he’s been the last few weeks. We’ll see if JJ can make a statement in this one.
In general, this is a home game for the Cavaliers, and I think their depth will end up being the difference. Earlier this season I blasted Mike Brown for how atrocious his rotations were and how he was essentially using a 7 player rotation. To his credit, other than snubbing one of this franchise’s greatest players on his big night (sorry, MB, I’m carrying this grudge for awhile) his rotations and substitution patterns have dramatically improved. The Cavaliers currently have 10 players averaging over 18 minutes per game, which means Mike Brown is finally figuring out how to use his depth as an advantage. I realize the word “finally” sounds like a dig, but in all seriousness, these things really do take time. He’s getting things worked out, and the Cavaliers are playing much improved. It’s that depth that should give them their biggest advantage tonight in this game.
Vegas Line
Cleveland –12.5
Over/Under 189.5
From The Outside Looking In
Blog A Bull
Pippen Ain’t Easy
Tremendous Upside Potential
Thank You Isiah
Next Game For The Cavaliers
Sunday, December 6, 2009
3:00 PM EST
Cleveland Cavaliers at Milwaukee Bucks
FSOH/WTAM
22 Comments
Wake up. Grab a brush and put a little makeup.
Don’t eat the fish!
I actually like the fact that the Cavs are playing better against the stronger teams and worse against the weaker ones. As you pointed out, the Cavs cleaned up on the weak opponents last year and their record reflected it. However, those weak teams aren’t there in the playoffs. I really do believe that this year’s team matches up much better against the good teams than last year’s did. That bodes well for the playoffs, which is all that matters.
If I remember correctly, Hinrich had a heck of a game the first time around, amd Hickson was brutally blocked by Thomas. Those may end up being pretty big losses for CHI.
I mean Heiny and TT are two of the top 7 players in their rotation. Obviously they are big losses. Their record hasn’t exactly been stellar without them, especially Thomas.
I dig the new site. But the floating web ads are new and somewhat annoying when I try to click on the moving X. But hey, whatever it takes to keep this site funded I’m ok with.
RE: Cavs. Mo Williams is quietly having a better year than last. I’d have to say he is the most indespensible (sp?) Cav aside from LBJ. Anyone agree?
Han, I know this sounds silly. But if we want to reward the Kobe-Bron muppeteers, then you have to think Shaq is the most indispensable. An injury to Shaq would kill us. We are tough for Orlando to handle as long as we have Shaq.
Jack, I get that and I’m all about the muppets. But as far as the flow of the team, and how often Mo kills em’ from the outside, I still say he is more important. We can always trade away Shaq (or Z) as an expiring contract to get some thug to hack away at Howard. Yes, O’Neal may have Howard’s number, but I would hope we are not basing our postseason and title hopes on Shaq stopping Howard. Think about the Lakers. And if you want smiley faces on a sock that looks like MO, I’ll get ‘er done.
Kill ’em with kindness!
/Steve Brule’d
Yup…Denny has it about right: Steve Brule’d. I think he’s been drinking the same drink all day since yesterday so it all makes sense to me. MO puppet and Chewbacca Avatar forthcoming tomorrow. Go Columbus Crew!!
Sheesh what has happened to this site….
I cant believe the Bulls are getting all worked up about the dancing? Come on. Guys are just having fun. I love the enthusiasm. I really dont think the Cavs and LBJ are trying to show anyone up. Am I wrong?
@ Mark – I’m not a fan of the dancing. Then again, I don’t like gambling, smoking, booze, or women’s rights either. Seriously though, I could do without the dancing. Seems a bit much. I like what Noah did, because he straight called LeBron out and told him his dance was ‘so lame’. That makes me laugh.
i don’t know how noah thinks he has the right to criticize.
he’s the one who screams like an animal after making layups
and if he doesn’t like it so much he should try beating the cavs. they don’t dance around when they are losing
Agreed…the dancing needs to stop…just fricking play and take care of business. I actually like Noah, and don’t blame him or the Bulls at all for taking exception. I know I would be pissed as a Cav fan if I saw Kobe or Dwight Howard tap dancing on the sidelines and they were killin’ us. I don’t get Lebron sometimes.
Uggghhh, really? You like Noah? If he were winning he’d be dancing. Dude talks more smack then anyone in the league, did so in college as well. It’s dancing, black people do it from time to time, you should try it it’s fun.
“black people do it from time to time”
Yikes! That’s gotta be a violation of the commenting policy!
As long as we win, I’ll watch Z do the Cleveland shuffle for all I care!
Oh cmon now…if Noah was on the Cavs you would like him as much as we do AV. You do know that the rest of the league outside Cleveland cannot stand Andy V? And yet we all here love him for what he is. I sense the same with Noah. Sorry, but I do think he had a legit beef with Lebron dancing like a piroette (sp?) on the sidelines. I’da smacked him myself if I was on the losing team. It was uncalled for and somewhat classless in IMHO. Up by 10 or 20, just finish it. No need for steps.
I for one can’t stand AV’s antics–I was hoping we’d turn him via trade into someone who has a more complete game. His flops irritate me to no end. That being said, Joanne Noah makes AV look like Wilt by comparison. She is welcome to have beef with LBJ, but how about saying/doing something about it when you’re actually IN THE GAME, not sitting in warmups on the bench. If you don’t want the other team dancing and enjoying themselves, maybe you should stop them. Much like the C’s crying over the bench dance last season (but being ok with KG’s constant histrionics), the Bulls need to get over it.
i dont’ see andy flopping that much anymore. maybe its just me being biased but I just don’t see it.
and I don’t see how it is any worse than dwade or paul pierce feigning contact everytime they drive to the hoop
I wrote about this more in my recap, which will be up at noon, but here’s my take – I like what Noah did because he straight up said it during the game, from the bench. It’s not like he did so after the game to the media (hi, Boston). He straight up called LeBron out, and that takes some gumption. I’ve got no problem with it.
And white people dance too from time to time – haven’t you guys seen Footloose?
Also, have you guys seen the caption about Andy in the Cavs/Bulls writeup on the PD’s site? ‘The Cavs’ Anderson Varejao, center, hits Bulls Joakim Noah with his face while fighting for a rebound.’ That’s funny right thurr.
Totally agree B-bo and here’s the thing – I can’t recall LeBron ever dancing around like that during an away game (not counting celebrating after made shots that lead to the other team taking a time out – everybody does that). If he did I’d take issue with it, but when the Cavs are at home playing in front of paying Cavs fans there’s nothing wrong with their antics. Let’s not forget it’s a game folks! It’s paid entertainment. It’s not like LeBron was doing that dance to the Bulls’ bench. He was doing it in front of the fans or on while on the Cavs’ bench.
And to me Noah calling him out while parked on the bench in the middle of LeBron shooting a free throw is as much a b…h move as Noah made the dancing out to be. If it was such a big deal why did none of the Bulls players who were out on the floor get in LeBron’s face? Why was Noah the only Bull who seemed to take issue? Maybe it was because LeBron took it to him quite a few times during the game and Noah had no answer with his play…