LaPorta’s Health and Bargain Basement Free Agents
February 11, 2010While We’re Waiting… NBA Trade Deadline, Late-Round QBs, and Kid Griffin to OSU
February 12, 2010Orlando Magic (36-17) vs
Cleveland Cavaliers (42-11)
Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, OH
Thursday, February 11, 2010
8:00 PM EST
TNT/WTAM
Well, it was certainly fun while it lasted. This extended home stand will be ending shortly, but what is already over is the stretch of playing mediocre teams. Tonight begins a stretch of games against Orlando, Denver, at Charlotte, at Orlando, New Orleans, at Boston, and at Toronto to close out the month of February. The Magic struggled for a while earlier this year after their blazing hot start, but they’re beginning to get the heat back as they have begun to play some really great basketball. Delonte West will be a gametime decision, although Brian Windhorst seems to think there are some indications he will play, which makes me think he will. It would be nice if he could, because Orlando is a team that will flat out punish you if you’re not tough on your perimeter defense against them. This is going to be a great test tonight to see where this Cavaliers team really stands.
Projected Starting Lineups
Orlando Magic:
-G Jameer Nelson (11.6 ppg, 4.8 apg, 0.8 spg, 13.94 PER)
-G Vince Carter (16.5 ppg, 2.8 apg, .337 3P%, 15.90 PER)
-F Matt Barnes (8.5 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 1.7 apg, 12.85 PER)
-F Rashard Lewis (14.9 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 0.4 bpg, 14.60 PER)
-C Dwight Howard (17.9 ppg, 13.4 rpg, 2.7 bpg, 23.14 PER)
Key Reserves: Mickael Pietrus, JJ Redick, Jason Williams, Ryan Anderson, Anthony Johnson, Marcin Gortat, Brandon Bass
Injuries: None
Cleveland Cavaliers:
-G Daniel Gibson (6.9 ppg, 1.3 apg, 0.5 spg, 11.44 PER)
-G Anthony Parker (7.1 ppg, 1.6 apg, .449 3P%, 9.20 PER)
-F LeBron James (29.8 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 8.2 apg, 31.62 PER)
-F JJ Hickson (7.2 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 0.4 bpg, 14.08 PER)
-C Shaquille O’Neal (11.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 1.2 bpg, 18.30 PER)
Key Reserves: Anderson Varejao, Delonte West, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Jamario Moon, Jawad Williams
Injuries: Mo Williams (out), Delonte West (gametime decision), Leon Powe (out)
Team Efficiency Stats
Orlando Magic:
-Off (101.0 ppg, 43.4 rpg, .457 FG%, 18.9 apg, 14.5 TOpg, Eff-106.7, Rank-8)
-Def (95.7 ppg, 41.0 rpg, .437 FG%, Eff-99.4, Rank-2)
Cleveland Cavaliers:
-Off (101.4 ppg, 42.3 rpg, .487 FG%, 21.6 apg, 14.7 TOpg, Eff-108.7, Rank-4)
-Def (94.0 ppg, 38.0 rpg, .433 FG%, Eff-100.1, Rank-5)
Previous Matchups
- Cleveland 102 at Orlando 93 – 11/11/2009 [box]
Future Matchups
- Sun, Feb 21 at Orlando
- Sun, Apr 11 at Cleveland
Game Notes
Allow me to reiterate. Tonight we will learn an awful lot about where the Cavaliers really are as a team. There’s been a common sentiment running rampant that because the Cavs are playing so well against the elite teams this year that clearly the Cavs are the team to beat in the East. The thing is, the Cavs played Boston on opening night and lost, and the Cavs played Orlando in the 8th game of the season. We learned nothing about the Cavs from those 2 games, either positive or negative. Tonight we stand to learn a lot more.
When these 2 teams played last time, Orlando was still without Rashard Lewis and their defense was a mess adjusting to Vince Carter in the starting lineup. Both of those issues have been resolved. Lewis is back and resuming his role as one of the biggest matchup nightmares in the NBA, and the Magic are beginning to find their rhythm with Vince Carter a bit. As a result, their defense has been phenomenal lately and they will likely make things tough on Cleveland tonight.
When these 2 teams played last time, the Cavaliers relied on 28 points (on 4-5 shooting from 3) from Mo Williams to win. They are not going to be able to replace that. The Cavaliers are going to need a couple different guys step up in this one. The Magic are one of the few teams as deep as Cleveland is, and some people make a fair argument that Orlando is the deepest team in the NBA. When you combine that depth off the bench with the 4 guys in their starting lineup averaging double digits in scoring, and you begin to realize that Orlando is not a team to be so condescendingly disregarded. These guys are a serious threat to the Cavaliers.
I watched the Magic completely dismantle the Bulls last night, which was unfortunate because the Cavs big advantage was going to be they were playing a tired Magic team. However, because of said blowout, the Magic got to rest most of their starters. Cleveland will still be the more rested team, but that advantage has been somewhat neutralized. So we’re back to a shorthanded Cavaliers team who could really use Mo and Delonte tonight.
Enough with the doom and gloom, though. I just want everyone to realize the Cavs are playing a great basketball team and we should all take that very seriously. If the Cavaliers can continue their winning streak tonight even without their 2 best guards, I will be greatly encouraged. So what must the Cavs do to beat the Magic?
Despite having Dwight Howard, the Magic are one of the worst teams at scoring inside the paint. This is because they are more or less a pure perimeter team that loves to either toss it inside to Howard or else shoot a 3. There’s not a ton of middle ground for Orlando. Rashard Lewis will occasionally get something going at the rim, but he still relies a lot on his outside shot. The appearance of Vince Carter has also increased their shot totals from outside, while also hurting Jameer Nelson’s performance.
In fact, in watching Orlando, the regression of Jameer Nelson is the one thing that stands out to me. Last year, before losing his season to injury, Nelson was a confident PG who was consistently looking to create his own shot as well as throwing out a respectable 5.4 apg. This year, he rarely looks to get his shot off or to create. His assists are down, his FGA are down, his 3PA are down, his 3P% is down, and his FG% is dramatically down. All of this is hurting the Magic’s offense and can potentially play into Cleveland’s hands.
The key to this game will likely come down to the battle inside with Dwight Howard. Last time out Shaq was able to get Howard into very early foul trouble and Howard was simply never a major factor after that. For all of Orlando’s ability to shoot outside (and with Lewis, Carter, Pietrus, Barnes, Redick, Anderson, etc they most certainly can will shoot from outside), the Cavaliers will still be content to let them fire away. If Vince Carter is going to beat you by hitting 19-27 from the field and scoring 48 points as he did against New Orleans the other night, then so be it. But more times than not, Vince Carter will shoot his teams out of games, and that’s going to be Cleveland’s defensive strategy. Keep Vince shooting, but defend the rest of the perimeter tightly and be physical with Dwight inside.
Offensively, the Cavaliers will have to be extremely efficient and rely on their ball movement offense. If they get stagnant, Orlando will punish them for it. Orlando is 1st in fast break points against and 2nd in points in the paint against. Much like the Cavaliers, they thrive on forcing teams to just shoot a bunch of contested outside shots. LeBron playing minutes at PG (if West is out) will create an interesting new dynamic for Orlando to deal with. Once again, a key will be guys like Andy, JJ, and Jamario moving without the ball and being ready for LeBron to set them up. You can attack Orlando’s defensive interior if you can make them move laterally by driving and having guys moving off the pick and roll toward the rim and being ready for late passes. The Cavaliers have shown they can run this kind of offense with great effectiveness when they want. The question will be whether or not they want to.
Vegas Line
Cleveland (-6.0)
Over/Under 193.5
From The Outside Looking In
Orlando Pinstriped Post (Formerly 3rd Quarter Collapse)
Orlando Magic Daily
Howard The Dunk
The Puns Are Starting To Bore Me
Birds Of A Feather
Stepien Rules
Cavs: The Blog
The Wine and Gold Rush
Random Thoughts
Next Game For The Cavaliers
Thursday, February 18, 2010
8:00 PM EST
Denver Nuggets at Cleveland Cavaliers
TNT/WTAM
225 Comments
200 IN THIS PIECE
DOUBLE DALMATIANS!! (c) DCBucks
Denny is a traitor who purposefully left a comment in the spam trap to lure me into making a false 200 claim. He is dastardly.
And getting to Matt’s point, I think that the NBA needs to be extremely careful in picking the officiating crew whenever these teams play. The way the calls inside go really decide the flow the game.
Cavs/Magic:
An unstoppable force meets an immovable obj- *GET DAT WEAK STUFF OUTTA HERE!!!!*
…Never mind. Unstoppable force continues to roll merrily along.
Vince was a -16 in the +/- tonight. Nice trade losers.
I said before the Magic made a mistake in picking up Vince. He is self serving and inconsistent.
Mark my words, the Magic WILL show you that their trade to get vince carter was no joke. We will see them again in the playoffs and i think we could win but they would take us to 7 and don’t be shocked if they sweep the Hawks or Celtics.
The magic is nothing to joke around with, i wouldn’t say anything if you guys didn’t make it sound like we just beat them in the ECFs. You guys will be amazed at the fight and heart the Magic will display come playoff time.
So don’t get to happy because the magic is a force to be reckoned with.
The Hawks and Celtics should be the least of your worries as a Cavs fan.
A tribute to the JJ!!!!!!
Role Player of the Month!
http://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=media%2Fgettyphoto%2FGYI0059553928.jpg Ahhh! The definition of a Facial
They may have heart but VC has no heart. He doesn’t care about the team. He is selfish. Hedo knew his part on the team. Vince doesnt and has no intentions on finding out.
Jaythetruth – what are you talking about? I respect the Magic. They kicked our asses last year. Thats why this was a nice win. But Carter? Come on. Vince makes them weaker, not stronger. You have to explain why he helps dispite all evidence of his play this season.
Question, will the Cavaliers sweep the top Awards? 1. Mike Brown COTY, 2. LeBron MVP, 3. Best Record, 4. Danny Ferry Exec of the Year, 5. LeBron Scoring Leader, 6. LeBron Finals MVP, 7. 2009-2010 NBA Champs, Anderson Vareajo Defensive MVP?
OBSERVE! MARK HIS WORDS!
Just hassling you, Jay. I agree that the Magic will be a threat come the playoffs. Statistically speaking, pretty much everyone is a threat, because playoffs are small sample sizes! Statistically…
Anyway, phenomenal game. I haven’t seen the Magic much if at all this year, but it looks like they are buying too much into the hype that Vince Carter is the answer in the fourth quarter. And credit Parker for sticking with Vince around screens and playing defense at the end, even if his shooting was off today.
I haven’t seen the Cavs much either. Man that was exciting to watch.
@dkh – yeah, that did have a little BOOK IT feel to it.
@Mark, you will see. This is the typical senerio for a Cleveland fan. A Nice win and your ready to throw a damn parade downtown. Its incriminating beyond human belief. Im just saying while you guys are laughing and saying how much the Magic lose this and that with out hedo, but be shocked when the same ol’ cleveland songs get to playing again.
Vince Carter hits the game winning shot in game 7 of the eastern conference finals. The last time i checked, you didn’t need heart to hit a shot. Ray allen has no heart and hes one of the clutches shooter EVER.
Im not riding the magic’s bandwagon but all im saying is they won’t lay down and die because Vince Carter’s name isn’t Hedo. You watch and see.
Anyway, good win for the cavs and i hope it continues into the second half of the season. Lebron = MVP.
*scenario
Jay why are you being so negative. We are supposed to be naively confident about our teams shot at the championship.
I love how the tail end of this thing is volleying barbs about VC. I’m in the camp that says it was a mistake to let Hedo go.
Mark: Not only did I do the dishes, but I had to SOS the reflector pans in the stove.
Out.
Jaythetruth- get outta here with that stuff, man. Why do you think this thread has so many comments? It’s because the Magic scare the crap out of us. But, the fact remains that they do not have the same match up advantages over the Cavaliers that they did last year. Not even close. And since the series last year was decided by so many very close games, I think it is safe to assume that with the matchup advantage Orlando had last year over the Cavs now gone, those close games will more likely swing the other way. The Magic are definitely one of the best teams in the East. The SECOND best one.
@boogeyman- seriously? Not even one acknowledgement throughout this excellent performance that maybe- just maybe- JJ Hickson might be worth holding on to? You’re delusional.
@Bitmatt, O.kay you win. I’ll stop and let you guys worry about the magic’s problems and laugh at their team. You win.
Goodnight.
@DKH #212- You’re right- Parker did a nice job on Carter, just like he does on most other teams’ better perimeter scorers (see Bryant, Kobe). His defense is so often overlooked. Clearly he wastes a lot of energy on that end in games against good offensive teams, because his scoring seems to suffer in all of those games. When he’s hitting threes (still one of the best in the NBA percentage-wise) it is a big bonus on top of the effort he puts in on D. Between he and Andy doing the defensive dirty work, LeBron can stay in games without worrying about foul trouble.
In the grand scheme of things, Danny Ferry gets an A+. His trade for Shaq shook up the Eastern Conference and affected the West too. It caused Boston to make a move for Sheed (making our enemy digest a poison), Detroit to take back Wallace (neutralize another enemy with an ineffective player), and Orlando to pick up Carter (will eventually cause dissent in the locker room).
Kudos to the Ferry! http://www.nba.com/media/act_danny_ferry.jpg
@bitmatt #220, and speaking of which, how about Varejao showing off his package of offensive moves today? He kept the Cavs in the game in the 2nd quarter when the Magic were raining 3s.
@jay, hey, everyone here recognizes the problems that the Magic pose for the Cavs. However, the Cavs just won a big game against them, with no obvious weaknesses on the Cavs’ part, yet also against a strong showing by the Magic, up until the last half of the fourth. The Cavs are now 2-0 against them on the season, and have a 7 game lead in the East overall.
223 comments. wow. go cavs!
Jaytruth= the new Isis
@218 bitmatt first Boogeyman thanks you for calling him delusional – class; second yes Hickson had a nice night, in the first half the last time Boogey checked their were two halves in basketball; Boogey was more impressed with Varejao but once again this game was all about LeBron James.