Should the Cavs Rest?
April 6, 2010The 5-Hole: Blue Jackets News and Notes – 4/6/10
April 6, 2010
As a follow-up to Craig’s piece this morning, there are understandably a lot of variables in place as the Cavaliers head into the final five games of the regular season. Having locked up the best record in the NBA, head coach Mike Brown understands what is at stake and the decisions that he faces.
“I don’t think there is any right answer out there,” said Brown earlier today. “There are a lot of different ways you can look at it. You can kind of take it game by game – I have a plan in mind, but it could be subject to change as we go along.”
What the plan is remains to be seen. Brown hinted that he “may” give certain players rest tonight as the Cavs host the Toronto Raptors. He also admitted to knowing who those players were, but said that he was not ready to disclose his plan just yet. Point guard Mo Williams says that the Cavs will use constant communication to decide what the future holds in terms of playing time.
“It’s hard,” said Williams. “You want to stay in a rythem. Everybody is playing tonight, I’m sure of that. But I don’t know what tomorrow will bring. At the same time, you want those injuries to heal.”
Williams said that his own injury, the rib soreness that kept him out of the fourth quarter in Sunday’s loss to Boston is “good.” He still has a little soreness, but will be a go for tonight. But how much he plays will be up to the man in charge, coach Mike Brown.
When asked if he was concerned about an Andrew Bogut-type situation happening, Brown said that he cannot hold back in fear of the worst.
“I did not watch the video, but I heard about it,” said Brown. “Knock on wood, you do not want something like that to happen to anybody – that’s tough to have to go through, for anybody to deal with. There’s nothing you can control, that same thing can happen in practice. It is a delicate balance, you have to be conscious of that stuff but you cannot base your life on it.”
For a variety of reasons, players of obvious interest are LeBron James, Anderson Varejao and Shaquille O’Neal. Brown said that his “plan” consists of a combination of resting players for full games as well as limiting the minutes of others. While there was no update on Shaquille O’Neal, and some diversion around any questions about Anderson Varejao, Coach Brown had little choice but to discuss James.
“I don’t know if there is any right answer [in regard to resting LeBron],” said Brown. “I don’t think there is any wrong answer, because he has played a lot minutes but he’s shown that even with rest he can come back and is capable of playing at a high level.”
Brown also mentioned that playing at home does not differ from playing on the road when it comes to LeBron and providing any sort of reward for home fans.
“What we have to do is think of what’s best for the team first,” said Brown. “If you start thinking about playing him [at home] when he’s still a bit banged up, I don’t know how much sense that would make for me to do that. I have to see what’s best for [LeBron] and what’s best for the team.”
Unlike many of their peers, the Cavaliers face four potential playoff teams in the final two weeks. What Brown chooses to do will not only impact his team, but it could impact the landscape of the entire Eastern Conference. Brown claims that while he has not looked at the entire playoff picture, he does have plenty of coaches and friends that keep him aware of what teams he could face in the early rounds of the post season.
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(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
23 Comments
This all seems to be common sense it’s a fine line when you boast the best record. A double edged sword if you will.
Mike isn’t completely set on his strategy because he has yet to consult with his manatees.
I like this plan. They don’t have much to play for so I understand limiting minutes or sitting whole games.
Maybe coach will to rest himself (or get tossed from every game until the playoffs). That would be a DNC.
“will to rest himself” = “will rest himself”
lol clown baby. Nice reference.
At least he doesn’t have CHEESEBURGER HANDS like some other coaches.
Poor Stan Van. No wonder he has to yell, Dwight just wants a bite of his cheeseburders.
…too many typos there, it’s the sun outside I swear.
@9 This ain’t English class who cares, we got the point. I did like cheeseburders tho, those are good! 😉
Great idea to rest the key guys…UNLESS YOU PAID FULL PRICE FOR SEASON TICKETS. You should get a refund or discount when teams do this. It’s the same thing that happens at the end of the Tribe season when there’s nothing but Triple A players out there.
Tickets to the last game cost just as much as tickets to the first game.
IT SUCKS.
Brown claims he hasn’t looked at the playoff picture yet? Are you kidding me? A head coach of a professional team has said that? I hope he was just saying that to play off concerns of playing Specific Team X in Round X and he really isn’t that ignorant.
I get that things can change and there are still games to play, but he should be able to rattle off the potential scenarios by rote each and every day as a head coach. Yes, he can look it up, but I think this bespeaks bad attention to detail and lack of preparation.
@11- so you would rather us play our best players, and have no advantage in terms of rest when the playoffs come just because you have season tickets? How about being grateful for winning so many games at home this season? Just a thought.
@ 11
Or like when you buy Browns season tickets and they are eliminated by the 3rd week.
@ The conductor – yes, because you didn’t get to watch any other games, all season. I had no sympathy for people crying about it in Indy this year, and I have no sympathy now. They’re not taking to get the best shot at John Wall – they’re resting for the playoffs, which are games that you, as a season ticket holder, have access to.
Just stop it.
Slightly OT but found this curious Lebron analogy while bouncing around the web:
In discussing MSNBC’s part-time talker David Shuster’s recent, clandestine shooting of a potential pilot show for CNN, the New York magazine muses–
“This would be kind of like LeBron James secretly practicing with the Knicks, as he does in our dreams every night, right before Heidi Klum asks us to help her pick out swimwear. The Cavaliers wouldn’t appreciate that, just as MSNBC didn’t take kindly to news of Shuster’s dalliance with a rival. ”
Appears the LeBron to NY fantasy has infiltrated even the tonier journalistic corners.
A reporter asked Brown about the home/away thing, and Brown replied that Chicago fans pay more than Cleveland fans for their tickets; so should *they* have more of a right to see LeBron?
It’s all big picture at this point. It’ll be up to the group sales people to fill in loudville, and up to guys like Danny Gibson and Denny Green to get some extra run.
I see it this way. Take it on a game by game basis. Obviously you want to keep Z playing to get his legs and conditioning back. Same with Sahq when he returns. I know Andy’s banged up, but would like to see him get some minutes in a few games before the playoffs start so he’s not winded. Play LBJ, but give him extended rest during the game. Play the snot out of Boobie, Jamrio, Powe, Hot Wad and try to get some PT for Green at the expense of Molante’s minutes.
Re: the picture of Mike Brown – I honestly and sincerly hope this was during a tiome out and just out of frame the Cavs Girls are doing the same thing. That’s how I’ll remember it anyways.
Who is Denny Green.
Denny Green is a postal worker.
He is who we thought he was.
@12 I wouldn’t be surprised in the least if the Coach of the Year hasn’t checked the standings. Heck he probably won’t even start game planning for the opening round until after the last game of the regular season and that’s even when the #8 slot has been determined.
[…] reports circulated out of yesterday’s Cavs practice, lending more insight into the much-discussed plan of Mike Brown. Heading to Chicago to face the Bulls, it appears that the team will play all […]