With Big Z Back in the Fold, Cavs Prepare for Championship Run
The Cavs rolled to an 11-1 record when they had to play "small ball" due to Shaquille O'Neal's thumb injury and the 30 day moratorium on re-signing Zydrunas Ilgauskas--but neither of their main rivals gained any ground on them in the standings; during that time, the L.A. Lakers went 9-3 and the Orlando Magic went 11-2.With Ilgauskas back on the roster, the Cavs now have all of the core players from their 2009 team that rolled to the Eastern Conference Finals, plus Antawn Jamison, Anthony Parker, Jamario Moon and a much more effective J.J. Hickson who has emerged as a key member of the rotation. Assuming that the Cavs make it through the first two rounds of the playoffs they will add Shaquille O'Neal to that mix in the Eastern Conference Finals.
In my newest CavsNews article, I discuss why the Cavaliers look very strong heading into the 2010 NBA Playoffs:
With Big Z Back in the Fold, Cavs Prepare for Championship Run
Labels: Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron James, Shaquille O'Neal, Zydrunas Ilgauskas
posted by David Friedman @ 2:18 PM
4 Comments:
Good article as always - when you have players that were good enough to start coming off the bench and the ability to manage the personalities, you're in a position to do big things!
Here's my key questions for a potential Cavs-Lakers series. Can Artest slow down LeBron? Can Gasol or Odom contain Jamison? And if the Cavs go "small-ball" with Hickson and Jamison alongside LeBron, then can either team defend the other?
Bhel Atlantic:
I will address those questions--and others--more completely when I write my playoff previews but based on the Cavs' two victories in two tries over the Lakers this season it certainly seems like the Cavs match up quite well with the Lakers.
Bhel Atlantic:
I will address those questions--and others--more completely when I write my playoff previews but based on the Cavs' two victories in two tries over the Lakers this season it certainly seems like the Cavs match up quite well with the Lakers.
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