Tag: Cleveland Cavaliers (Page 28 of 53)

      LeBron takes too many jumpers in crunch time

      February 19, 2010 /

      Yes, he posted a never-before-seen 43-13-15 last night, but he still jacks way too many jump shots. Case in point: Check out this series of shots by LeBron over the last nine minutes of last night’s 118-116 loss to the Nuggets.

      3:50 94-95 LeBron James makes free throw 1 of 2
      3:50 94-96 LeBron James makes free throw 2 of 2
      3:10 96-96 LeBron James misses 17-foot jumper
      2:39 98-98 LeBron James makes two point shot
      2:39 98-99 LeBron James makes free throw 1 of 1
      1:59 100-102 LeBron James makes driving layup
      1:23 102-102 LeBron James misses 24-foot three point jumper
      1:12 104-103 LeBron James makes free throw 1 of 2
      1:12 104-103 LeBron James misses free throw 2 of 2
      0:48 106-106 LeBron James makes 25-foot three point jumper
      0:00 106-106 LeBron James misses three point jumper (full court shot)

      3:19 109-110 LeBron James makes 12-foot jumper
      2:16 111-110 LeBron James misses 25-foot three point jumper
      1:50 113-110 LeBron James misses free throw 1 of 2
      1:50 113-111 LeBron James makes free throw 2 of 2
      0:48 116-113 LeBron James misses 24-foot three point jumper
      0:36 116-113 LeBron James misses 26-foot three point jumper
      0:23 116-115 LeBron James makes 9-foot running jumper
      0:23 116-116 LeBron James makes free throw 1 of 1
      0:00 118-116 LeBron James misses 28-foot three point jumper

      So, if we don’t count his desperation heave at the end of regulation, LeBron was 1-7 from 17-feet and beyond, and scored in some fashion virtually every time he went to the basket. He was 15-33 on the night and 1-9 from long range, so he was 14-24 on two-pointers and shot 17 free throws. In short, he was very successful when he attacked the rim, so he shouldn’t be settling for jumpers when the game is on the line.

      LeBron has worked hard on his three-point shot and is shooting a career-high 35.3% from deep this season. But he still doesn’t have a pure stroke, and probably never will. His elbow is cocked out and he often fades away. This is not how you shoot consistently from long range. To complicate matters, LeBron often has the ball in his hands so he’s not able to spot up like most pure shooters do. He has to dribble his way into position and take a contested shot — two more reasons why he should attack the basket.

      Just look at his game-by-game stats from the last month and a half. He made 30-49% of his threes just three times in 21 games. He shot 29% or lower twelve times and 50% or better six times. That is the definition of a streaky shooter. When he has it, he really has it, and when he doesn’t have it…well…last night was a great example. When his shot isn’t falling, he has to go to the hole, especially when the game is on the line.

      For all the talk last night about how Carmelo Anthony was guarding LeBron, let’s get real — Carmelo can’t guard LeBron off the dribble. No one can. The only one that can stop LeBron is LeBron.

      I’m not saying he should stop taking threes altogether, but if his shot isn’t falling, he has to attack the rim.


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      Fantasy Basketball, NBA

      Cavs land Jamison in three-team trade

      February 17, 2010 /

      Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reports that the Cleveland Cavaliers have swung a three-team trade for Antawn Jamison.

      Cavs get Jamison and Telfair, Clippers get Drew Gooden and Wash gets Illgauskas, Al Thornton and Brian Skinner and Cavs 1st round pick.

      So the Cavs essentially landed Jamison at the cost of Ilgauskas, taking on Telfair’s contract ($2.7 million next season), and their first round pick, which will be very late in the first round. This is an even sweeter deal than the Hickson/Z-for-Jamison swap that has been rumored for weeks. The proposed Amare Stoudemire deal with the Suns either 1) fell through because the Suns wouldn’t pull the trigger quickly enough, or 2) the Wizards willingness to take a pick instead of Hickson convinced the Cavs to trade for Jamison instead. Either way, the Cavs got a good player in the deal. He’s 33 and has a bad contract (2 yrs, $28.4 million), but he’s playing at a high level (21-9, 45% shooting) and gives the Cavs the “stretch 4” they’ve been coveting for months. He’ll be a nice matchup for both Rashard Lewis and Kevin Garnett because he’s comfortable playing defense on the perimeter.

      The Suns were holding out for a better offer, but now the only suitor left standing appears to be the Heat. It’s going to be interesting to see if Stoudemire is moved before the deadline tomorrow. The team has reportedly told Stoudemire to suit up to play tonight, so no deal is imminent.

      The Clippers will save $5.5 million on their 2010-11 payroll, so they’ll project to have more than $16 million* in cap space this summer (or enough to sign a big-name free agent). They are now legit threats to sign a star like Joe Johnson, who would look very nice in a lineup of Baron Davis, Eric Gordon, Blake Griffin and Chris Kaman. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but it’s a savvy move by GM Mike Dunleavy.

      And finally, the Wizards will trim $10.6 million from next year’s payroll, giving the team around $9 million* in cap space (with Gilbert Arenas’s deal still on the books). They also get Al Thornton, who has struggled thus far in his career. While he did average almost 17 points last season, his PER has never risen above 13.00, which means he’s not a very efficient player. GM Ernie Grunfeld continues to make perplexing trades. He has moved Caron Butler and Jamison and all he has to show for it are a couple of borderline starters (Josh Howard and Thornton), a late first round draft pick and some cap space.

      * assuming a salary cap of $50 million

      Update: Brian Skinner is not a part of the deal, according to Ric Bucher.


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      Miami hasn’t offered Beasley…yet

      February 17, 2010 /

      According to Chad Ford’s source in the Suns organization, the Heat aren’t serious in their bid for Amare Stoudemire.

      Still, sources close to the negotiations say that, right now, Cleveland is the front-runner. Why? Because the Heat have yet to offer the Suns a deal that would beat the Cavs’ offer of Zydrunas Ilgauskas and J.J. Hickson. One source familiar with the negotiations told ESPN.com that the Heat have yet to offer Michael Beasley or either of their two first-round picks.

      “I’m not sure Miami is willing to pay the price for Amare,” a Suns source told ESPN.com. “We have to get something for him. We’re not giving him away. If Miami gets serious, then I think they would get him. But right now, they are not showing they’re serious.”

      Is there a possibility Stoudemire won’t be traded at all?

      “It’s possible,” the Suns source said. “We haven’t been blown away with an offer yet.”

      I’m sure the Heat would like to acquire Stoudemire without including Beasley, but with Stoudemire likely opting out of his deal this summer, there’s no upside for the Suns to just dump his contract. The Heat have two first round picks (their own and Toronto’s) — would the Suns would move Amare for two middling first rounders?

      Another aspect of this Amare love triangle is Miami’s desire to sign LeBron James this offseason. If they let the Cavs acquire Amare, there’s a better chance that LeBron will stay in Cleveland long-term. In other words, if they miss out on Amare, they may very well miss out on LeBron as well.


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      NBA, Rumors & Gossip

      Heat ‘coming hard’ after Stoudemire

      February 16, 2010 /

      Just two days away from the trade deadline, Marc Stein says that the Miami Heat are stepping up their efforts to acquire Amare Stoudemire.

      The Heat emerged from the All-Star break even more determined than they were before to find a third team to help them broker an Amare deal before Thursday’s 3 p.m. deadline.

      Miami is “coming hard” after Stoudemire, one source said.

      Although the Heat have first-round picks available to sweeten any Stoudemire deal — with the Suns hoping to come away with at least one first-rounder if they decide to trade Stoudemire this week — sources say Phoenix has no interest in taking back Jermaine O’Neal’s hefty expiring contract because, at $23 million, it requires more players to be worked into the deal than the Suns are comfortable with.

      Yet one source insisted Monday night that the Suns have not ruled out taking back forward Michael Beasley as part of a Stoudemire deal.

      The Suns seem to be more interested in J.J. Hickson than Beasley, which is a little odd. Beasley does have some off-court issues, but he seems to have straightened those out and he’s having a very nice sophomore campaign (16-7 on 46% shooting). His 3PT touch has mysteriously disappeared — 41% last year vs. 28% this season — and he is still a work in progress defensively, but he’s one of the best young scorers and rebounders in the league.

      Ric Bucher writes that the Suns aren’t alone in their disinterest in Beasley.

      “While other pieces would’ve had to be included, the trade essentially would’ve sent Beasley to Philadelphia, Iguodala to Phoenix and Stoudemire to Miami. The deal broke down, sources say, because Philadelphia wasn’t overwhelmed by the prospect of rebuilding around Beasley. This isn’t an isolated case: the Heat appear to be the team most enamored with Stoudemire, but their trading chips are Beasley and Jermaine O’Neal, aka, a big, fat expiring contract. So far, no one has been willing to bite — underscoring why the Heat tried so hard on draft night in 2008 to trade down and take the player they really wanted, O.J. Mayo.”

      That last sentence underlines an interesting point. The Heat felt obligated to take Beasley with the #2 pick because he was widely considered the second-best talent in the draft. But if they really wanted Mayo and couldn’t find a trade partner, then they should have drafted the guy they really wanted.

      According to Stein’s source, the Suns haven’t ruled out a Beasley-for-Stoudemire swap, so that still may end up being the best deal that Phoenix can get.


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      Fantasy Basketball, NBA, Rumors & Gossip

      Cavs close to acquiring Stoudemire?

      February 14, 2010 /

      The Cleveland Cavaliers are closing in on a deal that would bring Amare Stoudemire to town, according to Chris Broussard’s sources.

      The Cavaliers would send Zydrunas Ilgauskas and J.J. Hickson to Phoenix in exchange for Stoudemire, one of the league’s most dominant big men.

      While Cleveland remains in talks with several other teams, the club, from management down to the players, has settled on Stoudemire as its first choice.

      The ball is in Phoenix’s court. The Suns are mulling whether the financial relief provided by Ilgauskas’ $12 million contract and the young and talented Hickson are enough for them to part with Stoudemire.

      Cleveland believes the addition of Stoudemire would all but seal LeBron James’ re-signing with the team when he becomes a free agent this summer. The Cavaliers are also prepared to sign Stoudemire, who has one year and $17 million remaining on his contract, to a long-term contract extension once the season ends.

      It isn’t surprising that the Suns are the ones mulling this over, as this is pretty much a no-brainer for the Cavs. With Shaq’s salary coming off the books this summer, Cleveland would have plenty of room to re-sign both LeBron and Stoudemire and still stay under the luxury tax threshold. The most important part about that last sentence is that with Stoudemire in tow, one would have to think that LeBron would almost certainly re-sign. I suppose if the Cavs flamed out of the playoffs that both players could opt out and go elsewhere, but that doesn’t seem likely. The acquisition of Stoudemire would also make the re-signing of Ilguaskas far less important. If something were to happen to Shaq, Stoudemire is perfectly capable of playing big minutes at center and has a nice jumpshot to help space the court.

      Whether or not Hickson is worth giving up Stoudemire largely depends on what else is available. I’d much rather do a deal with Miami for Michael Beasley, but we don’t know for sure if that offer is on the table. It’s possible that the Suns leaked this information to prompt other teams to step up their offers, and the Heat, facing the possibility of a long-term LeBron/Amare marriage in Cleveland, may very well step up their pursuit.

      Hickson is a nice young player that projects to be a quality starter or star in a few seasons. His PER (14.33) is solid for a 21-year-old in his second season. He has had his ups and downs this season, but is averaging 13-5 on 60% shooting in five games in February. Size-wise, he’s 6’9″ with long arms and pretty much is a prototypical power forward in today’s NBA. He already has a solid back-to-the-basket game and a decent jump shot.

      However, given that the Cavs are far worse when he’s on the court, it’s understandable that the Suns aren’t 100% sold. Beasley is the more talented player, but he has had character issues in the past and that would give any team pause.


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      Fantasy Basketball, NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

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