[OSUBasketballJunkie]

CPD

Cavs' Mike Brown discusses offense, defense and being close to a championship

Posted by Terry Pluto terrypluto2003@yahoo.com June 25, 2008 19:46PM

Categories: Cavaliers, Terry Pluto columns
John Kuntz/The Plain DealerMike Brown has his sights set on the improvements that must be made to get the Cavaliers back to the NBA Finals next summer.


Here's what Mike Brown was thinking on the eve of the NBA draft. I don't necessarily agree with everything the Cavaliers coach said, but it's worth hearing his view of the Cavs' 45-37 season and their loss to Boston in Game 7 in the second round of the playoffs.

The Cavs next year: Even with the current roster, the coach insists the Cavs can win 50-plus games and be a championship contender. He added he didn't mean the team "should just sit tight." He expects [GM] Danny Ferry to do everything he could to improve the roster. But he thinks "we can get a lot better just from within."
Playoff lessons: The Cavaliers "are close" to a championship-caliber team. That they gave Boston the toughest series of any team. That the Cavs even averaged more points than Boston -- it was 85.1 to 84. His point was defense wins in the playoffs, as Boston showed against the Lakers in the Finals. His biggest disappointment was losing Game 1 in Boston, 76-72, "because we had several chances to win and that could have changed the entire series."

Continued.....