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Larry Brown was probably sick thinking what he could have done with the Cavs.

Hopefully Hughes can continue to play like he did in the second half yesterday. He probably missed out on 10 easy points (mostly in the first half) last night.
 
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Larry Brown was probably sick thinking what he could have done with the Cavs.

Hopefully Hughes can continue to play like he did in the second half yesterday. He probably missed out on 10 easy points (mostly in the first half) last night.

With a healthy a game ready Hughes that just makes us that much better. We saw what happened once we traded for Murray and what would happen when Murray would have to go out.

The keys to winning in the playoffs are:

1.) is first off rebounding from Andy, Drew, Z and LBJ, and Hughes will help.
2.) We need to shoot a decent percentage from 3 point range. I would like 6/15 or something on average. Jones and Marshall have been stepping up and they need to show Vetran leadership in the playoffs.
3.) Hughes and Flip need to be on their game along side LBJ being his usual self.
4.) Drew needs to not take time off, especially in a series agains the Pistons.
5.) and last but not least we need to clamp down on the defensive end. I really think that in big games this year, we played good D, and with Hughes back and I think James will be playing the best defense we have ever seen out of him.

Does anyone think that James has that lightswitch mentality that he switches it on when he really has too.
 
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Does anyone think that James has that lightswitch mentality that he switches it on when he really has too.
I would say so. The way he has turned it "on" late in games the last month has been nothing short of remarkable. Not just taking over games scoring, but finding open teammates (Flip vs. Charlotte), and defensively also. I can't help but think he took some of that talk that he couldn't deliver in the clutch to heart and stepped his game to a whole new level. The fact that he is playing like this at 21 years old is downright frightening....well, for the rest of the league.
 
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Great article

Steve Kerr on Lebron for MVP



<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=yspsctnhdln>Yes, a 21-year-old MVP</TD></TR><TR><TD height=7><SPACER type="block" width="1" height="1"></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>By Steve Kerr, Yahoo! Sports
April 14, 2006
<TABLE id=ysparticleheadshot cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 align=left border=0 hspace="5" vspace="5"><TBODY><TR><TD class=ysptblbdr2><TABLE class=yspwhitebg cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=3 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE class=yspwhitebg cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><SMALL>Wetzel on LeBron: King James' next conquest</SMALL>
CLEVELAND – If anyone disputes the idea that LeBron James is worthy of winning this season's Most Valuable Player award, all they had to do was watch the Cleveland Cavaliers play without him on Thursday night. James watched a game in street clothes for the first time in his three-year career after spraining an ankle against Detroit on Wednesday night, and his Cavs eked out an ugly 91-87 win over the struggling Knicks.
With as many as eight players in the NBA this season making strong cases for MVP, it is difficult to separate the candidates. I believe the winner should be absolutely indispensable to his team, and under that criterion, James stands out. He has carried the Cavaliers to the verge of a 50-win season and he has done so with a team of role players around him.
Larry Hughes missed 45 games with a finger injury. Zydrunas Ilgauskas has played well but not to the All-Star level of 2003 or 2005. Eric Snow? Drew Gooden? Damon Jones? All are solid players, but let's be honest – without LeBron, Cleveland would be a lottery team.
Compare James' supporting cast with those of the other candidates, and I believe he stands alone. Steve Nash? He has Shawn Marion, and vice versa. Elton Brand? The Clippers weren't very good until Sam Cassell arrived. Chauncey Billups? He's part of the best starting five in the NBA. Dwyane Wade has Shaquille O'Neal next to him. Dirk Nowitzki and Kobe Bryant can make strong cases, but they have more talent around them than LeBron does. And in the end, James does more for his teammates than any of the above names, although Nash would have an argument there.
<TABLE cellPadding=1 align=right border=0 hspace="10" vspace="5"><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle>[SIZE=-2]ADVERTISEMENT[/SIZE]
<SCRIPT language=JavaScript>var lrec_target="_top";var lrec_URL=new Array();lrec_URL[1]="http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12h8knik5/M=426665.8252731.9068450.1414694/D=sports/S=96358232:LREC/Y=YAHOO/EXP=1145064436/A=3169924/R=0/id=flashurl/SIG=111jp1enk/*http://promo.yahoo.com/verizon/";var lrec_flashfile="http://us.a1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/a/ya/yahoo_verizon/20051202_tbd_1_300x250_lrec_verizon_awareness.swf?clickTAG=javascript:LRECopenWindow(1)";var lrec_altURL="http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12h8knik5/M=426665.8252731.9068450.1414694/D=sports/S=96358232:LREC/Y=YAHOO/EXP=1145064436/A=3169924/R=1/id=altimgurl/SIG=111jp1enk/*http://promo.yahoo.com/verizon/";var lrec_altimg="http://us.a1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/a/ya/yahoo_verizon/20051202_tbd_1_300x250_lrec_verizon_awareness.gif";var lrec_width=300;var lrec_height=250;</SCRIPT><SCRIPT language=JavaScript src="http://us.a1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/a/1-/jscodes/031016/ct_lrec_031016.js"></SCRIPT><SCRIPT language=VBScript> on error resume next plugin = ( IsObject(CreateObject("ShockwaveFlash.ShockwaveFlash.6")))</SCRIPT><NOSCRIPT></NOSCRIPT>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><SCRIPT type=text/javascript>if (window.yzq_a == null) document.write("<scr" + "ipt type=text/javascript src=""http://us.js2.yimg.com/us.js.yimg.com/lib/bc/bc_1.7.3.js></scr" + "ipt>");</SCRIPT><SCRIPT type=text/javascript>if (window.yzq_a){yzq_a('p', 'P=lFtj9c6.I.b.3M1IQ43JiBX_SKCuJURAL9QACI1s&T=13r3kds9s%2fX%3d1145057236%2fE%3d96358232%2fR%3dsports%2fK%3d5%2fV%3d1.1%2fW%3d8%2fY%3dYAHOO%2fF%3d2198509074%2fS%3d1%2fJ%3dC723BECE');yzq_a('a', '&U=1391hrd49%2fN%3dDzl7FdhtfFg-%2fC%3d426665.8252731.9068450.1414694%2fD%3dLREC%2fB%3d3169924');}</SCRIPT><NOSCRIPT>http://us.bc.yahoo.com/b?P=lFtj9c6.I.b.3M1IQ43JiBX_SKCuJURAL9QACI1s&T=1401sq8vh%2fX%3d1145057236%2fE%3d96358232%2fR%3dsports%2fK%3d5%2fV%3d2.1%2fW%3d8%2fY%3dYAHOO%2fF%3d2430358452%2fQ%3d-1%2fS%3d1%2fJ%3dC723BECE&U=1391hrd49%2fN%3dDzl7FdhtfFg-%2fC%3d426665.8252731.9068450.1414694%2fD%3dLREC%2fB%3d3169924</NOSCRIPT></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>Not enough for you? Check the numbers.
James is averaging 31.6 points despite the fact that he looks to pass first – hence the six assists he dishes per game. He also pounds the boards, grabbing seven per night. There are only three other players in NBA history who have averaged 30 points, seven rebounds and six assists per game for a season: Oscar Robertson, Jerry West and Michael Jordan. Not a bad list of names.
A popular argument against LeBron earlier this season was that he didn't hit clutch shots. In fact, James had a stretch of games in January where he did look nervous in the clutch and failed to make big shots with the game on the line. Since then, he's hit a couple of buzzer beaters and made a series of huge passes to set up teammates for game winners.
A close look at the numbers shows that, in the final two minutes of one-possession games, James is shooting 18-for-28 this season. No other NBA player, including Kobe Bryant, is even shooting 50 percent. The truth is that LeBron has come up big in the clutch, and perhaps more importantly, he's trusted his teammates to make big shots as well.
LeBron's coach, Mike Brown, says that James' best quality is his character. "He allows me to coach the team," Brown said. "I single him out for mistakes in film sessions and he accepts the criticism, which means that everyone else falls right in line. He's like Tim Duncan in San Antonio – he sets the tone."
It's no wonder why James is so popular with his teammates. He passes them the ball when they're open, he brings the best out of them and he manages to score 31 points per game in the meantime.
Will he actually win the MVP award? Probably not. Voters will say that he's too young and that he'll have many more chances in the future. (If that's not the stupidest argument ever, I don't know what is.) All I know is that James is the most athletic player in the game, he's amazingly unselfish, he makes every one of his teammates better and he has led his team to a great season.
A couple of months ago, I would have picked Kobe, but I just don't think he makes his teammates better. A few weeks ago, Nash would have been my choice, but I realize that without Marion the Suns wouldn't be anywhere as good as they are. But the more I've seen of LeBron, the more I realize that he is the most special player in the NBA. He is the rare superstar that carries his teammates on his shoulders while at the same time empowering them to make plays. And the scary thing is, he's going to be doing this for the next 12 years or so.
That's why in the most wide-open MVP race the NBA has seen in a long time, LeBron James should be the winner.

Steve Kerr is Yahoo! Sports' NBA analyst. Send him a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast.
Updated on Friday, Apr 14, 2006 1:48 pm EDT


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ABJ

4/16/06

James will make return to lineup

By Brian Windhorst

Beacon Journal sportswriter

<!-- begin body-content -->WASHINGTON - LeBron James is expected to be back in the starting lineup tonight when the Cavaliers visit the Washington Wizards.
James practiced with the Cavaliers Saturday and was upgraded from doubtful to probable by team trainers. He sprained his left ankle Wednesday in Detroit against the Detroit Pistons and skipped Thursday's 91-87 victory over the New York Knicks.
``It's not 100 percent, but it is enough where I'm not going to hurt the team,'' James said.
The Wizards are in a must-win situation after losing their last five games, falling from the No. 5 playoff spot and a potential first-round matchup with the Cavs to No. 7.
Cavs coach Mike Brown said he'll try to rest his starters down the stretch, perhaps sitting them the fourth quarter. James, despite his injury, wasn't so sure he planned to play along.
``If the game is real competitive, I want to be out there,'' James said.
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ABJ

4/16/06

Cavaliers sprouting team unity in the form of beards

By Tom Reed

<!-- begin body-content -->CLEVELAND - The facial forest of Zydrunas Ilgauskas is magnificent not only in its splendor, but also its strategic design.
``I'll keep growing it for the playoffs,'' Ilgauskas said. ``The beard is part of the body and any contact should be a foul.''
Tell it to Rasheed Wallace -- the menacing Detroit Pistons forward who also wears whiskers but doesn't boast the bearded backup of Z turned ZZ Top.
Winners of 12 of their past 14 games, the Cavaliers haven't lost their edge, only the razors attached to it. No fewer than eight players, including LeBron James, are sprouting facial hair.
It's hard to say whether these shaggy Cavs are marching toward postseason or a Civil War re-enactment. Either way, James said the team could use some reinforcements.
``It's an open invitation from the Cavs and LeBron James,'' the team's superstar said. ``If anyone wants to grow one, you can join the club.''
It's the zany stuff Cavs fans have been missing the past eight years without the postseason. The fun. The excitement. The thrill of telling your wife that the tufts of hair growing in patches on your chin are helping the Cavs reach the second round.
Irreconcilable differences be damned.
``It's been kind of a good-luck charm for us,'' James said. ``With the beard, we've been winning a lot of ballgames. Plus, my momma likes it, my girl likes it, my teammates like it.''
Who doesn't love an athlete in a beard?
The dynastic New York Islanders of the early 1980s created the playoff beard. Who can forget the image of former Bowling Green standout Ken Morrow waiting for a faceoff with sweat and mucus running down his two-month-old growth?
Give me Artis Gilmore and Kenny ``The Snake'' Stabler. Give me Franco Harris and Dan Fouts. Give me Kareem Abdul-Jabbar battling Bill Walton for a rebound.
``I had the only beard in the Western Hemisphere that made Bob Dylan's look good,'' Walton said this week in a phone interview.
The beard is back, baby, and it's not just for Johnny Damon and Ben Roethlisberger anymore. Memphis Grizzlies star Pau Gasol looks absolutely stunning. I keep waiting for him to pick up a ball and yell, ``Wilson,'' a la Tom Hanks in Castaway.
Flowing locks and beards are a welcome change from the hairless 1990s. The last time the Cavaliers qualified for postseason (1997-98), they played the Indiana Pacers, who showed team unity by shaving their heads. ``Dunkin' Dutchman'' Rik Smits resembled a 7-foot thumb.
Nowadays, you can't look at the sports page without seeing someone's head or chin in full bloom. The past two Super Bowl champion quarterbacks, Tom Brady and Roethlisberger, sported beards. Roethlisberger reached the title game by topping Jake Plummer and his Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship Game.
``The metrosexual movement is over; the lumberjack movement is in,'' Akron attorney Erik M. Jones said.
Jones is a member of Beard Team USA and competed last year in the World Beard and Mustache Championships in Berlin. The team's self-appointed captain, Phil Olsen, of Tahoe City, Calif., is excited to hear about James' beard-growing capability, giving the sports world another superstar to replace the freshly shorn Damon, who signed with the New York Yankees in the offseason.
Yankees owner George Steinbrenner forbids beards.
``Most men have to shave their beards because of a woman,'' Olsen said by phone. ``I think Steinbrenner is secretly a woman.''
James might be the face of the Cavs, but Ilgauskas is the inspiration behind Team Stubble. The Lithuanian can go from peach fuzz to Abe Lincoln in hours.
Others have followed Ilgauskas' lead, including Cavs' medical and equipment personnel. James raises doubts whether Donyell Marshall and the baby-faced Eric Snow have the whiskers to play along.
Then, there is the curious case of Anderson Varejao.
``Andy can't grow hair anywhere except his head,'' Ilgauskas said.
Perhaps too much information, but of course, there are no secrets at playoff time.
The Cavs' lack of postseason experience, coupled with a potential second-round matchup against the Pistons, probably ensure their season-ending photo won't resemble something from the House of David baseball archives.
Giving James a chance to play in the postseason and fans an opportunity to grow a beard like their hero is good for everybody.
Wives and girlfriends might not be enthusiastic, but nobody says they have to take their Lady Bics out of the cabinet either. That would leave the only hairless legs, if Ilgauskas' scouting report is accurate, belonging to Varejao.
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ABJ

4/19/06

Gilbert sees bright future for Cavaliers

By Terry Pluto

<!-- begin body-content -->A year ago, Cavaliers fans never would have dreamed of a story like this. Who would have thought Dan Gilbert would learn so much, so fast as owner of the team?
Could anyone imagine that the Cavs would have progressed from one of the most volatile to one of the NBA's more promising franchises? Or that the Cavs would have a good chance of keeping LeBron James in the long term because of Gilbert?
That's where we are today.
The Cavs are in the No. 4 playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with a shot at finishing the season with 50 victories as they play their final game of the season against the Atlanta Hawks tonight at Quicken Loans Arena, as Gund Arena is now called.
The Cavs have a 49-32 record, sixth best in the NBA. Only three other Cavs teams have won 50 games.
``I see the Cavaliers right now like the Chicago Bulls of the early 1990s,'' Gilbert said Tuesday.
He doesn't want to compare James with Michael Jordan, but the point is that the Cavs have an elite player capable of leading his team to championships.
Under NBA rules, the Cavaliers can offer James a contract extension this summer. If he turns it down, the team has control of him until the summer of 2008.
The most that the Cavs can offer James is a deal in the five-year, $75 million range.
NBA rules also stipulate that no team can offer James more money at any point than the Cavs, increasing the odds that their star will stay home.
``I feel pretty good about him signing,'' Gilbert said. ``I'd say it's more than 90 percent. You never say 100 percent until you have a deal signed, but it would be the best move for LeBron -- and naturally, the best for us.''
Why so optimistic?
``Because we have done the things we said we'd do,'' Gilbert said. ``We have brought in a strong management team, and we're letting them run the team. We have stabilized things. He (James) can see the progress and see the city getting excited for the playoffs.
``LeBron likes it here. He has the unique opportunity to win a championship in his hometown. That means something special.''
Gilbert has made a point to build a relationship with James' mother, Gloria, and others close to the Cavs star. He has tried not to pressure James.
He allows coach Mike Brown to be the main connection between James and the front office.
``I don't see LeBron as a guy who'd like to live in a place like New York,'' Gilbert said. ``While he's a public person, he really is very shy. He has an artistic side, as you see with his acting, and he loves music. This is a comfort zone for him. If he believes we can win, he'll stay here.''
A winning business
Gilbert is trying to show that he's committed to making the Cavaliers a success, and that he also believes in Cleveland as a viable area to do business.
He brought in General Manager Danny Ferry and Brown, giving them freedom to run the basketball operation. He opened his wallet, allowing Ferry to sign such free agents as Larry Hughes, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Donyell Marshall and Damon Jones.
Gilbert invested $13 million in the downtown arena to install everything from new seats to a remodeled, plush dressing room for the players.
``I'm looking at some structural things,'' he said. ``I'd like a mall concept, where you come to the game and there are restaurants and stores. It's all preliminary, but I want to make the Q a very special place.''
Talk is cheap, but Gilbert has been paying the price for his elaborate dreams in real money. While the previous Cavaliers ownership often fought with the Gateway Corp. about who had to pay for upgrades needed at the arena, Gilbert simply has made plans and written the checks.
``Some people say, `A penny saved is a penny earned,' '' he said. ``I say, `A penny saved is a penny.' When you make the right investments, the money follows.''
He has decided to commit about $20 million of his own money to build the team a 10,000-square-foot training facility in Independence, a Cleveland suburb.
After leaving the Cavs, Ferry played for the San Antonio Spurs and saw the effects of having a terrific facility where players can practice, receive treatment for injuries and do weight training.
``Other franchises have these facilities,'' Gilbert said. ``If we want to compete, then we need one, too. It can help us to keep our players and to attract free agents.''
Cavs players have a bigger airplane for travel than a year ago. They have superb meals available every day, home and road. They can have their cars washed during practice, and they also can have food prepared to take home after workouts and games.
The Cavs made significant improvements to the family rooms, where friends and relatives wait for players after games. There are other amenities, but you now have a picture.
Gilbert's goal was to upgrade the front office, the player talent, the arena and the little things that players consider important, such as food and family areas.
As Ferry has often said, ``With Dan Gilbert, everything is first class.''
Change in approach
Perhaps no owner in Cleveland pro sports history has improved his reputation faster than Gilbert.
Last March, he was viewed as a meddler. He fired coach Paul Silas only three weeks after buying the team. He seemed like an outsider from Detroit who loved everything the Pistons did with little understanding of Cleveland or the history of the Cavs.
After hiring Ferry, however, Gilbert quickly slipped into the background.
``Dan has done everything we've asked to help us succeed,'' Ferry said. ``He really is a great support.''
Gilbert gambled in hiring Ferry and Brown, both rookies in their jobs.
``I think experience only matters if you have been a success, not just because you did a job before,'' he said. ``I'd rather take a chance on someone who I think can do a great job than just take someone because they had the job before. Danny and Mike have been terrific, and they are still learning and going to get better.''
Gilbert also has become bullish on Cleveland. He has located a branch of his Quicken Loans operation here, with more than 50 people working. He projects having more than 350 employees in the next few years.
``Buying the Cavaliers wasn't just about getting into the NBA,'' he said. ``I see it as part of our business picture. The Q is tied into our company. Having LeBron and the team winning gives people a good feeling about what we're doing. We get a lot of (mortgage) leads from Ohio right now.''
Gilbert said Quicken Loans employs about 3,500 and is the nation's No. 15 lender overall, No. 1 online.
``I really like Cleveland,'' he said. ``In some ways, it reminds me of Detroit. It's a city where some people have been very negative toward it. Detroit is supposed to be down and out because of the problems with the auto industry, and Cleveland has had its problems, too. But I really do see growth, I think it's darkest before the dawn. I'm optimistic.''
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