Free-throw shooting
But coming from somebody who is a native of Cleveland and picked James as the preseason league MVP and who watches the Cavs all the time, the crack in the armor is coming from the free-throw line time and time again. And that, more than being a fan of the Yankees and Cowboys instead of the Indians and Browns, could turn the cheers to boos.
JJ Hickson
Rookie J.J. Hickson’s big dunk against Charlotte was ranked No. 1 on ESPN’s SportsCenter on Thursday night, but one good slam doesn’t make for a good game.
“That’s good for him — the young fella seeing himself on TV,” Brown said. “He was active but there were some things he did that made me [grimace.] He was OK. He wasn’t bad.”
Boobie Gibson
Boobie Gibson, who scored 25 points in the victory over Charlotte, expects some of his family to make the trip from Houston to Dallas for Monday’s game. The group could include his grandmother.
Asked how she’d like the Batman symbol shaved into his hair, Gibson smiled and said, “She loves it. I get compliments all the time. For her birthday (Dec. 11), I told her I was going to put her name up there. We call her Sugar.”
TV Audience
TNT’s opening-night coverage, which began with the Cavs game at Boston and followed with Portland at the Lakers, recorded a 12 percent rise in ratings and a 14 percent jump in households watching over the 2007-08 opening-night doubleheader that featured Portland at San Antonio and Houston at the Lakers. This year’s doubleheader delivered a 29 percent increase in total viewers.
Also, the Pro Basketball News power rankings have the Cavaliers ranked seventh, behind New Orleans, Boston, Houston, the Lakers, Detroit and Utah.