Cleveland Rolls the Dice

At literally the last minute before the trade deadline, Cleveland General Manager Danny Ferry decided to get rid of half of his active roster, shipping out Larry Hughes, Drew Gooden, Donyell Marshall, Ira Newble, Shannon Brown and Cedric Simmons in a three way trade with Chicago and Seattle that brought Ben Wallace, Joe Smith, Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West to Cleveland. Normally, a team that wins a conference championship does not make such a huge trade midway through the next season; teams need a certain amount of time to develop enough continuity to perform well in the playoffs. However, the majority of the contending teams have made significant offseason and/or in season moves, so most of them will be developing their team chemistry and continuity on the fly. Continue reading “Cleveland Rolls the Dice”

LeBron and Boobie Turn New Orleans into Cleveland South

New Orleans seemed like Cleveland South by the end of All-Star Weekend. LeBron James nearly posted the second triple double in All-Star Game history, finishing with 27 points, nine assists, eight rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots en route to capturing the All-Star MVP as the East beat the West 134-128. Prior to that, Daniel “Boobie” Gibson won the Rookie-Sophomore Game MVP after scoring a game-high 33 points, matching James’ 2004 output and tying for the second most points in the 13 year history of the event (Amare Stoudemire scored 36 points in 2004 as his Sophomores trounced James’ Rookies, 142-118). Gibson shattered the Rookie-Sophomore single-game records for three pointers made (11) and attempted (20). Gibson also performed very well in the Three Point Shootout, finishing second behind defending champion Jason Kapono, who scored a record 25 points in the final round to take the crown. Continue reading “LeBron and Boobie Turn New Orleans into Cleveland South”

Bittersweet Change for Drew Gooden

Gooden played a major role in his 3 years with the Cavaliers and fans will miss him. He was part of the big blockbuster deal that sent him to the Bulls. Leaving Cleveland was not easy for Gooden, “They said they needed a change; so be it,” said Gooden in an interview in Chicago.

“If this was the best change for the Cavaliers, we’ll see what happens. They gave up some talent and they received some talent. We’ll see what happens in the long run.”

On the other hand, Hughes sounded happy to leave the Cavaliers, “I was happy,” he said, when he found out about the trade. It was no secret that my style of play didn’t really fit the system in which (they) were playing in. I felt I could be more productive.

“There wasn’t as much ball movement, as much player movement as I was used to. There was a lot of space the court and pretty much wait. That’s just not how I like to play basketball.”

Cavaliers Signed Dickens and Thomas From D-League

As the Cleveland Cavaliers await for the new players to suit up and pass physicals, Cavaliers have signed forward Kaniel Dickens and guard Billy Thomas from the Colorado 14ers of the NBA Development League.

With only six healthy players available after the big blockbuster deal yesterday, per NBA rules, the team must have a minimum of eight healthy players to be able to play.
“I’ve never been in a situation where we called guys up just to be able to play a game,” Cavs guard Eric Snow said after the morning shootaround. “It’s the NBA, I can’t say I’m surprised.”

Dickens was stunned when he got the call while eating lunch in Denver.

“I dropped my fork and my knife, ran out on my bill went home packed some things and made it to the airport,” he said, joking about the bill. “It just happened so fast.”
In 29 games (28 starts), Dickens has averaged 20.4 points on .472 shooting, 5.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 31.3 minutes per game. Thomas is averaging 15.7 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 27 games (all starts).

The four newest Cavaliers won’t make their debut until Sunday against the Memphis Grizzlies at the Q.
 

Done Deal: Wallace from Bulls, Szczerbiak from Sonics

picture-1.pngDanny Ferry pulled the trigger on a big deal that would add toughness and shooters.Basically the Cavs get:From Chicago: Ben Wallace and Joe Smith, and second round pick in 2009.From Sonics: Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West.Chicago Bulls Get:Larry Hughes, Drew Gooden, Cedric Simmons, and guard Shannon Brown to Chicago.Seattle Sonics Get:Ira Newble and Donyell Marshall.Adding Wallace will give the Cavaliers an edge to deal with the Sonics and Pistons. Also, he is big and strong enough to deal with the bigs in the West in the Finals. 

 “Our primary goal with this deal is to create a positive impact as we head through the final stretch of the season and into the playoffs. We were very methodical in the process to make sure it was the best deal possible for this team,” Ferry said. “We’re very excited about what these players bring to us by adding a new dimension, and that we were able to impact this team without compromising future draft picks. This again demonstrates Dan Gilbert’s dedication to this organization and city. At the same time, we have great respect for the guys that are leaving us and feel like they all contributed to our success.” Continue reading “Done Deal: Wallace from Bulls, Szczerbiak from Sonics”

Blockbuster Trade In The Work?

According to Brian Windhorst of the Akron Beacon Journal, the Cavaliers are working on a blockbuster trade that doesn’t involve Mike Miler.

According to his blog post, the Cavaliers “are being very active and are in talks over a blockbuster that has not been reported yet.”.

Here is what Brian Windhorst has on his blog:

“So this will surely disappoint some of you and also anger some of you, but I cannot yet say what player the Cavs are considering making a deal for. I have to protect sources. But I can tell you that I have talked to two different people in different organizations that have confirmed the talks are serious. I know you want more, but I just can’t give it to you at this point. I am not trying to build up ratings here, I am reporting what I can report. Just know that Danny Ferry is serious about trying to upgrade the roster. Whether or not it gets done though is up in the air. It’s 50/50 at best.

Here is what I can tell you, it is a trade that would change the dynamic somewhat of how the Cavs play but not directly affect the way LeBron James plays. Also, if this deal goes through, it would potentially allow the Cavs to make another deal.

Also, the Cavs are trying to get a first-round pick as part of the deal. Which is a sticking point, the other team doesn’t want to give it up. Perhaps this is because they are thinking of trading their first round pick this year or next year as part of another deal.”