Gibson Injured Ankle in Game Against Indiana

Daniel Gibson sprained his left ankle in the third quarter  against the Indiana Pacers and did not return.

Gibson was helped off the court by teammates.

A Cavaliers spokesman said X-rays were negative, and the team would re-evaluate the injury Thursday morning in Cleveland.

Gibson was 5-for-5 on 3-pointers and scored 15 points in the first half

Nelly and Hughes to Build Indoor Athletic Complex

Hip-hop artist Nelly and Larry Hughes, who knew each other socially and through charity work, want to build a $30 million air-supported indoor athletic complex near the Page Avenue extension in St. Louis to house soccer, softball, football, lacrosse and other sports.

“The project would feature climate-controlled fields with artificial turf in two inflated buildings — each 105 feet high and with about 200,000 square feet of space, or able to house two baseball fields apiece.”

Trade Deadline approaches

Jason Kline from The News Journal reminds us that Cavs fans who don’t think LeBron’s supporting cast is up to snuff should know what Ferry is quietly counting on.  At this time next year, there aren’t many teams who will have more to offer than the Cavs. The contracts of Eric Snow ($7.3 million), Gooden ($7.1 million), Donyell Marshall ($6 million), Jones ($4.5 million) and Cedric Simmons ($1.75 million). And if recent history has taught us anything, it’s that better than $20 million in expiring contracts, a couple first-round picks and a decent young player or two can buy a whole lotta superstar.

Who might be available next year? If Milwaukee is floundering, they’ll have to consider shopping Michael Redd. The first-team all-NBA chucker is stunting the growth of two talented young big men in Andrew Bogut and Yi Jianlian and, when he’s your best player, you’re in trouble anyway. Chicago is in store for a face lift and might give up one of their good young players (Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng or Ben Gordon) to a team willing to take on Ben Wallace’s bloated deal.  The possibilities are almost endless. Who would have guessed the quality of players on the move this year? Things fall apart quickly in the NBA. Next year, the Cavs will be first in line to take advantage.

DROPPING NAMES: While the Cavs don’t have the goods to bring in a superstar, Ferry has been kicking the tires on some pretty attractive players. With so man of the teams’ formerly ill-fitting parts starting to gel — Hughes, Jones, Marshall and heck, even Ira Newble have been productive the last few weeks — a trade around the roster’s fringes isn’t likely. That being said, here are a few possibilities:

Orlando’s Carlos Arroyo is in the last year of his contract and the team’s third point guard behind Keyon Dooling and Jameer Nelson. Teammate J.J. Redick, a favorite of fellow Duke product Ferry, has made noise about wanting out because he can’t crack the Magic rotation. He probably can’t crack the Cavs’ lineup, either. Think Luke Jackson without the athleticism or size. Ouch. The only upside he offers is the possibility he’d leave an instructional shooting DVD in Hughes’ locker.

Because Wally Szczerbiak played at Miami of Ohio and the Cavs play at Quicken Loans Arena of Ohio, Wally would be a fan favorite. But it’s hard to see how he’d fit beside LeBron and that’s not taking into consideration his declining play and hefty price tag (he’s owed $13 million in 2008-09). The Sonics haven’t been able to give him away for good reason.

Golden State’s Mickael Pietrus is an intriguing player who is headed to free agency this summer and has been trying to get out of Golden State for years now. Pietrus has the makeup of a defensive stopper but his game has developed beyond that.

Here’s a couple more point guards who have been on the Cavaliers’ radar for more than a year: Portland’s Jarrett Jack and Memphis’ Kyle Lowry. Problem is, neither can shoot a lick. Both are losing out in a numbers game — Portland also has Steve Blake and Sergio Rodriguez; Memphis Mike Conley, Javaris Crittenton and Juan Carlos Navarro — and the Cavs actually have the expiring contracts to land them.

The Grizzlies’ Mike Miller is reportedly on the block and he’s a real value at about $9 million a year for two seasons beyond this one. If he’s moved this week, it’ll be to a team with something better to offer than a package built around Newble’s expiring deal and other cap fodder.

The Cavs might take a flyer on little-used Houston swingman Kirk Snyder. He probably could be had for last year’s disappoint first-round pick, Shannon Brown, but isn’t much better. Devin Brown is better than both of them, which would make such a sideways move irrelevant.

Source: The News Journal

Nathaniel Friedman’s Bold Predictions: Mike Brown will be fired

Nathaniel Friedman boldy predicts that Mike Brown will be fired.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are getting worse and worse. The rest of the NBA is getting better and better. The Cavs’ front office has screwed up at pretty much every turn, and now the NBA’s best player must be thinking about life beyond Cleveland. Like maybe in Brooklyn, where that cap space being cleared practically has James’ name on it.

Why aren’t the Cavs in on any of the big trade powwows? Simple: They don’t have any tradable assets. Everyone is overpaid, under contract for too long, or, as in the case of Drew Gooden, offers nothing to get other teams stoked.

And so, in a shrewd attempt to keep James’ eye from wandering, coach Mike Brown will be fired — probably as soon as the Cavs are eliminated from the playoffs.

James is playing strictly for regional and personal pride but is not about to slack off. But with the team powerless to get him real help, this is the best it can do to publicly shake up a sinking ship.   To catch Nathaniel’s other bold predictions click below.

Source:  Sporting News

Mike Bibby Not a Kings Anymore

After 2 years of rumors of Mike Bibby possibly becoming a Cavs, in a surprising move, the Hawks snapped away Bibby and put all these rumors to rest.

The Hawks acquired Bibby for four players, Anthony Johnson, Shelden Williams, Tyronn Lue, Lorenzen Wright and a 2008 second-round pick to the Kings.

“From our standpoint it’s a big commitment financially and one we feel good about,” Gearon, one of the Hawks owners said. “We’ve got a guy to take a lot of pressure off Joe, and he’s a leader. We’re excited about getting him in a Hawks uniform.

Shoot Boobie Shoot

Daniel Gibson set a new record for the Rookies All Star Challenge with 11 3-pointer. Boobie walked away with an MVP award.

He lead the NBA’s sophomore stars to a 136-109 victory.

Gibson will compete in the 3-point shootout Saturday, and will be hard to beat if he shoots the way he did.

“My confidence will be high from tonight and hopefully I didn’t use them all up,” Gibson said.

Lebron James had a court side seat and was screaming for Boobie after every three he made. One time he walked all the way to the scorer’s table.

“Every shot I made, I pointed to him, or I saw him doing something over there,” Gibson said. “It’s kind of like the chemistry we got on the floor. Just the way we’re supportive of each other, that big brother-little brother type of thing.”

“Once he gets in the zone, once he hits two or three, he gets it going. He hit 11 tonight,” said Durant, who like Gibson played at Texas. “I’m very happy for him. He went from a second-round pick to win an MVP in the rookie-sophomore game.”

Which opposing player scares you the most to play against?

SI PLAYERS NBA POLL

Which opposing player scares you the most to play against?

Kobe Bryant, Lakers       35%
Shaquille, O’Neal, Suns  12%
Kevin Garnett, Celtics     6%
LeBron James, Cavs        4%
Dwight Howard, Magic   4%

Bryant particularly unnerves forwards, who gave him more than 41% of their vote.  Among players 35 and older, 63% voted for Bryant.

Based on a survey of 242 NBA players

Source:  Sports Illustrated