September is here. Everyone has felt the buckle tighten back on school or a more rigid work week. We at Cavs: the Blog are no exception. But, even as we sit and watch the clock tick down the precious minutes until the NBA returns (Cavs Media Day is a week from tomorrow!!!) we are not without our actual full (?) and rewarding (??) lives. So, for unbalanced edition of Five-on-Six we’ve got a little bit of basketball and a little bit of that small sliver of our lives that is… well, un-basketball. Enjoy!
Knowing that, it should come as no surprise that pretty much every bit of Cavs news that broke came to me while I was doing something completely engrossing. I found out about the 1st overall pick going to the Cavs while at a concert in Central Park (the Neighbourhood, who I still know nothing about), about Lebron returning home when putting together a marketing plan for a brewery, and debated the Kevin Love trade with random people at bars all over San Francisco during Outside Lands. I’m pretty sure I argued with an up-and-coming electro-pop artist about the NBA that weekend, though my memory is a bit fuzzy.
However, I can say with complete honesty that none of the fun I’ve had this summer compares to what I anticipate will be the fun from this NBA season. I can’t wait to plop down on my couch and watch the beauty unfold.
Mallory: This is the easiest question ever – the best thing I ate hands down was fried chicken eggs benedict with cheesy grits, a sweet potato pancake, and burnt brown sugar syrup at the Highland Bakery in Atlanta, GA. While visiting for the Shaky Knees Festival (which, by the way, was a fantastic festival), I decided, one morning, to ditch my friends/clients, who were eating at the hotel, and walk to the nearest well-rated brunch spot. A short detour in the wrong direction (though Olympic Park and past the Coca Cola HQs) and a humid 45 minute walk later, I was treated to the best breakfast I’d ever eaten. Perfectly fried chicken, topped with poached eggs, doused in the restaurant’s special garnish, on top of a southern biscuit, paired with grits (topped with three cheeses). Oh, lets not forget that incredible pancake – I’m not a huge sweet potato fan, but holy cow – a little smokey, incredible fluffy, with pecans on top? Yes! And the syrup – literally just burnt brown sugar and butter. If that’s not some good southern cooking, then I don’t know what is.
There’s still time, though, for a great meal – I’m heading to Houston for a wedding on Friday. Don’t let me down, Texas!
Note to those who are starting to travel – ALWAYS try to eat the special local cuisine. In Austin I ate nothing but brisket for five days, in SF I chowed down on burritos, and in NC I down some ribs. This country has a LOT of unusual food to offer.
P.S., Tom – everyone knows Shake Shack >>>>>>>> In & Out. I tried a burger in SF – the Shack Burger takes the cake. Readers – care to weigh in???
David: I just moved down to Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It’s my first time in the South, and I’ve determined if I grew up here I would be morbidly obese. They have this fast food chain called Cookout that is actually the best thing America has ever come up with. For just five dollars you can get a main entrée, two sides, and a Coke float. That doesn’t sound like a deal, but for your two sides you can choose between a hot dog, a bacon wrap, a chicken wrap, slaw, fries, and a variety of other greasy treats. To initiate this epic meal stop, there are two drive-thrus. You never wait for fast food in the south.
“P.S., Tom – everyone knows Shake Shack >>>>>>>> In & Out. I tried a burger in SF – the Shack Burger takes the cake.” I have to respond to this. I’ve been to In & Out and Cookout actually gives it a run for its greasy delights. I need to try Shake Shack still.As far as real food goes, I went to a nicer place called Milner’s American Southern for my anniversary dinner and had a bacon wrapped bistro filet. I ordered it rare, and it came cooked with a tiny bit of blood on the plate. It was grilled ever so slightly before being baked which allowed the meat flavor to come through perfectly. However, the bacon is what really took it to the next level. This meat cut has a very deep thick taste to it, since it is really soft.The bacon flavor dripped into the filet and mellowed that deep flavor. The meat also had a buttermilk blue cheese glaze that had a sharp taste to it. That worked to neutralize any lingering meat flavors after a few seconds, so you could experience the mind blowing flavor journey from start to finish in each and every bite.
3.) Did you watch FIBA at all? If so, what’d you think of the basketball World Cup? If not, why? It was freakin’ basketball, guys!!
Mallory: I’m torn on FIBA and the world cup. Initially, I was crazy excited about the prospect of watching competitive basketball, fronted by Kyrie of all people(!), during the late summer. But as soon as the tournament started, I realized 1. It was not going to be competitive, 2. While there are plenty of decent international players, the pool of young, top-level talent abroad is pretty shallow right now, and 3. The games are almost always on during the day, when I work, and 4. I only have so much time during the very, VERY busy September season to watch sports, and blowouts between meh talent will never ever beat watching competitive football, even if the Buckeyes did get beaten down by a crappy Virginia Tech team.
David: I watched a little bit of the FIBA tournament. I caught all of the US semi-final game against Lithuania and about half of the final game against Serbia. The tournament was watchable, but it was brought down by the terrible reffing that was going on and the sheer dominance of the US. The US didn’t even have to run an offense or a defense that didn’t involve them using their insane athleticism or just innate abilities. I wanted to see these guys run some crazy Spursian motion offense that made me rethink basketball. I guess I’ll have to wait for the Olympics to see that.
Ben: Watching the World Cup was an interesting experience. The European game is nothing particularly new for me, but the amount of pure individual scouting I did gave the tournament a different feel. Let’s just say I never want to watch 40 minutes of Erik Murphy’s total floor game again. I enjoyed watching the France v Spain match-up as much as I have enjoyed any basketball in years. Watching Rudy Gobert develop in a game that allows goal-tending is both exhilarating and hilarious. Fat Boris Diaw reminds me of Jerome Bettis only I needn’t hate him for playing for the wrong team(Insert French joke here). Watching the Gasol brothers play together was a treat, even though Marc totally no-showed in the French game. And there was
Rudy.
Robert: I caught some. Ultimately, its draw was undone by the Spain ouster by France. If it had been the US versus Spain — or even US versus France — in the final, I think it would have gotten more attention (though, to be fair, it was starting at roughly the same time as Brian Hoyer was marching the Browns down the field for a game winning field goal). Team USA’s dominance took away some of the thrill, but it was fun to see guys like Kryie and Faried and Anthony Davis play together.
Tom: Haven’t watched a second of FIBA. Trying to build up “blogging credits” with my wife this summer. She’s been pretty understanding with all the hours I’ve put in the last four years and she’s aware this year could be a completely different animal. So…lots of walks and watching the girls so she can train for her half-marathon. Nice to see the boys took Gold. Also, I can’t get on my high horse and talk smack about Kyrie winning MVP in a game when no one is trying to play defense. Well done, kid.
4.) What was your song/album of the summer? Yes, Mallory, you can choose more than one.
Mallory: Sighhhhhh (that’s some serious exasperation, right there!). This is unfair – there are SO many good albums out there!For the ACTUAL summer, I LOVE the How To Dress Well album, Spoon’s new album is fantastic (though their live show left me wanting all three times I saw them), and the New Pornographers and Bishop Allen both delivered surprisingly great stuff. New bands, I’d have to say Twin Peaks (who did a session for us a few weeks ago, which was AWESOME), and the Griswolds put out some great stuff. All the singles released by Alt J and SBTRKT are killer, too. Forget the FKA Twigs, though.
The band of the summer, though, is 100% Misterwives. They did a session for us back in late May – little did we know just how much they would blow up. Still think they’re the band to watch. Sir Sly had a few good singles, too.
Oh, and I secretly love that Meghan Trainor…But don’t tell anyone.
Robert: I’ve been gearing up for the Delta Spirit show at Bowery Ballroom in about a week by listening to their self-titled 2012 album. I’m also obsessed with the Deer Tick/Delta Spirit/Dawes side band, Middle Brother’s 2011 album. Am I a couple years behind? Sure. Are these still fantastic albums? Ooooohhhh, yes.
David: I’ve been listening to a few albums this summer, but The War on Drugs new album, “Lost In The Dream,” is my favorite summerish album. Recently, I’ve been listening to the new Jim Jones album, “We Own the Night, Pt. 2: Memoirs of a Hustler,” and the new Travis Scott mixtape, “Days Before Rodeo.”Jim Jones satisfies my secret wish to be an almost-forty coke dealer without having to actually be a coke dealer. The album is as close as you can get to sophisticated coke rap. The Travis Scott album is a sonic treat that needs to be experienced with great headphones.Also check out Souls of Mischief’s latest album, “There Is Only Now,” that was produced with Adrian Younge. Younge uses acoustic instruments to make all the beats on this album and the result is older soul music sounding.Tom: Well if we’re going purely on play count it’s the lullaby CD in the minivan. As far as what I’ve played the most for my own personal enjoyment, I’ll admit I enjoy some ambient vocal trance while I work. Usually I just find a mix on youtube. I’m not as hipster as these other guys.Ben: “West Side Story” by a mile. More specifically the “Cool Song” which I have had to sing a couple hundred times. There are certainly worse ways to pass the time. Leonard Bernstein’s ridiculously awesome “Romeo and Juliet” reboot still blows most things out of water.
5.) Regardless of whether or not you caught Kyrie’s play in the tournament, how big of a deal is it that he performed as well as he did?David: Kyrie’s performance is a huge deal. He has definitively proven he is one of the best players in the world when he is paired with other top-level players. Not all guys can succeed with players that are super high usage. His defense has also turned a corner; he really tries to stay on his man now. Kyrie is back on track and should, once again, be the same player fans gushed about just a year ago. He has shot all my negative thoughts about him down with his consistent and situationally correct play throughout the tournament.
Ben: Coach K and Thibs are basketball geniuses. That they trusted Kyrie to be the primary ball handler and lead guard is a testament to his talent and work ethic throughout the Team USA process. Kyrie’s effort, both mentally and physically were there from the beginning to the end of the tourney. He still got beat on easy screens. He still walked the ball up a few steps before remembering that it is against Team USA rules. But he was the most consistent player on a day to day basis. His exposure to the FIBA game also will help him understand his place in a David Blatt system(I didn’t write “David Blatt’s system” quite intentionally.)
Tom: If he has a breakout season we’ll point to it as the turning point. And if he doesn’t, we’ll just forget it. He continues to play his best when he’s surrounded by extremely talented players. Not everyone produces that way. Guys like Kobe are no better when the best players in the world surround them than if they’re flanked by Smush Parker. The Cavs added LeBron and Love – Kyrie could really shine this season.
Robert: I wrote this last week (and many others have, as well): the biggest take-away was seeing Kyrie shine against people who were actually playing defense. Talent disparity aside, Irving ran an ultimately dominant US team as one of its steadier players.
Mallory: While this isn’t the Olympics, I can’t help but think about the impact that playing with Team USA had on LeBron et al sometime back. When they returned, they couldn’t stop gushing about how playing with other elite players impacted them. From the bits and pieces that I did see, it’s clear that, when in a good situation, Kyrie wants to contribute in any and every way possible. Considering the Cavalier transformation, I suspect this will translate well over the course of a season. Put me in the “this is a big deal,” party.
6.) What do you still have to get done before the NBA kicks off so that you can fully enjoy the unceasing attention you’ll have to pay to it?
Robert: I’m wrapping up a book proposal that may or may not have everything to do with this upcoming NBA season.
Tom: My basement, my garage, my yard…. We got potty training and bedtimes down pat so I should be picking up all the action midway into the 1st quarter. If this was the ol’ Cavs that’d be about the time they’d stop running plays for Z/Ben Wallace to “get them nvolved early”. This time around I hope that will be the moment SuperDova hits the hardwood.
Mallory: The next three weeks are chaos – a wedding, concerts, events – New York in September and October is bonkers. It’ll all culminate a week before the regular season with CMJ, NYC’s mini-version of SXSW. I have 3-4 events I’m involved with, so that should just about cap off the chaos. I cannot wait for the November lull, perfectly timed to coincide with the excitement of real basketball. Even with all the fun to be had in the next month, am I most excited to watch these Cavalier? Yes, yes I am.
David: I’m conducting a massive job search to get out of the food industry and into any industry where I can write and use my brain again. I will somehow be on a normal work schedule and settled in with a plate of nachos/ a sixer of some IPA to watch every Cavs game this year. I will no longer phone watch the Cavs in a cooler or catch them hours after their game ends with the League Pass app.
Ben: Fortunately, my work schedule lightens just as training camp gets started. Life can be kind. I would write about squeezing in a trip to Paris or London, but then everyone who doesn’t live in Europe would sigh in disgusted unison.
Albums of the year so far
1. War on Drugs, Lost in the Dream
2. St. Vincent, St. Vincent
3. Spoon, They Want My Soul
4. The New Pornographers, Brill Bruisers
5. Real Estate, Atlas
Love all of those.
That St. Vincent album is absurdly good. I’m sort of tired of her whole affected act, but the music is brilliant.
Yep. I thought it was the perfect balance between weird and accessibility. Such great songs on that one.
Any other recommendations?
Holy crap, how did I forget Grimes’ single??? As much as I hate to admit it, it’s insane. For anyone who hasn’t listen, GET ON IT!!!
Robert –
Anything Deer Tick takes the cake. Love the band so much.
Also Robert I want to hear more about this book.
I’ve had in n out and shake shack. They’ve got nothing on Swenson’s. SF and NY fast food burgers have some work to do to catch up to Akron.
David: COOKOUT!!! Literally ate there every single day the first time I stayed in Wilmington, NC. The BBQ pork sandwich, chicken nuggets, $1 shakes… the combined value-quantity-speed-tastiness quotient is unparalleled.
Seriously you shoulda posted a pic of the menu for everyone to see — 100% of America would be fat if there was Cookout in all 50 states.
Hope CtB is thrilled to find this is my #1 takeaway from the discussion =]