Links To The Present: October 14, 2010

Tonight the following players sat out: Mo Williams, Anderson Varejao, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker, Richard Jefferson.  Anthony Parker and Antawn Jamison played less than a half.  Still, the Cavs cruised against the Spurs.  Looking forward to the SHIRT after THIS LINE: 13 pts, 4 boards, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 three, 75% shooting in 22 minutes.

So the Cavs are looking pretty good in the preseason and that’s good news.  One thing to keep in my mind is that if the Cavalier really did get destroyed by Byron Scott in training camp they might be much closer to game shape than the rest of the league.  However, some think the preseason is a great indicator of future success after adjusting for minutes: “The preseason is a significant factor for predicting regular season success. In fact, preseason performance is comparable to regular season performance for predicting future wins and losses. After accounting for the number of starter minutes played, the difference becomes even smaller.”

From, um, Kelly Dwyer: “They don’t want to rebuild, figuring that the additions of Ramon Sessions and, um, Joey Graham will be enough to stem the tide in LeBron James’ absence.”

A couple thoughts on this:

1.) Who said the Cavs didn’t want to rebuild?  Ramon Sessions was born in nineteen eighty-six.

2.) If they had wanted to “stem the tide” for this season they could have offered Shaq 5 million dollars and tossed it to him 20 times a game and played inside-outside with Mo and Jamison.  They’d have won 40 games and probably fought for a playoff spot.  (they still might)

3.) I have read from numerous sources how screwed the Cavaliers future is.  Marc Stein: “Who dares to think Clevelanders will be healed 3 1/2 years from now?”  Fanhouse: “It is a painful reality, and though Cleveland fans have suffered already this summer, they haven’t seen anything yet.”  I’m having trouble seeing it.  They have a young team with mostly reasonable contracts, they have two skilled big men under 30, they have 15 million in trade exceptions, and most importantly they have an owner willing to spend money.

This pretty much sums it up: “No team, no city, and no group of players have a bigger right to come into the 2010-11 NBA season with a gigantic chip on their shoulders than Cleveland. When LeBron James abandoned his friends and fans on National TV, he could not have found a way to cause them greater pain. But the Cavaliers have survived for 40 years in Cleveland and been to the playoffs 18 times over their stay. Now entering their forty-first season; it is all about getting back into contention once again.”

This is pretty funny stuff from, um, Kelly Dwyer.

It’s been about the UTES. “The answer lies in the impressive performances by the younger guys on the team. Each of the top 7 on the Cavs in points per game are under 30 years old and only one, Jawad Williams, is over 25.” [Andrew – WFNY]

I tried picking out a sentence or two from this post that I liked (misplaced modifier! or is it?) but I love the entire thing (yep, it was) – probably because I love AC.

“When someone new walks near my desk and notices said posters, they almost always ask “Are you still a Cavs fan?” I was so surprised by this the first time it was asked that I almost didn’t know what to say.” [Danny Tarter]

Get well soon, Joe!  I remember being in the backseat of my family’s station wagon driving to my Great Aunt’s house for a picnic when I heard this call.  8 years old, never forgot it.  Hear that crowd?  That’s the Cavaliers before LeBron James.

Here’s another one I vividly remember – feigning sleep under my covers with my radio glued to my ear.

Just listen to all of them.