Links To The Present: February 8, 2011
2011-02-08
“When it was over, when the Cleveland Cavaliers officially claimed the longest losing streak in NBA history, Byron Scott smiled and shook his head. Antawn Jamison grimaced in disbelief” [Jason Lloyd]
We’ve gone from a slow drip of Cavs coverage yesterday to a surging torrent of (pretty redundant) opinions, analysis, and predictions. I guess this is the difference between being terrible and historically terrible. Noam from Hardwood Paroxysm comments on this phenomenon by coming to a brilliantly simple conclusion: the Cavaliers are really bad and should probably be ignored by any non-Cavs fans for the next few years. There’s no real need to discuss this team’s awfulness on the “A” block of PTI other than for the purposes of pity and gawking.
“The season’s over in what, 60 days? So in 60 days you go from being a suffering franchise to having the best odds of getting the first pick and a ton of [salary] cap room, and you’re the hero all summer.” [Mark Cuban via Jodie Valade]
Speaking of high draft picks, Sean Deveney speculates as to whether or not “Jared Sullinger can save the Cavs.” I don’t think I’m the only person who finds the word “save” troublesome when it’s used in reference to a college freshman, and, regardless of the language one chooses to employ, there’s a decent chance Ohio State’s phenom lacks the transcendent talents upon which one can build a championship team. That’s not a slight at Sullinger: there are about six people on the planet that hold that distinction. Is anyone else concerned, due in part to the near-imminent lockout as well as an ostensible dearth of dominant college players, that there may not be any franchise players in this draft? I am terrified of a Cavs squad that features an overmatched Perry Jones or just-pretty-good Jared Sullinger as its centerpiece going forward.
Over at the Good News Desk, we’ve received word that Cavs announcer Joe Tait has moved home to continue his rehab from heart surgery.
On The Twitters
“It’s been five minutes. I’m still at a loss for exactly how to describe those last seven seconds.” [Zac Jackson]
“The trade deadline is 16 days away and if Jamison is gone I’ll throw a party and get drunk. If he’s still on the team I’ll still get drunk.” [realcavsfans]
“ESPN is trying really, really hard to make people think the only difference in this years #Cavs team is LeBron James.” [Scott Sargent
“Do writers really believe their “Cavaliers are really bad” article is breaking any new ground?” [Michael A. Young]
Both Sullinger and Irving are reasonable picks, neither one really excites me. If the Cavs have a choice between the two, I hope they pick Irving, moreso because we have a bigger need at PG than PF, not because I think he’s just clearly a better NBA talent. If there was a ‘top notch’ SF in this draft then I’d take him. The ‘advantage’ of a draft like this is that because there is no clear #1 pick but just a bunch of guys that should be top 5-6, teams have more flexibility to pick for best position/fit on their… Read more »
Tom, I beg to differ on Sullingers accuracy from three point range. He is shooting 20% from three in college, making two out of ten. Kevin Love is making 43% of his threes in the pros. No comparison between the two in that area. If Sullinger is a good college three point shooter than Big Z is a prolific NBA three point marksmen. That being said, I’ve seen Jared in practice and before games knock down a number of threes. However, in the famed words of Allen Iverson, “we’re talking about practice man.” Ben Wallace is a solid foul shooter… Read more »
As a Laker fan, I truly feel for Cavs fans, and I know a bunch of Laker fans will do some major juju later this afternoon in order to will the Spirit of the Hoop Gods to make the Cavs beat the Pistons and end this heinous streak.
On another level, it’s bad for the NBA, and as hellacious as your team’s luck has been over the last what? 8 months? I really don’t think the Cavs are THAT bad.
Go Cavs!
-the Laker fan contingent
Unrelated, but Cavs are favored (-1) over the Pistons.
Count me among those who like Irving.
Sullinger is a very good shooter too. He has college 3 point range.
My biggest beef with sullinger is that he has no left hand. His post moves are excellent, but when he spins left he always has to come back towards the defender. Right now that move is getting him FTs (which he is knocking down) – in the NBA it will get blocked.
Still, offensively, Sullinger is Big Baby Davis at worst – Tim Duncan at best. Defensively I’m not exactly sure how good he is since Ohio State is such a quality perimeter defensive team.
Not sure where 22-16 came from since Jared is averaging 18-10. He’s had two 20+ point, 16 rebound games.
I like Jared, but if they land the #1 pick, Kyrie Irving is the pick for me.
I’ve got a good feeling about Kyrie Irving, personally.
But whoever we pick, at least it’s nice to have the lottery to look forward to.
@Cooley Ford, Kevin Love has turned out to be a much better pro than most, including the Timberwolves could have predicted. He is a double-double machine and just broke KGs streak for consecutive double-doubles in franchise history. A guy who gives you 20 and 15 a night is most assuredly worth a top three pick. I think expecting Lebron-like numbers from a pick in this years draft is setting fans up for misery. That is a once in a generation talent. I don’t think the comparison is a good one to Sullinger either. First, Love is much more athletic and… Read more »
I’m not sure if there are any clear draft picks this year. A lot of decent/solid guys but nobody that I can see being just that dominant. John Wall was hyped up last year and he hasn’t done much (yes he go hurt but still…) Irving doesn’t have as much ‘potential’ as Wall did. Blake Griffin has been incredible to watch this year but it’s not like he’s really been the ‘savior’ of the Clippers. And Sullinger isn’t near as talented as Blake. Bottom line we’ll still have to rely upon a good trade or two AND for Manny/Eyenga OR… Read more »
@Cooley Ford Are you kidding me? A guy who has been in the top 10 all year in PER, goes for 22 and almost 16 and you are questioning whether he is worth a number 3 or 4 pick? I have no idea what to say. You do realize that the vast majority of drafts are not like the 2003 draft? I would be thrilled to get a Kevin Love type player. I like Sullinger, he comes from a really good stable family, and has shown improvement in many areas as the season has gone on. I certainly wouldn’t bank… Read more »
@ false-cognate
But, the question is, even with your comparison, is a Kevin Love-type player worth a #3 or #4 overall pick? I’m not so sure on that one. I’d take Kyrie Irving, personally. I read about picks being for sale later in the 1st round, so then we’d look for a wing, maybe?
Really John, I don’t know why you are so down on Jared Sullinger. You know what freshman the kid reminds ME of? Kevin Love. Elite rebounders transfer to the pro game at a higher clip. See also: DeJuan Blair (except with ligaments)
@ Jovan Buha
I thought your piece was pretty god, but really, as a Cleveland fan, there’s no new information in there, and it really barks up the whole “pity the poor little Clevelanders” angle. I’ll admit to being touchy about Cleveland sports, though. I thought it was pretty solid, but if that were in/on a Cleveland publication/site, you’d get lambasted.
I’m a freshman at USC writing for NeonTommy, USC’s online publication. Check out my take on the Cleveland Cavaliers losing streak… http://www.neontommy.com/news/2011/02/cavaliers-set-nba-losing-streak-record
@Sean Deveney: I think he’s looking at this draft in the wrong way. If you’re expecting a transendent star you will be sorely disappointed. However, not every draft has such a player; this draft has a number of solid players that can help establish a foundation for an also-ran in the NBA. A player like Sullinger or Jones or Irving would not catapault the Cavs into the upper echelon of teams. These types of players would provide a building block, one piece of an incredibly large puzzle. Maybe most importantly, these players won’t take the Cavs from historically terrible to… Read more »
I’m being sarcastic. But, if Byron Scott steps down eventually. The NBA should penalize the Cavs by making them play the rest of the season
with NO coach. There isn’t a coach that deserves to have that many losses next to their name. The players should be ASHAMED of themselves.
Despite this last game being close. There are so many signs of why the Cavs are so bad.
Perhaps, the owner Gilbert should be forced to coach the rest of the season. It’s Gilbert that should have this losing streak next to his name. hehe