Cavaliers Sleepwalk in Charlotte

After a few days off , the Cleveland Cavaliers returned to the court tonight as they traveled to Charlotte to face the Bobcats. Maybe it was a tryptophan buzz from all the turkey on Thanksgiving or whatever, but pretty much from the opening tip, the Cavaliers looked a half-step slower than the Bobcats. This was the second meeting of the season for these teams. In their first game, the Cavs beat the Bobcats 90-79 in the fourth game of the season, at home. This game was much different though as Charlotte, now featuring veteran Stephen Jackson, who complained his was out of Golden State, beat the Cavaliers on both ends of the floor for most of the game. This is a different Bobcat team with Jackson, as they had won the previous two games by a wide margin. It looked like another blowout for Charlotte tonight as well, but the Cavs closed the gap late in the game, falling to the Bobcats 94-87.

Shaq’s Back And Offense Slows Down
Shaquille O’Neal was finally back in action this week, after missing four games with a strained shoulder. With Shaq out of action this season the Cavs have lost only one game. With him in the lineup, they have now lost four games. With Shaq out, the Cavaliers moved the ball well and got a number of players involved. With Shaq in the game, the offense seems to move slower, with a number of plays designed to get the ball to the big man in the low post, so he can attack the basket.
The acquisition of O’Neal was, and should be, a great thing for the Cavaliers. However, they need to find a way of integrating him into the offense without completely changing the offense. As the results have shown thus far this season, that objective is still a work in progress.

The Cavaliers Miss Delonte West
Delonte West was once again active for tonight’s game, but he logged only two minutes at the end of the second half and didn’t see the floor for the rest of the game. One of Delonte’s strongest attributes has been his defensive play for the Cavaliers. He brings decent size and speed and can defend the most athletic opponents. One thing that seems to really hurt the Cavaliers this season is defending the pick and roll. Teams often create quick, open looks of the pick and roll when West isn’t on the floor. When he is in there, instead of being bumped off his man in these situations, he usually fights his way around the pick and stays with his man. I don’t know if it’s a lack of desire, lack of experience, or what it is, but it isn’t rocket science.
If the Cavs aren’t going to play West, then they need to find someone who can match his skill level and intensity on the defensive end of the floor. If they don’t, teams will take a page from the Bobcat playbook and run right at the Cavaliers, and will have a good chance of being successful doing it.

Stadium Announcer From the 70’s
Watching tonight’s game was almost painful, unless I turned the sound completely down. The stadium announcer and his 70’s radio “puking” of names over the stadium sound system almost made me….well….puke. I was waiting for him to break out into a “Groovy guys, groovy gals, We’re gonna rock ya and roll ya! Now here’s a tune that’s sweeping the nation from Dexy’s Midnight Runners!” Seriously…..dude…….tone ‘er down a notch or two will ya’!? Then again, maybe it was a ploy? Maybe having to listen to him created so much nausea on the Cavalier bench that they just couldn’t keep up with the Bobcats?