Can Cavs Wrap Up A Christmas Win in Los Angeles?
December 25th, 2009 | by Ward Peterson |Happy Holidays, everyone!
The Cleveland Cavaliers will be facing the Los Angeles Lakers in what has become a Lakers tradition lately…..playing on Christmas Day. This game could very well be a preview of the NBA Finals, if the Cavaliers can continue the kind of play they have shown during their last couple games of this extended road trip.
Heading into this road trip the Cavaliers had seemed vulnerable to teams that played more of an up-tempo game. The first game of the trip, against Dallas, the Cavaliers started slow and the Mavericks got out a lead that was insurmountable when the Cavs finally started to match their intensity. Then in Phoenix, the Cavaliers seemed more prepared to play a faster paced game and finished with their second victory of the season over the Suns. Finally, against Golden State, the Cavaliers were once again facing a team who seemed to refuse to be sucked into the Cavaliers half court style of play. That game went into overtime, but the Cavs prevailed, scoring all 13 points of the overtime period.
There were two consistent aspects of the last two wins. One, of course, was the play of LeBron James. He scored no fewer than 25 points in any of those games and as he has all season, came up with momentum changing plays when the Cavaliers needed them. The other was the play of Mo Williams. As I stated recently what the Cavs were lacking was another player who could step up and become a consistent threat to take the heat off James. Williams has stepped up with 24 points against Phoenix, and then 27 points in Sacramento. James and Williams fed off one another in both games, with one getting good looks, when defenses focused on the other.
On Christmas Day, the Cavaliers will face their toughest test of the season thus far. It will take a complete team effort for the Cavs to come away from Los Angeles with a win. One thing for sure…..the game WILL be entertaining. Entertainment isn’t what Cavs fans want for Christmas though. They want a win!
Tags: LeBron James, Mo Williams
