Now that the Celtics are about to accomplish the difficult/impossible(?) in Cleveland, I think they'll go ahead and take care of business in Beantown.
Cavs blew out the Celtics in Game 3. That said- here is a staggering stat: in the last 17 years, the team with best record in the league has only won the championship 5 times.
Is it just me, or does LeBron have the look of someone who would rather be playing elsewhere? To answer your question, yes, I think this may indeed be James' last home game in a Cavs uni.
I'm inclined to think that Cleveland's talent will outweigh everything else in this series. LeBron is just having a rough stretch right now. I find it hard to be believe he will be passive game 6 or him having 3 subpar games in a row.
i still think the cavs are the better team and think they have a decent shot at winning the series but the way lebron didn't show up tonight is pretty troubling as is the fact that mike brown still can't make adjustments that are blatantly obvious. jamison clearly can't guard kg and can't help keep rondo out of the lane either. shaq clearly can't create his own offense and is just throwing the ball in the general direction of the basket any time he touches in on the block. varejao was the cavs 2nd most important player during most of the regular season and he's had his minutes cut for some reason. hickson was a solid contributor all season and he's been benched completely even though he'd match up much better with the celtics than shaq does.
I think Shaq was pretty decent the last couple of games, LeBron has just been off. O'Neal got the Celtics into foul trouble and helped get cleveland to the line. Hickson/Varejao could see more time. Rondo was also contained tonight somewhat, same in their game 3 victory.
the only thing shaq is good for is his ability to get the other team in the penalty early. he should play the first 2-3 minutes every quarter and then sit on the bench. did he score at all on offense he created for himself? seemed like every post move he tried ended up with a wild shot. only times he scored were when mo or lebron spoon fed him a dunk or he got fouled in the act of being spoon fed a dunk. varejao and hickson can both do that just as well or better than shaq while both can be much more active defensively. we'll see what lebron does in game 6, but with his performance it appeared as though he might have just checked out of cleveland tonight.
Varejao and Hickson can be superior, but Shaq hasn't been awful enough to call out. All that matters is the aggregate, not what Shaq lacks skill-wise. He's getting it done the past few games. He sucked against Chicago but he's having a better series now. What has Kendrick Perkins done in this series? It's not like he's going off at the other end and Shaq has had three solid games in a row for the number of minutes he played. You need to be upset with guys like Mo Williams who have refused to play at even their mediocre regular season level.
i disagree that shaq is getting it done. putting up numbers that are handed to him that the last guy on the bench could convert aren't impressive. and perkins isn't going to go off on the other end regardless of who is guarding him. i'd start varejao over shaq and put jamison on perkins in hopes that the celtics would try to actually run plays for him. it's hard to expect anything more from mo come playoff time. this is just who he is. jamison is more disappointing though his coach isn't helping him out at all. that's been the biggest thing this series(other than lebron not showing up this last game). mike brown has been bad.
You're selling him short, he creates various times he's just getting fouled. It is a no brainer to say Varejao needs more minutes, he was their second best player this season. But I wouldn't complain about what Shaq has done the past few games. I've seen Andy fumble some easy catches in the post in these last couple of losses. I can't imagine him getting 21 points, even 17. These aren't Allen Iverson shooting percentages or usage rates. The Last guy off the bench won't draw 20 free throws over the past 2 games, or make a run in Game 4 until he's taken out. Mo is just a giant disappointment for me. I expect more from Jamison.
Double check your stats. By my count, the team with the best record has won it all 7 times in the past 17 years, making it the most likely individual outcome compared to teams with worse records.
Well that all matters who shows up to the next game. Do the Cavs get "Le-Bra" who should have put on a Bra after his performance in the last game, or do they get Lebron, who scored 24 points in one quarter earlier this series.
