Seattle @ Cleveland <div align="center"> <font color="Green">Seattle Sonics</font> (20-19) @ <font color="DarkRed">Cleveland Cavaliers</font> (13-27)</div> Tuesday, Jan. 20, 4pm Gund Arena, Cleveland, OH TV: KONG, NBALP Season Series: Cavaliers 1, Sonics0 Tuesday, January 13th Cleveland 104 @ Seattle 96 Previous Game Cavaliers 102 @ Jazz 96 Sonics 90 @ Philadelphia 81 Head Coaches Paul Silas/Nate McMillan Probable Starters Kevin Ollie/Brent Barry Kedrick Brown/Ray Allen Eric Williams/Rashard Lewis Carlos Boozer/Vladimir Radmanovic DeSagana Diop/Jerome James 6th Men Dajuan Wagner/Flip Murray Injury Update Cavaliers J.R. Bremer Zydrunas Ilgauskas - suspended (fighting) LeBron James - Gametime decision (right ankle) Sonics Nick Collison - shoulder (IL) Ansu Sesay - finger (IL) <div align="center">Players To Watch Carlos Boozer/Ray Allen Boozer: 13.1 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.o6 steals Allen: 23.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.33 steals</div> Fast Facts The Sonics have allowed the 3rd most points in the league at over 99 per game. The Cavaliers are 14th at 95.5. The Cavs are the best rebounding team in the league compared to the Sonics who are 2nd to last. Keys To The Game <u>Cavaliers</u> Must keep hands in their shooters faces and box out Keep Diop and Battie out of foul trouble Must get back on defense fast and defend the perimeter Attack the basket, make freethrows, don't turn the ball over, zone it up <u>Sonics</u> Get the ball out of LeBron's hands early Attack the basket, don't fall in love with the 3 point shot Keep a body on Carlos Boozer, keep him off the glass Zone it up, make the Cavaliers shoot from outside Run the floor hard, spread the Cavalier defense Sir Desmond's Take Seattle finally developed some toughness in Philadelphia to snap a four game losing streak, and will look for more of the same here. With LeBron James likely out with an ankle injury, Seattle have a sizable advantage in the backcourt, and will be hoping that Nate McMillan's new starting frontline will be enough to stop Boozer and co., with Radmanovic providing a punch off the bench. The Sonics should have the firepower to beat a James-less Cavalier team, but they have a habit of bringing themselves down to the level of their opponents of late, often further. <font size="1">Please visit NBA.com</font>
Glad to see your confidence coming back for our hometeam KJ. I see that game really hyped you up. Yeah im feeling good right now as well about the Cavs. However they are still "The Cavs" and they seem to let us down when we are up. Sonics by 10.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Mr_Infante:</div><div class="quote_post">Glad to see your confidence coming back for our hometeam KJ. I see that game really hyped you up. Yeah im feeling good right now as well about the Cavs. However they are still "The Cavs" and they seem to let us down when we are up. Sonics by 10.</div> If they don't play hard in this one knowing they can win, I will be very upset. They have that game againt Utah that was a slugfest, Seattle will be nothing like that. Plus, they played great without Z and Bron in a very tight situation with a very loud crowd. They must be very confident going into this one.
Im gonna guess the sonics by 4, Flip Murray and Ray Allen are going to play pretty good and LeBron well play good but not good enough to win the game. The 1st quarter lead is gonna kill the cavs.
Great preview KJ, hmmm somehow I'm not sure. I'm not really familiar with the Sonics but if I were to go with a gut feeling, I'd say Cavaliers take this one in a close game. By around 4, I think they're going to play excellent defense.
I've heard that Boozer's grandmother has passed away and that it is a possibility that he will leave the team to attend the funeral, thus missing Tuesday's game. No Z, no Boozer, and no Lebron = big trouble. Lets hope James can play, but if it is questionable, there is no need risking more serious injury.,
I think LeBron will end up playing. He might not put up the normal 40 minutes but he will start and finish this game. If he indeed is out then you would have to call on Ollie. And it would give Wagner some extended playing time since there is no offensive threat no longer on the court. With Z and LBJ out i would like to see a :Battie, Boozer, Williams, Ollie line-up with. DMiles and Wag playing around 25 minutes each off the bench. Boozer will end up being our go-to-guy in the post. He had a great game last night during crunch time. But i feel we might not have enough for the whole game with out our All-Stars.
James will not practice Monday <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Cavaliers rookie LeBron James will be kept out of practice on Monday to rest his sprained right ankle, which he injured in a win over Utah. James got hurt Saturday night when he rolled his ankle after missing a layup in the final seconds of regulation in Cleveland's 102-96 overtime win against the Jazz. X-rays taken Sunday were negative when James was re-evaluated by team doctors after the Cavaliers returned from Utah. A Cavs spokesman said an MRI was not performed. The team said James will not practice Monday and it will be a game time decision if the 19-year-old star plays Tuesday night when the Cavs host the Seattle SuperSonics -- the first of five straight home games for Cleveland. In all likelihood, James will miss a few games to make sure his ankle is 100 percent. Earlier this season, Cleveland forward Carlos Boozer missed six games with a sprained ankle.</div> Full Story
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Mr_Infante:</div><div class="quote_post">Well it looks like its time for Wagner to pick up his game Tuesday.</div> If James does not play, I doubt we have the scoring to keep up with Seattle. James picked them apart with his passing and driving to the basket. To beat Seattle without James and Z, Wagner will need to give us something in the teens, Boozer will have to have another huge game, Williams must score close to 20, and Diop and Battie must avoid foul trouble. I just don't see all of that taking place.
If there is anything that the Cavs have showed this year, its that they are absolutely inept at capitalizing on momentum. Normally winning 2 out of 3 road games against Western conference teams (the 2 being playoff contenders) would fire a team up and have them coming out ready to run. The Cavs usually come out slow and never seem to get their heads into it until its too late. Injuries and a letdown combined with a Seattle team ready for revenge... Sonics by 8
Here is another article I found about the injury to James. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"> Cavaliers fans got good news and bad news Sunday. First, X-rays on LeBron James' right ankle came up negative, meaning the injury is indeed only a sprain as first diagnosed Saturday night in Salt Lake City. But James will not practice today and will be a game-time decision for Tuesday's home game with the Seattle SuperSonics. That is likely a very optimistic report on the Cavaliers' behalf because James is probably still looking at some shelf time. When Carlos Boozer suffered a similar injury in November, he missed six games. James wasn't able to put any weight on the ankle when leaving the Delta Center Saturday. James landed on Jazz forward Andrei Kirilenko's lower leg as he came down from a layup attempt late in regulation. The Cavaliers ended up winning without him in overtime, a prospect they're likely to face over an extended period of this upcoming five-game homestand. ``I'm a soldier. I keep getting hit and getting back up,'' an upbeat James said. ``I got up after the injury; I just couldn't stand up. I'll be back.''</div> Full Story
Where's Darius? Where's Darius? Apparently thats what the Cavs are asking after he failed to show up to practice and nobody seems to know where he is. We are going to end up having to forfeit the Sonics game tomorrow at this rate...
I just got word about the Darius Miles situation also about the no call no show. Lets hope its just the weather is the reason for his absence. It would be absolutly STUPID if he didn't show. Expecially after all the playing time Silias has been giving him and the improvements he has made to his game. What a dissapointment.
If he was traded then the team would obviously been informed. Cavs officials stated that they did not know where he was.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">The Cleveland Cavaliers may be about to experience how life would have been had they not won the NBA lottery. Rookie LeBron James, who sprained his right ankle during a win at Utah during the weekend, is not expected to play Tuesday night when Cleveland hosts Seattle. "He wasn't walking too good on it," Cavs coach Paul Silas said Monday after practicing without his 19-year-old superstar and leading scorer. Silas is planning for James to miss at least one game -- and perhaps a few more. "We just have to make do until he comes back," he said. "If he doesn't play, somebody will have to step in and step up. We've got to win games." If the potential loss of James wasn't bad enough, the Cavs learned they will also play Tuesday without center Zydrunas Ilgauskas. The 7-foot-3 Ilgauskas received a one-game suspension without pay by the NBA on Monday for throwing a punch at Jazz center Greg Ostertag in Saturday's game. Ilgauskas' suspension will cost him $150,000. The club could also be without forward Darius Miles, who never made it to practice on Monday.</div> Full Story Ok, what the hell is going on here? Things can be very ugly in this Seattle game now. I'll list Ollie as the starting PG and remove Miles from the game as well.
