Guten morgen, unsated enthusiasts of the Wine and Gold. Please don’t be alarmed. It’s just me – the shaman of sugar-coating – checking in from the garden of earthly delights that we call Cleveland, Ohio, America.
Just a cursory glance at you folks – with your folded arms and furrowed brows – tells me that you’re not feeling the Love as the NBA playoffs rapidly approach. I don’t blame you. Thursday night’s loss left me in a less-than-optimistic state of mind, myself.
Look – if the Cavaliers had blown a 17-point second-half lead to the Bulls in a loss in early January – I’d say slap a little Neosporin™ on the boo-boo and move on. But I’m sensing a larger problem here. This is early April, and if our beloved Wine and Gold warriors are to cause a ruckus in this year’s postseason, the time has come to get busy.
The Cavaliers are 12-10 since the Big Trade – including a 2-8 road record during that stretch. They haven’t won more than two straight since February 21, but they have managed to lose four out of their last six. It’s very upsetting.
But it’s at times like these that I remind myself that this process, this “spring metamorphosis” is still in the rear end of the “pupa” phase of the 2007-08 campaign. Nobody likes being at the rear end of the pupa, but that’s where this year’s club finds itself. All the Cavaliers pieces are finally in place – they’re just not quite fitting together.
That last sentence is what we in the writing business call a “segue.” It’s pronounced “seg-way” and it means “any smooth, uninterrupted transition from one thing to another.”
What I am smooth-transitioning to is something I try to do but once per NBA season – and that is making a recommendation to Cavaliers Head Coach Mike Brown.
Now I know that Coach has won 100 games over his first two seasons, taking our beloved Cavaliers to the Finals in just his second season at the helm. And I know that he’s kept an injury-ravaged club in the running for 50 more wins in 2007-08 – sometimes holding the squad together with rubber bands, paper clips, dried seaweed and snot. And I admire the heck out of him.
Mike Brown is the most underrated head coach in pro sports. He’s a defensive guru, an excellent communicator. Sometimes, he’ll knock on his own head when he says “knock on wood” as if his head is made of wood. I, personally, do not think that it is.
But recently Coach Brown has been whittling away the minutes of one Sir Damon Jones. (On Thursday, he got a DNP-CD.) And I feel that it’s had a negative affect on the team. Specifically, the team’s mojo.
I realize that Coach Brown wants to tighten up the rotation. And I know that now he has a pure point guard (Delonte West) and a pure shooter (Wally Szczerbiak). And I most certainly don’t want their minutes cut.
But the Cavaliers right now are like a recipe that’s certainly quite delicious – but missing that one spice to put the meal over the top. And, people, who’s more spicy than the DJ?
He plays the point and we all know he can shoot the rock. But what Damon Jones brings to the table is an intangible, a little something I call “intensivity” – intensity and sensitivity.
Sometimes it’s not about numbers or X’s or O’s. Sometimes it’s about flesh and blood, heart and hustle – the human element. Sometimes, it’s about intensivity.
Find the DJ. Find the mojo.
I realize Mike Brown is in a numbers and minutes crunch. And I know that the players he has on the floor he feels give him the best chance to win. Maybe he should play for overtime just to have five extra minutes to fool with.
I don’t know.
I’m just an optimist who wants to return to the NBA’s Promised Land. And I want to see our troops lip-locking the Larry O’Brien Trophy’s bulbous head in June – not some fancy-pants Frenchman, like Tony Parker.
The first step towards that journey comes today when the Cavaliers find themselves down by five with 1:21 to play. Dwight Howard barrels through the lane but is stripped by Joe Smith who feeds ahead to TheBron. The Magic defense converges on the young King, who kicks it over to Damon Jones. Jones strokes the trey from the right corner to pull Cleveland to within a deuce.
After some sloppy play on both ends, the Wine and Gold get the ball with – appropriately enough – 19 seconds remaining and still trailing, 103-101.
TheBron is swarmed upon as he takes the in-bounds pass from Daniel Gibson, and with the clock winding down finds an open Jones, who lifts the game-winner as the clock … winds … down …
TRIPOLI!!!
Cavaliers win their first of six straight heading into the postseason in dramatic fashion – 104-103.
An ebullient Coach Brown comes out for his postgame press and explains the final moments: “In the huddle after the timeout we drew up the play, and I wanted to get into our set with no delay. And now I just have one thing to say – Gosh-darn that DJ made my day!”
He then knocks on his head like it’s made of wood and retires to the Coach’s office to have a sandwich with Mike Malone, Melvin Hunt and Hank Egan.
The End.
You don’t have to listen to me, Coach. You’re the one who’s getting paid the big cheese to dole out bench minutes.
All I can say is that I’ve lived in Cleveland for over 35 years now – so I think it’s fair to say that I know a little something about winning Championships.
Find the DJ. Find the mojo.
Do so and the dominoes will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate!
I’ll see you blockheads next week. In the meantime, I’ll need every last one of you to do your duty and …
Keep the faith, Cleveland
Your pal,
The Optimist
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