I know plenty of you are all fired about how terrible you think the Cavs are and are ready to rip them after their 1-3 week.  As you know, as your certified realist I am not opposed to spreading doom and gloom.  That said, I'm here to tell you that you should be optimistic.  I've actually liked a lot of things I've seen from the Cavs over the last few games and I think it bodes OK for the near future.  Once LeBron is healthy again.  My bet is he's going to miss at least one more game with this toe injury.  If Sunday wasn't a national TV game, he would've sat and considering he re-injured the toe, and he should've.

My formative years in basketball were spent with a calculating coach named Lewis Seikel.  He was a cutting, demanding and often fiercely sarcastic man.  An accountant during the day, it was generally not a good thing once tax season started.  He was my coach in seventh and eighth grades and, whether I knew it or not at the time, he largely shaped the way I look at basketball.

Denver -- Let's get a few things straight here because I'm sensing from my e-mail, comments on Ohio.com, and message boards that I've looked at today that everyone is getting a little emotional and delusional.

Portland, Ore. -- I've been asked by a reader for my take on the big Warriors-Pacers trade that just went down.  There were eight players dealt, the principals being Al Harrington and Stephen Jackson for Troy Murphy and Mike Dunleavy.  So here it is.

Seattle -- Just wanted to pop in before I leave KeyArena for a little snap judgment on tonight's game, which the Cavs lost 101-96.  This is still the difference between a team like the Cavs and a team like, say, the Spurs or Mavericks or whomever up there.  None of those teams loses a game like tonight.  In my opinion the Cavs have been turning a corner over the last month because they've been dedicating themselves to defense, which I wrote a little about today.  If they stay on this path, and I'm making no predictions, they will win a bunch of games the rest of the season.  They are really getting it, I can see it and I can feel it in the locker room.  They say the right things and doing the right things defensively.

Los Angeles -- I've had a rare treat during this road trip, one that many of you I'm sure take for granted.  Twice I've been able to listen to Joe Tait call the game on the radio.  I DVR most of the Cavs games off TV and watch pieces of them, but I never get to just listen to the games live because I'm always there.  It just so happens some of the media seating configurations on the West Coast allow me to sit next to him and I borrow a headset.

Phoenix -- So I'm on my way to dinner on Wednesday night and I was listening to the Mike D'Antoni Show on a local radio station here.  One guy called asked "If you were coaching against the Suns, how would you stop them?"  The coach thought for a second and said "I don't know if you can."  I think he might be right, they're pretty good.  The Cavs have done a pretty good job of late in ignoring the other team and playing their way, but tonight will be the ultimate test.  Win or lose, pay attention to whether the Cavs get seduced by the way the Suns play.  It will be telling about their development and just how good there defense we've all been raving about is for real or not.

I got an e-mail from a friend and big Buckeyes fan a few moments ago, he said he was too shocked to be upset.  Not even the most confident Florida supporter could've dared to predict a four-touchdown victory.

Third quarter is over, the Buckeyes season will be soon it seems.

Florida played almost a mistake free first half, which everyone thought they would have to beat OSU.  But to be up 20, 34-14, is astounding.

The OSU score was key, to stop the bleeding.  But they can score and they will continue to score.  The major issue now is the Buckeyes feared Achilles, the defensive backfield.  They have to stop the Gators at some point and it starts with stopping the easy passing.

Glendale, Ariz.  -- Welcome to the Cavaliers Blog, or for tonight the BCS Blog.

Boston -- For several weeks now, I have been methodically picking on the Cavs, from their offensive woes to their focusless play on the road.  Surely making many e-mailers happy, I composed a manifesto about the point guard problem and guessed the whole outfit was simply overhyped from the start.  Some in the Cavs organization criticize me for this behavior and I remind them The Optimist writes for Cavs.com, the realist writes for the Beacon Journal.  Still, I have been labeled "Negative Ned," especially because they have the second-best record in the East after last night's pivotal victory over the Spurs.