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Do IT this week: Layering
LeBron and Shaq work on chemistry. Gibson has 15 points
By George M. Thomas
Beacon Journal sports writer
POSTED: 11:14 p.m. EDT, Oct 12, 2009
CLEVELAND: Exhibition. Practice game. Preseason.
Tonight's game against Olympiacos Piraeus often felt like all of the above.
The Cavaliers started out playing tough defense before things turned sloppy in a 111-94 win.
Daniel Gibson led the Cavs with 15 points, with Anderson Varejao and J.J. Hickson each tossing in 13. Josh Childress and Linas Kleiza led Olympiacos Pireaus with 16 apiece.
''We got good production off the bench. We got good production from the starting lineup,'' Cavs coach Mike Brown said.
However, no player acted as if he was allowed to have any fun until near the end of the first half.
A Quicken Loans Arena crowd that sat on its hands for much of the game was treated to some of that chemistry that fans hope the Cavaliers will have this season.
LeBron James thrilled the crowd with a couple of memorable dunks with fewer than two minutes left in the half. Then a pass and subsequent dunk by Shaquille O'Neal made the crowd howl contentedly.
If those two players are able to work like that during the season, success should follow.
That wasn't the only aspect of the Cavs worthy of display.
James possessed the uncanny ability to find forward Anderson Varejao cutting down low to the hoop for an easy layup or dunk.
Guess who's learned the trick? O'Neal found Varejao on a couple of those, making it look easy. It takes seeing O'Neal in person to realize the passing skills he possesses.
With James and O'Neal looking for Varejao to make those cuts for easy baskets, he could see his offensive numbers go up this season.
While the preseason remains young, it's difficult to dismiss what forward Hickson continues to do on offense. Hickson put up his points in only 14 minutes of play, and often looked dominant doing so.
With Mo Williams resting on the bench and Delonte West tending to personal business, it fell to Gibson to start at the point. He added four assists and three steals to his point total and hit 5-of-9 shots.
''I thought he went out there and did a solid job, trying to keep us in our offense early on and knock down a couple of shots,'' coach Mike Brown said. ''He drove the ball a couple of times at the right time and finished either with an assist or a score.''
Shaq and son?
The Cavs' Shaquille O'Neal got a look at his would-be namesake as Olympiacos' Sofoklis Schortsanitis yielded nothing on the court, guarding O'Neal as if they were playing for a championship.
Schortsanitis is nicknamed ''Baby Shaq.''
''I really appreciate and enjoy big guys like that [who] play hard and just play their game,'' O'Neal said. ''He's sort of a true big man; he's not going to shoot the jumper. The only things that he does are pick and roll, dunk and jump hook. That's how a big man should be.''
One of their encounters ended up with O'Neal doing his best Superman imitation flying into the seats in the west basket. It could have been one of those hold-your-breath moments.
Instead, O'Neal got right back up.
''I thought 'Oh, my gosh, he's going to get hurt,' '' coach Mike Brown said. ''Then I remembered he's Superman, so he was just flying.''
Getting healthy
It's a good thing that coach Mike Brown hadn't made any cuts yet. Judging from today's list of those not playing, he needed every body on the training camp roster to get through the came with Olympiacos.
Those who didn't participate included: guard Danny Green (right glute contusion); Jamario Moon (pulled wisdom teeth); Leon Powe (left knee surgery); Mo Williams (sore right groin) and Delonte West (personal matters) all missed the game.
George M. Thomas can be reached at sportswriterabj@sbcglobal.net. Read the Cavs blog at http://www.ohio.com/thomas. Follow Cavs coverage on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/cavsabj.
CLEVELAND: Exhibition. Practice game. Preseason.
Tonight's game against Olympiacos Piraeus often felt like all of the above.
The Cavaliers started out playing tough defense before things turned sloppy in a 111-94 win.
Daniel Gibson led the Cavs with 15 points, with Anderson Varejao and J.J. Hickson each tossing in 13. Josh Childress and Linas Kleiza led Olympiacos Pireaus with 16 apiece.
''We got good production off the bench. We got good production from the starting lineup,'' Cavs coach Mike Brown said.
However, no player acted as if he was allowed to have any fun until near the end of the first half.
A Quicken Loans Arena crowd that sat on its hands for much of the game was treated to some of that chemistry that fans hope the Cavaliers will have this season.
LeBron James thrilled the crowd with a couple of memorable dunks with fewer than two minutes left in the half. Then a pass and subsequent dunk by Shaquille O'Neal made the crowd howl contentedly.
If those two players are able to work like that during the season, success should follow.
That wasn't the only aspect of the Cavs worthy of display.
James possessed the uncanny ability to find forward Anderson Varejao cutting down low to the hoop for an easy layup or dunk.
Guess who's learned the trick? O'Neal found Varejao on a couple of those, making it look easy. It takes seeing O'Neal in person to realize the passing skills he possesses.
With James and O'Neal looking for Varejao to make those cuts for easy baskets, he could see his offensive numbers go up this season.
While the preseason remains young, it's difficult to dismiss what forward Hickson continues to do on offense. Hickson put up his points in only 14 minutes of play, and often looked dominant doing so.
With Mo Williams resting on the bench and Delonte West tending to personal business, it fell to Gibson to start at the point. He added four assists and three steals to his point total and hit 5-of-9 shots.
''I thought he went out there and did a solid job, trying to keep us in our offense early on and knock down a couple of shots,'' coach Mike Brown said. ''He drove the ball a couple of times at the right time and finished either with an assist or a score.''
Shaq and son?
The Cavs' Shaquille O'Neal got a look at his would-be namesake as Olympiacos' Sofoklis Schortsanitis yielded nothing on the court, guarding O'Neal as if they were playing for a championship.
Schortsanitis is nicknamed ''Baby Shaq.''
''I really appreciate and enjoy big guys like that [who] play hard and just play their game,'' O'Neal said. ''He's sort of a true big man; he's not going to shoot the jumper. The only things that he does are pick and roll, dunk and jump hook. That's how a big man should be.''
One of their encounters ended up with O'Neal doing his best Superman imitation flying into the seats in the west basket. It could have been one of those hold-your-breath moments.
Instead, O'Neal got right back up.
''I thought 'Oh, my gosh, he's going to get hurt,' '' coach Mike Brown said. ''Then I remembered he's Superman, so he was just flying.''
Getting healthy
It's a good thing that coach Mike Brown hadn't made any cuts yet. Judging from today's list of those not playing, he needed every body on the training camp roster to get through the came with Olympiacos.
Those who didn't participate included: guard Danny Green (right glute contusion); Jamario Moon (pulled wisdom teeth); Leon Powe (left knee surgery); Mo Williams (sore right groin) and Delonte West (personal matters) all missed the game.
George M. Thomas can be reached at sportswriterabj@sbcglobal.net. Read the Cavs blog at http://www.ohio.com/thomas. Follow Cavs coverage on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/cavsabj.
Comments
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akron, oh
Posted 01:23 PM, 10/13/2009
These guys are SOOO cool! I love the Cavs!
