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He's a tough act that Cavs follow

Mo Williams shakes off injuries to help lead way on road trip

By George M. Thomas
Beacon Journal sports writer

Published on Sunday, Dec 27, 2009

LOS ANGELES: Point guard Mo Williams exemplifies pure toughness for the Cavaliers.

During the Cavs' 3-1 Western swing, Williams has taken a licking and kept on ticking. He went down against the Sacramento Kings when his knee banged that of an opposing player — ''bone on bone'' and excruciatingly painful, Williams said later.

Then there's the brief injury he suffered against the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas Day, where he appeared to injure his back.

What did Williams do after each incident? He scored 27 points against the Kings and led the Cavs in scoring against the Lakers with 28, matching a season high. On this four-game road trip, Williams blazed a trail through the Western Conference, averaging 24.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, and five assists in those four games.

''I've been more aggressive, been more assertive. I think I'm playing well,'' Williams said.

There's little doubt that the Cavs are LeBron James' team. However, since his arrival from Milwaukee in a trade just before the beginning of training camp in 2008, Williams has been indispensable. It's evident in the Cavs' record this season when he's on top of his game. When Williams scores more than 20 points, the Cavaliers are 10-2.

Williams is unfazed when asked about
the way he's been playing after minor scrapes and collisions.

''It's what you're expected to do. Obviously, it's a long ride home. [I'll] get some healing and get some massages, some treatment with the trainers and be ready to go,'' he said.

Tenacious defense

The Cavs saved one of their best defensive performances for the Lakers, holding them to just 37 percent shooting from the floor and only 38 points in the paint.

''I think it ranks up there as one of the best ones we've had this year, but that's just us,'' James said. ''We fly around. We help each other and everyone did a wonderful job of communicating, trusting the system.''

But that isn't all they did. Collectively, they got inside the heads of the Lakers — as witnessed by the team's four technicals and the ejection of forward Lamar Odom — and those of their fans, who littered the floor at the Staples Center with foam promotional items.

The Cavs' defense forced the Lakers to revert to their pre-championship form, relying on Kobe Bryant for most of their offense. Although he scored 35 points, Bryant took 32 shots against the Cavaliers and hit just 11 of them. Much of that was due to the play of Anthony Parker and Jamario Moon, who made Bryant work for every shot.

Williams understood the level of frustration the Lakers had.

''If somebody was doing it to us, I think we'd be frustrated, too. As a defensive team, you always want to see your opponent get frustrated,'' he said. ''Now you're kind of getting under their skin and you try to make them do something out of character.''

West's impact

The box score read just 17 minutes for Delonte West against the Lakers, but they were huge in their effect on the game. West played during the heart of the Cavs' run to take charge of the game. Overall, he had seven points, four assists and three steals.

''Delonte came in and changed the game defensively. He changed the tempo a little bit on that end of the floor,'' coach Mike Brown said.

His performance against the Lakers showed how valuable he is. The Cavs can only hope that with his recent play, West — who will be an integral part of any playoff run — has turned the corner.

Bah! Humbug!

Count the Orlando Magic's Stan Van Gundy, whose team lost to the Boston Celtics on Christmas Day, among those who would like to see the games abolished on that holiday.

''I think we get a little carried away with ourselves with sports thinking we're more important than everything else,'' Van Gundy told the Associated Press. ''But that's the way it is. There's nothing more important than the NBA on Christmas Day.''

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 and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/CavsABJ.

LOS ANGELES: Point guard Mo Williams exemplifies pure toughness for the Cavaliers.

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