The Sports Guru

We’ve seen this act before. Many times in fact. Bob Knight, the ultimate disciplinarian who has no discipline, who demands respect but respects noone, and requires his players to be under control and accountable at all time, though he is nether at any time. It’s happened again, this time in the shape of a small uppercut to the chin of sophomore Texas Tech basketball player. The player, already dejected for making a bone-headed mistake on the court followed by the berating that followed by his “coach” committed the un-forgivable offense of dropping his eyes to the floor, like a beaten dog, while Knight was giving him his “lesson”. What followed is undeniable. How infractious the act was is certainly up for debate.

For their part, the coach, the school, the player, and his mother, all say the same thing. It was a non-event. And in honesty I found nothing wrong with it myself. The problem is the pattern of behavior. Isn;t that the important thing? Bob Knight has an illness, a mental defect, that causes him to physically lash out at young men. We have seen it before. His own son in in the early 90’s. An Indiana player, whom he was caught choking by a secret camera, and then the final straw, a student who said, “Hey Knight” on the Hossier’s campus, that resulted in Knight grabbing the student’s shirt. It’s a patter of bahavior, and one of physical battery.

Truth is, however, Knight is a tremendous coach. He graduates well over 90% of all his players. He never, ever gets caught breaking the rules, and to am man his former players defend him to the death. This same man, only 11 victories away from becoming the NCAA’s all-time wins leader, suspended his best player last week because he wasn’t taking care of business in the class room. A true Jeckyl and Hyde character, Knight’s greatest strength is also his greaest flaw.

He demands greatness, requires discipline, expects perfection, of everyone but himself. He does so becuase he is the only person in his world that he can’t make perfect, that won’t be disciplined, that can’t maintain control. At every turn Knight himself has thumbed his nose at authority, though should any of his players do that to him, watch out. He has usurped his direct supervisors and has used petty, immatture name calling in the media to get his points across. And his lowest point, in my opinion, was during an interview with Jeremy Schaap. Schapp is the son of the late, great Dick Schapp, and during a tough line of questioning, questions that Knight didn’t approve of, the coach decided to take the low road and bully the younger Schapp by basicall saying he would never be the reporter his father was. Can you imagine someone bringing up Bob Knight’s father to him???

In the end you’ll have to decide for yourself if this latest transgression is worth any type of punishment. That act itself wasn’t that haneous, but neither is going to a bar and having a beer, unless you are an alcoholic. Bob Knight is an addict, and someone had better step in before it’s too late.

Technorati Tags: Bob Knight, hitting player, Texas Tech, Indiana, basketball, college, NCAA

When Danny Ferry signed Damon Jones as a free-agent from the Miami Heat after the 04-05 seasons, he no doubt had dreams of threes raining down from all angles at the Q. It finally happened, and only a year later than the Cavs had hoped. Jones, who admittingly showed up to his first Cavaliers training camp a bit out of shape. Such is usually the case for a free agent trying to protect his bidy by ding absolutely no basketball work for fear of an injury. Jones was booed several times, relegated to the bench others, and despite hitting some big shots in the playoffs, namely the series clincher in the first round series against the Wizards, Damon was openly shopped during the off-season. Jones’ situation was made more tenuous on draft night when the Cavs drafted two players that play in the backcourt, then later signed David Wesley for back court depth.

Unlike last season when Jones openly pouted when overlooked for the starting point guard position in favor of Eric Snow, Damon kept his mouth shut and his butt in the gyn. The results were noticeable from the first day of training camp. Jones has been steady, if not spectacular this season, until tonite against the Knick in New York. A career night for Jones, who finished with 29, in the Cavaliers’ 102-96 win. Though Jones didn’t hit a big shot to win the game, he might as well as have with all the big shots he hit in the first half to keep the Cavs remotely close.

As was the case the past few games, the Cavs started slow, with little energy, and quickly fell behind 10-2. It wasn’t James who brought the Cavs back, nor Hughes, Z, Drew, not even Scot Pollard brought the Cavs back. It was Damon Jones, who started firing away from long range, and didn’t stop until he had 24 points on 6/7 from distance, and the Cavs had a 51-47 lead. Jones added 5 more in the 2nd half, but the action after halftime belongs to one person, #23, and it was no different Monday Night for King James, who finished with 29.

FOr the third straight game the bench was a huge factor in a Cavs win, and along with D.J. Cavs’ fans have to be most impressed with the play of Sasha Pavlovic, who followed up 16 and 14 points contests with 7 points and more importantly several key defensive stops. Good things will be in store for the Wine and Gold if the bench continues to give Mike Brown solid effort night in and night out, and the increased minutes for guys like Sasha and Damon can only help come playoff time.

The Cavs moved to 5-2, and once again seemed to win a game that last season they probably would have lost. The Knicks are young and athletic, usually a kryptonite to the Cavs, but not tonite. Cleveland was able to withstand the early rush, jumped out to a 14 point lead, watched the Knick get within one, before putting the game away in the end. A nice game, no doubt about it….

Technorati Tags: LeBron James, Damon Jones, Three Ball, Knicks, NBA, Basketball

After 30 minutes of a care-free attitude towards Saturday Night’s game against the Boston Celtics, the Cavaliers decided that they had seen enough from a bunch of guys that had no business beating them by 25 at the Q. So Seize The Day they did, coming all the way back and holding on for a 94-93 win. There is a definite trend starting for the Cavs, and one I hope guys a lot smarter than me are paying attention to. LeBron James was scoreless through the first 19 minutes Saturday Night, and the Cavs trailed by 20. More troubling than the lack of points was the lack of energy or hustle out of LeBron for the 2nd Saturday in a row. LeBron was less than active in a loss in Charlotte last Saturday, a performance that torqued me alot more than his supposed “quitting” on Tuesday night. It was more of the same as the Cavaliers hoisted jump shot after jump shot, and the Celtics drove to the rack. The result was a 15 point deficit and 10 point first quarter….AT HOME no less. Twice LeBron James has been a bit lethargic in a game, and twice the Cavs were less than effective on the offensive end.

As someone once said, “The best defense is a good offense”, and when the Cavs aren’t playing well offensively, they play with no energy on defense. It was becoming the same old, same old until the Cavs fell down a game high 25, at 70-45 with 5:01 to go in the 3rd quarter. The Cavs were able to shave 9 points off the lead in the final 5 minutes, and trailed by 16 heading into the 4th. Incredibly it wouldn’t be the biggest 4th quarter comeback for the Cavs, who came from 19 behind 2 years ago against the Suns, but the Cavs won that game in OT. The Cavs actually fell behind by 19, as the Celtics scored the first 3 points of the 4th Quarter, and didn’t score a point until a Sasha Pavlovic three with 10:33 to go. That trumps the comeback over the Suns if you ask me…

And that leads me to Sasha, who’s defensive woes have kept him firmly planted on Mike Brown’s bench. Sasha has admitted in the past that his best defense is his offense, meaing he’ll score more than the guy he guards so all is well. That doesn’t sit well with Brown, and Sasha’s playing time has shown that. During the off-season, Pavs re-dedicated himself to his defense, I’m sure an action that had nothing to do with his pending free-agency. “I worked hard this summer on defense; on my legs and I think I’m going to show that to everybody with what I can do on the floor. So if I play good defense, I think I’m going to be on the floor.” Brilliant. And his offense has also gotten better, and the past two games Sasha has been a big part of W’s. Sasha was second to LeBron in scoring last nght, scoring 14 points, 8 in the fourth quarter. LeBron is impressed, “I battle Sasha every day in practice. We guard each other and I’ve always said that Sasha is probably one of the best that I’ve guarded one on one. Once he learns how to completely play the game of basketball from a team aspect, he’s going to be very good and he showcased that early….We’ve got some good one on one players on the team, but he’s by far one of the best”.

The Cavs actually came back a bit too quickly, leading by as many as 4 with 2:24 to go. So do the math, the Cavs went from 19 down to 4 up in just over 8 minutes, outscoring the Celtics 30-7 during that time. The achilles heel of the Cavs that showed it’s ugly head as the team once again failed from the charity stripe, going 2-6 down the stretch.

Things got very interesting after James tried to intentionally miss a free throw with 1.2 seconds to go. He missed the backboard, a free throw violation, and gave the Celtics one last chance that Paul Pierce nearly turned into a miracle win as his 33 foot fall away three rattled in and out to save the Cavs victory. In the end, a Cavs win, but a bit troubling that LeBron looked disinterested in the first half. Let’s hope his 25 point second half is more indicative to the way he is going to play than his 14 point first half.

CAVALIERS NOTES:
• The Cavaliers rallied from 25 points down with 5:02 remaining in the third quarter to post their sixth straight win over Boston. Cleveland trailed by 16 points entering the fourth quarter, making it the second largest comeback after three quarters in team history (19 points down entering the fourth quarter against Phoenix on Nov. 10, 2004). The Cavaliers outscored Boston 34-17 in the fourth quarter and 60-45 in the second half.

• LeBron James scored 25 of his season-high 38 points after halftime including 12 in the fourth quarter.

• LeBron James’ 19 second half free-throw attempts is a team record for free throw attempts in a half. He held the record with 18 attempted at Miami on March 12, 2006 in the second half.

• Sasha Pavlovic posted 14 points, three rebounds and four assists in 28 minutes off the bench. Over his last two games, he is averaging 15.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists.

• Damon Jones scored six points on 2-2 from three-point range, grabbed two rebounds and dished out four assists in the second half alone.

• Anderson Varejao scored nine points and added 10 rebounds in 30 minutes.

Technorati Tags: Cavs, Celtics, LeBron James, Paul Pierce, Cavaliers

They’re at the next level. How else to you describe what is going on? I know, I know, losing to two non-playoff teams can not be considered a good thing. Unless you consider that it is just the next step up the ladder of NBA greatness. After owning the Bulls last night 113 - 94 it became apparent to me that the Cavs had reached a new level, and will have to adjust to it.

The Cavs are now talented enough to beat anyone, anywhere. The win in San Antonio proved that. But the league is too deep, too talented for anyone just to show up and win. The Cavs have also found that out against Charlotte and Atlanta. Two teams the Cavs have owned in the past have already beaten them this year. So what gives?

Temas like Charlotte and Atlanta use the Cavs as a measuring stick, like the Cavs have used the Spurs and Mavericks,, etc in the past. Teams amp up to play LeBron. They know they are playing for a full house, whether at home or on the road, and they know there is a good possibilty of being on National TV, or at least being the first highlight on ESPNews that night. So if the Cavs just show up, or shot 50% from the free throw line chances are they are going to lose, no matter who the competition is.

Last night the Cavs came out with a purpose, and were aggressive from start to finish, just like they were against the Spurs. Drew Gooden was a monster again, and has been the one guy to bring it every night. He is becoming a monster in the league and is proving the Cavs wise for re-signing him. His defensive liabilites are shrinking, and at only 24 he has tremendous upside yet. In just 25 minutes over 3 quarters Gooden went 10-13 from the field, scoring 20 points and grabbing 9 rebounds and dishing 3 assists. This and only turning the ball over 1 time. Not bad for only a half of actual basketball.

As for LeBron, he is seeing the opposite side of the love fest that his career has had with the media. There are people out there that are just waiting for him to misstep, and when he does they’ll pounce. His supposed “quitting” on his teammates the other night, as rediculous as it was seemed to fire LeBron up, and as we have seen with star athletes like Tiger Woods or Michael Jordan, the worst thing you can do is challenge LeBron James, unless of course you are a Cavs fan!

His numbers last night are somewhat ordinary, for LeBron anyway, 19 points, 12 assists, 4 boards in 38 minutes, but with the way the bench was playing, along with Drew, there was no need for LeBron to take over. He is still learing when he needs to be THE GUY, and when he can just get it to his teammates.

So it’s on to the Celtics, where the Cavs will look to beat a non-playoff team from last season for the first time this year. I think they have learned from their early season transgressions, and know that they East is theirs for the taking, if they bring it every night!

CAVALIERS NOTES:

• The Cavaliers have now won five straight and eight of the last 10 in the series against Chicago.

• The Cavaliers out-rebounded the Bulls 47-30. Cleveland has out-rebounded the opposition by at least eight rebounds in every game this season.

• Drew Gooden put up 20 points on 10-13 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds in 26 minutes. Over his last three games, Gooden is averaging 20.6 points and 13.0 rebounds. He has now posted 20 or more points in three straight games for the third time in his career (Jan. 26-30, 2005 and April 8-11, 2005).

• LeBron James posted his third double-double of the season with 19 points and a season-high 12 assists.

• Sasha Pavlovic scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds in 25 minutes. He connected on 6-9 from the field including 2-3 from three-point range. It was his highest scoring output since Feb. 21 last season when he put up 21 points vs. Orlando.

• Donyell Marshall came off the bench to post 15 points on 5-7 shooting including 3-4 from downtown. Over his last three games, he is averaging 13.7 points in 23.3 minutes per game.

• The Cleveland bench combined for 56 points on 21-30 shooting. The Cavaliers previous high in bench points this season was 21 points on two occasions.

• Anderson Varejao scored a career-high 15 points tonight on 6-7 shooting.

• The Cavs 38 assists ties a Quicken Loans Arena record (Cleveland vs. Detroit on Nov. 21, 2000) and was the most by a Cavs team since that date.

• The 25 second-half assists is a new Quicken Loans Arena record, breaking the former record of 23 (by Indiana, 1st half, Dec. 22, 2001).

Technorati Tags: Cavs, NBA, basketball, LeBron James, LeBron, Bulls, Chicago

On the road back to respectability, with a double digit week picking the winners.  Too bad success against the number is still proving elusive, but I am determined to get back over the .500 mark and that starts this week —

LAST WEEK - Straight 10-4

                Spread   53-61(.464)

Kansas City @ St. Louis -2.5 - The Battle of Missouri takes place this Sunday in St. Louis.  It’s ‘Show Me’ time for both of these teams.  St. Louis can look great one week, then give up 38 to the Chargers the next.  K.C. can beat the Chargers on week, then have the Steelers drop 45 on them.  Which good team and which bad team is going to show up?  Winning in the NFL is tough.  Doing it with your backup quarterback is tougher.  The Rams are at home, and Marc Bulger might be the most underrated player in the NFL.  Give the points, the Rams win.

Rams 24 - 16

Miami @ Chicago -13.5 - Twice this season the Bears have been huge favorites, and both time I took the points.  I lost both times.  Never to be made a fool of three times, I have learned my lesson.  The Bears are tough.  The Bears in Chicago against lousy teams is unbeatable, no matter the spread.  It was 41-0 Chicago at halftm last week, and it could get there again.  Joey Harrington stinks up Soldier Field and the Bears get another easy win before next week’s showdown in New York.  Give the points.

Bears 31 - 10

New Orleans @ Tampa Bay +1.5 - I just want to say I love what the Saints have going on.  They are going to be a very good team….Next Year.  This year, they dashed out to that 5-1 record, but they aren’t going to sneak up on anyone anymore.  The Ravens showed the Saints for what they are, and Drew Brees is prone to make bad decisions.  To top it off, Reggie Bush is dinged up.  The Bucs have been playing tough behind rookie Bruce Gradkowski and I don’t think that stops this weekend.  Ronde Barber is licking his chops for this one, and Brees will offer one up.  I like the Bucs by a field goal, hopefully a little shorter than 62 yards.

Buccaneers 16 - 13

Tennessee +9.5 @ Jacksonville - Is there a harder team to figure out than the Jags???  Ok, maybe the team they beat last week, the Eagles, but the Jags are right there.  Now in the throws of a full-fledged quarterback controversy, the Jags return hom to face an improving Vince Young and the Tennessee Titans.  Jeff Fisher once again has his team playing hard and if the Texans prived anything it’s that the Jags plpay up or down to their competition.  This one is going to be a dog-fight, but I’ll lean towards the Jags, but take the points and run.

Jaguars 13 - 7

Atlanta -5.5 @ Detroit - I must admit, I looked twince at this game.  The Falcons are coming off of two emotional wins, and let’s face it, Atlanta doesn’t have the greatest of reputations when it comes to showing up each and every week.  Maybe I am drinking the kool-aid, but I really like what I have seen from Mike Vick, and the Falcons defense is doing just enough.  The Lions are a mess, and just don;t have an answer for Vick.  Give the points, Falcons easily.

Falcons 27-17

Cincinnati @ Baltimore -3.5 - I am not a fan of either team, and I think Cincinnati is the most overrated, overhyped team in the league.  Maybe another loss will help that out.  The Ravens looked great in new Orleans last week, but will need to put twi good games together to totally win me over.  Ocho Cinco has shaved his mo-hawk, wonder what’s next.  Give the points, the Ravens D makes it tough on Carson Palmers.

Ravens 20 - 14

Dallas @ Washington +3.5 - This is my bookie special.  Dallas is everyones favorite team again after the make-out seesion on the sidelines on Sunday Night.  I’ll admit, the Cowboys were impressive over-coming at 14 point deficit on the road, and this isn’t Carolina, and even though the Redskins have struggled this year they are still very tough to beat at home.  Joe Gibbs has had 2 weeks to prepare for this gaem, and the Cowboys got rolled by the ‘Skins last season in Washington.  Tony Romo is going to need to make plays, and I just don;t think he gets it done.  Overtime isn’t out of the question, and I like the Skins to come up big.  Take the points.

Redskins 23 - 20

Green Bay +3.5 @ Buffalo - Favre actually has the Pack playing decent football, and if he can avoid giving the ball to the other team he can still get it done.  The Bills are in the midst of their annual mid-season swoon and it continues this week.  Look for alot of points, and alot of sloppy play.  Take the points and the Pack win.

Packers 28 - 20

Houston @ NY Giants -13.5 - The Giants are playing as well as anyone in the NFL right now, and get the perfect type of game to prepare for the Bears next week.  Houston comes in playing better, but there have to be questions about David Carr’s confidence after getting benched last week.  Not a good combination on the road against Strahan and Co.  I like the Giants, LARGE

Giants 31 - 14

Minnesota @ San Francisco +6.5 - Man, was it me, or were the Vikings exposed as the frauds they are last week.  The Patriots could have won that game 50-7.  Now the Vikings have to fy cross country for the second time in three weeks to play the 49′ers.  San Fran is coming off a tough loss of it’s own in Chicago, but this team plays a bit differently at home.  I’ll gladly take the points, but go one step further and take the Niner’s to win straight up.

49′ers 24 - 23

Cleveland +12.5 @ San Diego - The Browns got back in the win column last week after making the change at O-Corrdinator, and now have to travel to San Diego.  The Chargers will be without Shawne Merriman, who starts his 4-game suspension.  It shouldn’t matter much, but it’s a game like this that Marty always seems to have trouble with.  Just give the ball to L.T. 30 times and all should be well, but it never seems to be that easy for S.D.  For that reason, I’ll take the points, but Kellen Winslow needs to keep his mouth shut.

Charger 27 - 23

Denver +2.5 @ Pittsburgh - After getting torched by Peyton Manning last week, the Broncos Defense heads to Pittsburgh to face a beaten and bettered Steeler offense that is officially in desperation mode.  Sure, I called the Raiders beating the Steelers last week, but that was on the road.  The Steerlers still have the ability to throw 45 on a team in Pittsburgh, and the crowd is going to be amped up for this one.  The Broncos finally got going a bit on offense, and if they can protect the ball for the first 10 minutes, and weather the storm, and just make it a football game, I think they have the edge.  Another tough, hard-nosed gaem that comes down to the end, but one the Broncos find a way to win.

Broncos 17 - 10

Indianapolis @ New England -2.5 - Can the Colts do it again.  After beating the Broncos in the final seconds on the road last week, can they head to New England and do it again?  I don’t think so. After struggling with a new group of receivers earlier in the year, Tom Brady is as effective and methodical as ever.  What everyone seems to forget is that the Patriots D was decimated by injuries last season when teh Colts beat them.  Not this year.  Rodney harrison is back, Tedy Bruschi looks as good as ever, and the defense is simply stopping people.  Another Brady/Manning classic goes to Belichick.

Patriots 27 - Colts 24

Oakland @ Seattle -8.5 - Ok, so I am currently looking for something to do on Monday Night.  Maybe there is a knitting circle I can join.  Can anything be further from a classic Brady Vs. Manning Sunday Night matchup than an Andrew Walter Vs. Seneca Wallace Monday Night affair?  Aye, Yi, Yi!  Well, since they’re not allowed to skip it, I have to talk about it.  The Raiders have won 2 straight and are playing some decent defense.  On the other side, Seneca Wallace actually played pretty well in K.C. last Sunday.  The Seahwaks were embarrassed at home 2 weeks ago and will be looking for a little redeption.  I like the ‘Hawks to get it done, give the points.

Seahawks 23 - 14