More Than LeBron James; Cleveland Cavaliers' Depth Puts Them Atop NBA

He may not have his Scottie Pippen-like sidekick, but LeBron James isn’t complaining.

Cleveland’s all-everything superstar picked up his third Eastern Conference Player of the Week award following a stretch that proved the Cavaliers are anything but a one-man show.

Latest exhibit: The emergence of forward Jawad Williams.

The former North Carolina Tar Heel, who grew up in the suburbs of Cleveland, began playing meaningful minutes when Jamario Moon was sidelined with an abdominal strain Jan. 5.

With Moon out three weeks, coach Mike Brown turned to Williams, who has responded by averaging eight points in 17 minutes a game. That’s an upgrade over Moon’s season average of five points a game.

It’s been a pleasant surprise for the Cavaliers, who seem to just keep on getting richer.

Shaquille O’Neal and Zydrunas Ilgauskas have figured out how to make their tag-team arrangement work at center. Their teammates have adjusted to the improbable pairing and have learned how to play to their big men’s strengths.

Delonte West is giving opponents fits off the bench, exhibiting the savvy and resilience of the seasoned pro that he is.

Anderson Varejao, meanwhile, has responded to Brown’s guidance and repented, at least somewhat, of his renowned flopping ways. A recent article in the Cleveland Plain Dealer detailed Varejao’s new approach to defense and how it’s paying off for the Cavs. The 6’11” supersub is having perhaps his most impressive season as a pro.

Then there’s Williams, who came off the bench firing with the confidence of a veteran. He scored 10 points in 17 minutes in a win over Portland on Jan. 10 and followed it the next night with 11 important points in 20 minutes in a close win at Golden State.

Inside the organization, Williams’ success comes as no surprise. In his second season with Cleveland after stints in Spain, Japan, Israel and the NBA D-League, Williams is James’ daily opponent during Cavaliers practices. Going against the NBA’s best, even in a practice setting, has prepared him for the bright lights of game night.

Cleveland’s depth may be the deciding factor if they’re to be successful in their quest for a first-ever NBA crown. Moon is scheduled to return by the end of January, and Leon Powe should be ready shortly after that. Add to them backup guard Daniel Gibson, who is currently the Cavs’ odd man out as Brown juggles the riches that await him on Cleveland’s bench.

Also in their favor: the rages of time that confront their main rivals atop the NBA.

Orlando pinned a lot on the offseason acquisition of 34-year-old Vince Carter, who suffered a shoulder separation on Jan. 8.

Boston’s talent is unquestioned, but so is their collective age. Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, Rasheed Wallace and Paul Pierce are all on the downside of 30, and have battled their share of bumps and bruises in recent years.

At 32, even Kobe Bryant appears suddenly vulnerable, given his recent bout with back spasms. As Kobe goes, so go the Lakers.

Equally revealing is how the four teams have fared in recent weeks. Boston is 6-6 over its last 12 games, including three losses during a four-game West Coast trip.

The Magic and Lakers are just 7-5 over similar spans. The Lakers haven’t had to travel to the opposite coast during that time, and Orlando just won the first of a challenging four-game set out west.

The Cavaliers, meanwhile, are 10-2 over their last dozen games, including five wins in six games on two separate West Coast swings. Home or away, the team appears to have jelled and is playing its best basketball of the season.

When it comes to age, O’Neal and Ilgauskas may pose a concern, but the fact that they’re splitting time evenly has enabled them both to avoid injury and get ample rest as the playoffs approach.

Injury can befall anyone at any time. James could go down tomorrow just as easily as Garnett, Carter, or Bryant. Things being equal, however, the Cavaliers’ combination of youth and depth gives them a significant edge as February dawns on the NBA’s stretch run.

With Defense Firing On All Cylinders, Cavs' Offense Should Look to Shaq

Once again, talk of the Cleveland Cavaliers is focusing on their defense.

A strong end-game closed out the defending champion Lakers on Christmas, and a few days later the Cavs held Atlanta scoreless for the first nine minutes of the fourth quarter in sealing another road win.

Defense is the name of the game for the Cavaliers, and has been in their five seasons under Mike Brown.

Offense is another story.

Google “Mike Brown offense” and see for yourself. There are mostly blog entries offering scathing indictments of the coach and his decidedly non-creative approach to putting the basket in the ball. There's certainly nothing testifying to his offensive innovations or strategies.

Do the same with Phil Jackson, and you’ll get enough X’s and O’s to start a basketball clinic (along with a hilarious spoof from The Onion about the Zen Master’s “Tetrahedron Offense").

What gives? You’ve got a perennial candidate for the NBA scoring championship in LeBron James. You’ve got three of the top three-point shooters in the game: Mo Williams, Anthony Parker and Daniel Gibson.

You’ve also got Shaquille O’Neal.

Don’t laugh. As Brian Windhorst of the Cleveland Plain Dealer wrote this week, Shaq is still a force to be reckoned with inside, and the Cavs have yet to figure out how to capitalize.

In a loss to Charlotte on Sunday—their second stumble against the Bobcats this year—Shaq took just five shots, making four on his way to a 10-point night. This while being guarded down the stretch by Boris Diaw—all six-feet, eight-inches of him.

It’s part of a disturbing recent trend that has seen O’Neal taking fewer than 10 shots a game; in many cases, far fewer.

As Windhorst pointed out, the Cavs have been winning, so it’s no big deal in the immediate context. However, their inability to truly integrate Shaq into the offensive flow is indicative of the fact that Brown’s approach to scoring still seems to consist of getting the ball into LeBron’s hands, and little else—and that will hurt them in the long run.

Much has been made of how the Orlando Magic beat Cleveland in the Eastern Conference Finals last spring. The Cavaliers didn’t have an answer for Dwight Howard. Orlando’s perimeter shooters lit up the Cavs’ small guards. Orlando was simply better all along, said the experts.

But it was also a case of having to finally pay the piper. When your offense revolves so much around one player and his ability to create shots, you’re asking for trouble.

Commentators from Charles Barkley to Mark Jackson to Magic Johnson warned that asking James to carry the team offensively, playoff series after playoff series, was a prescription for disaster. They were right.

As much as the Magic’s offense came to life, the Cavs’ offense went stagnant. The result was another long summer for Cleveland, and another lesson learned.

Or was it? Concern over the way Cleveland frequently closes quarters—with LeBron dribbling, dribbling and dribbling before firing a last-second shot—is nothing new. Yet it still happens with disturbing frequency.

Let Windhorst say it: “LeBron has to be a leader enough to allow the ball to go elsewhere if he doesn’t have the right situation…He’s got to set up teammates more, no matter what the score is. This is something he’s been poor at all season.”

(Windhorst is a refreshing and articulate voice among NBA beat writers. Even though he co-authored a book about James this past year and knows the MVP well, it hasn’t kept him from being honest and objective in his observations about LeBron and the Cavs. He is consistently insightful and a joy to read for any hoops junkie.)

The Cavaliers appeared to grow offensively during their 66-win season a year ago. Much of their improvement was credited to then-assistant coach John Kuester.

With Kuester now steering the Detroit Pistons’ ship, Cleveland’s offense has too often fallen back into old, bad habits—most of them centered around giving the ball to LeBron and waiting to see what happens.

Again, the team has been winning, so it's not as if the sky is falling. However, this team operates best when attacking the basket—pushing the ball up the floor on fast breaks, setting up their perimeter shooters for three-point opportunities, and hurting teams with a relentless effort inside.

The Cavs' expected twosome underneath, O’Neal and Zydrunas Ilgauskas, has actually become a trio. Anderson Varejao has been a key component in the paint all season and has shown more skill and aptitude around the basket than at any point in his career.

Ilgauskas, who has finally adjusted to coming off the bench, remains one of the best outside shooters among NBA centers.

Neither Varejao or Ilgauskas offer what Shaq does inside, however. O’Neal’s brute strength still poses problems for every center in the league. Howard couldn’t stop him one-on-one earlier this year. Neither could Amare Stoudamire, Andrew Bynum or Pau Gasol, to name just a few.

Mind you, O'Neal isn't complaining. He's been a model citizen for the Cavs. He's playing about 25 minutes a game and has accepted a reduced role, knowing that it will leave him rested for the playoffs.

Cleveland’s offense will continue to revolve around LeBron, but Shaq offers a legitimate option underneath. Brown has four months to figure out how to capitalize on it.

As well as they’ve played, there is still significant room for improvement for the Cavaliers. The thought of James employing his breathtaking athleticism on the offensive end, while simultaneously involving the strengths of O'Neal and the rest of his teammates, is a frightening prospect for the rest of the league.

Minus LeBron: The Cavs' 'Non-LeBron' Team Since 2003

The fortunes of the Cleveland Cavaliers changed dramatically in 2003, when the team hit the NBA Draft lottery jackpot and secured the first overall pick. Their choice of LeBron James literally turned the franchise around and placed the city of Cleveland on the NBA map.

Within two seasons the Cavs went from a hapless 17-win pretender to a 42-win playoff contender. Two years later, they played in their first NBA Finals. Two years after that, James was the league MVP.

Conventional wisdom dictates that, to be considered one of the truly legendary NBA stars, LeBron will have to win at least one championship during his career. It’s also widely held that, just as Michael Jordan had his Scottie Pippen, LeBron will need a true, star-caliber sidekick to get his ring.

The Cavs have tried to deliver, but thus far have come up short. The jury is still out on the current pairing of James with Shaquille O’Neal; however, Shaq has rarely, if ever, been considered sidekick material.

As Cleveland tries to steady its current ship for another title run, let’s look at the “All Non-LeBron” team: the five best players—apart from James—who have played for the Cavs since his arrival in the NBA in 2003.


Forward: Drew Gooden

At times puzzling and sometimes accused of being lazy, Gooden nonetheless manned the power forward position capably for three-plus seasons and was with the Cavs for their only appearance in the Finals in 2007.

His defense was suspect, but he was a scoring threat on offense and was an above-average rebounder. His numbers with the Cavs from 2004 through 2008: 12.0 points and 8.6 rebounds a game.


Forward: Carlos Boozer

It’s problematic selecting two power forwards, but James has been the small forward since his rookie season, so Boozer it is—despite the fact that he is one of the most despised players among the Cavalier faithful.

His backing out of a handshake agreement with then-Cavs owner Gordon Gund in 2004 burned his bridges to Cleveland. However, there can be no disputing the fact that Boozer was on his way to being one of the league’s best power forwards, even back then.

He only played one season with LeBron, 2003-04, but he averaged 15.5 points and 11.4 rebounds a game. No Cavalier has averaged a double-double since, nor has anyone averaged double figures in rebounding alone. Although Boozer’s not a popular choice, he’s a logical one.


Center: Zydrunas Ilgauskas

Big Z has remained healthy during James’ career, recording solid numbers for six straight seasons as the Cavs developed into one of the league’s elite teams. His numbers since 2003: 14.1 points and 8.0 rebounds per game.

He was also an All-Star in 2007. Ilgauskas is a respected elder statesman in the NBA and has been one of the league’s most consistent, if not spectacular, centers.


Point Guard: Mo Williams

The fact that Williams is in only his second season with the Cavs shows just how shallow the talent pool has been since LeBron’s arrival. Who else could one possibly choose? Eric Snow? Jeff McInnis ?

Just as Boozer put up big numbers in LeBron’s first year, Williams instantly did so last season, averaging nearly 18 points a game and stretching defenses with his deadly outside shot. Williams is not a classic point guard, but continues to fill the position admirably for lack of another option.


Shooting Guard: Larry Hughes

If choosing Boozer rankled any of the Cavalier faithful, tapping Hughes might really stir things up. But, love him or hate him, Hughes posted some of the best numbers of any Cleveland player during the past six years.

He averaged 15.5 points in 2005, until that season was cut short by a broken finger. In parts of three seasons with the LeBron-led Cavaliers, Hughes averaged 14.3 points a game.


There are some notable Cavaliers absent from the list, but not many. Delonte West is the only other true candidate at guard; however, his 10 points a game and gutsy court presence have been offset by ongoing personal and legal problems. He’s been dropped from the starting lineup this year.

Then there's Anderson Varejao, who, even though he's always a factor when on the court, has been primarily a bench player during his six-year career.

What is also painfully evident from the above list: There has been no co-star for LeBron to pair with since 2003, no one truly capable of helping James lead the Cavaliers to the title. Shaq was brought in to be that guy, but the early returns have been rocky at best.

Time and circumstances may keep James in Cleveland for three more years beginning in 2010, regardless of what other teams offer. But GM Danny Ferry will need to secure another marquee star between now and then if the Cavs hope to compete for a championship and, more important, keep LeBron in the wine and gold for the long term.

This article is also posted on BleacherReport.com.

Postmortem

What amazes me, after the fact, is how so many people's tunes change. Or, how many people take on an "I told you so" mentality. Or, how so many people jump on the LeBron-bashing bandwagon.

Look, the Cavaliers lost a series they could have won. I'm not saying should have won. Just could have. But they didn't. It's unfortunate, but it's not a tragedy on the scale of a Hurricane Katrina, or a 9-11.

It's absurd to even say that, but that's how fans and members of the media often portray it. Come on, it's not rocket science. Orlando played better. To some extent, they played above their heads, if their stats in this series compared to their regular season numbers are any indication. They were lights-out, start to finish. But, so what? Give them credit. Sometimes, you just have to tip your cap.

So, some thoughts:

-- LeBron James's decision to leave the floor after the Game Six loss without shaking hands with the Magic, or to leave the arena without speaking to the media, may have been surprising and a little impolite, but it's not a major transgression. He expected to win a championship this year. This had to be one of the greatest disappointments of his career. Only he knew if he could handle talking with others, or not. He decided not. So now he's the target of critics far and wide -- fans and media pundits. Phooey. He came out the next day, acknowleged that the Magic deserved to win, assured people he's happy in Cleveland, and said it's still his goal to bring a championship to Cavs-land. Let it rest. Sometimes, losing is very, very tough to take.

-- I'm not sure I understand why Zydrunas Ilgauskas guarded Dwight Howard throughout the series. Say all you want about Mo Williams and Delonte West, but the terrible matchup was Z and Howard. To Stan Van Gundy's credit, he exploited it. The rest is gravy.

-- When you shoot like Orlando shot, you deserve to win games.

-- The post-series critiques of LeBron James, which taunt him for not making his teammates better, blah, blah, blah, ignore the fact that champions don't do it by themselves. There's no way this Cavs team, or this Magic team, or this Lakers team, beats the Lakers of Magic, Kareem, Worthy, Cooper, etc. No way they beat the Celtics of Bird, McHale and Parish. No way they beat the Bulls of Michael and Scottie. Those teams had all-time icons of the game -- the Lakers had two, in Magic and Kareem -- and never relied on just one player, especially not the way the Cavs rely on LeBron.

-- The New York Daily News reported over the weekend that Toronto is actively shopping Chris Bosh rather than risk losing him to free agency in 2010. The Raptors are interested in Utah's Carlos Boozer, while Chicago is reportedly dangling Luol Deng, among others. The Cavs should jump in and offer just about anyone other than LeBron, plus draft picks -- whatever fits when it comes to salary cap issues, expiring contracts, and so on. Ilgauskas would suffice just fine in the post next year if Bosh were alongside him. Bosh would be to LeBron what Pippen was to Jordan. I'd give 'em half the roster if that's what they want. Seriously -- take half this year's team away, put Bosh with LeBron, and Orlando disappears in four games, maybe five.

-- That said, I really enjoyed this season. I thought the addition of Williams was fabulous. I like West. I've always liked Varajeo. And I said previously that if the Cavs stayed healthy, they'd win it all. I was wrong, but it was a great ride, and I still like this team. Clearly, they need strength inside. But sports can be unpredictable, and the Cavs ran into a buzzsaw of a team in the Magic, who were (are?) peaking at precisely the right time. How hard is it to win a championship in the NBA? Consider this: The past 30 NBA seasons have been dominated by six teams. During that span, the Lakers have won eight championships, the Bulls six, the Spurs and the Celtics four each, Detroit three and Houston two. There are 30 teams in the league. And just six have climbed the mountain and won repeat titles over three decades. The Cavs are trying to get there. It ain't easy.

-- For my money? I think the Lakers match up well against Orlando, and Kobe Bryant is the lights-out shooter that the Cavaliers still lack. I'm picking L.A. to win the 15th title in their franchise's history.