Cleveland Cavaliers @ Boston Celtics- Game 3 5/7 7pm (series tied)

• Trueblue23

  

  I expect the Cavs to come out and play really strong in this game, LeBron always plays well in Boston.
• cview

  Me too.
• friendfromlowry

  If I had to guess -- game two was a wake-up call to them. They were punched in the mouth and are ready to fight. That was the first REAL loss. Sure they dropped a dumb, close game in Chicago, but everyone (aside from Orlando) lost one or two on the road. This was a game where homecourt advantage had nothing to do with it -- the Cavs were just outplayed every step of the way. If Lebron really is the GOAT, then hopefully all the frustration and anger the fanbase felt was his to feel also, and he won't let that piss-poor shit happen again.
  
  The bottom line is that the Cavs need better production from the other guys. NO ONE stepped up. That's what's so frustrating about the Lakers - is that they get solid production from everyone on both sides of the ball. Mo, Parker, Varejao, Moon, Shaq, Delonte -- all useless, and absolutely inexcusable. Is Z dead???
  The falling point of this team in years past has been come crunch team, Lebron shines, and everyone else is garbage. If that's going to happen in this round or the next one....then I don't know.
• Trueblue23

  

  Having a month off seems like it thru Z off track
• hoops23

  

  Trueblue, Z was off track sine October 30th. He's nice to have to throw a big body out there, but at this point in his career, that's all he is--a big body.
  
  With that said, I expect the Cavs to come out and show what they're made of.. If they don't, then blame is on them for not being ready AGAIN.
• SQ_Crazies

  

  Important game, they understand that. I feel like they know exactly why game 2 went down the way it did. Thankfully our players aren't like our fans and haven't hit the panic button. Good for Mike Brown for telling it like it is. They'll get the message. Responded well after nearly every bad game this year, but you can expect a fight from the C's on their home court. Cavs will be fine, I'm still very confident of that.
• SQ_Crazies

  

  Z is the same player he was last year--he just was never able to adjust to a new role of not being a starter. Inconsistent minutes, sporadic minutes.
• hoops23

  

  SQ, don't label yourself with "our fans".. You're a LeBron fan, the other 99% of us are Cleveland fans... Excuse us for having a doom and gloom look on everything.. I'm sure a lot of people were just caught in the momentum and after a day, they no longer feel the "panic" they felt during the game.. It was a very frustrating game to watch, and in Cleveland, we've seen great team choke away great opportunities far too often.
• SQ_Crazies

  

  Well, keep thinking it will happen and it will probably happen. No wonder no one gives Cleveland fans any sympathy. You're a bunch of sorry ass losers, I'd rather not be included with the lot of you anyways.
  
  Funny how your name here is LTrain23...isn't it about the name on the front not the back?
  
  And from the sounds of that sad, pathetic post, you're setting yourself up to watch us lose this series and separating LeBron from Cleveland--a popular thing to do for all of you little pussies who are pissing your pants at the thought of him leaving.
• hoops23

  

  Windys take on Game 3 and our issues:
  

  LeBron James' elbow is just one of five big problems for Cleveland Cavaliers against Boston Celtics
  By Brian Windhorst, The Plain Dealer
  May 04, 2010, 8:07PM
  
  Cleveland - Nobody expected a short series between the Cavaliers and Celtics, predictions that were made good when the No. 4 seed rattled the No. 1 seed by 18 points in Monday's Game 2.
  
  Which means the Cavs and Celtics being knotted at one game apiece after the first leg of the series can be listed under the realistic result category and not the pessimistic category. That is what LeBron James was trying to say late Monday night when he explained his unaffected response to the blowout loss by saying: "I'm not hitting the panic button."
  
  However, that doesn't mean the Cavs do not have problems. Complex problems, in truth.
  
  Problems they are going to have to eliminate or, at the very least, mitigate to swing momentum back in their favor.
  
  Here's what the team is considering in their three-day hiatus before Game 3 on Friday in Boston:
  
  1. The LeBron problem
  
  This could easily be labeled "the elbow problem," but everyone on the team -- from James to coach Mike Brown -- is deflecting attention on it. Whether or not the bone bruise plus tendon strain explains why James has seemed to play tentative for large segments of the first two games may not be known until later, when time brings truth.
  
  James' numbers look good enough -- he's averaging 29.5 points and shooting 48 percent -- but fans familiar with his game can see his missing edge and how it is carrying over to his teammates. Making it more puzzling is that James seems to be able to turn it on, and any discomfort off, in the fourth quarter.
  
  But if he keeps playing reactionary because he doesn't have confidence in the arm, the Cavs could have an uphill battle.
  
  2. The Rondo problem
  
  This was clearly going to be an issue before the series began. The league is now perfect for penetrating quick guards after rule changes that prevented hand-checking were installed six years ago. The Cavs' guards don't have great lateral quickness, and so those fleet guards can be troublesome.
  
  So Rondo, an All-Star with great speed, was going to be a challenge. But instead, he's turned into a nightmare. During the regular season, Rondo averaged 14.8 points and 10.3 assists in four games against the Cavs. In the first round of the playoffs against the Miami Heat, Rondo averaged 14.8 points and 10.2 assists on 42 percent shooting.
  
  But in the first two games against the Cavs, he's averaging 20 points, 15.5 assists and shooting 60 percent. He's even making 3-pointers, hitting 2-of-3 after hitting 21 percent in the regular season.
  
  The Cavs have tried five different defenders on him and haven't seen much success. It has gotten to the point where they concede that Rondo will get into the paint at times and instead attempt to improve their second line of defense. Finding a way just to get him back to his double-double averages would be an accomplishment.
  
  3. The Garnett problem
  
  The Celtics have identified the Kevin Garnett vs. Antawn Jamison matchup is one they want to exploit. During the regular season, Garnett took 20 shots in a game just two times. Working on Jamison in the post relentlessly, Garnett has taken 20 shots in each playoff game so far.
  
  On Monday, the Cavs, an in attempt to keep passes from going to Garnett, had Jamison stand in front of him to deny entry passes for a stretch in the second half. Rondo simply lobbed the ball over the smaller Jamison to Garnett for three consecutive baskets in the third quarter as the Cavs made no adjustments.
  
  Garnett had 18 points and 10 rebounds in each game after having just one double double in the past 11 games. It is clear the strategy the Cavs have been using with Jamison is not working well.
  
  4. The Varejao problem
  
  For the second time in the past month, Varejao is on the injury report with back spasms. He missed the Cavs' most recent game in Boston on April 4 with back spasms.
  
  It is unclear how long the current bout has been bothering Varejao, who is questionable for Game 3.
  
  After averaging nine rebounds and shooting 46 percent in first three playoff games against the Bulls, Varejao is averaging just 5.7 rebounds and shooting 32 percent in the four games since.
  
  Varejao is an important player for the Cavs against Boston. In the two wins over the Celtics in the regular season, Varejao averaged 15.5 points and 10 rebounds
  
  5. The focus problem
  
  After being a strong first-quarter team for much of the season and taking hold of the Bulls series with first-quarter leads, the Cavs have come out flat to begin both games against the Celtics. They have been outscored by a combined 15 points in the first halves, leaving them playing from behind nearly for the entire second half thus far.
  
  Brown said his team lacked a sense of urgency in the Game 2 loss. They did for much of the Game 1 win as well.

• KR1245

  

  Trueblue23 wrote: I expect the Cavs to come out and play really strong in this game, LeBron always plays well in Boston.

  I sure as hell hope so. Anything will be better than the effort we saw in game 2. I'm still confident
• Mr. 300

  

  If the Cavs lose this game, the series is over. I really don't see how they can make adjustments to slow down Boston's big three. It seems as if we have breakdowns on almost every trip down on the "D" side. This happened against Chicago too.
  
  I said in an earlier thread that Boston has what Cleveland doesn't......experience from key positions. They've gotten into the Cavs heads, and they'll be in full strutting form at home. We'd better punch them in the mouth early and often. Leboob needs to take the game from the beginning, and not let Shaqquastic blow easy look after easy look down low.
• Con_Alma

  The didn't exactly come out and play well in game one either.
  
  I agree with SQ in that the team has responded well after playing poorly throughout the year. I believe of the four halves of basketball played the Cavaliers have lost three of them. Even if they lose game three I think the first half and the manner they play is very important in this series.
• ytownfootball

  

  Cavs need to run like deer and bury the old bitches.
• SQ_Crazies

  

  The notion that we need to run is ill conceived IMO. We don't NEED to run, in fact, that is exactly the kind of game Boston wants to play. They might be old, but Rondo is young and most effective in a fast paced game. They need him at his most effective. Slowing the C's down could be just as effective for us. It has nothing to do with our offense. That will be there in both the transition and half court sets. Some nights you miss shots--that's happened ALL season long. But we've won games in spite of it many times because of defense. We're a great defensive team--even in the blow out you saw it for stretches and it was just about effort. Which is why I've said to this point, I'm not worried. When we turn it up on defense, the C's have no answer. It's just a matter of us buckling down and doing that for 48 minutes, or however many it takes to win the game.
  
  All that happened in game 2 was shots weren't falling, and where they would usually pick up the slack on defense they let their heads hang. That's been rare with the Cavs this year, of course you don't like that happening now, but there is a good chance it won't happen again. They recognize it, they know exactly why they lost the game and it had nothing to do with the style of offense we played. And I give Boston credit, they jumped on us and took advantage. We're still the better team, just have to start acting like it--we can't give them any help because they will gladly take whatever we give them.
• SQ_Crazies

  

  Oh, and, elbowgate needs to go away.
  
  This is a story that has blown up because of the media and all the heat is coming down on LeBron James for it. It's retarded, but a popular growing trend. I've never seen a player in my lifetime that is more scrutinized by the media--but that's no surprise, he's the biggest star and the media just keeps growing. But it's really starting to get pretty annoying. Lots of guys are banged up right now, all across the board. That's what happens after nearly 100 games. You don't hear a big stink about their injuries...
  
  Andy's is actually hurting us more than LeBron's, at least LeBron is still putting up productive numbers. He's fighting through it. Andy's back problems are really hurting us because we miss his energy--especially for the problems he creates for Garnett. Hopefully the rest helps him, always a gamer, I know he'll give it his all.
• thedynasty1998

  

  I'm never a fan of the long breaks in the playoffs, but this long break can only benefit Boston with their age. Although most will say this is a must win, I don't necessarily agree with that. If the Cavs go down 1-2, they can still right the ship and get the series even and then have 2 out of 3 home games.
  
  So, I'm just hoping to get one win out of the next two and then all should be fine, although I didn't expect to go 7 with Boston.
• SQ_Crazies

  

  I'd be fine coming back 2-2. But I won't be at all surprised if we're able to steal both in Boston. Game 3 you'll see a different Cavs team, one Boston hasn't seen yet in this series. And I think Boston has had 2 games go about as well as they could hope--the Cavs have had 2 go as poorly as they could hope. Doesn't mean Boston can't win the series, but the Cavs are certainly in position to take care of business as long as they remember who they are and play like it.
  
  I'd like to see LeBron take on Rondo on the defensive end. He's the only guy on the roster that can keep him in front of him on a semi consistent basis. Keep Rondo out of the deep paint area and they become far less effective. That is where Shaq effects the game and it doesn't show on the stat sheet. When he is in there, we don't have to suck in as far when Rondo penetrates and it allows us to stay out closer to the 3 point shooters. Rondo kills you in the paint, but if you watch closely, it's more effective the deeper he gets. He isn't able to come down as far as often when Shaq is on the court. And if LeBron is guarding him, he'll have an even harder time. That allows Delonte to stay out on Allen, if we need better rotation then bring in Parker to guard him. Throw Parker and Moon at Pierce and tell them to be aggressive on him. Jamison isn't doing as bad a job on Garnett as many people seem to think, but hopefully Andy can get his back rested and be his old self--that will really help our chances. And I do want to see JJ, but he needs to play better defense. His rotations are often late, sometimes he just looks like he's thinking too much on that end. And I'd like to see him come in at the 4, especially with Andy hurting, rather than the 5. But what I really want to see is just a little bit of Z. When Sheed comes in especially. It gives them a different dynamic to look at and I wouldn't underestimate the motivation of big Z right now. He can still hit that 15-18 footer. Pulling one of their bigs out of the paint can really help us because it throws off a lot of things that make their defense effective. They do a really good job of forcing jump shots and sucking into the paint--that's what beat them in game 1, we found a way around it.
  
  Also, if Mo comes out in game 3 and starts cold again, I'm definitely on the Boobie bandwagon. He's come up big for us before and his lack of time is the one thing I really don't understand from Brown. But there might be some things we don't know about. I'd just like to see him get a chance to come in and get some shots up. If he doesn't make them he isn't hurting us anyways if Mo isn't hitting. Wouldn't mind seeing Jawad and Jamario get more chances to go at Pierce either. I think it would benefit us greatly to go big.
• sleeper

  

  Lebron just needs to go off and score like 50, I don't care if he has any assists or rebounds, get me 50 from Bron and GG Boston.
• devil1197

  All I want is 2-2 coming back to Cleveland.
  
  You would expect with the law of averages for Cleveland to start playing well over 4 quarters soon.
  
  Jamison isn't doing bad on Garnett, KG needed 21 shots to score 18 while Jamison needed 11 to score 16. When a guy is shooting 20 shots plus, he'll score. Cleveland just cannot let any Boston bench player go for 15+ again and I don't think that will happen.
  
  Honestly, I don't know how the game will play out.
• SQ_Crazies

  

  Yeah, they better hope they don't have to rely on Sheed to be the x-factor. But we do need to get a hand in his face better.
  
  I don't really know what to expect either, you can't predict the effort your team will give, you just have to assume it will be their best. Can't say I've seen their best in the 1st 2 games.
• devil1197

  Game 2 was the worst game I've ever seen the entire team play together. It was terrible and all we can hope for is that they turn that shitty performance into some motivations.
  
  Also, we cannot have one or the other from Mo. He is either on fire dropping 20 or he is shooting 1-2 of 10+ from the field. I'll take a nice middle ground every game over his ice cold nights.
• SQ_Crazies

  

  Same here, which is why I was baffled by the panic mode reaction. I understand the timing is terrible, but you can't expect them to play that poorly again--and they were nearly able to come back from a 25 point deficit, something they've done against the C's already this year.
• JakeGiant

  Hold the phone; Game 2 was a wakeup call?
  
  I remember an Easter game when they said that was the wakeup call after KG went chirping after the Cs went up 20ish in that game as well. In typical Boston fashion, and the 2 following games, they let the Cavs back in it, with Game 1 costing them.
  
  Two things, and I even said this back on Easter...
  
  1) Boston is a lot better than give credit, and probably better than Cleveland.
  
  2) KG's barking on Easter got in Cleveland, and especially the Dancing Queen's head. Instead of seeking MRI on an elbow that you think is the culprit, go seek a Psychiratrist, LBJ.
• Con_Alma

  SQ_Crazies wrote: Oh, and, elbowgate needs to go away.
  
  ...

  I'm not sure it will. A third MRI is scheduled for later this week.