Much as I love 'Bron, I think he lost game 6 (and possibly the series) for the Cavs by trying to win the game single-handed. In the first 3 quarters, he was running the show, but had all of his teammates involved. After the 5-minute mark of the 4th quarter, though, he almost never passed the ball again, trying instead to get every point on his own. Because he's so damn good, he nearly pulled it off. The problem is, in the last two minutes, the Pistons were collapsing on him and completely ignoring the rest of the Cavs. Unfortunately, so was LeBron. There were lots of wide-open looks for the rest of his team, but he insisted on doing it all himself. And couldn't quite pull it off. Had he not put the blinders on, the Cavs may well be playing Miami tomorrow night instead of Detroit.
you would be right about lebron if he had anyone who could actually hit an open jumper consistently. i like larry hughes but he's not a good spot up shooter, he's a slasher and scorer not your classic spot up shooter. and we all know eric snow couldn't hit a jumper to save his life. and that big Z, well isn't so big in when the games really count. to put it bluntly, there aren't a whole lot of players around lebron that can help him. he's a slasher who can create looks for others but if no one can hit that open jumper he creates, why waste passing the ball? lebron is more likely to hit a circus shot than most of his teammates hitting a jumper.
Signing Larry Hughes was a big mistake for the Cavs. They played their best during the regular season without him. The same thing happened during the Pistons series. The Wizards were smart to let him go.
I don't know, larry hughes can help lebron on the defensive perimeter, that's why he's valuable to them. he doesn't dribble as much as he used to. he still looks like he's in high school. detroit was smart by making james work by guarding prince. that's the best way to go at a great player, make him work.
The Cavs need more help on offense than defense. When the free-flow doesn't work in the playoffs, they need another player who has guts and smarts on the offensive end besides LeBron. Hughes is athletic and can do a lot, but he doesn't do well when the pressure is really on. I wouldn't be surprised if his final season with the Wizards proves to be a complete fluke and he never comes close to repeating it. There was a reason the Cavs played their best ball without him during the regular season and against Detroit.
Just Bumping an Old thread, but I just notice the Cav's have 60 wins. Since Lebron has been there they have gone from one of the worst teams to one of the best teams. You could attribute some that to adding guys like mo williams, but I don't believe Cavs are that good of a team without bron. You can make all the excuses you want "he plays in the east, he can't shot, etc." At the end of the day the only guys I could say have similar affects on teams are Shaq and duncan. However even those guys probably had better teams around them. I love how some people used to think Yao and Tmac were more valuable than bron, but if I were starting a team he would be top 5 all time not knowing what he will do the rest of his career.
He is a beast. If he stays in Cleveland, I don't see any other team in the East that's going to be able to compete with them in the next few years outside of the Celtics - but you gotta wonder how many seasons that crew has left in them. I also see no reason they won't go to the NBA finals again.
Sure, having him on your team has many benefits: your team will be all over ESPN, you'll have national tv games up the ass, you'll start getting favorable calls because refs' job is to cater to superstars, you'll have other fans of teams lamenting how they wish they had your superstar even if they have their own star players on their teams *cough*, etc etc. If I lived in a town with inferiority complexes about their teams, I surely would want that guy to play for us...
Yes he's a beast, but worthy (and often superior) rivals will emerge in the East. Unless they keep adding key players every year, which is unlikely.
Speaking of Cavs' rise What happened to the Pistons jeez They were so good just last year and now this
