Low risk move that could pay off well for the Cavs. Nothing is lost even if he doesn't fully recover. Good move.
Yep - low risk, and medium to high reward. Always a good move. Happy for Powe too that he will get another shot at it. He seems like a great person.
I suppose this is low-risk for the Cavs, but I doubt Powe will contribute. He's an unskilled player coming off a knee injury. There is little chance for much upside. I love his story though and it's a shame the injury will prevent him from cashing in.
Powe has had some very good individual games (who can forget him when the Celts stopped the 22-game winning streak), but he is an unskilled player who's succeeded with heart, guts and determination. There really isn't much argument. Tell me what his top skills are besides good instincts on the offensive glass. BTW, I don't think Powe had a 20/10 game in the 2008 Finals. Besides game 2, he was pretty much a zero.
Powe is relatively unskilled, his game is all about hustle and effort. Glad the Cavs picked him up, if anybody can come back from 3 knee injuries it's this kid.
You're right. In game 2 he had 21 points, but only 2 rebounds. The rest of the series he didn't do much of anything. I'm glad the guy is getting another chance. I agree that he's mostly a hustle player, but to say he's unskilled is a little unfair. He's not one of those guys who has NO game whatsoever and just survives because he's tall and he tries hard (e.g., Ryan Bowen).
even with the knee injuries, he's still better than any of their other PF's. Varejio (sp?) is awful, he's just a big body out there, he has no offensive game. turrible, just turrible.
The Cavs just gave their bench another boost. This team is deep and can really challenge the Lakers for the crown. Powe is not the deciding factor that propels the Cavs but his presence and the signing of Moon and Parker would shore up the bench which would useful for the starters as they get their rest. The quality of the game would not dip too much when the starters rest.
Powe is a skilled low post player, from what I've seen. I think its a very good move that will pay dividends in the 2010/2011 season. A good pickup for a team that was lacking in players who can score with their back to the basket. In his career, he's played at least 25 minutes in 27 regular season games. Over those games, in 29 minutes per, he's averaged 16 ppg, 8.4 rpg, only 1.1 tpg, shooting 56% from the field, and overall having a .62 TS%. That is pretty solid, to me. Similar, production-wise, to what Luis Scola or Carl Landry may provide. It's just a matter of Powe staying healthy, and getting the minutes, and he can be pretty effective. 2 years, for the minimum, is totally worth it, and I think he'll be a factor for them at some point.
Powe can't score unless he's very close the rim. Tenacity, effort and strength is what makes him productive, not skills. But to his credit, he forces the man guarding him to play good defense because he will go right through them if they aren't putting out. Still, both Scola and Landry are far more skilled than Powe will ever be. If Landry had Powe's pure nastiness, he would be a better player. I hope he does well in Cleveland. I'm rooting for him. But if he doesn't recover 100% from this knee injury, Powe is done.
True. With the presence of Shaq and LBJ, Powe can feed off these guys. He can hang around the basket and do put backs or drive and receive passes as both All-Stars would demand double and sometimes triple teams.
I know what you're saying completely, but a pet peeved of mine is when people say so and so isn't skilled, then goes on to name three things they're really good at. Tenacity, effort, strength...I know those aren't skills in the sense that you're using the word, but to me, in context of being successful in the NBA, they clearly are skills. Moreso, considering you go on to say if only Landry had those attributes, he's be so much better. Maybe attribute is a better word, and he isn't technically skilled, but has some nice attributes. At the end of the day, though, we're talking productivity, whether he's got skills, attributes, or both. Powe clearly has some nice attributes. If healthy, he'll be a great great pickup for the Cavs, imo. I know, aside from Shaq, the Cavs have made a bunch of "this could help but these players aren't exactly awesome role player" type signings, but if one or two of them do pan out, and Shaq fits in with Lebron - and I think he will - well, they all seem like good moves to me. One major change that's a risk (Shaq), then a bunch of tinkering. Still, can't help but continue to scratch my head at Ferry's lapse in judgment when he refused to take on Shaq's contract at the trade deadline...
With Shaq clams down low, they needs people who can shoot from distance instead. People like Horry and Haslem.
Yes, however He can play like what Scola is doing. He comes from the opposite side were Shaq is positioned and cuts so as to receive a past from a double teamed Shaq for a basket. Shooters would indeed benefit on that low post kick out play and so is the player in the opposite side of the low post player.
Count me in with the group of skeptics on what the Cavs have done this summer. To me, all of them are guys who may or may not be effective in the regular season. But in the playoffs, I don't see them getting over the hump. The Cavs will win 60+ games and flame out. They needed to add another impact player.
At the end of the day, Shaq and Lebron have to mesh, you're right. Shaq's obviously nowhere near what he used to be, but if he can stay healthy and put up 15 points, 7-8 boards a night, I think that puts the Cavs over the top, and all the signings have a better chance of being at a minimum neutral to the team. And that's all they need, because on the whole, the Cavs are consistently and always a considerably better team than their opponent when Lebron is on the floor. They just need a bench to not suck completely. Shaq's arrival makes the frontcourt deeper. Jamario Moon, Anthony Parker...well, they've got to be an improvement over Wallyworld. That said, they were obviously unable to defend the Dwight/Rashard combo last year, and I don't see how any of their pickups help that much in that area. Yes, I think they'll be better against Dwight, or at least have more fouls to give - which helps since Dwight can't shoot FT's. But Shaq, Big Z, Varejo, Powe...none of those guys are versatile enough to guard Rashard at the PF position, and none of them are good enough as the 2nd frontcourt player to take advantage of Rashard on the offensive end. You can't play Shaq and Big Z together. We already know Varejo doesn't work against Rashard. This is probably why they signed Powe. If healthy, he might be the best defensive option against the "shooting" PF's of the league, like Rashard, while still being able to rebound effectively and hit the offensive glass enough to not be a complete waste on the offensive end. But it still comes down to Shaq being more than just an aging center.
