RealGM

Cleveland is second in the playoffs in defensive field goal percentage, first in assists, and they sport the 2nd or 3rd best collection of shooters to surround a superstar in the league. They have four quality bigs to rotate, a great defensive system, and one of the few true centers in the league. And lets not even talk about Lebron who is probably the most unstoppable force in the game today.

I see why Cleveland went to the finals last season (albiet with a slightly different cast).

^^????

Noone else is shocked at how good Cleveland is? I am. Damn, thats a great team.

I'm actually with you on this one Gonzo. The C's having been playing great but I've been really impressed with Cavs defense which is on par with Boston and Detroit when they are playing well. This series has been frustrating at times but overall fun to watch. I just hope Rondo plays another 40 mins on Friday and we pull this one out.[/list]

They certainly have played excellent D and LaBron bears some resemblance to Bird in that he can blow you up at any time.

...and beyond LeBron the Cavs match ups have long worried me....Z's length and outside shot has always caused Perk fits (yet putting KG on him full time is expensive and outside the C's defensive scheme) while Wally and West can both play and have something to prove.

But what worries me (and some others I expect) is that Atlanta also looked very good against us at times.

Either the East was under-rated this year or the Celts are having trouble with teams they should handle more easily.

^LeBron is great, no doubt. Z can be lethal although if his jump shot isn't falling he's far less effective. Delonte is hot or cold, same with Wally. Joe Smith and Gibson have been playing out of their heads in this series, not normal. Wallace is a shell of his former self and offers nothing on offense. Varejao is an "energy guy", meaning he has no offensive skills and isn't a very good defender but can get some hustle playes and rebounds. Mike Brown is an average coach, not awful but not great.

Without LeBron, this is a 30-35 win team.

Pretty random but Ill agree with you for once, they are a damn good team

Didn`t you forget to add something like:

THE GREAT GONZOLAYS!!

bwhahahahahah!!

But you didn`t come to this conclusion now, did you? You obviously knew this before the playoffs started, you just didn`t post it...

thebirdman wrote:Didn`t you forget to add something like:

THE GREAT GONZOLAYS!!

bwhahahahahah!!

But you didn`t come to this conclusion now, did you? You obviously knew this before the playoffs started, you just didn`t post it...

LOL who ever said Cleveland was bad? I think everyone expected a pretty tough series

Cleveland is a good team, not a great team.

Cleveland previously played above the sum of the players' individual talents. Then they added talent via trade.

Being this good was always an obvious possibility, even if opinions differed as to how likely it was to actually come through.

Atlanta was a great team too. lol.

At the beginning of the playoffs I thought this series could possibly be the toughest for us on our way to the championship. Cleveland and Washington both gave us more trouble than just about any other teams during the regular season. We beat Detroit 2-1 and Chauncey's pump fake on Tony is the only reason it was 3-0. Against the West we were very dominant. If we make it past this round, we might find that things actually get easier for us against the Pistons.

I think Cleveland is better than they were last year -- but I wouldn't call them great. They're good.

I guess Atlanta is a FANTASTIC team if Cleveland is a great one. <g> No the C's have played poorly and Doc has struggled intergrating the old guys.

Pete

PP and RA is why the cavs look good.

those guys have really stunk this year in the playoffs. its amazing these two guys who are usually great in the playoffs cant hit a shot to save their life.

they better snap out of it, especially RA or its gonna be over.

i would say, as i have all along to this question, they arent a great team but (minus scottie pippen) they are built around LBJ like the bulls were around MJ and they can compete against anyone, and win on any given night

Clevleand are surprisingly good defensively.

They have lots of shooters to put round Lebron, but I have suprised that Wally, Big Z, Boobie are playing such good D.

That, and like a few posters have pointed out, players such as Allen aren't hitting their shots.