Almost 400 years ago, people inhabiting the Plymouth colony shared an autumn harvest with the Wampanoag Indians for what many consider the first Thanksgiving celebration in the colonies.  The harvest meal has become a symbol of cooperation between English colonists and the Native Americans.  Today, we spend the fourth Thursday of each November among family and friends giving thanks for a year worth of hardships and blessings.

Cavaliers fans sure have a lot to be thankful for this season.  We’re fourteen games into this young 2009-10 campaign and our Cleveland team is perched atop the Central Division with an 11-4 record and tied for the second best record in the NBA.  While the Wine and Gold take a rest to celebrate their Turkey Day, let’s take a look at the menu our Cavs’ have cooked up for this Thanksgiving’s feast:

The King

Turkey

King James is, without a doubt, the meat of this Cleveland Cavaliers team.  In fifteen games this season TheBron is the Eastern Conference’s top scorer with 29.7 points per game in 38 minutes of action per night.  He is shooting 52.4% from the field and 36.4% from downtown to go along with 8 assists and 6.9 rebounds in every contest.  James is coming off a week in which he averaged over 30 points and 9 assists per game and went on to earn Eastern Conference Player of the Week honors.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas

 Stuffing

Veteran center Zydrunas Ilgauskas provides the stuffing for the Wine and Gold with a team-high 20 blocks in the young season.  Z took to the role of sixth man after the Cavs recruited the Big Witness Protection to help “win a ring for the King” on Draft Day this offseason.  When the Shaqalier went down with a sprained shoulder, Ilgauskas got an opportunity to play with the starting five and has taken full advantage of it.  The lenghty Lithuanian has provided Cleveland with 1.33 stuffs per contest in the early going.

Moonshine

Mashed Potatoes

Coach Brown struggled to find minutes for Jamario Moon in the first few games this season but Moonshine’s strong play as of late has earned him some extra minutes.  In 17.2 minutes per game, Jamario accounts for 5.4 points and 3.6 rebounds per contest.  Moon’s biggest contributions (i.e. stellar defense, hustle, and alley-oop mashes) don’t show up on the stat sheet for the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

Boobie Gibson

Sweet Corn

The Cavaliers back court has brought a sweet stroke into the first fifteen games of the season, shooting 44.8% from downtown.  Prized free agent acquisitions Anthony Parker and Jamario Moon are shooting 54.5% and 40% respectably while Boobie Gibson has found the touch and shot 48.3% from deep in the early going.  Zydrunas Ilgauskas has even canned his only three-point attempt of the season for the Wine and Gold.

The Diesel

Pumpkin Pie

After going 5-1 in their last six games without the Big Fella in the middle, the Cavaliers find dessert in knowing their post presence is quickly recovering from his sprained shoulder.  Through nine games this season, the Cleveland big man posted 6.9 rebounds per contest to go along with a solid 11.3 points per night.

The Wine and Gold will take their 11-4 record and return to the floor on Friday night to take on the Charlotte Bobcats in North Carolina.