Cavs Prevail After Late LeBron Surge

LeBron's 13 points fourth quarter helped Cleveland to a one point victory on Saturday.

Well, in the last two games, Cleveland has certainly done a great job when it comes to turning nobody into somebody.  Even if it is just for one night.  The Cavs were beaten on Thursday night on a buzzer beater by Sundiata Gaines and they were almost done in by Rasual Butler on Saturday night.

Since I am sure many of you have absolutely no idea who Rasual Butler is, let me tell you a little bit about the guy:  Butler is a 6’7″ forward out of La Salle and has been in the league for 7 years.  He has never averaged more than 11 points per game and is sitting right around the 10 point mark this season.  However, he torched the Cavs for 33 points on 12 of 18 from the field on Saturday evening.

It took another brilliant performance from the King to right the ship and put the Cavs back on the winning track.  LeBron was an efficient 12 of 20 from the field with 4 rebounds and 4 assists to put an end to a stellar road trip.  Delonte West was unarguably the X-Factor for the Cavaliers as he posted 14 points on 4 of 7 shooting while picking up a pair of steals on the night.

Mo Williams recorded another poor performance as he continued the struggle to regain his stroke.  He was a disgusting 1 of 7 from downtown but that one bucket came during Cleveland’s late fourth quarter push.

And will somebody please explain to me how someone who is better than 7 feet and 300 pounds can only muster up 1 rebound in over 20 minutes of work?!  Especially when Chris Kaman is out of the lineup with a sore lower back.  I’m beginning to wonder if the lack of touches is starting to tax the big man’s patience.  He was only able to get off 7 shots on the night in an 11 point performance.  Like I’ve said before, Shaquille O’Neal needs to demand the basketball in order for Cleveland to maintain their balance on the offensive end.  He needs to have a much bigger role in the offense.  Plain and simple.

I don’t mean to come across as being Mr. Negativity because I am sure the guys are just exhausted after their 11 day road trip.  But Saturday night’s effort just isn’t going to cut it down the stretch.  They were slow to close out on jump shooters and allowed LA to connect on almost 60% of their shots while only nailing 48% of their own attempts.  It’s a good thing they were able to secure 14 offensive boards in comparison to the Clippers’ 4.

After it’s all said and done, Cleveland did pick up their 31st victory of the season and is headed back to the homeland to take on the Raptors on Tuesday.