Will The Real King Please Stand Up
By Cody Norman
Ya know, I started the piece off the other day with this but I’m going to do it again. Because LeBron James is a monster and because, well, I can…
M-V-P! M-V-P!
All right. Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way:
Dwyane Wade came out strokin’ on Monday night and torched the Cavaliers for 30 points in the first 24 minutes of play. The last seven minutes of the first half turned into the LeBron James-Dwyane Wade show as both players scored 12 consecutive points for their team. Heading into the break, Cleveland was down 54-50 and LBJ had notched 22 points while D-Wade looked like a king.
Then the second half came and Wade was exposed as just another prince to LeBron’s royalty. King James came up with a big steal with under ten seconds to play and raced down the floor before being slapped, punched and kicked to the floor with his team down 91-90. James was shaken up on the play but a Cleveland timeout rejuvenated the young star. He stepped to the line and canned two free throws (neither of which so much as grazed the rim) and put his team ahead by one with 4.1 second remaining. Wade’s last second shot attempt clanked off the back of the rim and Cleveland stole their 35th victory of the season.
The Cavs took to the floor without Mo Williams and Delonte West for the second straight night but welcomed Jamario Moon back to the floor for limited minutes. Shaquille O’Neal came up big again for the Wine and Gold as he scored on 9 of his 13 shot attempts for 19 points. He connected on his first four shot attempts while scoring the first 8 points for the Cavaliers. As great as O’Neal’s stat line looked, the Big Fella spent much of the night in foul trouble.
Just two nights after splashing home the game winning tre, Daniel Gibson rose to the occasion again against the Heat. Gibson nailed 4 of 6 long distance attempts and played solid defense on Rafer Alston. Anderson Varejao came off the bench as his usual energetic self and accounted for 13 points and 10 boards in the winning effort.
And perhaps the night’s most unsung hero only managed 2 points on 1 of 4 shooting. He grabbed six boards and handed off two assists but played incredible defense in the second half. With help from his teammates, Anthony Parker locked down on Dwyane Wade in the second half and limited Miami’s star to just 2 points in the final 24 minutes of play. He forced Wade into several turnovers and did not allow him to get off any clean looks. Parker has been matched up against Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant and Wade over the last three contests and has (quietly) played spectacular D to aid in Cleveland’s success. Kudos to ya AP!
On the downside note, Cleveland did miss nine more free throws (after missing 20 on Saturday night) and surrendered 13 turnovers. But, hey, a win is a win. Right?
To end on a more positive note, LeBron James was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the fourth time this season. He averaged an NBA-best 34 points on .484 shooting, 7.7 rebounds and a league-high 10.7 assists per night during the three game home stand.
The Akron Hammer also flushed home a ridiculous two handed slam against a defending Dwyane Wade. You tell me, did ‘Bron posterize his buddy?
After a one day break our Cavaliers will be back in action on Wednesday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves.