Growing up in Massachusetts, I’ve been blessed with winning teams. The New England Patriots have been a dominate NFL team for the past 15 years, winning four Superbowls. Back in 2004, the Boston Red Sox broke ‘The Curse of the Bambino” by winning the World Series in sweeping fashion, then went on to win two more. Even the Boston Bruins got in on the winning action by taking home the 2011 Stanley Cup.
The only championship I didn’t celebrate was the Boston Celtics NBA Finals win in 2008. While all my friends were going to the parade in Boston, celebrating banner 17, I was still fuming about the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Eastern Conference semifinals loss.
No one in my family were real basketball fans so I had the freedom to browse the NBA and choose what team I’d root for. I almost fell for the Milwaukee Bucks and Ray Allen earlier in life after dominating with him on NBA Live 1999, but something kept me away from it.
Years later while watching ESPN, a certain high school player out of St. Vincent St. Mary’s high school in Akron, Ohio was the talk of the town. I remember watching his high school highlights on ESPN, then reading Sports Illustrated who crowned him “The Chosen One” as a junior. And back in 2003 when I was eight, I made the commitment to the Cleveland Cavaliers. It just so happened to be that “The Chosen One” was also drafted to the Cavaliers that same year.
NBA League Pass never existed and Celtics games were the only games on TV so it was tough to follow the Cavaliers. The only real way I could get updates on them was the bottom ticker on ESPN while watching Sportscenter, Around the Horn or any other show on that station. Also my family having major control of the TV remote never helped, especially if the Cavs were on TV.
While I committed for LeBron James, I stayed for the actual team.
I loved watching Big Z, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, roam the paint and reject any shot put up around him. Anderson Varejao and his theatrics mad me laugh all the time. He even made my dad become a fan of him, even though he can’t stand basketball.
I got caught up in the Daniel Gibson hype after his coming out party against the Detroit Pistons his rookie year in the Eastern Conference finals.
I believed Mo Williams was a true all-star point guard after his one all-star game trip. There’s nothing I enjoyed more than watching Dion Waiters call for the ball every time the Cavs passed half court.
I actually thought Andrew Bynum would be a functioning center and contribute to this team.
I rocked my wine and gold Daniel Gibson jersey proudly during the dog years anytime I caught a Cavaliers’ game at the TD Garden.
And I firmly believed after James went on his four year vacation to Miami, that J.J. Hickson was the future of the Cavaliers. I believed it so much that I was blocked by Dan Gilbert on Twitter after tweeting at him to keep Hickson.
Alright, just tweeting at Hickson didn’t get me blocked by Gilbert but tweeting many other things eventually did. I guess he just doesn’t like passionate fans? (Editor’s Note: Pretending I didn’t read this, lol.)
Anyways, my first Cavaliers game was Game 2 of the 2008 Eastern Conference semifinals against the Celtics. It came in a Cavs loss and I was heckled out of the TD Garden, as a 13 year old, so I choose not to remember that much even though it was a great experience.
Oct 30, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Fans walk and drive outside of Quicken Loans Arena before the Cleveland Cavaliers
My first game at Quicken Loans Arena though was something I hope I never forget. The game I saw was back in 2009 against the Atlanta Hawks. The atmosphere inside the Q was something like I never experienced before.
Maybe it was because I was surrounded by other Cavaliers’ fans for the first time ever?
One specific play I remember vividly was a signature LeBron James dunk. He got the ball off of a steal, drove down the court, took off and slammed it home. I was up in the first row of Loudville and the place erupted as the play developed. It was like everyone knew what was about to happen. The Cavaliers went on to win that game.
I never felt more at home at the Q, even though I was 600 miles away from my home.
A memory I’ll never forget is The Return. Friends texted me “congratulations” or “Hey man, proud of you” when the news broke and I had know idea what was going on since I was working. When I checked my phone and saw the confirmation I exploded with joy. That letter in Sports Illustrated brought me more joy as a Cavaliers’ fan than other game I’ve seen during my short tenure as a fan.
I could go on and on about The Decision and how it hurt fans but to confess a little on here: I wasn’t as affected by The Decision like most Cavaliers’ fans were. What James went through and decided completely made sense in my mind. He had an opportunity to win in Miami, something the Cavaliers weren’t giving him, while playing with his best friend and he took it. If you were given that opportunity and said no then I’d recommend getting your brain looked at. The way he announced it all did leave a bitter taste in my mouth but overall I completely understood his decision. I’m not from Northeast Ohio so I never felt the impact he had on that area. I was just a Cavaliers fan from Southeastern Massachusetts who loved watching him play basketball.
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And yes I still rooted for him when he was on the Heat, besides when he played the Cavaliers of course.
My fandom of the Cavaliers doesn’t have the history some people on King James Gospel or Cavaliers’ fans in general. I haven’t experienced the same highs and lows of this franchise. I’ve only been in this brotherhood for 12 years now.
What I have experienced though is something special with this team we have in front of us. We had a glimpse of their potential last year in the playoffs. I’m sure we’ll experience something a little sweeter this year.