The words uttered by Mo Williams to Delonte West before Saturday night’s game against Charlotte at the Q were so short and simple, yet so encapsulating.
“Stay with us.”
With 4:22 to play in the first quarter, West entered the 2009-10 season for the first time to a standing ovation from the Halloween crowd at Quicken Loans Arena. Then West went on to show fans just why he had won their hearts last season by dropping 13 points in 24 minutes as the Cavs won their first game at home and improved to 2-2 on the season
West’s return is so much more than just an on-court upgrade. And nobody but — who else? — Brian Windhorst can put it better:
After the game, Shaquille O’Neal said that he and LeBron James went to coach Mike Brown and Danny Ferry and ask that West be cleared to play as soon as possible. It would not have happened without the doctors’ approval, but Shaq left the impression that he and LeBron’s request was taken into account. Apparently, West has been petitioning for their help to get cleared to play and they showed faith in him in sticking their neck out and asking for him back.
After the final horn, Mo Williams wrapped his arms around West on the floor and spoke into his ear. Mo wouldn’t reveal what he told him, but said his message was the team was glad to have him back and then he stressed that he wanted him to stay and do the things that will enable him to stay. It is one thing for a team to say they have a family atmosphere and it is another to prove it and with this, the Cavs did. The hope now is that it works, because over the last two years we have seen that nothing is easy with West.
The Cavs were +12 with West in the game, and the Cavs were also able to control Anthony Parker’s minutes for the first time all season. When Parker was signed as an unrestricted free agent this summer, the objective was for him to play about 20 minutes a night as West’s primary backup. With West out of the lineup, Parker’s minutes spiraled out of control for the 34-year old journeyman.
However, with less of a burden to make things happen at the two-guard, Parker had his best night as a Cavalier. That’s not a coincidence. He scored 13 points on razor-sharp 5-for-8 shooting from the field and 3-for-4 from downtown. Expect Parker to play much more like this as the season progresses and he is matched up against second units.
Another thing to notice and come to terms with: the Cavs — not surprisingly — aren’t getting the Shaquille O’Neal from 10 years ago. However, the Shaq they’re getting right now is exactly what they missed so badly last year.
He is eating up the paint and is a threat in the post. He is pretty much what Ben Wallace was last year, but with a dominant offensive game two feet from the basket. Nobody in their wildest dreams would double-team Big Ben on offense, yet you see teams continuing to double-team Shaq even at the age of 37.
When it comes to potential meetings with Orlando and even Los Angeles, Shaq isn’t going to match Dwight Howard numbers-by-numbers, but he’ll be just what the doctor ordered in putting a big body on him and making him work hard for his points.
Nobody expects Shaq to put up 30 and 15 anymore. If he did that now, the Cavs wouldn’t have been able to get him for just Wallace and Sasha Pavlovic. So they know what they were getting. And what they’re getting is probably just what they needed, anyways.
Probably one of the best parts of this win was that the Cavs didn’t need a superhuman effort from LeBron James to win. Yeah, he was his usual human highlight reel on this night, but he only took 11 shots and scored 14 points. Of course, that went with nine assists and seven rebounds, but Mo Williams was the one who helped the team keep Charlotte at more than just an arm’s length down the stretch. Williams led all scorers with 24 points.
But these two wins have come against Minnesota and Charlotte. Think about that for a minute. Yes, it’s a lot better than to have lost to either one of these teams, but the Cavaliers haven’t proven anything yet.
Don’t worry, though. They’ll definitely be getting their chance soon. First, they get two up-and-coming challengers in the Eastern Conference coming to the Q on Tuesday and Thursday when the Wizards and Bulls pay a visit, respectively. Those are big games for the Cavs to get on the kind of roll we saw them get on last year where they ripped off 10-11 straight wins like it was nothing.
Then, after the media circus that will ensue on Friday night at Madison Square Garden against the Knicks, the Cavs will get four — yeah, four — days off before their next game. And that next game? At Orlando a week from Wednesday.
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
There was some sloppiness on the boards and with the ball, but this game showed us why this year’s Cavs have the potential to be the best ever.
It starts with the return of DWest, who provides a whole new dynamic to this team’s backcourt. Better perimeter defense, fewer minutes for AP and Boobie (good for different reasons), better court leadership when Mo is on the bench … DWest provides many things in addition to his contributions that show up in the stat sheet. Even once he’s fully “back”, I think I like AP as the starter and DWest doing his thing on the second unit.
The two-headed monster of Zydrunshaq O’Nealskas combined for 18 points (on 8 of 12 shooting), 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 7 blocks. Coming from one man, those would be All-Star numbers, and the inside-outside combo is a luxury few (if any) coaches have. Shaq is still learning the system, but despite numbers that don’t stand out that much, he was a solid presence in the paint on offense and defense.
In terms of minutes, it’s feast or famine for JJ and Moon, who clearly are fighting with each other for playing time. It would be nice if Coach Brown could find a way to get each player a solid 10 minutes a game because I think they both can contribute.
It’s just one game, and teams always get a temporary boost when fresh blood is added … the challenge is sustaining it. There will likely be bumps in the road, but that’s to be expected. Last night shows that there is a lot of reason for hope this year.
shaq works best with a stretch pf… to not clog the paint so much, plus you need someone to mark rashard lewis and rasheed wallace. anyone thinking of andres nocioni? we wouldn’t have to give much to the kings for him
This is exactly what I wanted to see: James not leading the Cavs in points, assists, and rebounds every night. LeBron is really really really really good, but the more that the rest of the Cavs are a threat the better James can be. The reason is simple: the defense can’t just watch LeBron, they have to know where the other guys are.
As far as players competing for minutes, they’re all guys who you could put into a game and expect to do decently. That’s a big improvement over, say, Wally or Sasha.