Copyright 2008 NBAE (Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images)
Eddie, I speak for every reasonable Wizards fan out there when I say....."I hope to see you back next year...without the face above."
---------------- (on to the game blog.....read if you must)
Going with the theme of superstition, I was careful to notice what song was playing on my ipod getting off the bus (it was Michael Jackson's Beat It for game 5)...one of the last ones I would expect tonight, Queen, We Are The Champions.
At first I was shocked by the D-Song suspension...now I'm steamed. The timing is horrendous...are you telling me that it took 1.5 days to decide this?
1st Quarter
Brendan gets a block and a dunk early....
But Wally is left open for a trey ball. ....I never like getting him going early, but sometimes I don't think it matters....crap, he just hit another one. 8-6 Cavs.
Wide open good looks....and I just spilled part of my drink on myself. Nice one chief.
DeShawn and Caron fail to keep LeBron off the boards. 10-6 Cavs.
Ilgauskas gets a tip off a West miss in transition....12-2 Cleveland run, 12-6 Cleveland.
Haywood gets Wallace on his back..Wally comes to help in front, but he wanted no part of that...Dunk in the grill.
Phil Chenier is commenting that they (refs) are letting them play.
Stevenson misses a three...don't do that...AJ stays with it, gets two o boards and then a put back. 12-10 Cavs.
Is Gilbert Arenas is wearing a white/cream [maybe that was the problem....all he had was cream] three piece suit and a pink shit under? It's like Saturday Night Fever....only on a Friday.
Jamison with another put back. 14-12 Cavs.
Jamison with a trey from the very top...great ball movement in transition. 9 and 4 for AJ. 15-14 Wiz.
Jamison hits a long deuce...he is feeling it...it's key that the Wiz get a nice start to keep the crowd in it. 17-16 Wiz.
Wally misses a shot on the run...something I'd rather him shoot.
5:39: 1st break in the action....6 lead changes and no fouls called as of yet. 17-16 Wizards.
Songaila not even allowed in the building....Gilbert Arenas has brought his jersey to the bench. Phil Chenier likes it and I like it too....but Gilbert still has me mad at something he recently said .
Daniels goes up...and gets fouled by Delonte West...good god the refs are trigger happy. They call a tech on Delonte for making a tiny chicken wing come out to AD’s back as he was falling. Really? That deserved a tech? I'm a Wizards fan, but please. 20-16 Wiz.
Big Z misses two FTs.....now that's crazy.
Evidently the NBA officials and Stu Jackson agonized over the D-Song suspension...Really? (As reported by Ric Bucher)....you agonize over losing your puppy....but this?....sounds like a crock to me.
James is quite the distributor....of course, the Cavs get another offensive board....LeBron defers to Wally who hits another trey. 21-20 Cavs.
Stevenson hits a three....I don't notice the 'Can't Feel My Face' move....good. 23-21 Wiz.
Wally hits a crazy shot trying to draw a foul on Haywood. 23 tie.
BTH answers with a baseline hook on Joe Smith.
ESPN shows a guy with a Free Darius Songaila shirt....not an original idea, but I'm still jealous that I don't have one to wear later this evening when I'm either celebrating or drinking my sorrows away. I guess it'd be a moot point by then.
Blatche is in the game....this might be the biggest game opportunity of his young career. All eyes on AB.
He starts with a sweet bucket off a cross over on Varejao. 29-23 Wiz.
And then AB hustles to recover and gets a block on a Joe Smith dunk attempt. Get Hype!
The Potomac Rainmaker checks it....misses his first shot...looks like he got hit a little....Daniel Gibson goes down and hits a layup at the buzzer. He definitely puts his arm out there, a semi-extension in the process...a call that refs kept an eye on this season. ....just not this time.
After 1, Wiz up 31-29.
- Jamison has 11 and 5
- Haywood has 6 and 4
- LeBron has attempted 2 FGs, making 1...but he has 4 assists
- Wiz up on boards, 13-10 (8-5 on defensive rebounds)
- Both teams have 12 made FGs, Cavs have 8 assists, Wiz have 6
2nd Quarter
Varejao misses the first shot of the quarter...if I'm a Cavs fan, my stomach turns every time he shoots.
Roger Mason makes a tough fadeaway with 2 seconds on the shot clock. 33-27 Wiz.
LeBron gets another assist to Boobie. 33-29 Wiz.
Stevenson and Butler sit...so it's AD, AJ, AB, MaseOn and Haywood.
Blatche battles for an o board and gets a put back....the white shirts are chairing the boards and booing a king. 35-29 Wiz.
Roger sets up a Haywood dunk with a dribble drive...he definitely took advantage of West closing out on him too hard. MaseOn is a smart dude. 37-31 Wiz.
C’mon AD..we can't have you losing West and giving up wide open layups off the cut. 37-33 Wiz.
Ok, Andray made his first jumper, but has missed his last two....you gotta drive on the Brazilian Spaz if anything...he can't guard you.
LeBron makes a strong move to the hoop...Steve Buck and Phil C wonder about a travel...it wasn't. But he's definitely using his size, if you will. 41-37 Wiz.
LeBron hits a trey after a stare down.....his face is too calm. I don't like this. 41-40 Wiz.
Another offensive rebound....Jamison goes against Smith for the board, but he doesn't have much help...the defense is confused and Boobie nails a trey. 43-41 Cavs.
Wiz turn the ball over...Caron's pass goes right off AD's hands and out of bounds. Yup, I'd say a timeout is called for....thankfully it's of a television nature.... to stop an 8-0 Cavs run. Pick up the focus guys...can't afford to allow any game slippage.
Cavs other than James are on fire....Boobie hits a trey to give him 12. West has 12. Wally has 11. 46-41 Cavs.
Mini daggers...offensive rebounds and ball movement = 13-0 Cavs run.
Jamison tries to bandage with a three..but it's not sticking.
JC! Butler dives for a loose ball after an almost Delonte West steal (from behind Haywood) and tries to get it to AD...AD bobbles the ball and it goes out of bounds off his leg. Tough catch, but still.
Joe Smith hits another shot....15-0 run. I'm getting pretty pissed. Timeout. 48-41 Cavs.
Butler stops the run on Crying Game James. 50-43 Cavs.
You gotta be kidding me...Ben Wallace tips the ball out a la Tyson Chandler and Boobie gets another three. 53-43 Cavs.
After some Wizard boards....and scrappiness...Stevenson decides to shoot a three with 23 seconds on the shot clock. Miss. Gee, thanks D-Steve.
Haywood is throwing bodies all over the place with crazy effort for a hook. 56-45 Cavs.
The Cavs zone leaves AJ open for a trey....good. Cavs come down ...Boobie has an attempt. It looks like there may be grounds for a foul, but Gibson was fading towards the basket. 56-48 at the half, Cavs.
LeBron gets hot...the ref gives him a tech....Steve Javie...( I never liked that jerk until now ) - The Cavs wait around on the court, Ric Bucher waits for LeBron, the refs let their balls hang out at center court to see if LeBron wants to do anything more.....the hub-bub finally breaks up. LeBron says that he didn't say anything disrespectful. I can't account to that, but it does look like he was barking at the ref like he was a mangy mutt.
Half Stats:
- Antawn Jamison only had 5 points in the last 18 minutes (11 in the first 6)
- Tuff Juice is 2-6
- LBJ is well on his way to a trip-dub: 10-7-6
- Wiz still up on boards, 21-20
- Stu Jackson: BOO THIS MAN!
- Did you know that if Stu Jackson gives a Japanese greeting (a bow), fecal matter falls out of his mouth because he is full of it?
3rd Quarter
Caron starts with missing the tech.
Wally S misses a shot that we want him to take....a step back fadeaway....yet, the Cavs get an offensive rebound. I belt out a primal yell that can be acronymized by GDGAFR. The 2nd G stands for 'get' and the R stands for 'rebound'
Stevenson misses a wide open three....it was a good shot. Too bad this isn't an 80s party, cause dude is a no show.
Wiz come out firing without a spark.....Jamison misses a trey.
Wally Skipjack nails a corner trey. 61-48 Cavs.
Wiz get a board...but Caron Butler assumes that no one is behind him....turnover and easy Cavalier points. 63-51 Cavs.
Comcast stat...points off turnovers the last 3 games 62-34 Cavs.
"Timely shot by DeShawn....boy" Phil Chenier with quite an understatement as the Lock Smith hits a three. 63-54 Cavs.
Jamison throws LeBron’s stuff......instead of getting back on D, James throws up his arms in protest....it looked close in real time, but in slow motion, it's a good block.
Illgauskas is as sneaky as they come...from moving picks to hidden shoves.
Butler misses a trey on Wally, he's 2-8 from the field.
LeBron trips Jamison...helps him up. That's the second time that's happened as he helped Butler up earlier. I wonder what would happen if DeShawn fell....yea riiiight.
LeBron gets a steal...for some reason Haywood decided to put the ball on the floor with James still doubling and the shot clock running down....a break leads to FTs. 67-56 Cavs.
The Wiz can't get stops on D...they're playing a lot of man.
Haywood gets Big Z to turn the ball over...the Wizards go down the court with promise....but the Potomac Rainmaker can't hit. It was a sunny day here in DC today.
Mike Tirico points out that the DC bench is being outscored 25-6.
Butler step back...nope. Jamison board and put-back. Both can't show up at once I guess. 75-62 Cavs.
I don't want to believe it.....but the Wizards are putting it into my head more so than the Cavs....but Cleveland simply looks like the better Team.
MaseOFF....the miss gives LeBron his triple double.
"Great" Papa John's gave out "cry baby" shirts with LeBron's number on them - we got some pizza douche talking trash now.
The quarter ends with an AD dunk and a LeBron three missed....witnessed by a tepid DC crowd. 79-64 Cleveland.
4th Quarter
For the hell of it.....I start playing Beat It by Michael Jackson.
Wow...how bout the 22-10 assists in favor of the Cavs to start the 4th. That's the game right there folks.
Andray starts with missing a scoop shot.
AD misses...Big Z with a rebound...an elbow to the chest of Blatche...no one cares.
AB comes to help AD on LeBron...and Joe Smith is left to get the board...Wally Sherbet-Attack eventually hits a trey. 82-64 Cleveland.
Mom! More Ovaltine Myers rum and coke please...go ahead and bring it down to the basement. (My mom doesn't hear me as she is in Vermont and I'm on the 5th story of an apartment building)
Blatche fouls Haywood.......Eddie Jordan tells him that he's dead to him....and brings Haywood off the bench.
Jamison's runner no....Ilgauskas yep. 20 point game, Cleveland.
I've got one of the worst feelings pertaining to a basketball game ever. I think it has a lot to do with that 3 years in a row thing and people saying that this is not really a rivalry since the Wizards haven't won...... when rivalry has nothing to do with winning and losing....it has to do with the emotion involved between the two teams and their fans...and then I start thinking about how I will probably be forced to become a Celtics fan in the next half hour or so (they're only up 43-40 on Atlanta as I type this...whatever)....and I just don't know....nuthin'
Haywood gets fouled at the shot clock buzzer....I give it to Cleveland, they've come out with some great defense....I know that Waiting For Next Year is loving them some Mike Brown for that very reason right now.
Stuff happens.....Wally hits a trey. Beaten by a Zipper-Sack (if you're not catching on....then you've never seen Mr. Belvedere) 91-72 Cavs.
(shh...don't tell anyone, but I'm playing scrabulous on facebook now)
Jamison steals...it looks like a double dribble, and it's a good call despite a LeBron reach in......contact was minimal despite what Steve Buck and Phil C say.
I think Gibson just did something. 94-75 Cavs.
MaseONALITTLETOOLATE 94-78 Cavs.
I just realize that Mr. Belvedere comment earlier was ironic.....because the only place that a butler showed up is this blog.
This game fell off the ugly tree and got hit by every branch on the way down.
Insults:
- Damon Jones is the human victory cigar for Cleveland. Yep, that chump = Brian Scalabrine
- The Wizards got chumped by themselves and LeBron...tough when you got yourself and a top 2 NBA player working against you.
- Comcast is playing "Shut 'em Down" by Onyx right after the game.
- LeBron James....a helluva player. I lost some respect for him (as a person) this series....even more after I saw what he was wearing during the post game -- a leather vest. Damn, had to go out like that, huh?
Yup. C-ya.
Genuine? (not the R&B singer from DC)
(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
