Cavs: 93 Nets: 91
The 2010-2011 Cavs are like kids whose father has died, but their mother doesn't think they're old enough to hear the truth yet.
"Your father," coach Byron Scott manages to say in a low voice, struggling to stay audible through a mask of dried tears, "had to go on a business trip."
"When will he be back?" quizzes Anderson Varejao.
"Not for a while."
"Where'd he go?" sniffles Mo Williams.
"To a, uh, better place," answers Scott, disgusted with himself for having to use such a hackneyed phrase.
"Is he going to bring us presents when he comes back?" asks a hopeful Boobie Gibson.
"Maybe," says Scott as he begins to trail off, then snaps himself back. "Maybe he will, but only if you guys play your hardest. He may be in a different place now, but I promise he's watching from where he is. So every time you don't feel like hustling back on defense, or finishing another set of dead lifts, just remember that LeBron is watching. And he's proud of you." Scott hated himself for lying, but knew the promise of the ghost was all he had.
Seriously, last night new acquisition Ramon Sessions (15 points on 6-11 shooting, five assists, four rebounds and zero turnovers in 23 minutes) played like the only reason he and LeBron don't have their own handshake yet is because they're waiting until Unstoppable hits theaters so they can see if Denzel does anything cool they can copy.
Avery Johnson, meanwhile, has rescued a dog from the pound and is trying to teach it to write in cursive.
These two teams are two lines on a bar graph. They're heading in different directions and this season should be the point of intersection, with both teams finishing within a few wins of each other and out of the playoffs. But the Cavs have a better record and, as I've hyperbolized in the short piece of fiction above, are playing like they deserve better.
The discussion we're now forced to have is one about environment: The culture of winning versus the culture of losing. It's not a new discussion by any measure, but these two teams provide us with startling examples of each. Brook Lopez, despite the lull over the past few games, is one of the most talented big men in the league, but he's never played in a meaningful NBA game—no matter how you want to define "meaningful." Boobie Gibson on the other hand has hit big shots during a run to the NBA finals, but is clearly a less talented and unique commodity. But who's more valuable? Ok, that's a stupid question. But what if you have a team full of Boobie Gibsons? Yeah, I just wanted an excuse to write that sentence, but honestly, is a team better off filled with role players with winning experience or skilled guys that have yet to prove themselves at all.
The answer is obviously, "It depends," but it's worth thinking about.
Anyway, the Cavs beat the Nets last night in an ugly game, and the two teams will do it all again tonight, this time in Cleveland. The NBA, where learning through repetition happens.
One Game We Wound Up Watching Last Night: Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Los Angeles Lakers
Wolves: 94 Lakers: 99
(Rhymer just couldn't help himself and took in this whole game. The following recap is written by him and is much better than the two-sentence brush-off I was going to post.)We left this game on at first only because of Michael Beasley's insane, Doug E. Doug-inspired dreadlock-ponytail situation. But when the Wolves showed some tenacity and kept it close with the champs throughout the first half, we caved, and once again watched the entirety of a game we were sure would be a blowout.
The above pictures explain the attitudes of the competing teams almost perfectly. The Lakers were absolutely stunned. They expected a no-contest. It's the Timberwolves, Kobe seemed to be saying to himself. But Kevin Love and Mike Beasley would not be condescended to.
The 1-6 Timberwolves proved scrappy and resilient, if blatantly unpolished, and made the Lakers work hard for their win. Jackson seemed annoyed that he was being forced to use his precious Kobe for so many minutes in November. Scrappy as they may have been, the T-Wolves still shot a deplorable 38 percent from the field and turned the ball over 25 times, proving for the umpteenth time that no team will ever beat the Lakers by accident.
Still, the Wolves' loss to the undefeated, two-time defending champs was only decided in the final minute of play. Was this a fluke? Possibly. Probably. But one thing was unfailingly clear in this contest: Kevin Love is for real. And there is hope that Michael Beasley just might show up for his long awaited coming-out party one of these days.
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