Ryan Richman lives and dies with NBA Basketball. His biases include: all former and current UConn Men’s basketball players, and any player past or present on the Golden State Warriors roster.
In another blowout, the Cleveland Cavaliers cruised past the depleted Atlanta Hawks in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. Yes the Hawks are short a couple of significant players in Al Horford, Marvin Williams, and now Joe Johnson (he rolled his ankle in the third quarter), however the game was not even close. All of this coupled with Cleveland playing confident and relaxed basketball was what led to the Cavaliers twenty point, no-contest victory. The Cavaliers are unbeaten and untested in the playoffs thus far and look poised for a deep playoff run.
It almost doesn’t make sense how quickly this team developed their strong chemistry. In case you haven’t heard, the 24 year-old James was recently crowned MVP in a landslide, becoming the youngest player to win the award since Moses Malone won it in 1979. LeBron is the center of attention with every step he takes. Whether it’s off the court as a business mogul and celebrity, or on the court morphing into a remarkable player, James has a never-ending fan base. He literally is busy every second of the day yet regardless of how busy he is, he always has time for his teammates, and his teammates always have time for him. And when they are all together, it looks like the happiest family since the Brady Bunch.
Every single player on their roster down to little used NBDL call up Jawad Williams is on the same page. To have that consistency is very difficult to come by. Internal drama and issues amongst teams can tear a season apart. But not with this team. Everyone is on the same page, and all they want is to win a championship. Some would think that the massive attention LeBron gets over them would get in the way of that. For his Cavalier teammates, they are proud of him and relish the opportunity to just be a part of the ride.
But what really makes them so good? They follow the golden rule of basketball. Three words uttered by coaches and parents alike since elementary school play – Just have fun. When I watched the Cavs tonight, I couldn’t help but get excited about the game of basketball. Their play tonight and throughout the entire season has further reminded me about my passion for this game.
Cleveland plays long stretches of beautiful basketball and at home they are virtually invincible. Everybody contributes and similar to Michael, LeBron makes the people around him better. First time all-star Mo Williams is starting to become a household name, something that never would have happened in Milwaukee (stay tuned to see which Cavs players will get overpaid in the free agency market because of the LeBron James statistics-inflator effect). Andersen Varejao said it best in an international media interview, “ Sometimes he’s doubled up, sometimes he has three players on top of him. He sees what’s going on in the game and makes incredible passes,” Varejao said. “He makes his teammates better every season.”
Mike Brown, the 2009 Coach of the Year, knows just as well as his teammates and us fans and admirers, it all starts and ends on the broad shoulders of the precocious and fun-loving LeBron James.
A somewhat typical 24 year-old kid and his fourteen buddies, doing what its always been all about – just having fun.
