CAVS.SPACE

The Cavaliers take on the Boston Celtics at 3:30PM today. Win or lose, believe in this Cavaliers team and think positively. Besides, as Rick Pitino said 8 years ago: "Larry Bird is not walking through that door, fans. Kevin McHale is not walking through that door, and Robert Parish is not walking through that door. And if you expect them to walk through that door, they're going to be gray and old." Go Cavs!

Much credit has been given to the Boston Celtics this season. At 66-16 (.805 winning percentage), the Celtics put together the best record in the NBA. This was 21 games better than the Cleveland Cavaliers, who went 45-37 (.549) during the regular season. The Celtics were praised on both ends of the court, and their Big Three of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett had lived up to their hype. However, a match-up with the Cavs has proven to be somewhat overwhelming thus far for the Celtics. During the regular season, the Boston Celtics outscored their opponents 100.5 points per game to 90.3 points per game. This included 19.6 PPG from Paul Pierce, 18.8 PPG from Kevin Garnett, and 17.4 PPG from Ray Allen. Their combined average of 55.8 PPG served as 55.5% of the team's scoring. This carried into the first round of the playoffs, as Boston outscored Atlanta 99.1 PPG to 87.1 PPG. In that series, Garnett led the way with 21.0 PPG, followed by Pierce with 18.0 PPG and Allen wi

(listed in order of regular season records) Atlanta Hawks (37-45), defeated by Boston Celtics, 4-3 : The Hawks had acquired veteran point guard Mike Bibby in a midseason trade. Then, Coach Mike Woodson had survived a request from General Manager Billy Knight to have Woodson fired. Instead of Woodson watching the team from the crowd or on television, he helped lead them to the playoffs for the first time since 1999 and, in keeping his word, shaved his head to commemorate the accomplishment. After the near miss of a playoff berth, the Hawks put together a better first round than anyone would have expected. Despite losing 4 blowouts in Boston, they won all 3 games in Atlanta and forced an unexpected Game 7. Unfortunately, where they go from here is uncertain. GM Knight has announced his resignation, which goes into effect July 1st. The team has potential to grow, but they must outlast an Eastern Conference where some parity is developing. Plus, Mike Bibby is on the decline, so th

The Cavaliers let two games slip away. In Game 1, they kept the game close for most of the way and were in position to win the game. Although he did not have a wide-open look, LeBron James should have made the layup at the end of the game; Kendrick Perkins had conceded and not contested the shot. Despite the loss, the Cavaliers had proven that they can keep up with the Celtics. In Game 2, the Cavaliers seized control of the tempo early and dominated the first quarter. They continued to show the offensive abilities of Zydrunas Ilgauskas while playing decent defense. However, once the Celtics took control back, the Cavs lost their composure and never closed the gap. During the season, the Celtics went 35-6 at home; they are 6-0 at home in the playoffs. The Celtics have not lost at home since March 24th against the Philadelphia 76ers. Thus, a win or two in Boston would have been huge for Cleveland, who has been an average NBA team on the road (18-23 in the regular season; 2-3

The Cavaliers defeated the Wizards in Washington, 105-88, to clinch the first round series. Four players scored in double figures, including Wally Szczerbiak, whose 26 points included 6 3-pointers made. The team shot .494 from the field and held a remarkable 29-11 edge in assists. The Cavs may have failed to win 50 regular season games in 3 straight seasons, but they set a franchise mark by advancing past the first round of the playoffs in 3 straight seasons for the first time. They currently await the winner of the Boston Celtics-Atlanta Hawks series. For the record, Cleveland does have a little history with each potential second round opponent. The Cavaliers were the last team to eliminate Boston's former Big Three--Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish--from the playoffs, defeating them 4-3 in the 1992 Eastern Conference Semifinals (Bird retired after that season). The Game 7 victory over the Celtics came one game after facing the worst team playoff loss in history (

Game 6 is Friday night in Washington. The Cavaliers have a couple recent playoff experiences which seem to relate to what is going on right now. May 24th, 2007: In Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Detroit Pistons defeated the Cavs 79-76. Rip Hamilton apparently fouled LeBron James on a shot attempt in the closing seconds. However, no call was made. Rather than complaining, GM Danny Ferry and Coach Mike Brown led the team in proclaiming itself as a "no-excuse team". Cleveland got its revenge by taking the next four games to win the Eastern Conference Championship. May 5th, 2006: In a thrilling first round series, the Cavaliers held a 3-2 edge heading into Washington. Game 6 was an overtime thriller. Despite playing for only 14 seconds in the game, Damon Jones hit a 17-foot jumper from the corner to clinch the game and the series. Perhaps a foul could have been called at the end of Game 5 last night. Yet, the Cavaliers did not make any excuses. Tomorrow n