Tomorrow night, the Cavaliers open the season on the court where their postseason ended last spring. This year is critical for the direction of the franchise. Here are some observations going into the 2008-2009 campaign:
- Offensive adjustments: Contrary to what many of the analysts keep saying, the Cavaliers do not need outside shooting first and foremost. Rather, they need to play to their strengths on offense, regardless of who is on the roster and in the game. The LeBron James drive-and-kick-out offense has only made the Cavs passive, predictable, and easy to guard. To make matters worse, the team had filled the roster with offensively one-dimensional players (mostly jumpshooters to try to address the perimeter concerns). Much talk has surrounded the outside shooting of Mo Williams. Yet, Williams brings much more, including the ability to drive, playmake, and score. The ability of the Cavaliers to play a good all-around game on offense should take them far this year.
- Z's value: Most people know that LeBron James can become a free agent after the 2009-2010 season (if he does not exercise his player option for 2010-2011). While there is no known contingency plan if James leaves, there is also no known future plan regarding the center position. Zydrunas Ilgauskas can become a free agent after this season if he decides to opt out of his contract. Even if he does not, he would be scheduled to be a free agent in 2010 as well. Furthermore, Z may be nearing the end of his prime--he may have anywhere from 1 to 7 good years still in him. The Cavaliers' window of opportunity relates to Ilgauskas almost as much as it does to James.
- Youth: The Cavaliers lost some of their youth when they traded Drew Gooden, Shannon Brown, and Cedric Simmons (among others) last season for veterans Ben Wallace, Joe Smith, and Wally Szczerbiak. The Cavaliers did themselves a favor by trading for Mo Williams, Darnell Jackson, and Sasha Kaun (who is playing overseas this year), drafting J.J. Hickson, and signing Tarence Kinsey. Now, these players can join Daniel Gibson, Delonte West, Anderson Varejao, and Sasha Pavlovic in providing some energy, potential, and options down the road.
- A guard's game: The team now has a collection of combo guards that can run the point as well as some swingmen to join them. The Cavaliers can benefit from the increased ballhandling ability and hopefully better free-throw shooting of a guard-laden roster. Despite the size mismatches, Delonte West can handle the shooting guard position on both sides of the court. In fact, he and Gibson could have career years this season.
- Tough area: in the post: In losing Drew Gooden and now Joe Smith via trades, the Cavaliers are putting a lot of pressure on Z, Varejao, and Big Ben to handle the middle. Thankfully, they have added Lorenzen Wright, who should be a decent fit. If Hickson or Jackson can be like Gibson and get going during his respective rookie season, Cleveland could make another leap into the NBA Finals.
- Roster balance: With all of the talented players on this year's roster, Mike Brown and the rest of the coaching staff need to keep the team sharp, fresh, and content. Damon Jones could have very well been like Steve Kerr, but the inconsistent minutes destroyed his interest in playing for the franchise. As past Cavs coaches like Lenny Wilkens and Mike Fratello understood, deep benches especially come in handy in back-to-back games.
- Winning without their best stuff: In basketball (as well as others sports and in life), the best players and teams succeed when they can win without their best stuff. Two years ago, the Cavs rode a strong defense and a streaky offense into the NBA Finals. Last year, they reverted in that they won big when they played well but lost badly when they did not have their best stuff (aside from the close Game 7 loss to Boston). When the Cavs can again prove they can win games when they struggle, they should regain a stronger stake in the Eastern Conference.