CAVS.SPACE

The 2010-2011 Cleveland Cavaliers did a number of things in winning their season opener. They defeated the Boston Celtics, who had knocked the Cavs out of the playoffs last year. The Cavs also won at home, where they last lost by 32 points to the Celtics in the foreshadowing Game 5 playoff loss. They won tonight with a new Head Coach--Byron Scott. And, they did it without superstar LeBron James. The victory tonight was very refreshing. Coach Scott showed the poise of an experienced coach, and he did not shy away from making frequent calculated substitutions during the closing minutes of the game. He played the lineups that he felt gave the Cavs the best chance to win, with former All-Star forward Antawn Jamison accepting a role as a bench player. He did not give up on his players; Daniel Gibson, for one, kept shooting confidently, and the shots eventually fell for him. The way the Cavs played tonight was reminiscent of the Cavs squads under former Head Coach Lenny Wilkens. The offense ...

In accordance with the release of the new NBA 2K11 basketball video game, legendary Chicago Bulls shooting guard Michael Jordan has returned to the media's spotlight. That is, Michael Jordan has caught the sports world's attention by saying that today's NBA rules would have allowed him to score 100 points in a game. No one is questioning Michael Jordan's uncanny ability to make plays, create shots, and score points. Michael Jordan is right in saying that, overall, today's rules favor offensive players, particularly guards. Much less contact is allowed in defensive play; some of what was legal when Jordan played (such as forearms and handchecking) is now deemed personal foul-worthy. Furthermore, with a 30-team league, talent is spread out more than it used to be, and players--while on average are more athletic today--come into the league much less fundamentally sound. However, Michael Jordan has forgotten about the re-emergence of zone defense in the NBA. True, ...

*Originally published on Suite101.com in 2010 as a 3-part series; revisions made pertaining to Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and combining the 3 parts of the series into 1 article. Quarterbacks Bernie Kosar’s and Vinny Testaverde’s careers crossed paths in the NFL with the Cleveland Browns and Head Coach Bill Belichick.   Kosar had followed an exciting decade by quarterback Brian Sipe—the Browns’ all-time leading passer—and “The Kardiac Kids” by joining the team via unique circumstances and helping lead them to five consecutive NFL playoff appearances from 1985-1989.   Despite injuries and subpar seasons from 1990-1992, Kosar maintained the admiration and respect of teammates and fans.   Under more traditional circumstances, Belichick would take over the team as a first time Head Coach in 1991.  Meanwhile, Testaverde would join Cleveland as a veteran backup in 1993.   The unpopular rookie coach stunned the Cleveland fan base by cutting the fan-fav...