NBA 2006-2007 Preview: King James and His Merry Men of Cavaliers

Cleveland Cavaliers
Coach: Mike Brown, 2nd Season (50-32)
General Manager: Danny Ferry
’05-’06 Record: 50-32; 2nd Central Division
Postseason: eliminated in Eastern Conference Semifinals; DET (4-3)


Projected Starting Lineup (’05-’06 Stats)

PG – Eric Snow (4.8 ppg., 2.4 rpg., 4.2 apg.)
SG – Larry Hughes (15.5 ppg., 4.5 rpg., 3.6 apg.)
SF – LeBron James (31.4 ppg., 7.0 rpg., 6.6 apg.)
PF – Drew Gooden (10.7 ppg., 8.4 rpg., 0.7 apg.)
C – Zydrunas Ilgauskas (15.6 ppg., 7.6 rpg., 1.2 apg.)


Key Additions: SG David Wesley (UFA – HOU); C Scot Pollard (IND)

Key Subtractions: SG Ronald Murray (UFA – DET)


2006 NBA Draft
Round 1 – SG Shannon Brown (25th overall), Michigan State University
Round 2 – PG Daniel Gibson (42nd overall), University of Texas; PF Ejike Ugoaja (55th overall), International (Lagos)


Positional Breakdowns

Guards
Something that the Cavaliers have needed since the arrival of LeBron James is a point guard who can run the offense and lead the break when LeBron is not handling the ball. Eric Snow isn’t really doing much of that, but he’s running the offense pretty effectively when he gets a chance to run half-court sets. Snow isn’t going to run all that much anymore, but he’s a veteran who knows how to calm an offense down and get the looks that his team needs. Snow is very adept at taking care of the ball and rarely commits big turnovers. He’ll often make the smart, decisive play instead of going for the big home run. Of course, you have to talk about his inability to hit free-throws consistently for the Cavs, something that over the course of the season will be under the microscope because of the position he plays on the team. As a point guard, you have to be able to hit your free-throws at better than a 75% clip in order to prove effectiveness. Otherwise, teams can just foul you and keep the ball out of the hands of your established players. Snow is also proven to be a solid defender and elusively quick against the better point guards in the league.