http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/4480 Recent articles about Daniel Gibson en-us While the national media continues to focus on the fact that Cleveland is undoubtedly going to lose LeBron James, we here in Cleveland continue to think otherwise. Maybe it is delusion. Maybe it is desperation. I don't know for sure. The fact is that nobody really knows for sure. And now, I have a new take on the whole LeBron situation. I haven't read anyone else who put this argument together, but I am sure I will hear about it in the next few days if someone already has. But before I get into my new take, just for the sake of completeness, here are the basic thoughts being tossed around already. First the camp that insists LeBron has to leave: * LeBron has to leave because he is friends with Jay-Z who owns an infinitesimal piece of the New Jersey Nets * The New Jersey Nets are moving to Brooklyn and LeBron has to go help kick off the new era of the franchise * The Nets traded Richard Jefferson, meaning they are readying themselves for LeBron * There are escalators in LeBron's Nike contract which pay him more if he is in a major market like NYC Then the other side is basically: * LeBron likes his hometown * Nobody can give LeBron a bigger NBA contract than Cleveland * LeBron reached the finals in Cleveland * Terry Pluto's brilliant argument that says you never know where the talent is going to be centered a year from now let alone two years from now * LeBron has stated that he wants to bring a parade to Cleveland because he knows we are suffering as sports fans (this interview answer is one that the national media NEVER mentions because it doesn't fit their pre-determined storyline that Cleveland doesn't deserve LeBron James) Well, I have a new take. Everyone was so quick to point out that the Richard Jefferson trade on draft night was definitely designed at getting LeBron to the Nets in two years. Well, you know which team is gearing up to have a ton of cap space when LeBron's contract year comes around? THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS As of this writing, the Cavaliers don't have a single player under contract for more than LeBron's two year deal. When next season starts the Cavs might have two players under contract for longer than LeBron and those will probably amount to somewhere in the $10-12 million dollar range COMBINED with Daniel Gibson and Delonte West. That's it. Maybe some draft picks will end up with deals that range longer than LeBron's two years remaining. Zydrunas Ilgauskas and his nearly $11 million comes off. Ben Wallace's almost $15 million comes off. In addition, LeBron's salary comes off. And guess what else. Because LeBron is such an influential guy, the market is going to be flooded with free agents. Dwyane Wade followed LeBron's lead and only signed a five year deal when he was up for his first free agent contract. Chris Bosh also followed LeBron's lead in that department. You will also remember that LeBron really did lead the charge on the 5-year deals at that time. This means that LeBron has influence. Who's to say that LeBron wouldn't be able to recruit some guys to come in and play with him in two years? Could you imagine Dwyane Wade and/or Chris Bosh playing alongside LeBron? The bottom line is that these types of situations can only occur where tons of cap space exists. As long as Cleveland doesn't screw this up and load up the roster with too much salary, the Cavs will have $40 million dropping off the cap in order to pull in top talent along with LeBron in his contract year. Think about what the Clippers just did to try and keep Elton Brand in LA. I am not guaranteeing that this will happen, but it is JUST as likely as all the presumed OBVIOUS scenarios that get bandied about by the national press when they are looking to pull the greatest sports figure in Cleveland history out of this town. Sun, 06 Jul 2008 10:25:50 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/286214 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/286214 The 2008 NBA draft should see a host of freshman get chosen in the first round, so who will it be, Derrick Rose or Michael Beasley as the first pick? But most importantly who will be that late first or second round pick that proves to be the gem of the draft? Over the years there have been many great late picks taken that had NBA executives shaking their heads. www.rawsportsblog.com Mon, 23 Jun 2008 19:16:45 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/281472 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/281472 With the NBA season in the rear view mirror, we now turn to a summer full of front office decision-making. As fans, we all have our feelings on what needs to be done to improve our Cavaliers team. Rock has laid the figurative cards on the table, but this is where we turn to you – the readers of WFNY. The premise is simple. Assume all players are restricted free agents and that they'll likely need at least a small raise from last year's salary. Do you re-sign? Or do you release? Of course, we'll leave LeBron James out of this scenario. And also, a little supporting argument always helps. Do Enjoy. ** Thanks to the overwhelming vote of sending Sasha Pavlovic on his way, all of you GMs out there seem pretty comfortable with a backcourt of Delonte West and Daniel Gibson for next season. But if we're releasing Pavlovic and Devin Brown, who does this leave off of the bench? Enter Damon Jones. While he's become more of a celebrity than a "player" on this team, is it his fault? Jones has obviously fallen out of favor with the decision-makers, evidenced by his lack of playing time during the entire post season. 2007-08 Salary: $4,172,432 2007-08 Statistics: 68 G; 19.7 Min; 6.4 Pts; 1.9 Ast; 1.1 Reb; 0.3 Stl; 41.6 FG%; 66.7 FT% (1.7 3PM) Not the prettiest numbers per dollar, eh? Perhaps there is a reason that Cleveland is Jones' ninth team in nine years? Does it bother you that Cleveland is Jones' longest tenured team - going on three years? Will I ever stop asking questions? (Answer: Nope) One thing you have to take into account is the ever-popular WDLW - What Does LeBron Want? Jones and James are obviously good friends, but at what point do you trade some level of friendship for wins? He's only making $4 million per year, so it's not like we're dumping Wally-money on him. Is that worth a back-up guard role? I know that many of us were yelling Damon's name during the postseason, as his lack of playing time was ridiculous. However, would we want his potential for another entire season, or are we ready to move on? Let's hear it in the comments. Mon, 16 Jun 2008 11:32:14 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/278479 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/278479 With the NBA season in the rear view mirror, we now turn to a summer full of front office decision-making. As fans, we all have our feelings on what needs to be done to improve our Cavaliers team. Rock has laid the figurative cards on the table, but this is where we turn to you – the readers of WFNY. The premise is simple. Assume all players are restricted free agents and that they'll likely need at least a small raise from last year's salary. Do you re-sign? Or do you release? Of course, we'll leave LeBron James out of this scenario. And also, a little supporting argument always helps. Do Enjoy. ***** Three guards up, three guards down. The Tribe has spoken regarding Delonte West, Daniel Gibson and Devin Brown. We're going to deviate from the "D's" a bit today and take on another guard in Sasha Pavlovic. Last summer, we dealt with the back-and-forth negotiations with a guy who was a restricted free agent. Restricted! There was honestly a chance that he would have rather not played at all then to play for the salary at which he was being paid. Feel free to use the same logic of thinking as we decide whether or not to bring him back for yet another year. Also feel free to realize that we paid twice as much money last season for about 60 percent of the production. 2007-08 Salary: $4,250,000 2007-08 Statistics: 51 G; 23.3 Min; 7.4 Pts; 1.6 Ast; 2.5 Reb; 0.6 Stl; 36.2 FG%; 68.8 FT% Unfortunately, the lengthy hold out that was quickly followed by a season of injuries and utter sub-par play may have left a bad taste in the mouths of most fans. Couple this with the fact that Sasha was completely worthless through most of the playoffs, allowing teams to leave him open to double-team LeBron obviously did not help his case. What you have is a guy that flashes brilliance during some stages, but then fails to appear for games at a time. To me, I see a player that fails to do anything of impact on the court aside from the ocassional score. How many games did we see where Pavlovic would have, say, 14 points, one rebound and no assists? How does that help this team? We desperately needed someone to hit open shots against the Celtics. Instead, Sasha went 4-for-14 in 55 minutes through games six and seven. He will be 25 year-old this November, so do you think there is room for growth? However, I do not want to sway your opinion one way or another. Perhaps I'm missing the boat on this - so feel free to steer me in the right direction. Tue, 10 Jun 2008 09:34:31 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/276426 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/276426 Feeling a bit too happy? Enter your salary in Cleveland.com's humiliatron and let the good times roll. Sat, 07 Jun 2008 16:07:41 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/275667 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/275667 A tour of Blog Land's offseason advice: LeBron - Fine Tuning and Further Trades - Brian Windhorst Ongoing Discussion of Post-Season To-Do list - Cavs News Supporting Cast is Sagging - Cavalier Attitude Don't Fire Mike Brown - True Hoop (Henry Abbott) Mixed Feelings (about Mike Brown) - Waiting For Next Year Sat, 07 Jun 2008 16:02:05 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/275663 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/275663 With Delonte West and Daniel Gibson already discussed, we continue with the backcourt. But while West and Gibson were logging minutes - at least until Gibson's injury - one Devin Brown was not. Thu, 29 May 2008 10:09:50 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/272073 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/272073 Who do you think would be the top free agent of the 2008 off-season to help Lebron James??? Arenas? Maggette? Artest? ******See Link****** Wed, 21 May 2008 11:24:47 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/269348 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/269348 Game 6 will have to be played by the Cavaliers without the services of shooter Daniel Gibson, after he separated his shoulder in Game 5. This means there will be even more pressure on LeBron James to step up and carry the team, unless someone else discovers an offensive groove. I'm going with the Celtics on the road tonight, it's about time they get a road victory. Your thoughts? Fri, 16 May 2008 13:56:48 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/267699 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/267699 Injuries and their impacts on the 2008 Playoff landscape. Fri, 16 May 2008 13:18:22 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/267684 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/267684 This question has been brought up several times recently: Will Zydrunas Ilgauskas have his jersey retired when his career is over? I've always thought the question was interesting and worth looking into a little deeper. Wed, 14 May 2008 15:50:35 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266967 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266967 The Cavs even up the series with a huge win at home. WFNY has the thoughts behind the numbers. Tue, 13 May 2008 11:15:55 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266442 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266442 Shame on you if you left the Cleveland Cavaliers for dead after the first two games against the Boston Celtics. LBJ and company completely ripped the momentum away from the C's in Games 3 and 4 in Cleveland, and thanks to 1) perimeter shooting, 2) a solid defensive gameplan, and 3) limited turnovers, the Cavs are going back to Beantown locked up at 2. Tue, 13 May 2008 10:47:21 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266433 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266433 Chris Paul & Tyson Chandler are the best at it. But all the quick young point guards are initiating it. The play's a bit like a soccer penalty kick with the defensive big as the goalee. It needs to be handled similarly to the high pick, where the defensive big normally glues on to the point guard, cutting off his passing lanes. Down low, like a goalee the big needs to guess the point's spin off the pick and pounce. 'Cause otherwise it's sure to end badly. Kevin Garnett's the only one who D's this well. But. . .Daniel Gibson last night took his pick and went straight out to the foul line- didnt matter what the Big Ticket did. . . Tue, 13 May 2008 08:19:49 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266365 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266365 Good perimeter shooting? Check. Solid defensive gameplan? Check. Limited turnovers? Check. The Cavs did all the right things in Game 3 that they didn't do in the first two games at Boston. The result was a 108-84 blowout win that made it a series again. But it's going to have to continue if the Cavs hope to win the series altogether... Mon, 12 May 2008 15:20:52 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266139 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266139