I will be giving some highlights tomorrow here... so for those who are working at least you get a taste of what is happening at the court.

i also got to work....can only watch repeat...
but sure is 10 pm?
i thought ESPN 10pm is show sportscenter??

finals start tomorrow eh? Just wanna confirm.

If I Were Coaching Cleveland...
Mike Brown has to get LeBron into some kind of scoring position. Game 1 looked a lot like what the Detroit series looked like in the first couple of games. LeBron was catching the ball without a live dribble and the defense was able to attack him. I felt like he made the adjustments in the next four games. When he caught the ball, he had a live dribble and he was able to see the defense and then attack. I felt like during Thursday night's game, Bruce Bowen really dictated his attack, really forced him into situations where he knew he had help. That is an area where LeBron needs to make an adjustment, to the point where he is being the aggressor and not letting the defense be the aggressor which happened in Game 1.

Game 2 Adjustments For The Cavs
It is a lot easier said than done to say the Cavs should increase their tempo. You would like to do that, but obviously on Thursday the Spurs shot pretty well. They were having the Cavs inbound the ball almost every time which gave them an opportunity to set their defense. The Cavs are going to have to get some defensive stops. They have to contain Tony Parker and take away his direct line. Whether it's through his passing that is leading to a dunk for Tim Duncan or his dribble penetration leading to layups, they have to shut his passing angles down and his lanes. That is going to give them more opportunities offensively if they can stop having to take the ball out almost every possession. Other than that, defensively they stayed in that game for the most part even with their offense struggling up until the middle of the third quarter. LeBron needed to break out in that game for them to be able to stay in it. The Spurs' stars performed how they should have and they sort of left LeBron looking and searching all game, as well as his teammates, for him to do some kind of breakout. They have to find a better way of getting LeBron the ball. He has to catch the ball where he can attack the defense and not come down dribbling, where he comes off the pick and roll and the defense is now attacking him.

Look For Less Hughes, More Snow
Game 1 was a feel-out game. I don't feel like the Cavs have any reason to panic, but I would definitely think about taking Hughes out of the lineup. He has them a heroic effort, but Thursday night Tony Parker got to the basket too many times and when he didn't get to the basket, Hughes was not even in front of him which allowed him to make direct passes straight to Duncan that led to dunks. I don't know if Daniel Gibson is the answer to that. His size is really not a factor to a guy like Parker. I felt like LeBron made a bit of a difference with his size and agility to be able to cut him off at the basket, but I look at a guy like Eric Snow. I think Eric Snow being a defender, a guy who knows how to defend and knows how to shut down the passing lane as well as dribble penetration, is going to be a guy that is going to play a huge role for them. Offensively he won't be able to give them what Gibson can give them, but you have to expect that LeBron is going to have a better game offensively. If Cleveland can get better defensively, it should balance it out. I felt like Thursday night, no offense and no defense equals a blowout, especially if you don't have LeBron James playing great basketball.

Defense Is The Key
Did LeBron start the game too passively for a lot of basketball observers? LeBron's play in Game 1 is the nature of who this kid is. When I watched him play, he was making the right decisions, but he is going to have to be more aggressive if Cleveland is going to win this series. On Thursday night I felt like he did a real good job of reading the defense. He made some mistakes, which is expected. This is his first time in The Finals, the ball is in his hands a lot and he is making a lot of plays for them, but he has to be more aggressive and Cleveland has to get some stops. If they get stops it gives him the opportunity to be aggressive. If you allow San Antonio to score, it is going to be very difficult for you to go down and execute your offense. They are a very good defensive team. They're not going to allow you to come down and set up. They have Bruce Bowen who is going to work LeBron and when you get into the frontcourt, they already have you down in the low teens on the shot clock which forces you to speed your offense up. Cleveland has played at their own pace, but now San Antonio is a better defensive team with a better back line with guys who are willing to step up and take charges and close the lane down. It is going to be very difficult for them to deal with that defense as well as the shot clock.

Mission Cleveland: Slow Down Duncan
Duncan is a guy that Cleveland has to have an answer for. I don't care what LeBron does on the perimeter, if they don't slow Duncan down, LeBron's percentage of shots are not going to be as good as Duncan's and he is going to be the guy that dominates the whole series. They have to figure out a way to slow that inside game of San Antonio down because if you are going to give them inside as well as dribble penetration, and you know they're going to shoot the long ball, then what are you stopping?

Foul, Foul, And Foul Some More
Cleveland has to utilize their fouls and I felt that is something that they would have done in Game 1, but I think they got a little bit back on their heels when Duncan came out and made his first three or four foul shots. He had a good rhythm at the foul line early. It seemed like Mike Brown never utilized his bigs as well as have them utilize their fouls. This guy is going to get 50, 60 touches throughout the ballgame. You can't allow him the opportunity to be able to go at guys every time that he gets the ball. There have got to be situations where they are going to have to burn fouls on him and make him go to the foul line. I didn't think they did a good job of that in Game 1.

darn....was hoping cavs to make a comeback.....

hope he would b in his form back the next game....... DOMINATING....hehe

well even if they follow pippen spurs surely find a way to counter...
their coach is not as experienced as spur's...
again spurs won...
next game i think cleveland would have won maybe...

The Washington Wizards are committed to keeping Gilbert Arenas on the team, even after the All-Star guard said he planned to opt out of his contract.

Arenas told The Washington Post and The Washington Times that he will get out of the six-year, $65 million contract he signed in 2003 and become a free agent.

"As a three-time All-Star and one of the league's best players, we understand why a player of his stature would like to be compensated accordingly," Wizards president of basketball operations Ernie Grunfeld said in a statement.

"Gilbert has made a significant impact with his exploits on the court and a sincere connection with our fans and our community because of his compassion and generosity. Gilbert has said that his intention is to remain with our organization and we are committed to having him spend his entire career as a Washington Wizard."

Arenas said his motive was strictly business.

"To me, it's just a smarter business decision to play next season, opt out and then be able to sign a long-term deal that is going to keep me in one place," Arenas, who is recovering from left knee surgery, told the Post.

"I have children now and I want to make the right decision for them," he told the Times.

Arenas said he has no plans to hire an agent.

Denver Nuggets guard J.R. Smith remained hospitalized Sunday after being thrown from his vehicle during a crash Saturday night, but his injuries aren't believed to be as serious as first thought.

"J.R. is fine. There is nothing career- or life-threatening," Nuggets spokesman Eric Sebastian said Sunday. "I did not hear anything that would suggest he is going to be out any games. He is more concerned about the other people in the accident."

Smith and a passenger, Andre Bell, 21, of East Orange, were seriously injured Saturday when the sport utility vehicle Smith was driving went through a stop sign and overturned after colliding with a car at about 5:30 p.m. in Millstone Township, state police said.

Carroll Marshall, 23, another passenger in the SUV, and Lynn Sinatra, 49, of Millstone, who was driving the car, sustained minor injuries. They were taken to CentraState Medical Center in Freehold, where they were treated and later released.

Both Smith and Bell were ejected from the vehicle, said Lt. Brian McPherson, commander of the state police's Hamilton barracks. Bell -- who sustained life-threatening head injuries -- was airlifted to Jersey Shore University Hospital in Neptune, while Smith was taken there by ambulance.

Further details on their status and their injuries were not disclosed Sunday.

Smith, 21, was a star player at Lakewood High School and St. Benedict's Prep in New Jersey before being the 18th overall pick of New Orleans in the 2004 NBA draft. He averaged 13.0 points in 63 games for Denver this past season.

obviously their defence must improve...
currently cavs are too offensive and less defensive...