Pluto: Cleveland Cavaliers aren't in trouble

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Cleveland Cavaliers aren't in trouble, but transition -- no more so than their coach: Terry Pluto

By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer

February 22, 2010, 6:42PM

Tracy Boulian / The Plain DealerIn the first two games in which he had Antawn Jamison available, Mike Brown clearly wanted to evaluate several lineup options. But as the playoffs loom in less than two months, it's time for Brown to start utilizing a regular eight- or nine-man rotation, says Terry Pluto.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Are the Cavs in trouble?

No, they are on a three-game losing streak.

They remain a team with the NBA's best record at 43-14. They have the league's MVP in LeBron James. They have three other players who have been All-Stars within the last two years-- Antawn Jamison, Shaquille O'Neal and Mo Williams.

This is the only team that has survived the first round of the playoffs in each of the last four years.

All that's missing is a championship, and that's where Mike Brown comes in. Whenever a team makes a trade such as Zydrunas Ilgauskas to Washington for Jamison, it means the coach must adjust. Brown now needs to ask, "Who are my best players?"

A quick list of eight would be: James, O'Neal, Jamison, Mo Williams, Anderson Varejao, Delonte West, J.J. Hickson and Anthony Parker.

Why eight? Because that's the usual playoff rotation.

You can play more guys in certain games, with Daniel Gibson, Jamario Moon or Jawad Williams given court time. Or perhaps, one of those players takes Hickson's spot in the top eight.

But Brown can't play 10 players at least 10 minutes in a big game, as he did in Sunday's 101-95 loss to Orlando. Too many guys played, and some didn't have enough time to get comfortable on the court.

If Ilgauskas returns in a month, then he moves into the top eight -- and Hickson is probably out. If Leon Powe proves healthy and better than someone else in the top eight, then a spot must be created for him with another player losing minutes.

Brown knows this, but has to realize that even though players such as Jawad Williams and Gibson performed well when the team was without guards Mo Williams and West -- they now have to sit.

Brown must find a way to quickly blend Williams back into the offense. In the three games since returning from a left shoulder injury, he is 7-of-24 shooting. The shoulder may be part of the reason, but he seems a bit lost in how he fits on the court.

At one point Sunday, Williams and Jamison pulled off a terrific pick-and-roll play. And then never did it again.

You get the point -- decide what works and stick with it. Williams and Jamison are ideal choices to produce points when James rests on the bench. Williams is a major part of the offense, and must be treated as such.

For the Cavs, it is a different game with the addition of Jamison.

Before the 20-point scorer from Washington arrived, the Cavs ran zero plays for the power forward. That must change, because Jamison is a major offensive weapon who can help James carry some of the burden. When Jamison started the second half and was delivered the ball, he responded with 15 points on 7-of-9 shooting in Orlando.

When Varejao comes off the bench to play center against a taller player such as Dwight Howard, the Cavs must double-team on defense. They can't expect the 6-11 Varejao to always defend center alone, as usually was the case with the 7-3 Ilgauskas.

Mid-season trades can be disruptive in the short term. The Cavs lost 11 of 14 games in 1988 after pulling a true blockbuster that brought Larry Nance and Mike Sanders to town with Mark West, Tyrone Corbin and Kevin Johnson sent to Phoenix.

The plan was for the Cavs to start Nance at small forward, with John Williams as the power forward and Brad Daugherty at center. Coach Lenny Wilkens discovered Nance was better suited for power forward, with Sanders starting at small forward -- and Williams being the Varejao-type sixth man coming off the bench.

That Cavs team finished the season winning 11 of 13.

This trade was not as big as that 1988 deal, so the period of adjustment should be shorter. For that to happen, the coaching staff must not be afraid to make some tough decisions, and if necessary, hurt a few feelings by keeping some players on the bench.

http://www.cleveland.com/pluto/blog/index.ssf/2010/02/cleveland_cavaliers_arent_in_t.html