Scouting Report: Cleveland Cavaliers

I do not have much trepidation in calling this squad the front runners in the Eastern Conference. Although, I have not seen them play in quite some time. But, the Cleveland Cavaliers have been transformed into maybe the best team in basketball this year. Do they have the juice and the versatility to go all the way? Let's take a look. Again, screw positions, screw starting 5s. Let's look at their rotation:

1) Lebron James - F: 27 points. 7 dimes, 7 ballboards. Highest PER of all time. Shoots over 50%. Plays tenacious defense on and off the ball. Finally defends the rim like he should have his whole career. No more lousy step back three pointers with 17 seconds left on the shot clock. No insecurity about not handling the ball at the top of the key. Lebron, this season, has become maybe the most efficient basketball machine that the world has ever EVER known. Am I ready to put him with the all time greats? No, not really. He's going to need a few more of those dominating performances in the playoffs. But, has he finally realized the player he can be. Absolutely. Lebron remains the most devastating "Ace in the hole" in the league. And, if he adds a low post game and gets me 1/2 a block more per game - I may start saying, Jordan, Bird, Magic, LeBron . . .maybe.

2) The Big Z - C: There are a lot of crucial players on this Cavs team. But the Big Z is probably the most underrated of any of them. Let's think how many offensively adept centers there are in the NBA: Yao, Dwight, Shaq . . . uhh . . . uhh . . . Bueller . . .Bueller. . . I think the big Z is the fourth of that impressive quatrain. He is 14 pts and 7 boards a game on 52% shooting (8 of 16 from beyond the arc, weirdly.) And he turns the ball over less than two times a game, shoots 83% from the FT. The Big Z takes advantage of smaller centers on the offensive end, and can hunker down and defend centers on defense. Who takes his place if he's go down? The wildly one dimensional Ben Wallace.

3) Mo Williams - G: If you are noticing a common theme in these Cavs so far, it's offensive efficency. Mo Williams is no different. As a matter of fact, despite getting more open shots than in prior years he is shooting a little worse percentage from the field and beyond the arc. I attribute this to his new surroundings. His percentages have been climbing steadily up to 46% from the field and I expect it to keep rising as he even gets more acclimated. Any time you're starting point guard is shooting 96% from the free throw line and can help out Bron by delivering 4 assists a game can you really complain?

4) Anderson Varejao - F/C: Ahhh. .. Varejao. One of my favorite players in the league is everything Joakim Noah was supposed to be. He has great lateral quickness, good leaping ability, can steal the ball, get into passing lanes, and finish around the hoop. What he can't do is dribble, pass, or shoot. . . But this year, like everyone else on the team, he is staying right where he needs to be. So instead of shooting 46% like last year, he is shooting 57% from the field. Varejao really plays so close to the hoop he can be considered a center or backup center on this team. He can slide in for Big Z particularly when Big Z is getting killed by pick and rolls.

5) Delonte West - G: You know how I earlier said that Jameer Nelson was able to translate his game to the NBA almost identically? It must be something with St. Joe's because West has been able to do the same damn thing. Play next to a shoot first point guard and split the playmaking and shooting roles with him, while dishing a few assists and nailing open shots. Oh, and by the way, West is the 4th player so far for Cleveland I have mentioned that is currently shooting over 80% from the stripe.

6) Ben Wallace - F/C: Big Ben isn't so big anymore. No one parlayed defensive skill into superstardom quite like Wallace did on those frustratingly talented Pistons teams from earlier in the decade. However, he is on the perfect team now. This is a good time to talk about their defense. Mike Brown, for all his warts earlier as a head coach, was always a fantastic defensive coach, and Wallace is the sign of that. In LeBron, Andy V, and Ben Wallace you have 3 forwards over 6'8" who have no problem staying with guards on pick and rolls. That was always the most impressive thing about Big Ben - how he could stay with guards at the perimeter and come back and block someone's shot. When the Cavs want stops and they go with James, West, James, Wallace, and Varejao - it's a scary proposition for any team.

7) Boobie Gibson G: Boobie has one of the greatest names of all time. However, I have to say his game is pretty one dimensional. However, he can hit open shots, and slides in behind West or Williams and back them up with ease. He is playing a lot of minutes but not hitting too many shots this year, honestly. This is an important spot because West and James can't exactly each play 45 minutes a game, so Danny has to shape up, and, if he does nothing else, at least start hitting some shots or getting to the foul line or making a pass or getting a rebound . . or. . .or . . . this could be a an upgrade spot. . . I have never had much confidence in Boobie.

8) Wally Sczerbiak - G/F: Isn't it nuts that Wally's world was an all star at one point in his career, and now he is battling Sasha Pavlovic to be the second perimeter backup? Wally is having a truly dreadful year. The ability he once had to use his superior size to get himself mid range looks have gone bye-bye entirely. And, for some reason he is shooting under 35% from beyond the arc. . . I don't know what he is adding to the team. But, the other option is Sasha Pavlovic. . .

Outlook: The Cavs have been the best team in the league this season. They have been gliding to big wins over everybody - and they haven't even really figured out each other as teammates. Mo Williams can play better. Lebron could up his production, even if he can't really play any better. How could you add to this team? Well, they desperately need a perimeter bench player they can rely on to back up West, James, and Williams. Pavlovic, Wally, and Boobie can't give them much of anything except for shot making. But when what you "desperately need" is a new seventh man, you are in pretty good shape. Another underrated part of this team: every guy other than Williams has been in a big series against a top opponent in the postseason; and they should have beat the world champs last year if Rondo hadn't freaked out in that playoff game.

The Question: I mentioned to a friend a couple of weeks ago how Tony Romo never really seems in agony over a loss. He acts very sober, but you can just tell he is a moment from breaking out in a smile. On the other hand, after Peyton and the Colts lost to the Chargers this past weekend, Peyton could hardly even answer the questions in his press conference. I got the very real feeling that Peyton would be reeling from this loss for a couple of weeks. And you know what? I think that is often what separates the great players from the champions. King James has it all. He has every skill set a player could want on the front line for a team. The lone question is, is he as hyper competitive as the Duncans, Wades, Jordans, Olajuwons, Birds? That press conference after game 7 of the Celts, when Lebron was not in any anguish really really worried me about his future. Cleveland just lost a series it should have won - a series where they outplayed Boston - and Lebron talked about how it was a great and historic game. Lebron has taken the first step by becoming manic on defense. The next step is to really, really want it as badly as Isiah, Mike, Magic, and Julius wanted it. If he does, they'll be champions.