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That Boston matches up much better with the Cavs than Atlanta matched up with Orlando? That last year Cleveland swept its way to the ECF only to lose in 6? That when Boston won it all in 2008 they went the full 7 games in each of their first two series, and went to 6 in the last two?
Really, it doesn't mean a whole lot at all.
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It means we're playing a team 2 years removed from a championship who still has some fight in them and the other teams drew easier matchups. I personally think this is a good thing as it will hopefully make us realize we can't just coast through the playoffs like we did the regular season.
"All I know is, as long as I led the Southeastern Conference in scoring, my grades would be fine." - Charles Barkley
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I personally think this is a good thing as it will hopefully make us realize we can't just coast through the playoffs like we did the regular season.
I agree. Also, for some reason, I'm kind of happy that Orlando has been coasting through. If they face us (hopefully) and lose game one, it may greatly damage their confidence going forward.
We might match up better against Orlando than we do Boston - as weird as that sounds.
Hopefully we can win tonight and guarantee, at the very worst, a game 7 on our home floor.
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Legend
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No hopeful about it,....I know the math says otherwise, but tonite is "must-win" in my book.
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No hopeful about it,....I know the math says otherwise, but tonite is "must-win" in my book.
Yeah this one definitely has the feel of an elimination game. Work's really going to drag on today....
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Legend
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Quote:
That Boston matches up much better with the Cavs than Atlanta matched up with Orlando? That last year Cleveland swept its way to the ECF only to lose in 6? That when Boston won it all in 2008 they went the full 7 games in each of their first two series, and went to 6 in the last two?
Really, it doesn't mean a whole lot at all.
don't forget that last year boston took orlando to 6 without kg.
this year we're facing a celtic team that is about as healthy as they have been since june '08
in the long run it doesn't mean anything, but our road has been tougher thus far than any of the teams who have already locked into the conference final, which is weird because the cavs won the top seed.
people will argue LA with utah, but utah was banged up and were never really a threat to win at staples. boston was one of the best road teams of all the contending teams.
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Utah matched Fes at the 5 against Gasol and Bynum. Enough said right there.
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Practice Squad
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So I have been busy since end of last game. Where are we.... on the ledge?....over the ledge?.... firing Brown?....watching LeBron in NYC?
Just wanna know the DT attitude.
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So I have been busy since end of last game. Where are we.... on the ledge?....over the ledge?.... firing Brown?....watching LeBron in NYC?
Just wanna know the DT attitude.
not as much as the backlash after g2.
i think most people figured it would be tough to win 2 straight games in boston.
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No hopeful about it,....I know the math says otherwise, but tonite is "must-win" in my book.
Yep.. Unfortunately, we are not as mentally strong (lack of urgency and focus in the playoffs) as many of us thought.. And that is what really bugs me about our team.. We lose tonight, and I don't think this group has the mental grit to win 2 in a row..
This group needs to believe in themselves on offense and move the ball from one side of the floor to the other.. When we make the defense work, we are good because of our variety of weapons.. Unfortunately, this team seems to panic around in-game adversity and the offense goes stale and ball stalls.. This is what really steams me when I watch the games, because LB a big part of this, and at this point in his career, he should certainly know better... I know DC and a variety of others have already touched on this..
I am VERY nervous about tonight's game.
I heart winning
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"Very,..." another understatement.  Me too,... LeBron has to come out smoking. I hope Brown lets James guard Rondo. At a minimum, not Williams. Maybe start West ? He won't do that though,...
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I am VERY nervous about tonight's game.
This game has "Level 1 - Level of Losing" potential ... I'm almost afraid to watch.
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i'm strangely confident for tonight's game. anytime this team has been kicked down a rung, they have risen to the occasion.
i don't like that they have to be kicked down to rise, but i think we take this game.
#gmstrong
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Yea, can't say I have been this nervous about a game since game 5 last year against Orlando. Let's hope the result is the same (a victory)
“It doesn't make sense to hire smart people and tell them what to do; we hire smart people so they can tell us what to do.” -Steve Jobs.
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i don't know how to feel about this game.
i feel like if the cavs show up, they win, and they do it convincingly. but they have been so wishy washy that how can you possibly predict what will happen?
i just wanna know when the bench scoring is gonna show up, when the defense is gonna show up, and when lebron is going to decide to show up every single night instead of every other night.
the way i feel about this series is that if the cavs play to their potential and the celtics play to their potential, the cavs win the game.
the blame goes everywhere. it's not just on mike brown, but he gets his share. lebron gets his share, the bench gets their share.
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I'm not nearly as nervous as some others profess to be about this game and I think I have realized why.. Because unless the Cavs can bring it consistently (unlike what we have seen in the playoffs to date) it's not going to matter. They might squeek by the Celtics in 7 or maybe even 6.. but this habit of bringing the effort now and then, every other game, whenever we feel like it, is going to get them crushed by the Magic.
I still believe they have what it takes to win it all but it's going to take a consistent sustained effort unlike what we have seen to date.
yebat' Putin
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J/C..
What scares me is a slow start tonight.. If we move the ball well and miss some open looks, and let's just say the Celtics start out hot and get an early lead.. Do we have the will to take a punch and deliver one back? Or, will we panic and forget about the game plan?
I heart winning
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if the cavs get by the celtics, you know every expert and analyst is going to pick orlando, and why not?
and maybe that is what the cavs need. they have always been at their best when the doubters doubt them. they were annointed the best team, and didn't have it, last year. they were given the same accolades this year, and haven't lived up to it. other reasons came into play both this year and last year, but maybe that will actually feed the beast.
i agree though. with the effort we have seen through 9 playoff games, they aren't beating orlando.
i just don't know what's up with lbj, he has never been this off/on. he was unreal in the series against orlando last year despite the struggles, now you can stick a ton of blame on him.
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Possibly a good omen here ... On the San Diego sports radio here, they were talking about the Lakers knocking out the Jazz three years in a row. Their Trivia question for the day was: "Name the last team to knock another team out of the playoffs three years in a row." Nobody could seem to get it (I almost placed a call myself) ... but the answer, of course, is Cavs over Wiz in 06. 07 and 08. 
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Nervous? Hell, my threat level is at Defcon 1.
Have to come out absolutely firing all guns.
SaintDawg™
Football, baseball, basketball, wine, women, walleye
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I'm actually not nervous about tonight's game. Well, maybe a standard regular season amount. Like someone said, even if they somehow get by boston it won't matter how Orlando is playing. But then again, Cleveland was playing like Orlando is during the first two rounds last year too. So maybe, it's a setup to reverse the outcome. And strangely, I'm confident about Lebron staying. And if he leaves, I quit supporting an NBA team and I'm done. Oh well. I seem to like the NHL more anyway. And with the Indians starting another losing hibernation, I'll only have to worry about the Browns.  As bad as that sounds.
![[Linked Image]](http://www.dawgtalkers.net/uploads/Punchsmack/punch.gif) “...Iguodala to Curry, back to Iguodala, up for the layup! Oh! Blocked by James! LeBron James with the rejection!”
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I sure hope so, Excl..
Good grief this day is dragging!
I heart winning
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Quote:
I'm actually not nervous about tonight's game. Well, maybe a standard regular season amount. Like someone said, even if they somehow get by boston it won't matter how Orlando is playing.
But then again, Cleveland was playing like Orlando is during the first two rounds last year too. So maybe, it's a setup to reverse the outcome.
And strangely, I'm confident about Lebron staying. And if he leaves, I quit supporting an NBA team and I'm done. Oh well. I seem to like the NHL more anyway. And with the Indians starting another losing hibernation, I'll only have to worry about the Browns. As bad as that sounds.
Another reason we need to WIN ! I do not share your confidence in the case of a loss,...
With the worst, I become a big hockey fan.
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Ya, I'm ready to either burn my Cavs jerseys or wear them with pride at a parade in June. After becoming a career man, husband, home owner, father, and now Harley rider. I just don't have the time or energy to worry about multiple professional sport franchises that only fill my life with agony. I'll accept one (maybe two). That puts them all on notice (like they care about me -  ). The Browns are easily #1. So they won't be going anywhere anytime soon. If I could go back in time, I'd tell myself to only like the sport, not teams. See, I enjoy watching the NHL a lot since I don't really have a team. We didn't have an NHL team in Cleveland as I was growing up. So I "root" or like most of the NHL teams. And it makes any result fun or painless to me. If the Blackhawks, Habs, or Sharks bomb this year I won't waste a single second worrying about it (my three teams I follow more than the other NHL teams). Yes, I know it sounds spineless to give up on a team you've been rooting for all your life. Or rooting for multiple teams in a sport you don't really have an attachment to. But, I don't care about the rules anymore. I don't like having it get to me for days/weeks/months/years about past failures. There's no pay off. I gave up the Buckeyes when I got into Toledo. I figured my university trumps my past fair-weatherness to the Buckeyes. And I saved myself a lot of crap with tons of Cooper losses to end a season. Once they won it all, I was happy for them. But I've never pretended to come back. So maybe that's the key for Cleveland teams. I'm the jinx. This whole time. 
“...Iguodala to Curry, back to Iguodala, up for the layup! Oh! Blocked by James! LeBron James with the rejection!”
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Agree,...don't have my "heart and soul" tied up in the Cavs, like the Browns (or to a degree, The Tribe,...)
This team is MUCH better than they have been playing and I refuse to make it my problem.
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This game makes me nervous because every game I've been able to watch to completion in the playoffs we have won, and when I was unable to we have lost. Tonight I'm going to have to leave for work before its over. The way the Cavs have been playing, superstitions have become just as logical as anything else to explain it. 
"All I know is, as long as I led the Southeastern Conference in scoring, my grades would be fine." - Charles Barkley
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hopefully they're up 29 when you leave  i love the cavs, i'm invested in it. but i don't get my panties in a bunch when we lose. i think it's because i still play sports and i just have that mentality that you put it behind you and worry about the next one. nothing you can do about it.
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i love the cavs, i'm invested in it. but i don't get my panties in a bunch when we lose. i think it's because i still play sports and i just have that mentality that you put it behind you and worry about the next one. nothing you can do about it.
You're right, no sense in worrying about things you have no control over.
I sure do miss the Wittman/Lucas era when we never were in position to get mad over something this time of year. 
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Well now,I just don't know about that,.... 55 minutes,....
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I sure do miss the Wittman/Lucas era when we never were in position to get mad over something this time of year.
and that's the other thing.
cleveland fans love the browns but get fed garbage, indians fans are being fed a giant plate of crap, and you're going to tell me that i should be worried, instead of enjoying this? screw that. i'm loving it. yeah, our team's not perfect, but i'm too busy having fun watching this team and watching lbj play to worry about it.
and yes, you have no control over it. you can wear your favorite hat or jersey, or switch spots on the couch, but the results are what they are.
i don't believe in jinxes, curses, or anything like that.
i believe things happen for a reason, and everytime a cleveland team does not win a championship, i just figure it's because they are making the party for when they do, that much more special. no other city will celebrate like cleveland will when it finally happens. and yes, i am absolutely sure it will in the near future.
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You're certainly correct in the implication that it will be the Cavs before it is ever The Tribe or The Browns. I'm just not going to be as vociferous. Might drink my Brady Quinn whiskey, though,....
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15-0 run... I got an idea, let's just keep 4 guys back on defense, decide before hand who we want taking the shot, then let them go play 1 vs. 5 on the offensive end. That seems to be our offensive gameplan, anyway. Pass the ball around the perimeter until late in the shot clock then play 1 vs. 5. At least with my idea, we won't have to worry about getting back on defense 
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Basketball is a game of runs, the Celtics are on one now but we just came off one and will go on another sooner or later...hopefully sooner.
"All I know is, as long as I led the Southeastern Conference in scoring, my grades would be fine." - Charles Barkley
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Speaking of our next run, seems it just started. Relax bro, no need to start dodging falling sky shards just yet
"All I know is, as long as I led the Southeastern Conference in scoring, my grades would be fine." - Charles Barkley
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This game is stressing me out. The whisky is going down way too quickly. We have blown so many chances to take a commanding lead.
Thank you for helping me through this Mr. Daniels.
“It doesn't make sense to hire smart people and tell them what to do; we hire smart people so they can tell us what to do.” -Steve Jobs.
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I wonder if Danny Ferry congratulates himself every time Andy does something like that. I was one of the people who was a little bewildered by that contract we gave him but damn has that paid off for us.
"All I know is, as long as I led the Southeastern Conference in scoring, my grades would be fine." - Charles Barkley
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I just wanna know...
Is this REALLY our offensive gameplan?
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That shot by Allen just now was just insane...I can't believe he made that
"All I know is, as long as I led the Southeastern Conference in scoring, my grades would be fine." - Charles Barkley
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That was embarassing.
I really hope Lebron James is hurt because if not he is doing one hell of a Tracy McGrady impersonation.
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our halfcourt d has not been bad. they have 50, but had a few transition buckets after horrible offensive sets + turnovers.
lebron's gotta wake up. other guys are doing alright, but every possession is going the full 24, we gotta move the ball around. i think if we can do that and get a few easier buckets, our D should get stronger.
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Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum Cavs vs. Celtics Playoffs Thread
(Part 2)
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