# Most likely next round: Nets vs Cavs - thouoghts?



## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

While according to future we're the "Rodney Dangerfield" of the NBA, I still think we'd have to be the favorites in this series. While adding Jefferson makes the Nets record unlikely to be a true indicator of the Nets talents, the Cavs should have huge edge inside with Z, Gooden, AV versus Moore,Collins, and Boone.

In the backcourt, VC should have a good series against us but we have 4 guys to throw at him btw Lebron, Snow, Hughes, and Sasha. With Kidd I actually think Hughes and his length should be able to hinder Kidd enough to neutralize there big edge at PG. 

It will be a tough series but I like our chances


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## remy23 (Aug 15, 2002)

I would like Cleveland to sweep Washington to have a little extra time to prepare for the 2nd round. Big Z has played well against the Wizards but will he be effective in a fast-paced game against Jersey?


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## Larry Hughes for Retirement (Jul 5, 2004)

The way Sasha has played vs Washington do you think its a possibility that Mike Brown will start Eric Snow to guard VC. Because if Sasha starts whom ever he guards will attack attack attack and Sasha will have 3 fouls before we know it.

Being on that subject, whom would Sasha guard, Jefferson? That would make Lebron work both on offense and defense while trying to defend Vince. 

I like our advantage down low, but I almost think that Kidd-Jefferson > Hughes-Sasha and Lebron > Vince is a push. I really think they have a huge advantage at PG/SG if Sasha continues his foolish play.

That being said, we take the series in 6 games.


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

Sasha's going to need to wakeup here or we'll be in trouble. We need another offensive thread other our "big 3" to really push ahead of the Nets.
Otherwise we're going to have to hope Gibson can produce


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## Larry Hughes for Retirement (Jul 5, 2004)

Pioneer10 said:


> Sasha's going to need to wakeup here or we'll be in trouble. We need another offensive thread other our "big 3" to really push ahead of the Nets.
> Otherwise we're going to have to hope *Gibson* can produce


As much as he played in this round, and played well at times. I can see him playing less and less as we go further into the playoffs. You know Brown will play Snow over Gibson to defense Carder/Kidd. And you know if we play the Bulls/Pistons Gibson's "rookieness" will have him on the bench in favor of Snow's "oldness".


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## Brandname (May 24, 2006)

There are a lot of Nets fans out there that think it won't be a very hard series for them. They're calling Nets in 5 or 6. Hopefully their team feels the same way.

I can't label all Nets fans though. There are a lot of them here, so the really arrogant ones tend to stand out more than the reasonable ones. I feel like this will be a very hard-fought, close series.


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## arhie (Jul 4, 2006)

It depends on VC and Gooden. If Vince has a great series AND Gooden has a bad series, nets in 4 or 5. If its a combination of both nets in 5 or 6. If its neither then it will go to 7 games either way.


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

I'm not so sure how the Nets fans feel so confident when our frontcourt is so much better then there's. All 4 of our regulars (lebron, av, gooden, Z) would be starters on the Nets.

If the Nets win it definitely won't be in 5 IMO.


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## Aurelino (Jul 25, 2003)

cleveland is much improved defensively this year and they excel on the offensive glass. Those two things coupled with their frontcourt depth should be enough to counter the Nets' backcourt strength and experience. It won't be an easy series either way.


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## Brandname (May 24, 2006)

arhie said:


> It depends on VC and Gooden. If Vince has a great series AND Gooden has a bad series, nets in 4 or 5. If its a combination of both nets in 5 or 6. If its neither then it will go to 7 games either way.


So what you're saying is if VC plays poorly and Gooden has a very good series, the Cavs have a chance to eek it out in 7?


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## hendrix2430 (Mar 21, 2005)

arhie said:


> It depends on VC and Gooden. If Vince has a great series AND Gooden has a bad series, nets in 4 or 5. If its a combination of both nets in 5 or 6. If its neither then it will go to 7 games either way.


Wow, interesting comment from a (IMO) way overconfident fan. This will be a hard fought series, which goes at least 6 games in my mind. If one team were to win in less, I would put my money on the cavs, certainly not the nets...


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## Benedict_Boozer (Jul 16, 2004)

I think it really depends on Lebron. If he comes out looking to dominate the low block, I don't think the Nets have a matchup for him. 

We really need to win game 1, that's the danger game I see since we'd have so much time off and came off a relatively easy series. To pull the series out I think we'd need all the home games.


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## Brandname (May 24, 2006)

Benedict_Boozer said:


> I think it really depends on Lebron. If he comes out looking to dominate the low block, I don't think the Nets have a matchup for him.
> 
> We really need to win game 1, that's the danger game I see since we'd have so much time off and came off a relatively easy series. To pull the series out I think we'd need all the home games.


I completely agree with this. We're going to hear all week that Lebron's teammates are going to decide the game, but I don't see it the same way.

Lebron sets the tone for the game. If he comes out and busts his ***, his teammates aren't going to hang him out to dry. It's going to depend completely on his attitude for this series, and I hope he comes out with guns blazing. This will be a very tough series.


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## Larry Hughes for Retirement (Jul 5, 2004)

The Nets just used a lot of energy with their second half comeback which ended just a bit short. This helps, we are still resting while the Nets could not close out and extend their series. 

The Nets looked very slow, maybe we can take advantage of this, Mikki and Nocbar (sp?) had about the only energy burst out there.


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

Rest maybe the key in just making sure Lebron is healthy with the ankle, etc plus getting extra energy from the long season.


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

> Toronto -- So I busted tail up here to T.O. after the Cavs took care of business in the lower 48 to watch what I thought was going to be a closeout game last night between the Raptors and Nets. Turned out the Raps weren't quite yet ready to go, and they barely held off the Nets. That actually helps the Cavs in the short run, now whomever they play will probably have just one day to travel and get some sort of preparation for the Cavs. If the Nets win Friday it will probably be a Sunday afternoon game in Cleveland, which means Jersey won't even get a shootaround in Cleveland to get comfortable.
> I spent some time talking with Nets and Raptors players before the game. After watching, I am supremely confident the Nets will end up closing this out sooner or later. Although I didn't directly bring up the Cavs with the Nets, that is frowned upon at this point, I asked some leading questions. Basically, the Nets feel like they can beat about anyone right now and they may not be wrong on that point. *They certainly underachieved this season, but when the Vince Carter, Richard Jefferson and Jason Kidd all decided to play they have been one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. In fact, after watching Miami's display in the playoffs, they are probably in fairness the fourth best team*. But they are all a little dejected they didn't finish the job last night.
> * Watching the game Tuesday and the other games in this series, I believe the biggest challenge the Cavs will have is keeping out the penetrators on defense. If the Nets prevail, Larry Hughes is going to have his hands full with Jason Kidd, who is playing great. It's very bad news for Sasha Pavlovic, who may not get a whole lot of playing time unless he picks his offense up and fast. He couldn't stay out of foul trouble defending DeShawn Stevenson, now he'll get Vince Carter. In fact, what I think you'll see a lot is Eric Snow guarding Carter and Kidd, switching off with Hughes on those assignments. Also, Daniel Gibson may get some more minutes in this series after he showed good poise against the Wizards.*
> * However, the Nets face the same problem as the Wizards, their interior defense is not big, deep or very strong. If Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Drew Gooden continue playing the way they have, it will be very difficult for the Nets to control the Cavs at the other end. Also, as LeBron James showed the last time these teams played on April 10 (the start of the Cavs' eight-game win streak) they have no answer to defending him when he gets low post position. Jefferson virtually waved a white flag that night. We'll see if LeBron takes heed, I'm sure the coaching staff will remind him. *
> Much more on all this later. One parting story, I spoke with former Cav Luke Jackson who has found a home in Toronto. He is already signed for next season after playing well down the stretch. He's also played well in limited playoff minutes. Jackson said he likes Toronto, especially unassuming star Chris Bosh, who treated the entire team to $5,000 Tag Heuer watches when they made the playoffs. So Before the game we are talking courtside and the Nets Cliff Robinson comes out to take pregame shooting. Jackson, a Trail Blazer fan as a kid growing up in Oregon, smiles at me and says: "I swear, I was the biggest Cliff Robinson fan when I was a kid. I used to pretend to be him when I played. I had a cup from Dairy Queen with his picture on it and I used to drink out of it every day."


http://blogs.ohio.com/cavaliers_blog/

Sasha better play good: I can't handle a lot of Snow


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

> *TORONTO - *It turns out the Cavaliers will have to wait a little while before being assigned a new opponent, which is exactly the way they want it.
> The Toronto Raptors staved off elimination Tuesday night at the Air Canada Centre on pure emotion and a little late luck to beat the New Jersey Nets 98-96.
> Bostjan Nachbar's potential series-clinching 3-pointer bounced off the rim at the final horn, reducing the No. 6-seed Nets' first-round playoff series lead to 3-2 and forcing a Game 6 Friday in New Jersey. It also guaranteed the Cavs an extra advantage in the coming days.
> The Cavs relaxed at home Tuesday with an off day after completing a sweep of the Washington Wizards on Monday night. New Jersey's failure to end the series swings the schedule significantly into the Cavs' favor.
> ...


More at:
http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/sports/basketball/nba/cleveland_cavaliers/17166235.htm

Whoever wins that series, we need to take game1 and hopefully decisively. We'll have the advantage of rest, scouting, and homecourt


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## Benedict_Boozer (Jul 16, 2004)

I hope we don't see huge minutes for Snow. I don't see him really stopping Vince one way or the other. Carter against us hits alot of deep J's, he hasn't really burned us with a ton of penetration. 

Sasha should be able to check him in theory, he does a nice job on Kobe Bryant who uses similar moves. If he can stay out of foul trouble that is..


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## SamTheMan67 (Jan 4, 2004)

LOL @ nets fans in 5 or 6? LOl they must be talking about the cavs beating them. Honestly I would be suprised if we didnt take this in 5 MAYBE 6


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## John (Jun 9, 2002)

Brandname said:


> There are a lot of Nets fans out there that think it won't be a very hard series for them. They're calling Nets in 5 or 6. Hopefully their team feels the same way.
> 
> I can't label all Nets fans though. There are a lot of them here, so the really arrogant ones tend to stand out more than the reasonable ones. I feel like this will be a very hard-fought, close series.


Nothing against the Cavs but James will not go any further than second round. Just personal hate.


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## Brandname (May 24, 2006)

John said:


> Nothing against the Cavs but James will not go any further than second round. Just personal hate.


lol


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## UrFavTeamSux (Jan 17, 2007)

John, did LeBron kill a family member or something? Why the hate?


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## futuristxen (Jun 26, 2003)

Should we start a thread on the Raptors? If the Nets don't close them out in Game 6, I think the Raptors will win Game 7 on their home floor.

Either way, if the Nets are having problems with the Raptors, they're going to be in for a lot of trouble when they play us. We just have to dominate the paint on both ends. Which with our team we should be able to do. Really against either the Nets or Raptors. I think both present the same problems to differing degrees.


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## Benedict_Boozer (Jul 16, 2004)

Wow Nets/Raps series going down to the wire, looks like the Nets pull away and will be in CLE on Sunday.

Coming off a competitive series like that I think the Nets will be sharper early in Game 1. Brown needs to manage timeouts and make sure the team is as sharp as possible...can't drop any home games


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

The key to this series will be Jefferson. If it's just a slightly better version then what we saw last game against the Cavs, I don't think the Nets have a chance. Lebron destroyed him to the point where it looked like he just gave up. Now if he's back to the RJ of previous years it will be real interesting as Jefferson is a very good defender as well as finisher who has great chemistry with Kidd after all these years.


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## UrFavTeamSux (Jan 17, 2007)

Sharper, but more exhausted. If Lebron is as professional as I (hope) think he is going to be, then I think we'll definitely have the upper hand on sunday.


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

> Finally it is known for sure the Cavs will get the New Jersey Nets in the second round. Although Game 6 tonight was much tighter than I thought. The Raptors died hard.
> Here are the game times:
> <tt>
> </tt>Game 1 - Sunday, NJ at Cavs, 1 p.m., ABC<tt>
> ...


http://blogs.ohio.com/cavaliers_blog/2007/05/scouting_the_ne.html


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## chubibo (Aug 6, 2006)

it should be a close series. as a nets fan, i'm worried about AV cause he takes a lot of charges so the dribble penetration will be lessened. cavs bigs are rebounding freaks, i hope that Collins will be able to match up with big Z and IMO nets will have a hard time against Gooden (offensively) and obviously LBJ


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## ViNNNsanity (Jul 25, 2005)

Alot of Cavs fans are downplaying the Nets front, but is anyone of the Cavs frontcourt better than Chris Bosh? Gooden maybe stronger then Chris, but he has less skills and less speed, yet Collins and Moore completely took him out of the series. Collins is also very strong, so I don't expect either Gooden or Z to bully him in the paint. I also see Z as a finesse big, rather then a power 5, so I see Moore having a good chance of sticking on him due to his atheleticism. Z has the upper hand against Moore on the offensive matchup, but he won't play major minutes having to run with the Net's uptempo game.

I also hear Snow or Sasha on Vince? Don't let this regular season fool you, Nets had lots of troubles but they have clicked again. You have yet to see "playoff Vince" and he still drops big games in the regular season.

Any Kidd matchup, he will dominate.

RJ and Lebron. Lebron is the only reason Nets fans should be worried. I've seen many Cavs games where Hughes tried to play big games for Lebron, and he dissapointed. I'm not worried about his, unless Lebron gets him going. There is no one on the Nets that can stop him. Our only hope is to make him work, which the Nets will, and which is the reason why I believe we have a good chance against your team.

If Lebron doesnt get going, there is no way to the Cavs can play uptempo with Kidd, Rj, and VC. You're only hope is getting the rebound, in which you guys have great rebounding...but if the Big 3 and Moore work on them, and get you guys in foul trouble, which they shouldn't have any problem doing...your team, including Lebron, is going to get ran out of the building. Do you think Lebron will have enough energy to play a FULL 5-6 games, trying to win a scoring game between and the Big 3, while having to chase the Nets on the break? If he somehow succeeds, and gets others to setup up...then congratulations, and good luck trying to run with Detroit/Chicago.


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## elsaic15 (May 24, 2006)

Brandname said:


> So what you're saying is if VC plays poorly and Gooden has a very good series, the Cavs have a chance to eek it out in 7?


haha dont listen to him. im the most hardcore nets fan i know and i scoff at most of his posts most of the time. i think this is going to be a very tough series, and i could see either team winning, but cavs are def the favorites. i do think if vc can match lebrons production, which he may do - check out their career head to head stats/wins - vc more than holds his own against bron, seems to get up for him. we have a chance to win.


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

Bosh is better then any single frontcourt player for the Cavs but after Bosh the Raptors were weak. We have 3 very good PF/C's in Z/Gooden/AV. Each of whom would start on the Nets


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## elsaic15 (May 24, 2006)

only because we lost krstic for the year


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

elsaic15 said:


> only because we lost krstic for the year


and??? Kristic isn't playing so I'm not sure how that is important at all in terms of who will win this series


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## Astral (Apr 23, 2007)

Pioneer10 said:


> Bosh is better then any single frontcourt player for the Cavs but after Bosh the Raptors were weak. We have 3 very good PF/C's in Z/Gooden/AV. *Each of whom would start on the Nets*


I'm pretty sure this is what he was responding to.


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## osman (Jul 29, 2003)

Brandname said:


> I completely agree with this. We're going to hear all week that Lebron's teammates are going to decide the game, but I don't see it the same way.
> 
> Lebron sets the tone for the game. If he comes out and busts his ***, his teammates aren't going to hang him out to dry. It's going to depend completely on his attitude for this series, and I hope he comes out with guns blazing. This will be a very tough series.


I think it will come down to Lebrons teammates. Lebron is going to get double and trible teammed. Its going to be up to the rest of the team to hit open shots he creates.


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## MarionBarberThe4th (Jul 7, 2005)

I'm not so sure how the Nets fans feel so confident when our frontcourt is so much better then there's. All 4 of our regulars (lebron, av, gooden, Z) would be starters on the Nets.

If the Nets win it definitely won't be in 5 IMO.



Nah. RJ is better than Gooden and AV. Z is really not the same, Collins is a joke offensively, but hes an excellent post defender

If you were going to make a team with a combo of both rosters it would be

Kidd,VC,Lebron,RJ,Krstic




Agreed




With Hughes, Nachbar, Gooden, Moore, AV, and Boone coming off the bench


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

Kristic is more of a PF then C. Z's the only true center on either team so he would be the starter if the teams combined and neither RJ or Lebron are PF's so RJ would come off the bench

And bringing Kristic still doesn't make sense as this entire thread is about this upcoming series. We're not talking preseason roster here.


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## Astral (Apr 23, 2007)

Pioneer10 said:


> Kristic is more of a PF then C. Z's the only true center on either team so he would be the starter if the teams combined and neither RJ or Lebron are PF's so RJ would come off the bench
> 
> And bringing Kristic still doesn't make sense as this entire thread is about this upcoming series. We're not talking preseason roster here.


He brought up Krstic because you said "We have 3 very good PF/C's in Z/Gooden/AV. *Each of whom would start on the Nets.*" You're automatically assuming he brought up Krstic because he was crying that we're injured. Respond to what he writes, not your presumptions.

If that still does not make sense, most Nets fans perceive Krstic's value to be greater than Z, Gooden or AV -- which means he would start in front of all 3 of those.


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

Astral said:


> He brought up Krstic because you said "We have 3 very good PF/C's in Z/Gooden/AV. *Each of whom would start on the Nets.*" You're automatically assuming he brought up Krstic because he was crying that we're injured. Respond to what he writes, not your presumptions.
> 
> If that still does not make sense, most Nets fans perceive Krstic's value to be greater than Z, Gooden or AV -- which means he would start in front of all 3 of those.


And I was clearly writing my post with regards to this series: look at the title thread. I'm not assuming Nets fans are crying, I'm confused on what my statement about this series has anything to do with Kristic. With regards to this series, Kristic may as well have been traded, cut, or whatever: he's not a factor. With the players involved currently any of the three Cavs would be starters on the Nets.


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## Astral (Apr 23, 2007)

In that case, please accept my apologies.
You totally came off the wrong way.


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## nets1 (Sep 27, 2002)

well lets talk about your starters vs our starters becasue the wait is finally over. Btw, how does your team usually react to long layoffs? I know the nets usually put up a clanker whenever they are forced not to play an nba talent. Maybe its boredom, maybe its the fact the the cavs were very lucky to play a very undermanned team in the wizards during the first round.

I wonder if the layoff will affect the teams timing? I do know that the nets will be right in playoff form come this sunday afternoon because they won't miss a beat from friday night. The time is now, the game is in Cleveland, and your team will have to show the proven, experienced nets that you are a worthy opponent. If you don't bring your A game the nets will steal one in cleveland. Good luck in this series because you will need it..

Oh yeah, go nets!!!!!


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## futuristxen (Jun 26, 2003)

The layoffs are usually good for the Cavs because they get in a lot of practice time, which they need to get their offense sharp. And plus it allows Lebron to rest and come out fully charged.

Plus you're talking about a week that Mike Brown has had to gameplan for the Nets. So I'm sure we've got some good schemes and strategys for them.

I don't really care what the Nets did to Bosh, because we don't use any of our powerforwards like the Raptors use Bosh. They are in to rebound and post up in single coverage. None of them will receive any of the attention Bosh got. But it would be nice if they did.

This is really going to be sad if it plays out how I think it will. Because I really don't think the Nets are in our league. And this series could be a lot less competitive than people think. What was interesting with the Wiz series was how Lebron really was able to rely on his teammates to do the heavy lifting. We saw a lot of good signs from Larry Hughes, Z, Dan Gibson, and Drew Gooden. 

I think our transition defense is good enough to slow down the Nets, and in the halfcourt we matchup pretty well across the board.


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## nets1 (Sep 27, 2002)

I think Richard Jefferson has not been himself lately or shall i say the last month of the season comming back from ankle surgury. Game 6 was the first time we've seen anykind of explosion from his jumping. Should he be getting near 100% he is the anti-LBJ. If he's not totally healthy LBJ will destroy him like he did in early April. That to me will be a very interesting matchup.

The major x factor for you guys i think will be Gooden and how well he plays against MIki Moore. The major x factor for the nets will be Nachbar and how well he shoots the 3. Other than that it will our big 3 going against your big 3. Good luck

OH yeah, go nets!!!!!!!!!


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## futuristxen (Jun 26, 2003)

Even a healthy Richard Jefferson can't stop Lebron James. Let's just get that out of the way.


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## MarionBarberThe4th (Jul 7, 2005)

No body is stopping Lebron James. But I think RJ 987%#resents a rare matchu(*&%# for the King, in which he is equal in strength. LEbron is used to muscling over p(*&%eople.



> Kristic is more of a PF then C. Z's the only true center on either team so he would be the starter if the teams combined and neither RJ or Lebron are PF's so RJ would come off the bench


Krstic could play both. And Id rather have RJ as the 4 than him coming off the bench.



> And bringing Kristic still doesn't make sense as this entire thread is about this upcoming series. We're not talking preseason roster here.


OK, fair enough, jsut wanted to defend my guys. Seems like theyre getting no love here.

Bad luck


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## SamTheMan67 (Jan 4, 2004)

SamTheMan67 said:


> LOL @ nets fans in 5 or 6? LOl they must be talking about the cavs beating them. Honestly I would be suprised if we didnt take this in 5 MAYBE 6


quoted shoulda said sweep!


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## Brandname (May 24, 2006)

We haven't even played a game in their building yet. They've played us tough 2 straight games at home. Remember what happened just last round to Houston?


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## SamTheMan67 (Jan 4, 2004)

We arent houston, and we've won 10 straight games


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## Kid Chocolate (Jun 17, 2005)

SamTheMan67 said:


> We arent houston, and we've won 10 straight games


And the Nets are the Arenas and Butler-less Wizards. Still a lot of basketball to be played...


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## futuristxen (Jun 26, 2003)

The thing is, we're playing about mediocre for us. I don't think we can lose this series. The rebounding and defense is so decidely in our advantage. And our transition D seems to have pretty much stopped the Nets fastbreak. Also remember Lebron has been sick the first two games. Also Hughes has kind of sucked for the first two games. 

I think the Nets are doing about as well as they can do against us. If we win Game 3 decisively, we can break their spirit.


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## Brandname (May 24, 2006)

If we win game 3, whether it's a close game or a blowout, this series is over.


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

> Brian Windhorst of Akron Beacon-Journal: "A few years back Buster Olney, now with ESPN but then of the New York Times, kept track of how many bats Yankees closer Mariano Rivera broke during a season. I thought that was super cool (in a nerdy beat writer sort of way), so every year I've been on the Cavs beat I tried to keep my own obscure stat. This year I tracked Anderson Varejao's charges taken (78 in the regular season, two so far in the playoffs) because it's not an official stat. If I were to cover the Nets, though, I think I would keep track of the amount of games when Carter goes to a limp. So far in this series it's two."


via Truehoop
:rofl:


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## Pioneer10 (Sep 30, 2004)

> • Did it really take Mike Brown five months to realize that LeBron, Hughes and Pavlovic should all be playing at the same time? Really, you think so, doctor? You think it's a good idea to play your best three perimeter guys at the same time? Anyway, it seems like they've finally settled into a groove -- especially defensively, where they get their hands on a ton of balls -- and the rest of the team is falling in place (even Ilgauskas has been decent lately). With LeBron peaking at the perfect time and making a run at the "42 Club," I have to say ... I'm not sure I'd want to play the Cavs right now. They could absolutely beat the Pistons.


http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/blog/index?name=simmons


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