Cavs rout Raps behind LBJ’s all around excellence
Jan 21st, 2010 by Aaron Hotchner
Cleveland, 1/20/09 – First & foremost, I have never been the LeBron James fan many are. He’s the future of the League, this much is clear. He’s talented, that’s undeniable. My beef is that his immense talent has too often been utilized to torture my hometown Wizards, dashing hopes of Washington playoffs glory time & again.
That stated, the guy makes it hard to hate him. A hoops fan can expect something special nearly every time he takes the court, & Wednesday night against Toronto, King James did not disappoint. His usual shining self, James led the Cavaliers to victory as they beat the Raptor 108-100.
With 28 points, 11 assists, & 9 rebounds, James had the kind of complete game he has practically trademarked. However, with rebound number 10 slipping through his fingers with less than a minute to play, LeBron barely missed adding another triple-double to his collection. Cleveland guard Mo Williams had a banner night; hitting four of seven three’s to end with 22 points. Scoring in the game’s opening minute, Cavs center Shaquille O’Neal made history as only the fifth player in league history to score more than 28,000 in their career. Shaq took the achievement in stride, noting that ”I’ve missed like 5,000 free throws. If I had at least hit half of those, then I would be at 30,000 right now.”
Toronto’s big men gave their all, with power forward Chris Bosh shooting 56% from the field for 21 points, & center Andrea Bargnani contributing 19. Bosh, who also snared 10 rebounds was especially productive early on, leading a Raptor effort that saw 60 points coming in the first half. Cleveland, perhaps shocked by the deluge of scoring, ratcheted up their defensive pressure after the break, allowing only five points from Bosh until the final whistle. ”They did a better job of clamping down defensively,” Bosh said. ”We had a couple of mishaps down the stretch and they made us pay for it.”
The Raptors, whose strong play of late has meant only four losses in their last 14 games, were clearly disappointed in themselves. Next, they’ll trek to Milwaukee to face the Bucks, & then over the border to face the Bucks (again) on native soil. The Cavs will play 10 of the next 12 in Cleveland, so expect them to get comfortable & probably reel off some more wins.
A perspective on LeBron. Oft compared to greats like Jordan & Magic in six years of pro ball, for my money, a comparison to the “Big O” - Oscar Robertson - makes the most cents. Robertson holds the NBA’s crown for career triple-doubles (10 or more points, rebounds, & assists in a game) at 181. Robertson is also renowned for averaging a triple-double for an entire season, & this is where LeBron comes in. Currently averaging 29.6 points, 7.2 boards, 7.8 assists & entering what some consider his prime, James could theoretically do the same, adding to the 26 triple-doubles he already has & possibly unseating Robertson. Scary.
Apologies to the AP for stealing two of their quotes, if they knew about it, I’m sure they’d say it was okay.