GAME 24 | Cavs vs Hawks | Dec. 13, 2008 | 7:30 PM

[Karma]

Tonight also shown that Andy can struggled at starting center. We geot outmuscled there often. Not a huge drama though.

 

[xt04]

Agreed...

To criticize LeBron James is disgusting after all he did in this game for the Cavaliers.. He nearly lead us back to a victory on the road against all odds... Dude is a champion..

LeBron isn't immune to criticism. Hes an amazing player. The best to ever wear the wine and gold. He also heat-checks WAY too often. It doesn't negate everything hes done. He contributes to losses the same as he contributes to wins. Its not black and white.

 

[Photon]

And those switches on Joe, Bibby pushed primary defender of of him all the time and nothing happened, it was so obvious but not a single off. foul was called...:thumbdown:

 

[Gimme Some Mo]

The reason we lost was our Mike Brown IMO.

They Hawks ran one play in the 4th quarter. Mike Bibby pick n pop with Joe Johnson. They ran it literally every time and we couldn't figure out how to defend it.

Hopefully other teams don't see this and run it on us, because we looked lost.

 

[gourimoko]

Yeah I hate it when Andy hits those free throws and the ref said it missed, and I swear Delonte was 19 from 19 tonight but the refs waived the shots away.

Maybe we watched two different games, but I didn't see any of that? Hmm.. I did see 3 fouls one what, the third 4th quarter possession, calls that normally would be ignored. I mean, let's be serious here. If computers officiated the game, I highly doubt there would be an almost 2:1 disparity between Cavalier and Hawks free throws by the 4th quarter, don't you agree?

That type of influence can drive the direction of a game, dispirit a team, or invigorate an opponent. If you care to ignore those facts, that are well established by the picture of the guy I posted now serving time, then so be it.. But don't ask me to "believe" that the officiating didn't play a major role on the outcome of this game. C'mon.

 

[Photon]

The reason we lost was our Mike Brown IMO.

They Hawks ran one play in the 4th quarter. Mike Bibby pick n pop with Joe Johnson. They ran it literally every time and we couldn't figure out how to defend it.

Hopefully other teams don't see this and run it on us, because we looked lost.

Push and pop...

 

[Taki]

Yeah I hate it when Andy hits those free throws and the ref said it missed, and I swear Delonte was 19 from 19 tonight but the refs waived the shots away.

Huge exaggeration! when Donaghy was still officiating games he didn't do things to that extreme, so I would assume refs aren't idiots and are smart enough to not make it transparent if they are indeed betting on games.

 

[Mdog1]

Well i'm leaving the forum for the night after i check out a couple of things. Some might ask me why, and i'll tell you because I know that LBJ will get every ounce of criticism. Even though he had a great game. Delonte/Wally should get the brunt of criticism for this.

 

[Karma]

Loving the conspiracy theories.

 

[gourimoko]

And those switches on Joe, Bibby pushed primary defender of of him all the time and nothing happened, it was so obvious but not a single off. foul was called...:thumbdown:

No, because it's our fault... We didn't convince the refs to call fouls against the Hawks, instead of lopsided officiating against us.. Blame LeBron, or somebody.. Just not the refs, they are infallible.

 

[xt04]

There is no doubt that refs affect the momentum and pacing of games. Its very difficult for teams to get into a rhythm when whistles are blowing constantly.

With that said, great teams seem to find a way.

 

[Radar]

Lol dude. It's a loss. People can't be stopped from criticizing even after a win so what makes you think you can stop them after this heartbreaking loss? I'm going to bump the "Lebron's Perimeter Game" thread just for kicks.

im not a person that dont criticize players but sometimes they can go off limit which lebron did some errors that screwed us tonight...to tell you what,i have yet to post in that thread you was talking about

 

[camakazee]

Well, this is exactly the kind of reaction I thought would come about when we finally lost a game :chuckles:

No one lose any sleep over this. Cavs without Z and Gibson, Atlanta got a lot of calls tonight, and never underestimate the disadvantage of playing the second game of a back to back on the road. Not making excuses, but to be that close to winning a game in which the same circumstances would've meant a 30+ point loss last year is a true testament to this year's team. In fact, early last season the Cavs lost at Denver and Detroit by 22 and 35 points on the second game of back-to-backs on the road with Z and Gibson. Can't win em all.

Oh, and please check out my stats of the night. I wasn't gonna make one out of disappointment, but I managed to keep my unbiased journalism in tact

 

[wuck]

With Johnson shooting 0-5 from three tonight, I think you go under the screen, don't switch, and dare him to beat you. Then, if he hits the 3, you go over the screen, stay with him, and hope you get help if he cuts to the basket. Either way, you mix it up but try not to leave the ball in Johnson's hand guarded by a midget.

All the posts criticizing LeBron or blaming the refs are predictable but they don't address the things that the Cavs can control: defensive sets, defensive rebounding, roster moves, offensive adjustments (there were plenty after halftime), etc.

 

[Photon]

No, because it's our fault... We didn't convince the refs to call fouls against the Hawks, instead of lopsided officiating against us.. Blame LeBron, or somebody.. Just not the refs, they are infallible.

I understand that the ideal refs are non factor, but when they are they are big one. Just don't get it why people deny that.