Oh, come on Jon... are you really trying to make this into a tribute. You must've been flamed, burned, charcoaled, and broiled in the other thread pretty badly.
To be honest, I saw what was happening. I first wanted to make sure he was on the bench and not out for some reason. I saw him sitting from a far distance and I was confused as to why he wasn't getting any burn. Couldn't believe it, but was more flabbergasted and stunned, but it didn't hit me until later.
Z's just one of those guys that really outdid himself as a Cav.
I would agree that our history is somewhat limited, considering there's no championships (which the Bucks and the Heat both claim despite their equally weak franchises), there wasn't any clear cut star before LeBron, doesn't have a good set of hall of famers that played their prime years in Cleveland, and doesn't have any players who had longevity with the franchise.
But that's what makes it decent. Z's finally breaking that mold, if only a little. Without a true hall of fame talent like LeBron, Z would've faded into nothingness. But instead built on success. While he isn't the greatest center by name (Nate Thurmond and Shaq) nor the greatest to ever don the Cavs uniform (Brad Daugherty), he has built a decent career as a solid role player/second or third option into one of the more successful careers in Cavs history (10,000+ points which could probably pass Brad before the year's end, 5,500+ rebounds, 1,200+ blocks with both being held records, many personal fouls which shows his effort to play D, and of course pure lengthy amount of games in both regular season [724+] and playoffs [60+]).
He would be the second best center in pure Cavs career, but one of the few "Ironmen" in the (un)healthy time of the Cavs. And considering his injuries that derailed 1996 AND 2000, along with many missing games from side years, HOW THE HELL DID HE DO IT?!
Still, that's not to take away from what made him so successful.
- He wasn't a pure finisher with explosive dunks, but managed to finish just enough around the rim in early years and just before 2006 ended.
- He wasn't a pure power poster, but his post game was with finesse, spin arounds, fade aways, and left blocks. Somehow, he still attracted double teams in his best years.
- His foot speed lost a lot of ground after 2006, but he was a capable big man defensively, offensively, and in tip drills. He proved to have the play of a point guard when it called for it but the lightfootedness to contest shots properly.
- He was one of few players that could hold ground with Shaq and Yao in at least one game. He also proved to be a strong force against his idol Arvydas Sabonis (who he models everything after, even the hometown he came from and size and all), Hakeem (I think), Patrick Ewing, Tim Duncan, David Robinson, Chris Kaman (who he naturally owned in games), Andrew Bogut, and even played one decent game against Dwight Howard.
- And of course, he didn't mess around. If someone was screwing around with him or his teammates, he'd bite back. I think Greg Ostertag learned that most of all. Question is: Was it a cat fight or a real battle between 7 foot 2/3 big men? And many times has defended teammates. The only one time that was despicable was when Rasheed Wallace elbowed him. That was lousy because he still was having a decent game but nobody defended him. Z retaliated when the next time came, but it was half hearted. I still feel sad about it. And Rasheed is still a douche...
- Last but certainly not least: A community man. He loves Cleveland, given back to it many times, and found love and happiness there. That is what matters most, which is why he'll retire a happy Cavalier, number 11 to the rafters, and hopefully be repaid in some way (if not a championship).
There's so many reasons to give your heart to this guy. History is not as proud here as in OTHER places, but he was a foundation for what it means. Because no Cavs had really played 500+ games except for a half dozen, it shows what it takes to stay in a restless city with a restless/NIGHTMARISH team for so long in such difficult times.
Still, we're happy for you Z. We hope that this game doesn't end up being lousy moment for you because of Potato Head... It shouldn't and you'll persevere. You always have, Big Z.
Go get 'em, for Kaunas, Lithuania. For Cleveland, OH. For You.
Peace out.
) and congrats!
