Australian plays a real sport, sport!

[MajGenl.Meade]

Matthew Dellavedova (born 8 September 1990) is an Australian professional basketball player who currently plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for Saint Mary's College of California and represents Australia internationally.

...and are we glad he's playing for our team! Some great performances so far in the play-offs, with the Cavs up 2-0 against Atlanta in the eastern finals, taking the Hawks down in their own house. Twice.

[Gob]

Basketball 'aint a sport, it's a freak show.

[Lord Jim]

I've kind of lost interest in the basketball playoffs since the Wizards were eliminated....Golden State is doing well; they're up 2-0 over Houston...

[Lord Jim]

So the finals are going to be between the Cavaliers and the Warriors, (or to put it more accurately, between LeBron James and the Warriors)...

In any event it's nice to see two teams that don't generally make it facing off in the finals...

Golden State plays in Oakland, but that isn't stopping the Friscoites from embracing the team as their own. (They're supposed to be moving here to a new waterfront stadium in the next few years.)

[Long Run]

Back in the old days, they played in the Cow Palace. Guess, losing the 49ers made the powers that be decide they should try to regain the Warriors. Plus, having an anchor tenant for 50 or so events a year (typical NBA home games with preseason and playoffs) makes a stadium pencil out easier.

[Lord Jim]

Helluva game 1....

If I were a Cleveland fan, I'd have been pissed about LeBron's missed shot that could have won it for them in regulation, but the guy scored 44 points, you can't expect him to do everything....

And then this happened:

The Cavs, conversely, lost more than a series opener on the road. For the rest of a much-anticipated series that may not last long, they will play without Irving, their dynamic point guard and second-best player, who in overtime fractured a left knee that has been tendinitis-ridden all spring.

Surgery looms. Cleveland mourns.

That last sequence in regulation could be remembered as the series’ crossroads. Because the sky over Cleveland’s pro teams invariably turns cloudy, and Irving’s long-term relationship with the franchise could be fractured along with his kneecap, we may have to revisit the belief that James is fated to end the city’s 51-year championship drought.

Might it all have been different had he not settled for a step-back jumper? Might he have spared Irving the injury by saving the Cavs from overtime? Part of the deal is being left to wonder.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/06/sport ... .html?_r=0

One missed shot leads to the loss of the opening game, and the team's second best player...

Of course Cleveland sports fans must be used to this kind of luck by now...

[wesw]

the warriors are , and were, gonna run them to death either way.....

[MajGenl.Meade]

Anyone see our bench? About five of 'em... six foot plus... mostly dark complected...

[wesw]

of course we ve seen your bench..., your starters are always sitting on it because they re injured.

[Lord Jim]

In Game One...

LeBron James, 44 points...

The rest of the 12 players for the Cleveland Cavaliers combined: 56 points...

Any questions?

ETA:

It's not impossible for the Cavs to win the Championship...

If LeBron can score 100-120 points per game, they'll have a fighting chance...

[MajGenl.Meade]

All our teams enrage,
For all the men are merely players.
They have their entrances then exit;
And one fan in his time plays many parts,
re-enacted over seven times seven rages.
Last scene of all,
That ends this strange defeatist history,
Is second childishness and hope for next year,
Sans Vince, sans Commish, sans Larry, sans everything

[Lord Jim]

Aww gee...

That's touching...

I hope that Shakespearean tragedy philosophizing will bring you comfort as you suffer yet another defeat...

[MajGenl.Meade]

Cavs win! Cavs win!

Once again that Australian played a great game - what defense! Refs against us - cheating for the Warriors in overtime. But it didn't matter. What a game!

Now for three more in a row!

[MajGenl.Meade]

Curry, the reigning Most Valuable Player and one of the greatest shooters who ever played, was scoreless when matched up against Matthew Dellavedova in the half court.

"It had everything to do with Delly," James said. "He just kept a body on Steph. He made Steph work. He was spectacular, man, defensively. We needed everything from him."

[Lord Jim]

Now for three more in a row!

Gee, I hope not....

I'm not looking forward to having to dodge the crap falling from all those airborne porkers...

It was an excellent game though; these are obviously two well matched teams, to have back-to-back overtime contests...

It doesn't look like there are going to be any blowouts...

[wesw]

...just wearing them down....

warriors in seven

[Lord Jim]

I think this series could easily go seven...

Of course LeBron had an off night; he only scored 39 points...

The Cavs aren't going to win many games where he doesn't score 40 plus...

[MajGenl.Meade]

Cavs win! Cavs win! (phew).... that's the longest 29 seconds ever. We can do this thing. BELIEVE WITNESS

[Lord Jim]

Literally half of Cleveland watched Game 3 of the NBA Finals

The 2015 NBA Finals continues to be a ratings bonanza for ABC and its affiliates. Game 3 between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors earned an overnight rating of 13.7 nationally, and an incredible 49.0 rating in the Cleveland market.

The Cavaliers' 96-91 win over the Warriors on Tuesday night was the highest rated NBA game ever in Northeast Ohio, according to George Thomas of Ohio.com, and the most-watched NBA Finals Game 3 in history. The huge ratings continue a trend as fans from all over the country flock to TVs to watch LeBron James try to bring Cleveland its first championship in decades.

All three ABC broadcasts of the Finals have set records for the network, with Game 3 representing a 33 percent increase in audience size from last year's 10.3 rating. Ohio has been leading the charge, with Columbus coming in as the No. 3 market for the broadcast behind Cleveland and San Francisco, which posted a 31.6 rating. Rounding out the top five markets were Memphis and Atlanta.

The 49.0 rating in Cleveland means that 49 percent of all households with TVs in the area were turned to the game. That's an absurd number the likes of which even the Cleveland Browns rarely meet. During the 2013 NFL season, the Browns averaged a 29.0 rating. Far more people in the region watched Cavaliers-Warriors on Tuesday night.

That number also doesn't include bars or other public viewing places, so it's not unreasonable to say that roughly half of Cleveland was watching the NBA on Tuesday night. Given that fact, it should be little surprise that the broadcast set ratings records in the area. From a business perspective, the 2015 NBA Finals is looking like a major success so far.

http://www.sbnation.com/2015/6/10/87599 ... s-audience

This really puts the pressure on the Warriors in game 4; if they go down 3-1, the chances will be pretty good that the piggies will be flying...

[wesw]

it s all on LeBron s shoulders . if he can be superman enough games in a row, the cavs win. I don t think he can...