Published October 12, 2008 01:49 am - Any Cavaliers thinking about taking plays off regularly on the defensive end do so at their own risk.
Chris Beaven, on the NBA: No time to rest once game is on
Any Cavaliers thinking about taking plays off regularly on the defensive end do so at their own risk.
The head coach is watching, and he’s keeping a list and checking it twice.
“We don’t take plays off,” coach Mike Brown said. “... They’ll get that understanding because they’ll be sitting next to me (on the bench).”
A strong defense — as well as that guy named LeBron James — are the foundations of success for the Cavaliers.
The addition of Mo Williams and the development of other players have the Cavaliers feeling like they could be a significantly better offensive team.
They’re looking to run more, and do it smarter and more efficiently.
“Watching this team, we have the ability to score,” Brown said. “Getting stops ... that takes effort. You got to want to be able to do that. You got to want to be able to do that every possession for 24 seconds. That’s something we all have to get ingrained.”
It took the Cavaliers until the final stages of the regular season to get to that point consistently last season. Brown wants to see that focus from the start this season.
“My job is to continue to push and push and push,” he said. “I’m going to push to the point where they’ll get irritated with me.”
Motivated LeBron
The Cavaliers will open their regular season in Boston on Oct. 28 — the same night the Celtics will get their championship rings from last season.
That pregame ceremony, which James doesn’t plan to be a spectator for, provides no further motivation for James this season.
What does, though, is his belief “this is the best chance we’ve had since I’ve been here” to win a title.
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