A Renewed Franchise
Before Lebron was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers, the city of Cleveland was at a lost of words. They have little to no success in any of their three major sports, basketball, football and baseball. The times have been so bad, that like the Boston Red Sox, they have been given the cursed name. They are cursed because they cannot seem to win anything. Fan following has not been strong as a result because everyone loves winning. However, this was about to change.
The Cavs team before the 2003 NBA draft was horrible; they had only won a meager 17 games out of a possible 82. As a result, they were awarded with the number one overall pick in the draft. However, there have been talks that the team was tanking its games to improve their chances to get a better selection. Nonetheless, they selected small forward Lebron James with the pick, ushering in a new time. Many believed that Lebron was a savior and was going to help bring the team back to a winning style. However, this was not the case. The Cavs did not make the playoffs the first two years of Lebron"s career. At points during the season, it seemed as if Lebron was struggling and that the whole team was a mess. There would be winning streaks at times, only to be followed by worse games. Lebron wanted to win, but did he have the right tools to do so?
Following the second round loss to the Pistons, the Cavs were eager to make themselves a contending team. They did a good job in the regular season and won 50 games. However, there were several issues with Lebron. Some felt that he lacked a killer instinct that is needed to win games. They also felt that he was a poor free throw shooter and that his stats were a little low. Some even felt that Lebron was just coasting.
As expected, the Cavs won the two series against the Wizards and the Nets and came to the same dead-end with the Pistons, down 2-0, the series was at a critical point. However, in game 3 and 4, the Cavs were able to pull wins, due to Daniel Gibson and Lebron. In game 5, everything changed. Lebron took over the game, hitting shot after shot, some from far out, close in dunks and jabs and fakes. In the end, he outscored the entire Piston"s team himself, showing that the team could contend. The Cavs went on to lose to the Spurs, but this was a great season. The Cavs have matured, the fans are happy and there is a buzz building for next year.
The fans were exceptionally loud and excited and have been a real key to the Cavs playoff success. Everyone of them was passionate about the team and wanted the best. It fueled the Cavs when times were hard. The fans certainly deserved this and will be rewarded soon.
Author: Jonathan T Chin
A die hard Lebron and cavs fan By Jonathan T Chin
On this night, Cavs put it all together - Roanoke Times
Lowly Cavs offense stampedes Terps - Diamondback Online
The Free Lance-Star Lowly Cavs offense stampedes Terps Diamondback Online, MD - The Cavs converted fewer than one-third of their third downs. But when the final whistle blew, the Cavs has scored 31 points, piled up 427 total yards (132 ... Win fluffs Cavs ' sails Verica, Ogletree ignite Cavs Nice surprise ends misery -