Friday, June 28, 2013

Draft just the first step in Cavs' return to relevance

Let's get to work.
For three years, the Cleveland Cavaliers have been trying to placate their fanbase with talk of cap flexibility and stockpiled draft assets. The wins weren't coming, but the future was bright, according to the brass. 


Now that the 2013 NBA Draft has ended with another unorthodox selection by GM Chris Grant, it's safe to assume that fans no longer want to hear vague boardroom-speak about what could be. Nor does anyone want to see, cute as it was, another private plane full of ironic bowtie-wearing Cleveland icons jetting  to New York City for the draft lottery. Those days are done, and to their credit, the franchise's decision-makers seem to understand that playtime is over. 

Saturday, June 22, 2013

Cleveland athletes love the Heat, then wonder why fans get mad

"This one's for LeBron!" Gordon probably thought.
So, this thing happened a couple of nights back where the Miami Heat won its second straight championship, and LeBron James grabbed his second consecutive Finals MVP. Some people in Cleveland were angry and bitter about this turn of events. Others shrugged it off and went to bed with their consciousnesses unclouded. Still others lauded the hometown kid for growing up and winning big in South Beach. Many people took to Twitter and other social media platforms to make their feelings known.

Normally, this would not be worthy of note. People can't have a BM these days without taking their smartphones into the can to record the evidence. However, what happens when Cleveland athletes with no connections to Miami, LeBron or the Heat start bigging up the newly crowned champions? How would this go over in a town that has not celebrated a major sports championship in half a century?