Two Seasons

Some quarters in a college career are useless and some are hard and SOME are both. For one of my roommates this year, Fall Quarter appeared to be both.

Nick became a fan of the Cavs mainly because living with John Glenn and I gave him almost no choice in the matter. After watching them for a few games and with the quarter wearing on him, he made this statement: "I think I'm just going to live vicariously through the Cavs."

My response: "Oh yeah...I already do that."

I'm so into this team that when they lose, I almost always go PLAY basketball to try to atone for everything they did wrong. It's so stupid...but it's not.

This Cavaliers team is so likable. They have the best player and the best leader in basketball although many refuse to acknowledge either. Many of their players are ridiculed regularly (Shaq, Ilgauskas, Mo Williams, Delonte West, Daniel Gibson, Anderson Varejao...) yet all have contributed greatly to this fantastic start to the season, especially against the top teams. This is frankly one of the most under appreciated juggernauts ever. It's perfect.

It's perfect because of this:

Shaq has not said anything noteworthy this season. He really has not done anything spectacular in the arenas of statistics or show-stopping moments. The consensus is that the "Shaq Experiment" is a failure and they are better with him off the court, yet Shaq, one of the proudest men in the NBA, remains silent. We did hear from him Christmas afternoon however, when he shoved it up the Lakers' asses.

I actually watched that game on mute once I saw that Mark Jackson, Mike Breen and Jeff Van Gundy were doing it. I'm sure Kobe got his share of praise after being thrashed on his own home court and jacking up 32 shots in the process but, if it's all the same to you, I don't need to hear about how great it is to do that (I already know how great it is...).

But let me address the Shaq situation for a brief second...

The Cleveland front office are not a bunch of rubes who are oblivious to what is going on in the league, yet they are treated as such by everyone. The consensus on television is that people think the Cavs brought Shaq to be a second banana to LeBron which is false. They brought him in because they had not one player who could guard the giant Centers in the league (Dwight Howard and the Gasol/Bynum monster) and be more man than them. And, so far, he's doing it. He frustrated the shit out of Dwight and the Lakers and Cleveland won both games handily on the road against the teams they simply could not handle last season. The Cavs also lead the league in points in the paint given up where they struggled last season. I'm not saying the Championship is a given by any means or that Shaq won't end up being a failure even by my standards, but as of now, he's been absolutely what the Cavs wanted him to be. I hope this is the last time we'll have to have this discussion.

The Cavs' other lovable giant, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, might be coming upon more hard times. After not getting into the game where he was set to break the Cavs' record for games played, he may yet have to stomach another indignity.

If the Cavs are going to make any trade this season (for the record, I don't believe they have to), it will almost certainly involve Ilgauskas because of his expiring contract. The bright spot in this situation is that a team looking to save money (the only type of team who would want to make this type of trade) would almost certainly offer Ilgauskas a buyout and subsequently make his return to Cleveland. It would however bring another series of blows to his already bruised ego.

After nothing but toughness and loyalty to a Cleveland organization that, until recently, deserved neither, Zydrunas seems to be the whipping boy for the most promising year in Cavs history. He lost his starting job, was benched on his big day, and now will most likely not only be traded, but bought out by a crappy team because they don't need him. If anyone can take it, it is probably Big Z, but if he takes all these bullets for the Cavs and ends up contributing to a title, his number absolutely must be retired and he must be given any and all courtesies by the Cleveland organization.

Now, in a shocking transition, I will explain how Zydrunas Ilgauskas and the Cincinnati Bengals are exactly the same.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas was a first round pick of one of the worst and least relevant NBA franchises around. Listening to someone explain what Zydrunas Ilgauskas plays like and his dimensions and where he comes from...the whole lot of it...would make you think two words: "Obvious bust."

And, in most cases, you'd be right.

There is nothing inherently dominant about his game...nothing about him that entitles him to points (like Shaq, for instance). He has terrible feet and missed seasons literally having doctors build him new ones. But through it all, he stayed tough and stayed loyal and kept making his 15-footers, shots that take practice, concentration and calmness. Big Z was a pick made by an incompetent organization that should have failed, but they lucked out because of the person Z is.

Likewise, the Cincinnati Bengals are a notoriously hideous organization. They drafted a stiff Heisman-winning quarterback who really only had one good season in college (Carson Palmer), vultured the defensive coordinator off of a Super Bowl team (Marvin Lewis) and took a chance on a troubled wideout (Chad Johnson). Do these sound like savvy moves by a bunch of geniuses? These are the moves consistently made by people who have no scouts and are essentially drafting on what they see on TV. The twist is this: Carson Palmer, Chad Johnson and Marvin Lewis all turned out to be good enough (although all of them very obviously flawed) but most importantly, they all seem to share a love for lost causes. It's the only explanation, really. I'll say this one last time before Saturday's game against the Jets...The Bengals are not very good. Like the Cavs win Ilgauskas, Cincy lucked out not just with the caliber of players they drafted, but the type of characters they got and, win or lose, that needs to appreciated.

NFL Playoffs: Wildcard

DALLAS COWBOYS over Philidelphia Eagles

ARIZONA CARDINALS over Green Bay Packers

CINCINNATI BENGALS over NY Jets

Baltimore Ravens over NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS