Whenever anybody here in Cleveland speaks about Lebron James, it is 99% of the time some overblown comparison to Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson. Normally it is touting his game and how good of a player he is. I am a HUGE King James fan, but lately Lebron James has become an enigma (at least to me). First I will give my opinion, then I have some interesting statistics regarding my argument, then we will wrap it up.
I know it is only the 4th season for Lebron James, but statistically through this exact moment, he has regressed this year. At the halfway mark here in the season, Lebron James' assists per game, turnovers, steals, blocks, and rebounds are all within a margin of plus or minus .050. If anybody wants to see the stats, check out http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3704/career. This site is great for comparing numbers from season to season. Now the only noticeable different is Lebron James points per game which has went from 31.4 per game to 27.2 per game (which is still phenemonal). There is a simple reason for the drop in points. Most critics are arguing that Lebron is tired (this might be the case). Some critics are claiming that Lebron James doesn't have to do it on his own. MY argument against that is Lebron's Assists and Field Goal Percentage are the same as last year. The reason for the point dropoff is simple...FREE THROWS. The cavaliers as a team are the worst free throw shooting team in the NBA. Lebron's FT % has went from around 75% to 68% this year. That is a significant and costly regression. The problem is that nobody knows exactly why Lebron's free throws have went down. After beating myself mentally to try and figure it out...I pulled out my video of the NBA Playoffs last year (yeah, I VHS Taped them so that might make me a dork). After watching Lebron shoot free throws on tape, I watched his entire motion. From when the ball was given to him to when the shot goes up. Then I watched the game against Phoenix last sunday. There was 1 noticeable difference in his FT shot. When I saw the difference, I had to refer back to the video tape...but it was simple. In 2005 and 2006, Lebron would take his pre-shot dribbles (normally around 3), and then focus on the shot for about 3 seconds and in one fluid motion shoot the ball. I noticed this year Lebron has focused on the shot either way too quickly (1-2) second range...or stare at the shot for about 5-6 seconds. It is very obvious Lebron is trying to shake off the slump and is overthinking his free throw shooting. It seems one he gotten into the slump early in the season, he has beaten himself up mentally over FT's. Hopefully, Lebron will progress before March/April...the chase for seeding in the playoffs. All I know is that if Lebron's FT's improve, it better rub off on the entire team. When a 7 foot 2 inch center is your best FT shooter (79 %) that doesn't bode too well come playoff time.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Thursday, January 25, 2007
The Debate Rages on...Who Should the Cleveland Browns Draft in the 1st Round?
If anybody knows me or has spoken to me, I am a fan of Joe Thomas. Joe Thomas was the starting left tackle for the Wisconsin Badgers. In 2006-2007 he won the Outland Trophy as the nation's best lineman. If anybody wants to question the athleticism of Joe Thomas, all they have to do is follow his high school career at Brookfield Central High School in Brookfield Wisconsin. In high school he was a tight end, defensive end, and kicker. But enough of my praise for Joe Thomas. Lets look at some numbers. Lets take the playoff teams of this year (2007) and see who they drafted in the 1st round in 2005 and 2006. I will break the stats down and then explain why it would be beneficial for the Browns to draft a lineman in the 1st round. First, the numbers:
The teams that made the playoffs this year would be the chargers, ravens, colts, patriots, jets, chiefs, bears, saints, eagles, seahawks, cowboys, giants.
San Diego Chargers: 2005- Shawne Merriman LB, Luis Castillo DT. 2006 - Antonio Cromartie, CB.
Baltimore Ravens: 2005 - Mark Clayton, WR. 2006 - Haloti Ngata, DT.
Indianapolis Colts: 2005 - Marlin Jackson, CB. 2006 - Joseph Addai, RB.
New England Patriots: 2005 - Logan Mankins, G. 2006 - Laurence Maroney, RB.
New York Jets: 2005 - No 1st rd pick. 2006 - D'Brickshaw Ferguson, OT, Nick Mangold, C.
Kansas City Chiefs: 2005 - Derrick Johnson, LB. 2006 - Tamba Hali, DE.
Chicago Bears: 2005 - Cedric Benson, RB. 2006 - No 1st rd pick.
New Orleans Saints: 2005 - Jamaal Brown, OT. 2006 - Reggie Bush, RB.
Philadelphia Eagles: 2005 - Mike Patterson, DT. 2006 - Brodrick Bunkley, DT.
Seattle Seahawks: 2005 - Chris Spencer, C. 2006 - Kelly Jennings, CB.
Dallas Cowboys: 2005 - DeMarcus Ware, LB. 2006 - Bobby Carpenter, LB.
New York Giants: 2005- No 1st rd pick. 2006 - Mathias Kiwanuka, DE.
As shown above, the most 1st rd picks were spent on offensive/defensive lineman. Is it a coincidence that these teams made the playoffs? Also, all the teams that drafted RB's in the 1st rd (IND, NE, CHI, NO) all either had established lines or they chose an offensive lineman in the years previous draft. Is it a coincidence with what Reggie bush did considering a year before the saints drafted Jamaal Brown? Some would argue that Free Agent Signings can be a more effective way of strengthening the line, while paying attention to the skill positions in the 1st rd of the draft.
But in the Browns case, who would want to come here with 1. Losing Jeff Davidson as the O line coach, 2. The Staph Infection Outbreak, 3. Losing Record, 4. Cold Weather. Now if the Browns were to land a Max Starks or Eric Steinbach they would hypothetically have to give up more money because of the aforementioned. Say that landing steinbach would cost the browns 4 million more dollars than Cincinnati. Just put that into perspective, only 3 players on the Browns Roster make over 4 million per year (Gary Baxter, Braylon Edward, Kellen Winslow JR). If you ask me, its is quite simple that if you draft a lineman and sign him to long term, you have effectively homegrown your line. This makes any free agent pickup that you make even more valuable. Plus, no browns fan would tell you that O-line depth is not important (see LeCharles Bentley).
The Main Reason I want to draft an Offensive Lineman in the first round is that I am sick and tired of the excuses. Whether it was Tim Couch, Charlie Frye, William Green, Lee Suggs, etc. the excuse has always been the same...the line. Now the difference would be that if we drafted Joe Thomas and maybe a few more linemen, and Free Agent pickups...nobody could say "the browns don't have a line". I also think Adrian Peterson would be a silly pick because he would get clobbered with the browns current line. Add to that the fact that LeCharles Bentley might not even be back next year, and that spells doom. And even on top of that, even if Adrian Peterson turned into the next L.T., all NFL teams would stack the line of scrimmage. I doubt the Charlie Frye is going to turn into Drew Brees overnight.
With that said, my closing statement is that I do like 1 thing the Saints did. They drafted a tackle and a year later a RB. If the Browns drafted a lineman this year and next year take the best RB available at their pick...I think that would be the best case scenario. This years draft has been called by most scouts as one of the worst RB classes in recent memory.
The teams that made the playoffs this year would be the chargers, ravens, colts, patriots, jets, chiefs, bears, saints, eagles, seahawks, cowboys, giants.
San Diego Chargers: 2005- Shawne Merriman LB, Luis Castillo DT. 2006 - Antonio Cromartie, CB.
Baltimore Ravens: 2005 - Mark Clayton, WR. 2006 - Haloti Ngata, DT.
Indianapolis Colts: 2005 - Marlin Jackson, CB. 2006 - Joseph Addai, RB.
New England Patriots: 2005 - Logan Mankins, G. 2006 - Laurence Maroney, RB.
New York Jets: 2005 - No 1st rd pick. 2006 - D'Brickshaw Ferguson, OT, Nick Mangold, C.
Kansas City Chiefs: 2005 - Derrick Johnson, LB. 2006 - Tamba Hali, DE.
Chicago Bears: 2005 - Cedric Benson, RB. 2006 - No 1st rd pick.
New Orleans Saints: 2005 - Jamaal Brown, OT. 2006 - Reggie Bush, RB.
Philadelphia Eagles: 2005 - Mike Patterson, DT. 2006 - Brodrick Bunkley, DT.
Seattle Seahawks: 2005 - Chris Spencer, C. 2006 - Kelly Jennings, CB.
Dallas Cowboys: 2005 - DeMarcus Ware, LB. 2006 - Bobby Carpenter, LB.
New York Giants: 2005- No 1st rd pick. 2006 - Mathias Kiwanuka, DE.
As shown above, the most 1st rd picks were spent on offensive/defensive lineman. Is it a coincidence that these teams made the playoffs? Also, all the teams that drafted RB's in the 1st rd (IND, NE, CHI, NO) all either had established lines or they chose an offensive lineman in the years previous draft. Is it a coincidence with what Reggie bush did considering a year before the saints drafted Jamaal Brown? Some would argue that Free Agent Signings can be a more effective way of strengthening the line, while paying attention to the skill positions in the 1st rd of the draft.
But in the Browns case, who would want to come here with 1. Losing Jeff Davidson as the O line coach, 2. The Staph Infection Outbreak, 3. Losing Record, 4. Cold Weather. Now if the Browns were to land a Max Starks or Eric Steinbach they would hypothetically have to give up more money because of the aforementioned. Say that landing steinbach would cost the browns 4 million more dollars than Cincinnati. Just put that into perspective, only 3 players on the Browns Roster make over 4 million per year (Gary Baxter, Braylon Edward, Kellen Winslow JR). If you ask me, its is quite simple that if you draft a lineman and sign him to long term, you have effectively homegrown your line. This makes any free agent pickup that you make even more valuable. Plus, no browns fan would tell you that O-line depth is not important (see LeCharles Bentley).
The Main Reason I want to draft an Offensive Lineman in the first round is that I am sick and tired of the excuses. Whether it was Tim Couch, Charlie Frye, William Green, Lee Suggs, etc. the excuse has always been the same...the line. Now the difference would be that if we drafted Joe Thomas and maybe a few more linemen, and Free Agent pickups...nobody could say "the browns don't have a line". I also think Adrian Peterson would be a silly pick because he would get clobbered with the browns current line. Add to that the fact that LeCharles Bentley might not even be back next year, and that spells doom. And even on top of that, even if Adrian Peterson turned into the next L.T., all NFL teams would stack the line of scrimmage. I doubt the Charlie Frye is going to turn into Drew Brees overnight.
With that said, my closing statement is that I do like 1 thing the Saints did. They drafted a tackle and a year later a RB. If the Browns drafted a lineman this year and next year take the best RB available at their pick...I think that would be the best case scenario. This years draft has been called by most scouts as one of the worst RB classes in recent memory.
Welcome to The North Shore Exclusive.
First off, welcome to THE North Shore Exclusive. On this blog there will be many postings for which you can find 1 perspective of the many that exist here in the beautiful North Shore of Cleveland Ohio. Sports are a part of the culture here in cleveland. Before I get started, the main thing that must be addressed first is the mentality of a Cleveland Sports Fan. I assume if you are reading this, you either are a Cleveland Sports Fan, or you want to rub salt in our collective wounds. I am here to abolish that type of mentality. In Cleveland he have witnessed some of the best (Jim Brown, Lebron James, the return of the Cleveland Browns, the resurgent Cleveland Indians of the 1990's, The Buckeyes 2003 National Championship, Thad Matta's Recruiting, etc.) and some of the worst (Art Modell, The Fumble, The Drive, Jose Mesa, Shawn Kemp's bloat, Jeff Garcia, The 2007 National Championship, etc.). Many Cleveland Fans have become accustomed to losing. To me, that just doesn't fly. We have to start to hold our teams and their owners, coaches, and players to higher expectations. Its time for us as Cleveland Sports fans to turn these feelings of anger/sadness/disgust and turn them into creative avenues to express our opinion. A lot of people have said that the Cleveland Fans and Media are responsible for the losing mentality that currently exists here. Let me extinguish those flames by reminding everybody who was buying tickets when Bill "Hoodie" Bellichick, Chris Palmer, Butch Davis, and the current Browns were losing games. Who was it that was buying tickets to the gund to see the Cavaliers from 1998 until 2003? Who was packing the Jake for records in the mid 1990's and still attending a decent amount of games during the regression? That would be us, the fans. If you have given up, I ask you to swallow the pain and try and help bury this losing mentality. Write letters to the newspapers, Blogs, and participate in Sports talk...not only at the water cooler or with the family, but on media outlets. We can prove that even though our teams have been mediocre...they are OUR teams and we will be fans until the end.
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