For the third year in a row, the Washington Wizards and the Cleveland Cavaliers face each other this April in the first round of the NBA playoffs. This first round match up has become almost as traditional as the playoffs themselves; one would be hard-pressed to remember offhand the last time either team faced someone else in the first round (Washington faced Chicago in 2005, and, before that, Cleveland faced Indiana in 1998).
Of course, with this repeated battle comes a sense of animosity. One of the most memorable moments came in their first meeting in 2006, when, in between two late foul shots by Gilbert Arenas, LeBron casually whispered something into his ear. Gilbert clanked the second shot, and the Cavs went on to win the series 4-2—though they were hardly easy wins, with games 5 and 6 both requiring overtime.
In the years since, the teams have had mixed luck. The Cavs made the finals last year, only to be swept by the Spurs, while the Wizards struggled to stay in the middle of the Eastern pack, often marred by injuries. The bitterness between the two has grown lately, with the two teams also playing each other 26 times in the last 3 seasons, many of which were gritty, hard-fought games. The latest and most prominent fuel to the fire came just a few weeks ago, when DeShawn Stevenson claimed that LeBron James is “overrated,” pointing out that his team is barely .500 since the All-Star Break. In the two games played so far, tiffs have broken out, with shoving, taunting and some hard fouls made.
Now don’t get me wrong—I’m the first guy to admit that I love playoff rivalry. In fact, I think that this recent rivalry between the two is great for the league. One of the reasons the NBA of the late 90s was so great was because of the intense rivalries; Jazz/Rockets, Knicks/Heat, Bulls/everyone. The pushing, the hard fouls, the jawing, all of it gave the games a much higher intensity. Those guys knew what was on the line, and they were willing to fight each other for it. Lately, the NBA has seen much less of that, especially following the infamous 2004 brawl at the Palace in Detroit. The league has clamped down on this tough-style basketball, to my chagrin, and only this year have teams really started to look like they genuinely hated each other again, to my delight.
The difference, of course, and the point I’m trying to make, is that back when these rivalries were still in their prime, the teams were evenly matched. All of those teams—the Heat, the Pacers, the Jazz, the Bulls, all of them—they all went back and forth between each other every year. Even this year, with the intensity of game 1 between the Spurs and the Suns, you got the sense that you were seeing two evenly-matched goliaths going at it.
Take all of that into account, and then consider the Washington Wizards. Only a few questions come to mind: who the hell is DeShawn Stevenson? And who are the Wizards trying to fool?
It’s one thing to trash talk. It gets players excited, it gets fans excited, it heightens the urgency of the game. But if you’re the no-name DeShawn, and you’re shooting 0/4 on the day, don’t blow off the awesome blaze of the heat upon your immortal fingers after you hit your first bucket halfway into the third quarter. And when LeBron comes right back down the court on the very next play and drains a three over you and your double team (putting the Cavalier lead back at 19, might I add), don’t retaliate later with a needlessly dirty flagrant-2 foul. And sorry, Eddie Jordan, but when your player shoves a Cav in mid-air without making a play on the ball, it’s going to be an ejection for him. Don’t cry that it’s unfair. It’s the least of your worries after you just got blown out 116-86 and became down 2-0 in the series.
Like I said, I’m all for bitter rivalries and players hating each other. But when it’s just so damn clear that LeBron James is better than the entire Washington Wizards roster put together, it becomes entirely pathetic to whine to the media and pretend like you have a shot. After all, when you’re showing shades of Tim Thomas calling Kenyon Martin fugazy, you know you’re in trouble.
Of course, with this repeated battle comes a sense of animosity. One of the most memorable moments came in their first meeting in 2006, when, in between two late foul shots by Gilbert Arenas, LeBron casually whispered something into his ear. Gilbert clanked the second shot, and the Cavs went on to win the series 4-2—though they were hardly easy wins, with games 5 and 6 both requiring overtime.
In the years since, the teams have had mixed luck. The Cavs made the finals last year, only to be swept by the Spurs, while the Wizards struggled to stay in the middle of the Eastern pack, often marred by injuries. The bitterness between the two has grown lately, with the two teams also playing each other 26 times in the last 3 seasons, many of which were gritty, hard-fought games. The latest and most prominent fuel to the fire came just a few weeks ago, when DeShawn Stevenson claimed that LeBron James is “overrated,” pointing out that his team is barely .500 since the All-Star Break. In the two games played so far, tiffs have broken out, with shoving, taunting and some hard fouls made.
Now don’t get me wrong—I’m the first guy to admit that I love playoff rivalry. In fact, I think that this recent rivalry between the two is great for the league. One of the reasons the NBA of the late 90s was so great was because of the intense rivalries; Jazz/Rockets, Knicks/Heat, Bulls/everyone. The pushing, the hard fouls, the jawing, all of it gave the games a much higher intensity. Those guys knew what was on the line, and they were willing to fight each other for it. Lately, the NBA has seen much less of that, especially following the infamous 2004 brawl at the Palace in Detroit. The league has clamped down on this tough-style basketball, to my chagrin, and only this year have teams really started to look like they genuinely hated each other again, to my delight.
The difference, of course, and the point I’m trying to make, is that back when these rivalries were still in their prime, the teams were evenly matched. All of those teams—the Heat, the Pacers, the Jazz, the Bulls, all of them—they all went back and forth between each other every year. Even this year, with the intensity of game 1 between the Spurs and the Suns, you got the sense that you were seeing two evenly-matched goliaths going at it.
Take all of that into account, and then consider the Washington Wizards. Only a few questions come to mind: who the hell is DeShawn Stevenson? And who are the Wizards trying to fool?
It’s one thing to trash talk. It gets players excited, it gets fans excited, it heightens the urgency of the game. But if you’re the no-name DeShawn, and you’re shooting 0/4 on the day, don’t blow off the awesome blaze of the heat upon your immortal fingers after you hit your first bucket halfway into the third quarter. And when LeBron comes right back down the court on the very next play and drains a three over you and your double team (putting the Cavalier lead back at 19, might I add), don’t retaliate later with a needlessly dirty flagrant-2 foul. And sorry, Eddie Jordan, but when your player shoves a Cav in mid-air without making a play on the ball, it’s going to be an ejection for him. Don’t cry that it’s unfair. It’s the least of your worries after you just got blown out 116-86 and became down 2-0 in the series.
Like I said, I’m all for bitter rivalries and players hating each other. But when it’s just so damn clear that LeBron James is better than the entire Washington Wizards roster put together, it becomes entirely pathetic to whine to the media and pretend like you have a shot. After all, when you’re showing shades of Tim Thomas calling Kenyon Martin fugazy, you know you’re in trouble.
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