Calling Coach Brown...

Well, DJ didn't play again in Game 5, and not coincidentally, the Cavaliers lost a chance at home to close out the Wizards. Obviously I've had a beef with Coach Brown over DJ's lost playing time for a while now. And while it's fun to jokingly (well, half-jokingly) blame it on the karma of the lost Hawk, I'm honestly getting tired of DJ not getting a chance. I understand the Szczerbiak experiment. And I understand trying Devin Brown for a while. But it's not working.

Look, I appreciate Devin Brown's hustle and hard work. He's one of only two Cavaliers that's not afraid to drive strong to the hoop (and I think you know who the other more famous one is). And I know we had to give Wally a shot. But Caron Butler ate him alive last night. If you want someone out there who isn't a strong defender, can't it at least be a guy who you know can drain shots under the pressure of the postseason? I'm begging you Mike Brown, give Damon another chance before this season goes up in smoke. Let him help beat the Wizards again.

DJ is dying to follow up this shot with another dagger in '08

Damon Gets the Last Laugh

To add some more fuel to the fire in the Cavaliers-Wizards series, DJ got into the act tonight. After the Cavs absolutely pummeled the Wizards, Mike Brown was able to rest the regular guys and Damon was able to get in for a few minutes at the end of the fourth. With about a minute left in the game he gave me the best highlight of a memorable Game 2 30-point blowout. DJ, I'm almost not mad at you anymore for cutting of the Hawk. Almost.

Here's the video evidence (I'll post a better version when available). DJ mocking DeShawn Stevenson:

A Triumphant Return?

I was very excited to see the Cavaliers' starting lineup yesterday before the opening tip. DJ would indeed be making his way off the bench in a starting role in the season finale vs. the Pistons. This was his chance to prove to Mike Brown that he belongs in the rotation and would be ready to answer the bell in the playoffs. Well someone forgot to mention to Damon that he needed to perform. In 37 minutes of action, DJ was an ice cold 1-12 from the field with just two assists and one rebound for a grand total of four points.

Now I'd like to attribute this to the cobwebs built up over the previous 7-game stint on the bench. And maybe DJ was pressing a little too hard out there after all that time off. Or maybe this is karma's one final slap-in-the-face for the Hawk incident. Either way, his prospects aren't looking good for redemption. This may be his final act as a Cavalier and I for one am truly disappointed.

LeBron didn't seem to mind the loss, but DJ sure should

Same old, same old

Well, Sunday night's win over the hapless Heat marked the fifth consecutive DNP-CD for Damon. Ranting about the Cavaliers barely beating a 13-win team at home is for another blog. Here I'm still grasping to understand what Damon did to take himself out of the rotation completely. There are just two games left before the postseason and DJ is stuck on the bench, probably wondering the same.

I saw this from Brian Windhorst's "Dribbles" section in Saturday's Akron Beacon Journal. Apparently Mike Brown doesn't see the value in this information:

• The Web site (www.82games.com) revealed something else with its clutch stats. The two players in the NBA with the best plus/minus rating, the difference a player makes on the scoreboard when he is on the court, in clutch time are Damon Jones (+48 in 89 total minutes) and Zydrunas Ilgauskas (+36 in 134 minutes). That's 1-2 in the entire league. James, by the way, is fifth at +32 in 210 minutes. It speaks to how well the Cavs have played in close games. However, Jones and Ilgauskas often are not on the floor, despite their good numbers.

DJ has once again been relegated to the role of team comedian

DJ speaks

There was an interesting story from Mary Schmitt Boyer in today's Cleveland Plain Dealer involving DJ's lack of playing time.

DJ on the difficulty of watching his team struggle while sitting on the bench:

"Hard is not the word," he said. "I don't think there's a word for it that can explain the feelings you go through knowing that you're capable of being positive and helping the team win in any way, shape or form and at this point in time, my name's not being called. It's three years in a row for me, and every time I've been called upon, hopefully I've been able to be positive towards the team winning."

"I think that's been the frustrating part about it is that over the course of three years the consistency of the opportunity hasn't fully been there," said Jones, who did ask to be traded earlier this season. "I just have to be ready when called up and hopefully I can be positive with the team.

"That's what it's about at the end of the day. It's about the team winning and being successful. It's not about Damon Jones. It's not about any one individual. Collectively as a group we have to find a way to get to a level in five games to where we feel good about our chances of doing what we did last season."

Mike Brown on not playing DJ:

"I'm not just looking at a guy making shots," Brown said. "I'm looking at matchups and defensively and rebounding-wise and some of the little things that may not show up on a field-goal percentage stat sheet. I know Damon has hit shots for us in the past when his number is called. That's not anything that I think about: that Damon has hit big shots for us so he doesn't necessarily have to be in the rotation to be effective. He'll be there when I feel it's the right thing."

*update* One of my esteemed colleagues (the great Maximus) over at RealCavsFans just pointed out the following eye-popping information that further backs our claims that DJ needs to be on the court, especially in crunch time:

• Damon's oncourt/offcourt net is +4.9....2nd best on the Cavs.
• Damon's +/- on the season is +71...2nd best on the team.
• Damon's +/- per 48mins of clutch time is +43....that's 1st in the NBA.

source: http://www.82games.com/CSORT4.HTM

Will we see this swagger on the court again this season?

Another DNP-CD, another loss...

Today marked DJ's third DNP-CD in a row and another one in the "L" column for the Cavaliers. The team is also 5-6 since DJ stopped flying the Hawk. I hate to say I told you so, but...

I'm not sure exactly what Mike Brown is trying to do with this team, but whatever it is, it's not working. If this persists, it will certainly be a quick exit from the postseason this year. On the bright side, I guess I'll save a little money. But lord knows I'd pay a ton to see just one of my teams grab a title just once. I see the Cavaliers' chances slipping away this year. Karma is a funny thing.

Hedo and Keyon are happy DJ scrapped the Hawk

In the dog house...

Well, judging from DJ's playing time over the last two games (or lack thereof) it looks like he's back in Mike Brown's dog house... or just relegated to the bench again. I had a feeling this was coming with the return of Boobie. And I have to agree with Brian Windhorst, I'm not so sure this is a great idea. There are enough minutes for Gibson and Damon to both drain open shots for this team. DJ is a great shooter no matter what you think of him personally, and he should be getting consistent minutes. Mr. Szczerbiak on the other hand... let's just hope he comes around some day. At least his $13M expiring contract will be coming in handy soon.

For the love of Moondog Wally, please start hitting these open shots