Tag Archives: Cleveland

NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS SCHEDULE

Posted: May 15, 2015 by . Filed under Blog Posts, Feature Articles | 31 Comments

NBA Basketball Close Up

Eastern Conference Finals      –       CLEVELAND vs ATLANTA

Game 1 – Wed  May 20 Cleveland at Atlanta                  8:30PM     TNT/R

Game 2 – Fri  May 22 Cleveland at Atlanta                     8:30PM     TNT/R

Game 3 – Sun  May 24 Atlanta at Cleveland                    8:30PM     TNT/R

Game 4 – Tue  May 26 Atlanta at Cleveland                    8:30PM     TNT/R

Game 5 * Thu  May 28 Cleveland at Atlanta                    8:30PM     TNT/R

Game 6 * Sat  May 30 Atlanta at Cleveland                     8:30PM     TNT/R

Game 7 * Mon  June 1 Cleveland at Atlanta                    8:30PM     TNT/R

 

The NBA Finals will begin on Thursday, June 4.

WHAT’S NEW WITH LEBRON?

Posted: Sep 17, 2014 by . Filed under Blog Posts | 31 Comments

As a lot of us await the new-look Cavaliers with LeBron James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving teaming up for the first time on October 30th against the Knicks at Quicken Loans Arena, a few other new things have been revealed, or will be soon with “King James”.

LeBron Homecoming in Akron 2014

Check out James new Nike shoe, the “LeBron 12” right here –   via

And it sounds like a new LBJ banner could be hanging in an old spot in downtown Cleveland – read here –   via

MY TOP 10 CLEVELAND ATHLETES

Posted: Sep 17, 2014 by . Filed under Blog Posts, Feature Articles | 38 Comments

1) LeBron James – Yes he’s back and better than ever. Not only is he Cleveland’s best athlete, he’s one of the best athletes in the world. This isn’t a bad resume – 2 NBA Titles, 4 NBA MVP trophies, 2 NBA Finals MVP trophies, an 8-Time All NBA First Team selection, a 10-time All-Star and a 2-Time All-Star game MVP.

Pre-Powder Toss

2) Kyrie Irving – “Uncle Drew” just picked up another MVP trophy, this time at the FIBA Basketball World Championship after leading Team USA to the gold medal. Plus he’s a two-time NBA All-Star and was last year’s All-Star game MVP.  Oh yeah, he’s also a former NBA Rookie of the Year and a 3-point shootout champion and a rookie game MVP.

Kyrie Irving Team USA Free Throw Line

3) Joe Thomas – He plays one of the most important positions in football at left tackle, and is a 7-time Pro Bowler and a 4-time NFL All-Pro selection.

4) Kevin Love – He’s never played a game for the Cavs, but he will this season and hopefully for many more after that. The former Timberwolves power forward acquired this off-season in a three team trade is a double/double machine averaging 19.2ppg and 12.2rpg in his six year NBA career. He’s a 3-time All-Star, a 2-time All-NBA second teamer, led the NBA in rebounding in 2011 and was also voted the league’s most improved player that season, and like his new teammate Kyrie Irving, an NBA 3-point shootout champion in 2012. Oh yeah, last year in Minnesota he averaged 26.1ppg and 12.5rpg.

Kevin Love Jersey photo

5) Joe Haden – He’s becoming one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL and was named to his first Pro Bowl last year, as well as 2nd team All-Pro. How important is he to the Browns? He’s missed 7 games since being drafted in the first round by Cleveland in 2010 and the Browns are (0-7) when he doesn’t play.

Joe Haden Mini Camp 2014

6) Michael Brantley – He may be the best “Player To Be Named Later” in any trade in Indians history. He was the “PTBNL” in the Brewers-Indians deal in 2008 for C.C. Sabathia.  Since then he’s become the Tribe’s best all-around player and was named an All-Star for the first time this season when he hit .322 with 15 homers and 63 rbi’s in the first half of the 2014 season. He’s on pace for a .320-20hr-100rbi season.

Michael Brantley swinging photo

7) Corey Kluber – He came to the Indians as a no-name player in the Jake Westbrook three team trade back in July of 2010. Since then he’s slowly climbed the ladder from a guy who had struggled to make the roster, to one of the best pitchers in the American League this season, and the undisputed ace of the Indians staff. After going 11-5 with a 3.85era last season, Kluber has followed that up with a 16-9 mark so far, with a 2.54 earned run average.

Corey Kluber close up photo

8) Karlos Dansby – The self-proclaimed best linebacker in the NFL has only played two games for the Browns but has made an immediate impact. He picked off Ben Roethlisbrger in the opener in Pittsburgh and then came up with defensive play of the game against the Saints, sacking Drew Brees late in the fourth quarter to force New Orleans to punt the ball which then that allowed Brian Hoyer to lead the Browns down the field for a game winning field goal. His play on the field so far has been outstanding and his leadership in the locker room with a young team may be even more important. With the Cardinals last season, he was an NFL 2nd team All-Pro selection.

9) Yan Gomes – Talk about coming out of nowhere! Well Toronto is somewhere, that’s where Gomes was acquired from in a trade in 2012. After spending time at Triple-A Columbus in 2013 to start the season, Gomes got called up a second time when back-up catcher Lou Marson went down with an injury and hasn’t been back since. In fact he’s become the Indians every day catcher because of his solid defensive skills, his ability to call a game and manage a pitching staff and his offense and power continue to improve with every at bat. Gomes is hitting .286 with 19 homers and 64 runs batted in so far this season.

10) Alex Mack – A 2-time Pro Bowler and an NFL 2nd team All-Pro selection last season, Mack anchors the Browns offensive line and hasn’t missed a game since being selected in the first round of the 2009 draft.

Honorable Mention:

Josh Gordon, Donte Whitner, Dion Waiters, Carlos Santana, Shane Austin

IF I WERE IN CHARGE OF…….

Posted: Jan 6, 2014 by . Filed under Feature Articles | 33 Comments

If I were in charge of the Cleveland Browns I would inquire with every  former NFL coach who’s won a Super Bowl, every hot NFL coordinator and every top college coach and ask what would it take for them to come and coach the Cleveland Browns. Money is obviously no object, as Jimmy Haslam is paying Rob Chudzinski over $10 million dollars not to coach.

Jimmy Haslam Photo

(courtesy of sportsillustrated.cnn.com)

So yes I would reach out to Bill Cowher, Jon Gruden, Brian Billick and Tony Dungy just to hear them tell me they’re not interested.

I would then call all the so-called hot coordinators like Dan Quinn the defensive coordinator of the Seahawks(he’s already interviewed with the Browns), Josh McDaniels the offensive coordinator of the Patriots(the Browns have already talked to him as well), Ken Wisenhunt the offensive coordinator of the Chargers and Adam Gase the Broncos offensive coordinator.

After I talked with all of them, I would then get in touch with the top college guys like Bob Stoops at Oklahoma, Jim Tressel, Gus Malzahn from Auburn, James Franklin from Vanderbilt, Nick Saban at Alabama, Urban Meyer at Ohio State and whoever else is considered a top coach. I would leave no stone unturned if I were Haslam, Banner and Lombardi, you can’t afford to. Your franchise is a joke right now. You admittedly screwed up last year by hiring Chud, so you better go out and find the savior to coach this team and turn it around in a hurry.

Then I would find the top three guys who have an interest in the job and see what it would take for them to quit their current job and come to Cleveland. Whoever showed the most interest and had the best resume of the bunch, I would offer him the job and get him on the next plane to Cleveland to start helping turn this franchise around.

This is the most important off season in Browns history as you’re trying to find the right coach; you have 10 high draft picks and a boatload of money to spend in free agency to better your talent. You better get all three phases right or the Browns will continue to be at the bottom of the AFC North, fan apathy will start to set in and you will continue to be the punch line for all NFL football jokes and yes Jimmy Haslam, whether you want to believe it or not, just “THE SAME OLD BROWNS”!

Browns Lose To The Steelers Yet Again!

Posted: Nov 24, 2013 by . Filed under Feature Articles | 30 Comments

The Browns had a golden opportunity at home to beat a very bad Steelers team and improve their playoff positioning in the division and the wild card, instead they let that chance literally slip through their fingers. With three fumbles, dropped passes, five sacks given up, a “Pick 6” and their best player getting beat for a long touchdown pass, the Browns lost to Pittsburgh for the 25th time in the last 30 games. The Final – 27-11.

The game was lost in the final 2:41 of the first half when Steelers wide out Antonio Brown beat Joe Haden for a 41 yard touchdown pass to give Pittsburgh a 10-3 lead. On the Browns next possession, Chris Ogbonnaya was hit by Troy Polamalu fumbled and that led to a Pittsburgh field goal right before the end of the 2nd quarter and a 13-3 Steelers halftime lead.

After a Jason Campbell fumble in the 3rd quarter (he had to leave the game with a head injury), Ben Roethlisberger increased the Steelers lead to 20-3 when he hooked up with Emmauel Sanders on a 4 yard TD pass to put the nail in the coffin for Pittsbrugh. Brandon Weeden poured gasoline on the Steelers fire, throwing a “Pick 6” to William Gay in the 4th quarter. That was the Browns 4th turnover of the game. Pittsburgh did not commit a single turnover.

Both of these teams aren’t very good but the difference was at the quarterback position. The Steelers have one, and the Browns don’t.  “Big Ben” improved to 16-1 lifetime against the Browns by getting rid of the football quickly, throwing underneath the Browns defense forcing linebackers and safeties to do something they can’t, cover.  Jason Campbell showed you why he was a free agent and why he really is nothing more than a back-up QB.

So Pittsburgh improves to (5-6) on the year and even though they’re a bad football team, they are still in the AFC Wild Card race. The Browns record dropped to (4-7) this season and are trending more towards another very high draft pick.. In a losing cause, Josh Gordon set single game records for the Browns with 14 catches for 237 yards and scored Cleveland’s only touchdown.  Next up for the Browns, the Jaguars at home next Sunday at 1pm.

THE MONDAY MORNING DUMP 11-18-13

Posted: Nov 18, 2013 by . Filed under Blog Posts | 33 Comments

I don’t know about you, but as I watched the Browns blow a 13-nothing first quarter lead yesterday by giving up 31 consecutive second quarter points, I started having an Ohio State/Nebraska flashback from two seasons ago.

That’s the last time I can remember a team being in total control and then just losing all momentum in route to losing the game.  In case you didn’t have the same flashback I had, Luke Fickel’s Buckeyes led Bo Pelini’s Cornhuskers 27-6 in the third quarter only to lose the game by giving up 28 unanswered points in a 34-27 loss. Fickell and his staff had no answers on how to turn “Big Mo” back around and that’s how I felt with Rob Chudzinski, Jason Campbell and the Browns yesterday.

With the way the Browns defense was playing, all Campbell had to do at 13-zip nearing the end of the first quarter was manage the game, don’t turn the ball over and there was a pretty good chance the Browns would have beaten the Bengals yesterday.  Instead, Campbell starts the “Avalanche of Negativity” by throwing the first of his three interceptions deep in his own territory that Cincy would eventually turn into 7 points to get them back in the game and get the ball rolling in their direction. 7 points became 14, which became 21, then 28, and before the end of the half, 31 consecutive Cincinnati points for a 31-13 halftime lead. BALLGAME!photo (47)

While Campbell started this disastrous process, Chud’s inability to make adjustments on the fly, especially on special teams was just as costly. You can’t let your special teams get two punts blocked in a single game let alone in one quarter. Chud also has the veto power to step in if he doesn’t like the way Norv Turner is calling the game and to abandon the run like they did after the first quarter proved  to be part of their demise as well.

This was the biggest Browns game in years. You had a chance to get back to .500 overall and be only a half game out of first place in your division heading into a home game against the arch rival Pittsburgh Steelers. Can you imagine what the atmosphere would have been like at First Energy Stadium had that happened?

Instead you squander a dominant first quarter performance and a 13-nothing lead and turn it into a demoralizing loss that puts you at (4-6) and now tied with the Steelers and Ravens for second place in the division, two and a half games back of first place Cincinnati.

Yes there is still time to turn this around and get back in the wild card race and maybe the division race, but a golden opportunity was missed yesterday by the Browns to not only put themselves in position in the division to make the playoffs, but to also galvanize a fan base who has been waiting for years to have something to believe in on the lake front.

Now it’s back to the drawing board to see if you can correct the many mistakes that were made in the Queens city in time to get ready for the hated Steelers, who have won two in a row and will be coming to Cleveland with a lot of momentum, and after watching yesterday’s Browns/Bengals game and thinking back to that Ohio State/Nebraska game, momentum is a dangerous, and sometimes an unchangeable thing!