5 Things to Keep an Eye on: Cavaliers at Celtcs, Game 2 - FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

In another of our continuing series, five things to keep an eye out for tonight in the Cavaliers-Celtics Eastern Conference Semifinals Game 2 this evening.

1. Swamp Thing Returns: I'm going to warn you right now. I'll record this game. And I'll watch it later without commercials so I can escape the seemingly never-ending torture of having the "Go Phone" commercial song in my head ("I love you till the end of time, I swear! I love you till the end of time!"). That will at least make it tolerable. But I can't watch this thing live. It's like watching paint dry. Even if the Big 3 go off and LeBron James has a spectacular night, it'll only be interesting in the fourth. You're looking at two teams that play terrific defense and are not shooting the ball well. Game 1 was like a root canal with Sam Cassell. I've watched D-League games with better precision. So forgive me if I don't subject myself to that again. This is, of course, a sad lie, because I'm a junkie and would watch Kevin Garnett play HORSE with Kige Ramsey. Still, I'm putting the same warning on this one. If you like offense, scoring, things like that? Agent Michael Scarn might be a better bet.

2. Return of the (Cliché Redacted): LeBron had a night much like Frank TV. Bizarre and unfortunate that most people wish they could erase from their minds. 2 for 18 shooting? 10 turnovers? What in God's name happened? Some people say he just had an off night. It happens. Others say that the Celtics defense smothered him. I tend to lean towards the former rather than the latter on instinct, but after rewatching the tape, in between vomiting, I noticed that the Celtics really did put together a great gameplan. Recognizing that LeBron would be the primary ball handler, they simply brought high perimeter commit defense, and sent man-help if he tried to drive to deny him. When they tried to use screens from the Cavs big men, the Celtics simply ignored the screener and rolled under and over to double James, always keeping him in front of them. Zydrunas Ilgauskus had a monster game for the Cavs, but he's better at a spot and catch shooter, instead of off the role or on the pop. This lead to missed shot or turnover after missed shot or turnover. So why didn't they try something different, like using LeBron as the screen, or rolling a guard off the screen? Well that's because ...

3. Mike Brown May Not Be Alive: That's the only explanation I have for his coaching job in Game 1 that doesn't require testing for some sort of neurological defect. He was out coached by Doc Rivers. You know, it's been a long time since I've repeated something for effect. Now seems good, yes? Affirmed. He was outcoached by Doc Rivers. This is the same guy that let Mike Woodson look like Red freaking Auerbach in the last series. Brown refused to make any substantial changes, despite the epic FAIL his club's offense was pursuing on the floor. Once, randomly, Delonte West set a screen for LBJ and rolled to the wing, where LeBron found him for an easy three. Did the Cavaliers seek to continue this strategy? Nope, just went right back to work, plunging LeBron into a see of white and green over and over again. If the Cavs are going to survive, they have to make some sort of adjustment.

4. Just Put The Round Thing In The Hole: The Cavaliers had more offensive rebounds, and blocked shots. They had more assists, fewer turnovers, and more steals. Ray Allen was scoreless and Paul Pierce had all of 4 points. And the Cavaliers still lost. How? They didn't put the ball in the basket. Which, I've been told by several experts, is kind of an important part of the game. The Cavs shot 31% from the field, 22% from the arc. Ilgauskus shot 8 of 18 and had the best night of any Cav. We knew this Cleveland team was limited offensively, but this kind of performance can't repeat itself, can it? Can it?

5. The Seventh Son: Kevin Garnett was a beast. Kevin Garnett was clutch. Kevin Garnett was a monster. Kevin Garnett was a snake. The Celtics did what they should, lean on Garnett's intensity and talent to lead them to the promise land. Now if they can just get Paul Pierce and Ray Allen into the same headspace.