Wizards stomped by Shaq and the Cavs

November 4, 4:03 PMWashington Wizards ExaminerGeorge Panagakos

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Early Washington foul trouble gave Cleveland some mismatch
opportunities, although, for Shaquille O'Neal (right), there aren't
many matches in this league. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

The Washington Wizards squandered an 18 point lead in a 102-90 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers last night.  Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler scored 22 points a piece in the loss, while early foul trouble against Shaquille O'Neal limited Washington's bigs.

Four-time NBA Champion Shaquille O'Neal scored 21 points and secured 8 rebounds last night as he entered the debate on the questionable Washington-Cleveland rivalry.  Without a doubt, Shaq's performance was his best on the season.

While Washington jumped ahead with an early 31-17 first quarter lead, and held as much as an 18-point advantage in the second quarter, one of the reasons the Cavs rallied back was because Washington's bigs had no way to stop Shaq other than to foul him.  Much like Washington's loss to the Atlanta Hawks last Friday, foul trouble opened up the paint, and the Cavs out-scored Washington 40-22 in the painted area by the final whistle.

Postgame, Cavs Head Coach Mike Brown talked about the Cavs' slow start, Shaquille's presence, and his 7-for-10, what seemed like a playoffs-like free throw percentage.  Actually?  Shaq just likes to play against Washington for some reason.  The last time Shaq shot over 70% from the free throw line, given 10 or more attempts, was last January, when the Phoenix Suns visited the Wizards.  You might remember that game as the time Shaq kissed Caron Butler on the head.  Shaq scored 29 points in that love affair of a game, and went 9-for-10 from the charity stripe as the Suns went on to defeat the Wizards.

My colleague, Craig Stouffer, wrote an excellent report on last night's game by explaining, with four reasons, why the season series between Washington and Cleveland is not a rivalry, highlighting Shaq's dominance as one of those four reasons.  His last reason, the case of not mentioning LeBron James, is perhaps his strongest reason, although much like no one can stop Shaq, even at his advanced age of 37, James can effortlessly pick up 27 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals in just under 36 minutes against any team in this league.

One aspect of LeBron's personality that is always fun to analyze is the way he talks to referees.  Honestly, it seems like after every call, LeBron is there to debate.  However, communicating with the referees is not always a bad idea if you can change calls down the stretch of a game, and Washington could have used a little more communication last night.

Washington seemed to be on the wrong side of several calls last night, one I have to highlight.  With four minutes left in the fourth quarter, the score 94-82, DeShawn Stevenson blocked the shot of Mo Williams, resulting in a fast break opportunity for Andray Blatche and Brendan Haywood.  Blatche had the ball, guarded by Daniel Gibson, and as Blatche passed the ball to an open Haywood in the lane, Blatche's momentum carried him into Gibson.  However, Gibson's feet were clearly moving laterally as Blatche moved forward along the baseline.  Therefore, the call on the court should have either been a no call, or a blocking foul on Gibson, right?  However, the referee claimed Gibson's feet were set, and charged Blatche for an offensive foul instead.

In every game there will be one or two slip-ups, and a team needs to play through the bad calls and the good calls.  For example, a Cleveland fan watching last night's game could highlight a moment when Caron Butler clearly went up to collect his own air ball jumper, which should have been a turnover.  However, with four minutes left and a chance to cut the lead down to 10 or even 9 with some momentum, the referee's decision cost Washington big time.

The Wizards will hope to start strong and finish strong tonight at home against the Miami Heat, on the heels of their home opener rout over the New Jersey Nets last Saturday and in the very familiar road-to-home, back-to-back games, situation.  Miami, like Southeast Division opponent Atlanta, defeated Washington 4-0 last season, and the Heat represent the first division challenge at home this season for the Wizards.

Tonight's game will air locally at 7:00 p.m. ET on Comcast SportsNet and nationally as part of an ESPN double-header.  Check your local listings for more information.  You can also tune in to 106.7 The Fan to listen in on the action live.

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