Patrick

yeah I saw that same half time score and that LeBron was in street clothes and decided I didn't need to follow it. Later, mom calls from the north coast to explain how rookie Daniel Gibson contributed big time in 4th qtr, and how the O (62 pts scored) and the D (37 pts allowed) got going. Balanced attack on both sides and a triple double for Andre Miller. Love to have him back in a Cavs uniform.

Yes. In double overtime. And the Cavs got contributions from Hughes and Ilgauskus (not just James). They've hit a rough patch that started halfway through their west coast trip where they are in slow motion, and not defending well. I think they play at Philly next. I'd have to agree on Nash or Dirk as MVP at this point.

...now if he could only hit some free throws

Cavs west coast swing is finally over. After a 7-1 run just before the trip, there was some reason to be optimistic. Ultimately they finished 3-4 (wins: LAC, SAC, GSW, losses: PHX, DEN, SEA, POR). The Sonics and Blazers losses were the tough ones. A 5-2 trip would have been great. Still have the best record in the mediocre east (tied with Gilbert and the Wiz) and a winning record against the west. Still have only one road win against .500+ opponent (Spurs).

Tonight I will experience Lorin Maazel conducting the Symphonica Toscanini. The program includes Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Overture; Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4, and Respighi’s Fontane di Roma and Pini di Roma. Not the biggest Maazel fan, but I'm looking forward to it. Alas, no Bruchner this time. Maybe I'll listen to Freebird or Misterioso on the drive home.

Jets and Chiefs both looked pretty lame this weekend, and probably shouldn't have been in the playoffs. After all, they both lost to the Browns this season (joining only the powerhouse Raiders and Falcons in this regard).

Gilbert should definitely be on the short list for MVP given his season so far. Missed the LeBron shot, but look, the Cavs won a road game on the second night of back-to-back games! And Ilgauskus has 27! Sure it was against Boston minus Pierce, but you gotta start somewhere.

Tough, ugly win for the Cavs over the Spurs last night 82-78. Cavs shot 36% from the field and 62% from the line, scoring nearly half their pts (38) in the 4th qtr. And the officiating wasn't too good (at least according to the Cavs radio guy, and I presume, Poppovich and Carlesimo who collected 3 techs between them). Nice to see Larry Hughes as the main instigator during the late comeback/surge. Now 9 of next 10 on road. With Sixers beating Nuggets, Bulls nearly beating Suns, and Cavs over Spurs, maybe the Eastern Conference showed a pulse last night, however briefly.

previous discussion (hopefully I did this correctly)

Looks like they were frustrated by less than stellar play and effort, especially the latter. I wouldn't have been booing, but there would be some disgust. I'm confident something similar would happen at the Palace or anywhere else (provided they didn't flee for the exits first). There is still a lot of talent on that team other than LeBron: Hughes, Gooden, even Ilgauskus. Varajao and Gibson show promise. It's other guys (rumored outside shooters) like Donyell Marshall, Damon Jones, Eric Snow, David Wesley that haven't contributed much for a long time. They are still 11-3 at home (best home record in the association), and they play in the east. They're not playing well now, and they have a long west coast trip coming up. Hopefully, play will improve and they'll be back on the short list of contenders in the east.

As Rick Majerus pointed out the other night, there is no "I" in "team", but there is in "Iverson". Count me among the non-fans. I think Philly did well in the trade, and maybe if Melo/AI work out in Denver it will be a mutually beneficial trade. Cavs falling into familiar pattern of watching LeBron try to win games single-handedly. Oh for a playmaking point guard. And some consistency from Larry Hughes and Damon Jones. And signs of life from Donyell Marshall and Eric Snow. Has Rasheed Wallace transformed himself entirely into the next Bill Laimbeer (big man that only takes jump shots)? Why wasn't he on the block abusing Ilgauskus and Gooden last night. [One answer: he didn't need to, at least when the game got into the 4th qtr].

Interesting contest. Nuggets up by as many as 30 in the first half, but Wiz close to within 2 or 3 down the stretch. Then Earl Boykins (with some help from Camby) restores order. If only the Cavs still had Andre Miller or Boykins instead of Eric Snow and Damon Jones.

Congrats! Enjoying the disk, and using it as part of a Christmas gift for a relative. [Part of my recent cd-baby order that also included items from Michael Weiss, Phil Kelly, and Frank Hewitt.] Too bad I missed your stop in DC.

Second and final visit Monday. Very little left in jazz, and classical totally gone at the Tyson's Corner location. Miles, Monk, Coltrane, Dexter, all Impulse, all OJC gone. Just a few old RVGs left. [Another shopper, unfamiliar with jazz, had a copy of Speak No Evil in his hand and asked me if it was good. Told him it was the best jazz album still available.] For a total of $52, I picked up: Ryan Kisor The Dream (Criss Cross) Bill Mays Live at Jazz Standard (Palmetto) Solal/Douglas Rue de Seine (CamJazz) Mary Lou Williams Collective Zodiac Suite: Revisited (Mary Records) [Geri Allen, Buster Williams, Billy Hart, Andrew Cyrille] Joe Lovano Streams of Expression (Blue Note) Bob Belden Three Days of Rain (Sunnyside) Andrew Hill Point of Departure (Blue Note) Passed on the recent Karrin Allyson, and the last Kurt Elling title.

Sifted through the remains in the jazz section with 40% sale. Not too much left. Picked up a number of old RVGs: Life Time, Destination Out, Out to Lunch, Idle Moments, Dippin' plus Monk/Coltrane 1957 Riverside, Mose Allison Sings, Ben Allison Medicine Wheel, Cannonball Adderley's Fiddler on the Roof. 9 titles, including one double, for a total of $78.03. Any opinions on the Martial Solal/Dave Douglas duo recording? Still had a stack of those.

Okay, I think we all agree. It was my first time seeing the Warriors in quite a while. To answer Guy's question, overall Kings shot 43.2% (35/81). From 2-point range they shot 53.1% (34/64). It should fun to watch the GSW improve this year, and I'd say they definitely have a shot at a playoff spot, even in the west. And they're doing it primarily with young players who will be interesting to watch develop. And I'm definitely on board for the proposition that all that matters is scoring more points than your opponent.

OK, the Warriors play some D. Definitely more than sack o' tomato last night, at least in the first half. Still Kings scored 53 in the first half and 105 in the game. I understand if GSW score quickly that provides more opportunity for both teams to score. Kings shot 43% from the field, and a woeful 1/17 from 3-point range. Was that latter number due to great perimeter D by Warriors, or were Kings players open and firing up bricks? [As I said, I only caught the first half.] Those two teams played even after the first quarter, and scored over 100 points. Fast-paced means more chances, but is allowing 100+ points, especially when GSW not extending their lead, indicative of great D? One thing is for sure. Baron Davis appears to be a man on a mission with something to prove, and looks good with a few of the lbs shed. And the young players look like they can play.

I caught only the first half of Warriors/Kings. Baron was definitely the king. But I gotta ask, do any of the teams out in Cali play any D? That thing looked like a layup drill (at least in the first half).

That's what I'm thinking, but then the Cavs' losses have been to Atlanta and Charlotte.

Larry Hughes' injury, initially believed to be a bruised leg, is in fact a high ankle sprain. He'll be sitting for awhile. Cavs travel to take Wiz on Saturday, and then have 4 games in 5 nights (Mem, Tor, Ind, Phi). Hopefully Sasha Pavlovic (and perhaps Damon Jones) will be up to the task.

I've thought about this some, but haven't actually assembled such a mix. I often participate in a spin bike session which usually features rock, techno, motown (lots of U2, occaisionally the US3 hit). Thought about handing an all-jazz disc to the instructor and seeing what would happen (or alternatively use it when I spin by myself). Many of them are included because they provide a steady groove, a groove that may be a bit slow for runners. Herbie Hancock- Cantaloupe Island, Watermelon Man, Chameleon [? hill climb] Miles Davis- All Blues, Freddie Freeloader Roy Haynes- Sneakin' Around Yusef Lateef- Road Runner, Straighten Up and Fly Right, Head Hunters Cannonball Adderley- Who Cares? Sticks Nat Adderley- I Got Plenty o' Nuttin' Wayne Shorter- Adam's Apple Horace Silver- The Preacher, Doodlin' (as cooldown?) Thelonious Monk- Misterioso, Thelonious Art Pepper- Groovin' High, Move Dee Dee Bridgewater- Permit Me to Introduce You to Yourself (as warmup?), Tokyo Blues, Nica's Dream (all from the Horace tribute album) Carmen McRae- It's Over Now, You Know Who, Listen to Monk (all from the Monk tribute album) Mose Allison- What's Your Movie? Josephine, Gettin' There (exhaustion starting to set in), I'm Alive Organissimo- Stomp Yo' Feets, Clap Yo' Hands Dave Douglas- Play It Momma Joanne Brackeen- Everything She Wants, Fi-Fi Goes to Heaven Don Bennett- Dance of the Night Bad Plus- 1979 Semi-Finalist, And Here We Test Our Powers of Observation, Layin' a Strip, Dirty Blonde, Big Eater, 1972 Bronze Medalist, Flim Tomasz Stanko- Suspended Variation II Haven't sequenced such a mix, and one would definitely need to consider some Blakey, Dex, Trane.

Sad news indeed. I attended the same high school as Gerald and Sean (two years ahead of Sean, and I guess one year behind Gerald). Don't recall crossing paths with Gerald in any musical activities there. 40 is way too young.

Larry Flynt Fred Flintstone Fred MacMurray

Tribe deals 3B/1B Kevin Kouzmanoff and reliever Andrew Brown to Padres for 2B Josh Barfield. Tribe has Andy Marte, Victor Martinez, Ryan Garko and Casey Blake to cover 1B/3B so Kouzmanoff unlikely to get a ton of time, and Brown was out of options. Barfield is right handed, has some speed, and could possibly bat second between Sizemore and Hafner. Sophomore season may be tough (like for Peralta), as well as switching leagues, but I like the addition of Barfield. Tribe now needs to work on bullpen plus maybe one veteran bat.

Cleveland beat writer indicates there is a rumor that the Tribe would trade for Sheff. Seems likely they will be outbid by others (and hopefully so). Other veteran bats of interest: Moises Alou and Luis Gonzalez.