Trading Andrew Bynum

Cleveland Cavaliers Tickets – Ilgauskas’ Possible Return To Cleveland Couldn’t Work Better For Cavs

With aging center Shaquille O’Neal now out for up to eight weeks with a thumb injury, the Cleveland Cavaliers may want Zydrunas Ilgauskas back on their roster much more than they originally anticipated.  After being traded to the Washington Wizards, Ilgauskas has since been waived and is currently available to sign with anyone in the league.

Considering Ilgauskas has a home in Cleveland, where he has spent his entire NBA career, it looks like a rekindling with his old squad would benefit both sides greatly, and regardless of whether or not the Cavs should be able to re-sign him so quickly, Ilgauskas’ likely return will have a significant impact on the way the NBA postseason shakes out.

Even though Ilgauskas’ career in Cleveland has been met with significant criticism, he has still been a stable core for the team even without ever climbing to be among the top centers in the league.   At 7’3″, Ilgauskas provides much-needed length for a team with title aspirations, as the Cavs will possibly have to go through both the Dwight Howard-led Magic and the Los Angeles Lakers, who have considerable length in Andrew Bynum, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom.  Without Shaq and Ilgauskas, the Cavs are currently relying on 6’11″ Anderson Varajeo and 6’9″ J.J. Hickson to get them through the regular season, though they have never been more than active role players in the past.

Ilgauskas returning certainly doesn’t solidify them as the team to beat, but it should confirm them as the most dominant team in the East.  With the Cavs sprucing up their lineup by trading for Antawn Jamison, not to mention LeBron continuing his MVP-worthy season, they don’t need too much out of the center position for them to reach the NBA Finals.  Still, it’s very difficult to win in the postseason without some presence inside and with Shaq’s season in doubt, Ilgauskas’ potential return should remind the league that the Cavs are still among the league’s elite teams.

Perhaps having an even greater importance beyond just this year is the impact that this season will likely have on what LeBron does this summer.  With every team that has space under the salary cap expected to throw a max contract LeBron’s way at the end of the season, the weight of the Cavs franchise now hangs in the balance.

Signing Jamison, who is noted for being a very team-oriented player, certainly shows that the Cavs are committed to winning, yet there is no guarantee that the Cavs will be able to retain LeBron if they don’t have a strong finish to the season.  Though it hardly needs to be said at this point, Cleveland Cavaliers tickets will be directly impacted by which direction LeBron heads next season, not to mention the entire franchise.

While the Cavs set themselves up with Shaq in the beginning of the season to provide an interior presence, his thumb injury has the potential to jeopardize the whole season.  Not only will Shaq have to overcome injury to be effective, which is a tough thing to do for a player set to turn 38 in early March, he will likely have to get back into game shape in the middle of the postseason.  If Ilgauskas returns to the lineup, there will be far less pressure on Shaq’s return and Varajeo will be able to return to the power forward position, where he is much better suited.

The overarching story for the entire league goes beyond the Cleveland Cavs, however, as Ilgauskas’ potential return once again illustrates a significant problem for the NBA.  Under the current rules, a team can trade a player knowing that his contract will be waived by the other team, which gives them the opportunity to pick the player back up just 30 days later.  It’s a rule loophole that has drawn considerable criticism in recent years yet has not yet been amended by the NBA, and the Cavs are in prime position to be its beneficiary.

Regardless of whether the NBA addresses the situation in the offseason, though, for now it appears that the Cavs will be able to significantly improve their chances of winning a title by bringing Ilgauskas back to their already impressive starting lineup.  With his size and length in the middle, the Cavs should be able to compete against any team they face, even if Shaq proves to be less than reliable recovering from thumb surgery.  While the NBA may consider a rule change in the offseason to close the loophole, for this season it may just provide the NBA’s biggest star LeBron his best chance yet to win a title.

About the Author

This article about Cleveland Cavaliers tickets was written by David James in association with StubHub, a leader in the sports tickets, concert tickets, theatre tickets and special events tickets market.

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