Perkins: Cavaliers 'haven't won nothing'
By DAN DUGGAN
The Boston Herald
March 14, 2010 12:00 AM

WALTHAM — Kendrick Perkins was fully aware that his words would be received as trash talk. And the Celtics center had no problem delivering a message to the Cavaliers in his typically blunt fashion.

"They still haven't won nothing," Perkins said after yesterday's practice. "They're just the best team in the league. They still haven't done nothing we haven't done. Right now, they're the best team in the league and we just got to go at them."

The C's will go at the Cavs today at 3:30 p.m. in Cleveland. It will be the third meeting of the season, with the squads splitting the first two.

While the Celtics are nine games behind the Cavs and have conceded the Eastern Conference No. 1 seed, they aren't conceding today's game.

"I think we will (win); I really do," Doc Rivers said. "I think we'll come in and play terrific. But we just got to play hard. There's no guarantees."

Cleveland currently features a smaller, more dynamic lineup. Shaquille O'Neal has been sidelined with an injured right thumb he suffered against the Celtics on Feb. 25. The Cavs hope to get O'Neal back for the playoffs, but they aren't missing him much.

The Cavs have gone 7-1 without O'Neal, including the game against the C's. O'Neal left that matchup midway through the second quarter with the Celtics leading by 11. Without the big fella clogging the middle, the Cavs ran the C's off the Garden court, cruising to a 108-88 win.

J.J. Hickson, a 6-foot-9 leaper in his second season, has shifted to the middle in O'Neal's absence. It's a switch that Perkins considers an upgrade.

"In my opinion, I think they're better," Perkins said. "They can run more. You've got Anderson Varejao, who's more of an active body. He gets LeBron (James) open a lot — opens up the paint for him.

"I think they're a better team. Obviously Shaq can help them, but I think they're better — a more fast-paced team."

Perkins called Varejao, the pesky 6-foot-10 energizer off the bench, a frustrating opponent to face. Varejao torched the C's for 14 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in the last meeting, but Perkins said his strategy will be simple today.

"You just got to take him out of the game," Perkins said. "All the time, he's more of the instigator. I think you gotta be more of the instigator when you're playing against him. You got to hit him first. He's a guy who flops to get a lot of calls, takes charges, offensive rebounds. I think you just got to keep a body on him and play against him hard."

The biggest change for the Cavs has been the addition of Antawn Jamison. Cleveland snatched Jamison from the Wizards at the trade deadline and the smooth power forward has averaged 17.0 points and 7.5 rebounds in 10 games. Jamison missed Friday's win over Philadelphia with stiffness in his left knee, but he is expected to play today.

"You've got to think right when Shaq went down was right when Jamison was coming in, so it gives them the ability to go small in some ways and very skilled, with Jamison at the 4 or the 5," Rivers said. "That makes them pretty tough to guard."

Perkins is prepared for the challenge.

"I'm looking forward to the game, seeing exactly where we're at, just going out there and competing with a great team," Perkins said. "They're at home, best in the NBA (28-4), just seeing where we're at. I think it'll be a great confidence boost for us to go in their home building and get a win.''

About the Cavaliers ...

1. Since joining the Cavs, Antawn Jamison is averaging 17 points, shooting 48 percent (39 percent on 3-pointers). According to 82games.com, the Cavs are outscoring the opposition by 14.8 points with Jamison on the court. They are 7-1 with Jamison in the lineup. He sat out Friday's game at Philadelphia with a minor knee problem. The Cavs were aware that Jamison's knee sometimes flares up, so this was not surprise. If Friday were a playoff game, Jamison would have been in the lineup.

2. The strange part of Jamison's performance is how he's a 73 percent career shooter from the foul line, but 47 percent (18-of-38) since the trade. He has no explanation for it. In March, he 7-of-20 (35 percent).

3. Since his thumb surgery, Shaquille O'Neal has been recovering at his home in Florida. The Cavs have sent an assistant trainer to help him stay in shape, and O'Neal is expected to be back in town within a week. The key was avoiding an infection after the surgery, and it seems that has been accomplished and his thumb is healing well.

The Cavs still are not expecting him before the playoffs, but O'Neal wants to be back for the final week of the regular season.

4. Suppose J.J. Hickson were in this college draft, how high would he picked? Certainly in the top 10. The 21-year-old Hickson should be a junior at N.C. State. That's why he is making such progress in his second pro season, growing in every area from physical to emotional to learning the pro game. Since O'Neal was injured and Hickson became the starting center on March 1, he is averaging 10.8 points, 7.0 rebounds and shooting 51 percent in 24 minutes per game.

5. Hickson averaged 14.8 points and 8.5 rebounds in his only season at N.C. State, where he also shot 59 percent. He was second in the ACC in rebounding. General Manager Danny Ferry knew Hickson needed time to mature, but also realized that it's rare to find a 6-9 big man with such obvious physical gifts at No. 19 in the draft. He resisted the offers to trade Hickson, as Indiana (for Troy Murphy) and Washington (for Jamison) wanted him. So did Phoenix, but the Suns wanted other players in the package -- and in the end, decided to keep Amare Stoudemire.

6. In the 97-95 victory over San Antonio, Hickson impressed the coaching staff by battling Tim Duncan, who had only 13 points and five rebounds compared to 12 points and seven rebounds for Hickson. A few months ago, Duncan probably would have destroyed Hickson and enticed the young Cavalier into foul trouble. About 65 percent of Hickson's field goals are "at the rim," mostly dunks and layups. But the Cavs want him playing inside, moving without the ball to catch passes from LeBron James and also crashing the boards for offensive rebounds to take advantage of his leaping ability.

7. Leon Powe started Friday night, and was 3-of-6 shooting for seven points and three rebounds in 15 minutes. The Cavs need to use this time with O'Neal hurt to see if Powe can help come the playoffs. It seemed a waste when played only four minutes over the last three games before Philadelphia, as time went to Darnell Jackson and Danny Green. Powe is far more likely to be a contributor than either of those two young players. But Powe needs court time to get into game shape after coming back from major knee surgery.

SQ_Crazies wrote: Well, now I'm very interested in watching the battle underneath tomorrow. Also in reference to Shaq, don't wake a sleeping giant Perk. I expect Shaq to see that and ask what Perkins has ever done. Hopefully the C's don't choke before they get to the Cavs in the playoffs so we can see Shaq light Perkins up for 4 games.

The Cavs are outscoring the opposition by 14.8 points with Jamison on the court.

devil1197 wrote:

The Cavs are outscoring the opposition by 14.8 points with Jamison on the court.

What???

I thought Poon Tawn Jamison sucks.