| The Cleveland Trinity Authored by Patrick Daher - March 6, 2008 - 3:47 pm
| Current Featured Columns | | Breaking Down The 2nd Round After a somewhat surprising first round of the 2008 NBA playoffs, we find ourselves with even better match-ups in the Round of Eight.
Prospect Report: Brook Lopez Of StanfordFor a team looking for a well-developed offensive game at center, Brook Lopez is the 2008 Draft’s best option.
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Chicago and Boston fans seem to think they were cursed, but how many championships did the Bulls and Celtics win over the years?
To be cursed in one sport is one thing, but in all three major sports is straight out of a horror film.
In case you are wondering, the president the last time a Cleveland team won a championship was Lyndon Johnson and the average gas price was a diminutive 30 cents.
Things have certainly changed since then, but one thing remains the same: Cleveland still has yet to see a ticker tape parade in the streets of downtown C-town for a modern-day championship title.
Throughout that time, Cleveland sports fans have seen a host of general managers try to lead the Cavaliers, Browns and Indians. Some have made good decisions, others have been downright incompetent.
There was the Boozer debacle and the draft busts of Tim Couch, William Green, Courtney Brown, and Gerard Warren to name a few. For every Wayne Embry and John Hart, there came along a Dwight Clark and Jim Paxson. Promises of winning were often echoed, but results never followed.
Insert Danny Ferry, Phil Savage, and Mark Shapiro, and Cleveland fans now have a sense of hope and direction. In the past year, under the reigns of these gentlemen, the Cavaliers have reached the NBA Finals, the Indians were one win away from the World Series and the Browns notched their first 10-win season since 1994.
Although these men have turned around their respective franchises, the route they took to build each one has differed. Danny Ferry stayed patient in letting a team built around LeBron James gain experience in the playoffs. He had the same roster for two consecutive years and did not push any buttons until the recent blockbuster that netted Ben Wallace, Joe Smith, Delonte West, and Wally Szczerbiak.
Phil Savage used his owner’s deep pockets to net free agents like Eric Steinbach and Jamal Lewis and his draft prowess to nab superstars in the making like Braylon Edwards and Kamerion Wimbley.
Mark Shapiro stayed true to his farm system and called up prospects to strengthen his team.
It is safe to say that these GMs have the full support of ownership. Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert is not afraid to spend money and has given Ferry the green light to go over the luxury tax. Ferry has responded by signing Zydrunas Ilgauskas to an extension and by recently taking on the contract of Ben Wallace.
Browns owner Randy Lerner is another owner who is not afraid to spend tons of cash and this is apparent as Phil Savage has offered big money to free agents.
Although Shapiro has not signed any lucrative deals for players outside of the farm system, he has re-upped cornerstone players in Grady Sizemore, Victor Martinez, and Travis Hafner.
The one thing all these GMs have in common is the pressure to win now and elevate their teams to championship levels. Ferry may have the shortest leash in that he needs to show King James that he is capable of putting a championship team on the floor before LeBron’s contract runs out in 2010.
Gone is the “Cleveland way” where draft picks always seemed to be overvalued and building for the future was always mentioned. For all three sports franchises, the time is now and Ferry, Shapiro, and Savage will either be the goats or heroes. Until it happens, Cleveland can only put their faith in the men that lead their beloved sports teams. |
