The Cavaliers could use some help at the Center position

On Friday night, the Cavaliers previewed the new team and offense in the annual Wine & Gold Scrimmage.  By all accounts, the game was a constant fastbreak, and it seemed like the Cavs were not completely adjusted to the new system under Coach Byron Scott.  Take this with a grain of salt, because there were several key players missing;  Antawn Jamison, Mo Williams, and Anderson Varejao did not participate.

There were several bright spots, most notably the play of Ramon Sessions as well as Cavs veteran Daniel "Boobie" Gibson.  Ramon seemed to have the best grasp of the new, uptempo offense, and it translated in the scorer's books;  Sessions finished with a game-high 13 points to go along with 4 assists, as he led the "Wine" team to a 47-41 victory (for what it's worth.)  Ramon has made it clear that he feels very comfortable in the "Princeton" style of offense Scott employs, and enjoys the seemingly unlimited amount of freedom afforded to him. 

Gibson started at the point for the "Gold" team, and was thus matched up against Sessions in what turned out to be a fun battle to watch.  With Mo Williams penciled in as the starter, it appears that Ramon and Boobie will be fighting for playing time, although you might see Boobie as well as Williams get some minutes at the 2 guard.  Byron obviously wants this team to press the ball, and he likes what Sessions is doing with the team so far.  He has the ability to see the floor very well, and often took advantage of open lanes and nicely utilizing pick-and-rolls.

There was however, a glaring issue that shouldn't really come as much of a surprise.  With Anderson Varejao in Brazil tending to family matters, the Cavaliers looked almost pathetically thin at the Center position.  Varejao undoubtedly will be the starter when the season opens, but he's not really accustomed to that role.  Our other only legitimate option at center is Ryan Hollins, who will be a work-in-progress this season.

The only other possibility the Cavaliers have at center as of right now is to slide one of our Power Forwards over, but that could prove to haunt us when we're matched up against the legitimate Centers in the east.  Don't get me wrong, I love J.J. Hickson, but he probably would get demolished against Dwight Howard.  Leon Powe could also play the Center, but he's still recovering from a serious knee surgery. 

That leaves Varejao and Hollins as our two options, and it's clear that the Cavs will be in the market for another big man.  Other teams know how limited we are with the departure of O'Neal as well as Ilgauskas, and they will exploit that weakness.  Sure, playing small can also have it's benefits.. but just ask the Phoenix Suns how far that got them.

Can the Cavaliers make the playoffs with our current predicament at center?  It's not out of the question.  Will we have a chance against the likes of Boston, Orlando, and Miami?  Nope.  I'm not sure who the Cavs will go after, but don't believe Byron Scott when he says that he's "not sure" if we'll need to add another Center.  This team has some good pieces right now, but its obvious we're missing another 7 footer.  Defending and rebounding in the paint might be the biggest weakness of this team right now.  Hopefully we'll get Varejao back soon, as well as Williams and Jamison.  Tomorrow we open up the preseason against the Bobcats, and only 23 more days until Boston rolls into town for the season opener.  The season is less than a month away, and the clock is ticking.