Fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers got their first look at the 2012-13 team during their annual Wine and Gold scrimmage held at Quicken Loans Arena on Saturday, October 6. Gold won the matchup by the score of 54-44 but the real winner was Byron Scott who got to see his team perform in a game situation giving him the information needed to make improvements during camp and into the preseason.
"Our guys are still doing a lot of thinking out there and that's something we want to get them away from. And hopefully the next couple weeks they can get back to just playing and reacting." Coach Scott stated.
The Gold team started Anderson Varejao, Tristan Thompson, Jeremy Pargo, Omri Casspi and C.J. Miles whole the Wine team featured Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters, Tyler Zeller, Alonzo Gee, and Jon Leuer.
Irving, as expected, led both teams shooting 5-13 from the floor including two three-pointers for 13 points on the night. He also logged five assists. The opportunity to see Irving and Waiters playing together was a big draw for fans in attendance.
"First and foremost I'd like the fans for coming out and supporting us the way they did," said Waiters. "It was really fun, getting up and down, going against the other guys. Playing with Kyrie, that was my first time. We never play together in practice."
Waiters showed promise in his first look going 4-9 from the floor and 4-5 in free throws to finish with 12 points on the night. While not the most popular draft pick, he is certainly an improvement at shooting guard over Daniel Gibson. Ultimately it was a position that needed to be covered and with Bradley Beal off the board, it was their best option. Time will tell if it was the right move in the end.
"Dion's going to do a phenomenal job," praised Kyrie. "He's getting better every single day, in terms of watching film and getting more prepared. Right now, it's about (the game) slowing down, but I know Dion will get acclimated."
Irving's statement is exactly what everyone wants to hear moving forward. The Cavaliers are still a young team walking a fine line between a playoff and lottery team this season. Plenty of fans considered it an error of judgment that he was taken with the No. 4 overall pick in the draft, I have a feeling GM Chris Grant knows something the rest of us don't.
More Cleveland Cavaliers Commentary from Paul Rados:
Alonzo Gee signs with the Cleveland Cavaliers: A fan's reaction
Dion Waiters admits he was out of shape for Cavaliers' Summer League: A fan's reaction
Cavaliers acquire Jeremy Pargo, draft pick in trade with Memphis: A fan's reaction
Ex-Cavalier Antawn Jamison inks deal with Los Angeles Lakers: A fan's reaction
Are the Los Angeles Lakers becoming the Cleveland Cavaliers? A fan's look
Sources:
All data provided by NBA.com
Paul Rados is an avid Cleveland Cavaliers fan and a Featured Contributor for the Yahoo! Contributor Network. Follow him on Twitter @PSRados.
