ducks
10-09-2004, 09:30 PM
Wagner impresses Silas at intrasquad scrimmage
By Brian Windhorst, Beacon Journal staff writer
COLUMBUS - It was a little early for a reunion, but uplifting nonetheless.
After missing time this week for personal reasons, both Dajuan Wagner and LeBron James rejoined the Cavaliers in time for Friday's public scrimmage at Capital University. For James, it was a return after becoming a father on Wednesday morning; for Wagner, it was a return from dealing with a family emergency back home in New Jersey.
For both, it was a release.
James' jumper was rusty, but he ran the floor well with the first unit, scoring nine points. But it was Wagner, who started camp looking for a role, who really stole the show, scoring a game-high 19 points in a flurry of positive plays.
Wagner hit jumpers, showed creative drives to the basket for points and even ran the point a little, looking as effective as he ever has. Considering he had just flown in from visiting his sister, Dashandra, in the hospital, it was quite a performance. He went home to be at her side after she fractured her skull in a bus accident in Camden, N.J., on Tuesday. Wagner has also been dealing with the drug trial of his stepfather, Leonard Paulk.
"It has been tough, all the things going on," Wagner said. "Before I got there, she wasn't conscious and she was asking everybody who was who and she thought my uncle was me. I really wanted to go and see her."
Wagner is battling for minutes with Lucious Harris and Sasha Pavlovic in the reserve guard role and certainly made a good first impression.
"It just shows the talent this young fella has," Cavaliers coach Paul Silas said after seeing the wine team beat the white team 80-76. "He's had a lot of hardships to beset him. Just to come out and play the way he played almost clear-minded, like none of that stuff mattered, it was very impressive to me."
Wagner is healthy in training camp for the first time in his career.
"I haven't been able to touch the ball in the summertime until this year," Wagner said. "Basketball gets stuff off your mind, so this helps me a lot."
James' absence was on happier terms. Though he's very guarded when talking about his personal life, he said the baby and mother were home and doing well.
"This is a happy time for me, but my mind is focused on basketball anytime I'm out on the court," James said. "It was a great experience. You'll see him at a game coming up."
There were plenty of other story lines developing at the Capital Center, the most intense of which was the battle between power forwards Robert Traylor and Drew Gooden. Though Gooden has been deemed the replacement for Carlos Boozer, Traylor came into camp vowing to make him earn the starting spot.
The two certainly showed the budding rivalry, banging into each other on the blocks all evening. Gooden was impressive, scoring under the basket, driving and shooting from midrange. Traylor also showed some effective post moves on his opposite number.
Jeff McInnis and Eric Snow played together as Silas' experiment in his starting backcourt continued to unfold. They seemed to display good chemistry as Snow assisted McInnis on three baskets even as McInnis ran the point.
Brazilian rookie forward Anderson Varejao showed good athleticism and ferocity on the boards in his time on the floor with one minor comical setback. After playing professionally for three years in Spain, he thought he could still take the ball off the rim as European rules allow. He did so off a foul shot by Art Long but, since nobody knew the Portuguese word for "goaltending," he didn't understand what he'd done wrong.
Training camp invitee Jimmy "Snap" Hunter also made a positive impression by drilling four 3-pointers and scoring 16 points. He did some of it after rolling his left ankle as well.
"We have a lot of things to work on," Silas said. "But if this is any indication as to what we can become, I think we can become a pretty good team."
Messages for Brian Windhorst can be left at 330-996-3819 or [email protected]
By Brian Windhorst, Beacon Journal staff writer
COLUMBUS - It was a little early for a reunion, but uplifting nonetheless.
After missing time this week for personal reasons, both Dajuan Wagner and LeBron James rejoined the Cavaliers in time for Friday's public scrimmage at Capital University. For James, it was a return after becoming a father on Wednesday morning; for Wagner, it was a return from dealing with a family emergency back home in New Jersey.
For both, it was a release.
James' jumper was rusty, but he ran the floor well with the first unit, scoring nine points. But it was Wagner, who started camp looking for a role, who really stole the show, scoring a game-high 19 points in a flurry of positive plays.
Wagner hit jumpers, showed creative drives to the basket for points and even ran the point a little, looking as effective as he ever has. Considering he had just flown in from visiting his sister, Dashandra, in the hospital, it was quite a performance. He went home to be at her side after she fractured her skull in a bus accident in Camden, N.J., on Tuesday. Wagner has also been dealing with the drug trial of his stepfather, Leonard Paulk.
"It has been tough, all the things going on," Wagner said. "Before I got there, she wasn't conscious and she was asking everybody who was who and she thought my uncle was me. I really wanted to go and see her."
Wagner is battling for minutes with Lucious Harris and Sasha Pavlovic in the reserve guard role and certainly made a good first impression.
"It just shows the talent this young fella has," Cavaliers coach Paul Silas said after seeing the wine team beat the white team 80-76. "He's had a lot of hardships to beset him. Just to come out and play the way he played almost clear-minded, like none of that stuff mattered, it was very impressive to me."
Wagner is healthy in training camp for the first time in his career.
"I haven't been able to touch the ball in the summertime until this year," Wagner said. "Basketball gets stuff off your mind, so this helps me a lot."
James' absence was on happier terms. Though he's very guarded when talking about his personal life, he said the baby and mother were home and doing well.
"This is a happy time for me, but my mind is focused on basketball anytime I'm out on the court," James said. "It was a great experience. You'll see him at a game coming up."
There were plenty of other story lines developing at the Capital Center, the most intense of which was the battle between power forwards Robert Traylor and Drew Gooden. Though Gooden has been deemed the replacement for Carlos Boozer, Traylor came into camp vowing to make him earn the starting spot.
The two certainly showed the budding rivalry, banging into each other on the blocks all evening. Gooden was impressive, scoring under the basket, driving and shooting from midrange. Traylor also showed some effective post moves on his opposite number.
Jeff McInnis and Eric Snow played together as Silas' experiment in his starting backcourt continued to unfold. They seemed to display good chemistry as Snow assisted McInnis on three baskets even as McInnis ran the point.
Brazilian rookie forward Anderson Varejao showed good athleticism and ferocity on the boards in his time on the floor with one minor comical setback. After playing professionally for three years in Spain, he thought he could still take the ball off the rim as European rules allow. He did so off a foul shot by Art Long but, since nobody knew the Portuguese word for "goaltending," he didn't understand what he'd done wrong.
Training camp invitee Jimmy "Snap" Hunter also made a positive impression by drilling four 3-pointers and scoring 16 points. He did some of it after rolling his left ankle as well.
"We have a lot of things to work on," Silas said. "But if this is any indication as to what we can become, I think we can become a pretty good team."
Messages for Brian Windhorst can be left at 330-996-3819 or [email protected]