Cavs Continue Hot Preseason Start, Stomp Olympiacos
Shaquille O’Neal went airborne at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland on Monday night, as Superman and the King, LeBron James, brought the Cavs to their third straight preseason victory with a 111-94 win over Olympiacos of Greece.
O’Neal leaped into the seats when a player for Olympiacos pushed him in the back on a fast break during the first half. Shaq careened into the seats, landing on an empty chair.
“That chair ain’t going to hurt him,” James said. “I feel bad for the chair.”
“I just try to land safely,” O’Neal said. “I look out for sharp objects, land and spring back up.”
All the high-flying Shaq drama aside, the Cavs continued to look hungry in the preseason, with LeBron and Shaq each scoring 12 for Cleveland. The two perennial All-Stars are still figuring each other out and establishing court chemistry with each other.
“It’s still continuing, where he wants the ball, where he likes the ball,” James said. “We’re going to force-feed him the ball if he wants it, and I think he does. He’s one of the all-time leading scorers in this league’s history, so we know he can score the ball.”
The Cavs played without their starting backcourt, as PG Mo Williams sat out with a sore right groin, while SG Delonte West continues to take time away from the team to deal with personal problems. For what it’s worth, Cleveland coach Mike Brown said Williams “easily could have played,” suggesting that his injury wasn’t too serious.
The Cavs moved to 3-0 in the preseason with their win over Olympiacos.
