There's one thing I do know, and it's that this game -- regular season game -- has the feel of a WWE Pay Per View event. It has been built up as a raucous crowd, full of signs, chants, laughs, boos, and object throwing that I'm not so sure the fans in attendance know how they're going to react, or even how they're supposed to react.
In my constant effort to find cross-sport references, I was reminded of a little baseball incident that occurred in June of 2002. Mets pitcher Shawn Estes found himself in an incredibly uncomfortable situation pitching against Roger Clemens in Shea Stadium. Playing by National League rules, this game would mark the first time since the 2000 World Series that the Mets had the opportunity to pitch to Clemens.
Mets catcher Mike Piazza suffered a concussion after being hit in the head with a Clemens fastball midway through the 2000 season. The two would square off later that year in the World Series. Clemens flung a piece of Piazza's broken bat at him while he ran down the first base line.
Estes' 2002 start was billed as a revenge game for Piazza and the Mets. The Mets would finally have the chance to get Clemens back for the recklessness he exhibited two years prior. Estes wasn't even a member of the Mets in 2000 but tried to bean Clemens because he was supposed to bean Clemens.
The result? A wild fastball in the high 80s that Estes threw about a foot behind Clemens. The build-up had been for naught, as it was clear that Estes wanted no part of beaning a player in the 3rd inning of a 0-0 game.
I'm worried that the same outside pressure to react a certain way has been placed upon the Cleveland fans in attendance. "Tonight, everyone is a Cavs fan" has been a popular saying. Fans of other teams across the country will be tuning in to see how Cleveland reacts. Many of them will be disappointed if mayhem doesn't ensue.
It's easy to be the guy on sideline saying, "Do this, do that," when you're not the one doing it. It's even easier to watch a city burn itself down and watch gleefully because you don't live in that city. I remember a 2001 in Cleveland Browns Stadium. The refs blew a call on the field, allowed the Browns to run another play and then chose to review the call. They overturned a catch that would have given the Browns a first and goal from the nine yard line, down five points, with 48 seconds and no timeouts. They got the call right, but shouldn't have been allowed to review it because another play had already been run.
Browns fans threw bottles onto the field -- at players, coaches, and mostly the referees. When the players returned to the field a half an hour later to complete the game, the sidelines were filled with empty bottles and cans that had to be cleared off the field.
I think many people are hoping for a scene like that. People that have no stake in the Cavs, Heat, or the city of Cleveland.
Probably the most fascinating aspect of this story, despite being over discussed to the point of nausea, is LeBron's powder toss. A large ball of confusion is is mixed up in that small amount of powder.
Somewhere along the line, LeBron, his powder toss, and Cleveland fans combined to form the holy trinity of Cavaliers basketball. No doubt, the large WITNESS Nike ad that once hung from the Landmark Office Tower had something to do with that.
LeBron is his own separate entity. The powder toss is his pregame routine. It caught on with the Cleveland fans and the advertising world capitalized off it. Why would he change his pregame routine? It's his routine. The sooner that distinction is made clear, the better.
Cleveland can say, throw, or light on fire whatever they want. I'm not from Cleveland and I don't root for the Cavs, none of the reaction will reflect badly on me. We watch basketball because of the product on the court. The players are supposed to be the entertainers, not the fans.
Just a reminder, for those interested in things other than a good basketball game, perhaps you should direct your attention to Thursday night's WWE Smackdown, which also airs at 7 PM.
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