Z's back....in the starting lineup?

So it’s offical now. Z is once again, and rightfully so, a Cleveland Cavalier. We all knew it was going to happen, but it’s nice to finally see it be official.

So what’s this mean for the team and lineups? You may assume that Z would just come in as the starting center since Shaq is still out and JJ Hickson is technically undersized for the 5 spot. Well according to Brian Windhorst’s twitter, Hickson will most likely keep his starting job next to Jamison while Z comes off the bench like he had been doing prior to The Trade.

And because the Cavs already had the league max 15 players on their roster, this means the end of Darnell Jackson’s run as a Cavalier. http://realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/65524/20100323/cleveland_waives_darnell_jackson/ He never really played anyways, but was nonetheless was a good player. Wish him luck, hope he makes it somewhere else.

I’d have to say I like this move. Hickson is very quick and athletic, which is great for the Cavs’ up-temp style. If Z and Antawn Jamison started together, I think they would be too much of a defensive liability. Jamison has never been known for his defense, although he’s shown since coming to Cleveland that he can hold his own, and Z is just too slow to make the quick motions on D. Z is great coming off the bench facing second unit opponents where he can really make a difference with his height alone on the defensive end. But most of all, I just can’t wait to see Z get back in the pick-and-pop game, makin it rain from DEEP IN THE Q!

In other NBA news, the Nuggets lost a close game to the Knicks in New York tonight. The 3rd quarter of that game turned into a 1 on 1 battle between Danilo Gallinari and Carmelo Anthony, just going back and forth shooting jumpers. Gallo actually came out on top in the quarter battle putting up a few more points than Melo.

It also looked like it might come down to the wire in Dallas as well tonight in the Mavericks/Clippers matchup, but the Mavs pulled away early in the 4th quarter behind Jason Kidd’s 3 point birthday barrage, despite losing Dirk Nowitzki earlier in the game to a kind of awkward ejection due to the ref giving out back to back technical fouls on him. Don’t know what Dirk said to the ref, but it must have been pretty bad.