Thomas doesn't care about the cavs who plays Joe Dumars Youth Jersey

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Helena
Thomas doesn't care about the cavs who plays Joe Dumars Youth Jersey

The Cavaliers, and particularly LeBron James, have been criticized lately for the team's decision to rest healthy stars. That doesn't seem to bother Thomas in the grand scheme of things. Isaiah Thomas just wants Jerry Stackhouse Womens Jersey to play and win against the Cavaliers Wednesday night. And he couldn't care less if he plays the Big 3 or the benchwarmers. "I mean, at this point, I don't care who plays," Thomas said, via ESPN.com. "If they don't play, that'll be good. If they do, we'll be there at 8 o'clock to play them. I'm fine with either way they go. You can't control that decision but, if they do play, it would definitely be a really good game and, if they don't, we've just got to figure out how to get a win anyway." The Cavaliers are only a half game behind the Celtics, who have a 50-27 record and currently hold the top seed in the Eastern Conference. But with the Cavs so close to the No. 1 spot, coach Tyronn Lue said he is expecting all his starters to play Boston, even though James could be feeling fatigued after he played a career-high 52 minutes in the Cavaliers' double-overtime win against the Pacers Sunday. And Cleveland plays the Magic Tuesday night. Thomas did note that winning the East goes through Cleveland while adding, "They're the defending champions. It definitely goes through them and the whole world knows that. It should be a really good game and everybody's ready for it." Celtics coach Brad Stevens doesn't allow his young team to use the second night of a back-to-back as an excuse for its struggles and didn't see the additional rest before this game as an advantage. "I don't really get into when you're playing people," said Stevens. "I've seen it go any number of ways. I've seen teams be really fresh and get pounded, teams be really fresh and win, teams on the second night of a back-to-back look like the best game they've played all season. So I don't really put a lot of stock into that. It's part of it. And through 82 games you see it all. So it's not part of our discussion. Our discussion is playing well." The Cavaliers sit a http://www.officialmarlinstore.com/Giancarlo_Stanton_Jersey half-game back of the Celtics prior to playing the visiting Orlando Magic on Tuesday. LeBron James played a regular-season career-high 52 minutes in a double-overtime win Sunday over the Indiana Pacers. What's more, the Cavaliers are 1-9 on the road on the second night of back-to-backs this season. Prior to Tuesday night's game, Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue said that his plan, barring any unforeseen scenario, will be to use all of his players against Boston. The Celtics have been off since a breezy matinee win Sunday in New York and returned to practice Tuesday after taking Monday off. The team's practice facility was overflowing with reporters and TV cameras in advance of the possible Celtics-Cavs showdown, but players did their best to downplay the hype building around the game. "This game is big for us," said guard Avery Bradley. "We understand that and we know that it can be a good game for us going into the playoffs. It's going to be a playoff atmosphere. We're playing against a team that's obviously going to be a contender. It's our job to go out there and make sure we're setting our mark now, showing them how we are going to play, so if we do meet up in the playoffs, they know what to expect." When it was noted how the Celtics are still floating a bit below the radar despite holding the top spot in the East, Bradley said the Celtics have rallied around that us-against-the-world mentality all season. "Guys on this team, Isaiah, myself, Jae [Crowder], we all feel like underdogs anyway," said Bradley. "We feel like we've always been overlooked. No one gives us credit and as a team, that's what we expected going into this year. We knew that a lot of people would count us out, a lot of people would say we would be on the bottom of the pack. [They said], yeah, we added Al [Horford], but we might not get over the hump. "We just stuck together and used that as motivation. Every single game this year, we got better and better. Every guy that got an opportunity got better and now we're almost there. We're http://www.officialpistonstore.com/Caron_Butler_Jersey playing the right way, we just have to continue to value every single possession. We're still learning and we're still kind of a young team, but with the leadership we have, I feel like we're making great strides to be where we want to be." So much so, that the Cavs eventually signed Williams for the rest of the season. Williams has a body like LeBron James, he has strength, he has athleticism. He’s a great teammate and a willing defender. So where has Williams been lately? The answer is in his warmups, on the bench, watching everybody else. Not when the Cavs have sometimes looked to be on basketball life support lately. Not when they sometimes have the defensive vigor of sea urchin. Not when they look like they could sometimes use a major pick-me-up during these dog days of the NBA season. Williams is that type of player. He’s a pro basketball go-getter, someone http://www.officialpistonstore.com/Caron_Butler_Jersey who stays in the opponent’s face and only knows one speed — full. He is averaging 7.2 points and shooting 51 percent in 20 games with Cleveland. He also seemed to develop a sudden and strong chemistry with the likes of James and Kyrie Irving. Williams has proven he can do for the Cavs what Varejao and Delly used to do. Yet anymore, he can’t get in the game. But sometimes, Frye or Jefferson or Shumpert aren’t playing like they belong out there. That seemed to be the case a lot in March, when the Cavs went just 7-10. Shumpert and especially Jefferson occasionally look like they’re wearing down, tired, beaten. Same goes for Frye. Not always, but it sure seems to be that way a lot more lately. Is Williams as skilled as the others? No, not really. By comparison, he’s more athlete than basketball player. But that’s a good thing. Sometimes, the Cavs need someone who just brings it and asks questions later. That someone has been Williams since he arrived. And with a first-place in the Eastern Conference in the balance, it may be high time to give Williams another try. "It's just another http://www.officialpistonstore.com/Joe_Dumars_Jersey game," Thomas said. "I think we've got to treat it like that. I mean being No. 1 in the standings, you don't feel different. I don't at least. I'm treating it like another game." For now, Thomas seems to be focusing on just the game at hand and the playoff implications later.