the Wild Thing

                In my mind the heart and soul of the Cleveland cavaliers is the wild thing, Anderson Varejao. He isn’t a big name player and isn’t well known by that many people but Cavs fans know he is the man. He is the biggest hustler in the NBA and has more heart than most players. He is probably the fan favorite when it comes to watching the Cavaliers in the quicken loans arena stadium. When you go to the stadium to watch the Cavs, you will see a lot of wild thing fans wearing the famous wig. The wig is to display the wild hair that Varejao has that helped him get his nickname.

                Offensively the wild thing isn’t the hugest threat and most teams don’t waste time trying to find ways to stop him. Like I said Varejao is the hustler and he is one of the best offensive rebounder in the league. He also is starting to improve his outside shot. This makes him another great player to run the pick and roll with point guard Kyrie Irving. Most teams do not even guard Varejao at fifteen feet from the basket but he has proven that he can now hit those shots. He also is good at drawing fouls on players getting to the free throw line. Getting the other team’s big men in foul trouble helps when it comes to getting points in the paint, because they will not be able to be as aggressive.

                Defensively you couldn’t ask for anyone else to play defense for you. He gets after all of the rebounds even if he isn’t close to the ball. He is one of the best in the NBA at drawing an offensive foul on the opponent. When he doesn’t draw the offensive foul he does a great job at getting his arms straight up to contest a shot without fouling. He will dive on the floor to get a steal or a loose ball depending on the situation. It amazes me how the NBA has yet to give Varejao a defensive player of the year award.

                Varejao is the piece of the puzzle that the Cavaliers need to keep on their team. In my mind he is the best unathletic player in the NBA. I don’t mean that in a bad way I am just saying that he might not have the skill set as some of the greats, but he makes the plays that some do not want to make.