One of Byron Scott's missions for this season is to find out what kind of a player the Cavaliers have in J.J. Hickson.
View full sizeJ.J. Hickson's play has been sporadic for the Cavaliers this season.CLEVELAND, Ohio — The bright lights around LeBron James made many of his teammates feel like stars, especially those whose only NBA team was the Cavaliers with a two-time MVP in the same lineup. That was especially true of J.J. Hickson.
Think about the Cavs power forward, who played only one year at North Carolina State, then signed a contract that guaranteed him $2.7 million over the next two seasons.
All of that at the age of 19 before dribbling the ball once as a pro.
Last season, he averaged 8.5 points, 4.9 rebounds and started 73 games. Nearly all of his points were near the rim, be it on fast break or when James was double-teamed, leaving Hickson open.
Hickson received credit for his good games and seldom was blamed for a poor performance. What Hickson often heard was that former coach Mike Brown should play the 6-9 power forward more often.
Now James is gone.
Hickson was the one guy who was not going to be traded, the one Cavalier who is young and gifted enough to be an impact player. Handed a chance to start in front of veteran Antawn Jamison, Hickson discovered what life is like for most NBA players. The easy layups and dunks left town with James. The soft approach in the dressing room departed with Brown.
Byron Scott arrived and realized that Hickson has major work to do when it comes to maturity.
View full sizeCavs coach Byron Scott is pushing J.J. Hickson to improve.That's why Hickson was removed from the starting lineup six games ago.
"I told J.J. that it wasn't about blaming him for the losing streak," Scott said. "I changed the lineup [benching Jamario Moon and Hickson in favor of Daniel Gibson and Jamison] because we needed a new approach in a lot of areas."
When it was mentioned that Hickson claimed he didn't hear about the change until right before the game, Scott sighed. He explained that it was the day a blizzard hit Cleveland. He planned to talk with several players at length, but most were very late.
"Only Antawn got there early, so he knew about it in advance," Scott said.
As a starter, Hickson average 11.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and shot 46 percent from the field in 25 minutes. At times, Hickson seemed passive.
"I thought he needed to play with more energy," Scott said.
The coach also believed it was unfair to Jamison, forcing the veteran to play behind Hickson. Since returning to the starting lineup, Jamison is averaging 17.7 points and 6.2 rebounds in six games heading into Monday's game against Utah. More importantly, Jamison is helping his teammates with Scott's motion offense.
Too often, a confused Hickson sometimes just stands and watches on the wing. This player who led the Atlantic Coast Conference in rebounding as a freshman often has been passive on the boards in the pros.
"I had a talk with J.J.," Scott said. "I told him that I know he's mad at me. Well, take it out on the court. Force me to play him. I asked him if he wanted to play 15 minutes, or does he want to play 25 to 30 minutes? If he wants to play more, he needs to do three things -- rebound better, defend and run the floor. He can get a lot of easy baskets."
Scott saw Hickson do a belly flop for a loose ball and drive to the basket a few times early in the Utah game, drawing smiles from the coach on the bench. In his first six games as a substitute, Hickson has been so-so: 6.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, 36 percent shooting in 17 minutes.
This is Scott's 11th season as a head coach. He knows that one of his main jobs this season is to develop the 22-year-old Hickson.
"He is going to play," Scott said. "But I want all my players to know that they are not entitled to 25-30 minutes. They shouldn't feel too comfortable. You have to earn your place in this league."
To reach Terry Pluto: terrypluto2003@yahoo.com, 216-999-4674