STARTERS	ANALYSIS
Eric Snow Point Guard 6-3 | 205	Suddenly, Hughes' jumper doesn't look so ugly.
Larry Hughes Shooting Guard 6-5 | 184	Injury was red herring. A pure shooter is what 'Bron really needs.
LeBron James Small Forward 6-8 | 240	Fourth player ever to average 31 ppg, 7 rpg and 6 apg.
Drew Gooden Power Forward 6-10 | 242	Lives on the O boards, lives off LeBron's drive-and-dishing.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas Center 7-3 | 260	LeBron wants to push; Z wants to post. Guess who wins.
Bench: Cavs went 13-2 when Anderson Varejao played at least 20 minutes. You listening, Z? Damon Jones and Donyell Marshall are around to sink J's.

ESPN The Magazine's NBA Preview hits newsstands October 25.

Drew Gooden Player efficiency rating projection: 17.76 vs. NBA avg.: +2.76 Cavaliers profiles

Scouting report: Gooden makes for a good role player because he can score without having plays run for him. He's a quick leaper who can finish around the basket, and he has a decent mid-range jump shot despite his somewhat awkward form. He's not as adept in the post because he lacks strength and can get bodied out of the lane, but he does have a nice jump-hook move.

Defensively, Gooden's quickness makes him very good at picking up guards on switches, and he has long arms that earn him lots of deflections. He doesn't have the power to deal with some of the league's bigger power forwards, but he partly makes up for it by helping on the defensive glass. Despite his leaping ability and quickness, he's not a shot-blocker.

The biggest criticism of Gooden has been his lack of focus. Whether it's losing track of his man at the defensive end or not knowing a play on offense, Gooden has baffled coaches with his mental miscues, and that's one reason he hasn't played as many minutes as you might expect for a player with such a high PER.

2006-07 outlook: Gooden signed a three-year deal for $23 million to stay with Cleveland, a fair valuation considering his production the past two seasons. He projects as the Cavs' starting power forward this season, and Cleveland will hope that as the 25-year-old matures his mental focus will improve and allow the team to take full advantage of his otherwise impressive skills.

It's easier to say this from a distance, but if his mistakes don't go away, there's a danger in the Cavs getting too bent out of shape about it. Power forwards who can score and rebound like this don't grow on trees, and while Gooden's lapses can be incredibly frustrating, in the grand scheme of things I'm not sure they cost the Cavs as much as they might think. The worst thing to do would be for Cleveland to throw up its hands and trade him for pennies on the dollar.