Injury bug bites Cavs again

I didn't realize it had been three weeks since my last post. Bad Steve! I hope you good people can forgive me.

The Cavaliers have done a pretty good job weathering injuries from Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Delonte West this year, but losing Big Ben Wallace might hurt more than those did. Wallace is out 4-6 weeks with a broken leg after Yao Ming kicked him in the second quarter during last night's game in Houston. He played through it into the third quarter before deciding to come out and get it X-rayed, and that's when the fracture was discovered. The guy must have a high tolerance for pain!

Wallace has missed three games this year, during which the Cavaliers are 2-1. He's only averaging 3.0 points and 6.6 rebounds a game, but he's the anchor of the defense. Anderson Varejao will presumably slide back into the starting lineup, as he did when Z was hurt. He'll do a fine job, I'm sure, but he's so great bringing energy off the bench. We'll miss that.

Don't misunderstand: With or without Ben Wallace, this is still one of the NBA's elite teams. As long as you've got a LeBron James, you've got a chance to win any game. But it's going to be hard to hold off the Celtics for the East's best record as it is. We need healthy players for that.