Secret agent plan won't work as Cavs look to replace Big Ben

In a perfect world -- a world in which it never snows in Cleveland and LeBron James already has agreed to a long-term extension -- at least one big man who could potentially become available by Sunday's waiver deadline would be represented by Leon Rose.

Rose, of course, is LeBron's agent. He presumably would be able to exert some gentle pressure resulting in a qualified big man he happened to represent getting released before the deadline, thus making him playoff-eligible and eminently qualified to join LeBron in his pursuit of a championship.

Cleveland must try and keep its hold on the East's best record without Ben Wallace. (AP)

The Cavs need help anywhere they can get it, now that Ben Wallace is out four to six weeks with a broken right fibula. Cleveland general manager Danny Ferry no doubt would break his own fibula if a post player would quickly file papers with the NBA Players Association and hand over his representation to Mr. Rose, who has the power to dictate a lot when it comes to keeping LeBron happy. Sadly for Ferry, this one is largely out of his hands.

Scan the short list of interior players who are candidates to be bought out by Sunday, and not a one shows up on Rose's client list. Not Joe Smith, Drew Gooden, Rasho Nesterovic, Chris Mihm nor Jason Collins. His twin, Jarron Collins, isn't represented by Rose, either. And last I checked, Zydrunas Ilgauskas doesn't have a twin.

So the Cavs have to wait and see, which is never the preferred option in Cleveland, where Ferry has done everything humanly possible -- short of trading for old man Shaq -- to surround LeBron with the talent he needs to win a title before he turns into a pumpkin on June 30, 2010.

Six weeks would have Big Ben out until the final week of the regular season. A more pessimistic prognosis of 8-10 weeks -- initially provided by a chatty Houston doctor to TNT and NBA.com analyst David Aldridge after Wallace's initial X-rays came back Thursday night -- would put the Cavs well into the playoffs before Wallace was cleared to play. The Cavs reject that prediction, but you always have to plan for the worst.

Neither Cleveland proper nor Independence, Ohio -- where the Cavs practice -- possesses a working time machine, and neither place is located on the island from Lost, as far as we know. So short of sending Big Ben or Benjamin Linus underground to move the Quicken Loans Arena back to Feb. 19, the Cavs can no longer trade for a big man to replace Wallace. The talks with Phoenix about Shaq never progressed beyond "kicking tires," according to a knowledgeable source. So Ferry shouldn't be kicking himself to the point of a fibula fracture for not pulling the trigger on that one.

So what are the Cavs to do? No doubt they can coast into the playoffs with or without their leading shot-blocker and fourth-leading rebounder, and probably battle their way to the conference finals even if Wallace limps back at less than full strength. Protecting the best record in the Eastern Conference (44-12), and thus the all-important home-court advantage in the playoffs, is another story.

Depending on whether Ferry can bank on one of the Cavs' former interior players, Smith or Gooden, being released by their respective teams this weekend, the Cavs' hold on home court is in serious jeopardy. The Celtics (Mikki Moore and likely Stephon Marbury) and Magic (Rafer Alston) both have made significant upgrades in the past week. The Cavs pursued Shaq, Amare Stoudemire, Marcus Camby, Brad Miller, Smith and others before the Feb. 19 trade deadline, to no avail.

In a potential NBA Finals matchup, the Lakers already hold the home-court tiebreaker over Cleveland and Boston, having beaten both teams twice. Should Orlando make the Finals, the Magic -- 2-0 against the Lakers -- would get the nod if both teams wind up with the same regular-season record.

The Cavs should be asking themselves if they have enough to hold on to their slim lead for best record in the East over Boston (a half-game back at 46-13) and Orlando (2½ back at 42-15) without Wallace. It's going to be an uphill fight.

In the two most important categories that determine winning -- home vs. road and quality of opponent -- the Cavs don't have a clear advantage in either one. Among the East's Big Three, Cleveland has the highest percentage of remaining games (14 of 26, 54 percent) against current playoff teams. Then comes Boston (12 of 23, 52 percent), and Orlando (11 of 25, 44 percent). Boston has the biggest home vs. road advantage (three more home games than road games left), followed by Cleveland (two), and Orlando (one).

What does it all mean? It means Ferry should call in any favors he has out there with Oklahoma City GM Sam Presti, who thus far has held the line on keeping Smith and his $4.8 million expiring contract. The Maloofs are looking to dump payroll in Sacramento, so why do they need Gooden ($7.1 million) around?

Last year at the trade deadline, the Memphis Grizzlies sent Pau Gasol to the Lakers for a song -- and the song was Give It Away by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Maybe Ferry can hope Memphis GM Chris Wallace will be in a giving mood once again and release seldom-used 7-footer Mihm for the stretch run. Mihm could shoot 37 percent all he wants in Cleveland, as long as he blocked a shot or two and grabbed a couple of rebounds.

With Sasha Pavlovic and Wallace out, not to mention Delonte West easing his way back from a wrist injury, LeBron's supporting cast is becoming less supportive at the worst time. The Cavs can't get from LeBron's agent on this one, but at least they know they can rely on LeBron.