Erik Cassano
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Erik Cassano is an award-winning writer from Cleveland, Ohio. His works have been published in The Plain Dealer Sunday Magazine and Crain's Cleveland Business. In his full-time job, he is an associate editor for Smart Business Network, a Westlake, Ohio-based chain of business trade publications with editions in nearly 20 cities nationwide. An avid sports fan, Erik lives and dies (mostly dies) with the Browns, Indians and Cavaliers. LeBron James is, at the moment, his one shining beacon of hope for a championship in his city.
Article Archives:
Shaq Comes Alive
February 5, 2010
Overtime Overview
February 1, 2010
Fighting Back
January 24, 2010
Power Hungry
January 15, 2010
A Delicate Situation
January 9, 2010
Weighing The Options
January 7, 2010
The Top Cleveland Sports Stories of 2009: #1
January 1, 2010
The Top Cleveland Sports Stories of 2009: #2
December 30, 2009
The Top Cleveland Sports Stories of 2009: #3
December 30, 2009
The Top 10 Cleveland Sports Stories of 2009: #4
December 29, 2009
The Top 10 Cleveland Sports Stories of 2009: #7-#5
December 26, 2009
The Top 10 Cleveland Sports Stories of 2009: #10-#8
December 25, 2009
The New Czar In Town
December 22, 2009
A Win That's Worth The Price
December 14, 2009
Opportunity Knocks
December 8, 2009
The Center Of Attention
November 30, 2009
Remembering Why I'm Thankful
November 26, 2009
Failing At Failing
November 23, 2009
Building The Perfect Pippen
November 18, 2009
Sending A Message
November 9, 2009
Randy's Last Stand
November 6, 2009
Acting On Acta
October 29, 2009
The Roundtable: 2009/2010 Cavaliers
October 27, 2009
Cavs Beat Writer Q&A
October 23, 2009
Cleveland's Cubs
October 22, 2009
Teardown Mode
October 17, 2009
Braylon Burnout
October 7, 2009
What Never Was
October 1, 2009
Good Guy, Bad Results
September 30, 2009
Lost Seasons
September 26, 2009
Life With Delonte
September 22, 2009
Believing They're Bad
September 16, 2009
The Sounds of Silence
September 8, 2009
Cavs Offseason: Risks & Rewards
September 4, 2009
Results: Inconclusive
August 27, 2009
Zebra Stripes & Leopard Spots
August 21, 2009
Powe The Show
August 15, 2009
Sweating It Out At Camp Mangini
August 12, 2009
LeBron: The Saga Continues
August 10, 2009
1 + 1 = 1 Too Many
August 5, 2009
Talking Heads About The Tribe
August 2, 2009
Gone With The Wins
July 30, 2009
Shake It Up
July 25, 2009
Mid-Summer Mish-Mash
July 20, 2009
The Big Unknown
June 25, 2009
Winging The Draft
June 23, 2009
Baseball Withdrawal
June 18, 2009
LeBron Is Still Learning
June 6, 2009
Cavs Post-Mortem
June 2, 2009
A Shot At Redemption
May 23, 2009
Lessons From Game One
May 22, 2009
Why The Cavs Can Beat Orlando
May 19, 2009
Carpe Diem
May 9, 2009
Cavs/Hawks Roundtable
May 5, 2009
That Damn 'Tessie'
May 1, 2009
Waking The Hare
April 23, 2009
Let This Be The Year
April 20, 2009
Cavs/Pistons Roundtable
April 18, 2009
One More Record
April 15, 2009
Rivalries Renewed
April 11, 2009
What To Expect?
April 6, 2009
The Light At Night
April 2, 2009
A Strange Equation
March 26, 2009
All Eyes On 65
March 24, 2009
To Rebuild Or Not?
March 16, 2009
Cavs: Lucky & Good
March 6, 2009
Say It Ain't So, Joe
February 28, 2009
A Season On The Brink
February 27, 2009
Countdown To The Deadline
February 18, 2009
Cry Us A River
February 9, 2009
Firing The Wally Bullet
February 4, 2009
Go Steelers?
January 28, 2009
Follow The Leader
January 23, 2009
Offseason Checkup
January 19, 2009
LeBron In Prime Time
January 11, 2009
11 Questions With Boobie Gibson
January 9, 2009
Chemistry Class
January 4, 2009
Lerner's Lesson
December 30, 2008
The Top Ten 2008 Cleveland Sports Moments: #6-#4
December 24, 2008
The Top Ten 2008 Cleveland Sports Moments: #10-#7
December 22, 2008
Sideshow Braylon
December 19, 2008
Before You Start Ledging ...
December 15, 2008
A Tale Of Two Records
December 9, 2008
Maybe Marty
December 5, 2008
A Non-LeBron Cavs Article
December 1, 2008
Living For The Moment
November 26, 2008
People Skills
November 23, 2008
Holding Back Harrison
November 20, 2008
One Batman, Many Robins
November 13, 2008
Fumbling Redemption
November 10, 2008
Answered Prayer Or Praying For An Answer?
November 4, 2008
The Real Catch
November 2, 2008
The Ring's The Thing
October 29, 2008
Taking Sides
October 26, 2008
Rebounding From Depression
October 20, 2008
The Elephant In The Room
October 16, 2008
The Cavs' Big Gamble
October 14, 2008
Worshipping The Chin
October 8, 2008
An Uncommon Bond
October 4, 2008
Let It Be, Mr. Gilbert
September 30, 2008
The Lerners & Losing
September 23, 2008
Perception Versus Reality
September 20, 2008
Playing With A Full Deck
September 15, 2008
The Return Of Kid Braylon
September 14, 2008
As Advertised
September 9, 2008
Lee's Landmark Season
September 3, 2008
A Forgettable August
August 31, 2008
False Start
August 27, 2008
An Unexpected Haymaker
August 19, 2008
The Ten Worst Injuries In Cleveland Sports History
August 16, 2008
Getting The Point
August 14, 2008
Six Things Thursday's Loss Told Us
August 12, 2008
Spotlight Lust
August 7, 2008
Better Lucky Than Good
August 4, 2008
From Grinder To Glory
July 30, 2008
The Injury Bug
July 24, 2008
The Waiting Is The Hardest Part
July 20, 2008
The Essential All-Stars
July 15, 2008
A Sort-Of Success Story
July 10, 2008
A Trail Of Tears
July 8, 2008
Retooling Or Rebuilding?
July 4, 2008
Stunned Silence
June 27, 2008
Expect A Player, Not A Miracle
June 26, 2008
Trading Away The Season
June 22, 2008
Taking One For The Team
June 17, 2008
Hey Jealousy
June 11, 2008
To Trade Or Not To Trade?
June 7, 2008
The Rich Get Richer
June 2, 2008
The Tribe's Ten Most Wanted
June 1, 2008
Standing Still
May 26, 2008
Looking Back, Looking Forward
May 22, 2008
The Big Trade Revisited
May 14, 2008
Assorted Thoughts Prior To Game Three
May 9, 2008
Motivation For The King
May 7, 2008
Atlanta or Boston?
May 4, 2008
Blowing A Golden Opportunity
May 1, 2008
Sweet Redemption
April 27, 2008
An Identity Crisis
April 24, 2008
Five Questions For The Cavs
April 18, 2008
Borowski Burnout
April 15, 2008
Pressure Point
April 14, 2008
Looking Out For Number One
April 10, 2008
The Good & The Bad
April 9, 2008
Popping The Clutch
March 28, 2008
Where No Man Has Gone
March 22, 2008
No Country For Old Men
March 15, 2008
A Portrait of the Artist
March 8, 2008
The Fork in the Road
March 1, 2008
The Novelty Is Wearing Off
February 29, 2008
Cavs Trade - Several Days Later
February 24, 2008
Analysis: The Four New Cavaliers
February 22, 2008
The Stepping Stone Theory
February 19, 2008
The Side Effects Of Winning
February 11, 2008
Point Guard Madness
February 4, 2008
Great Expectations
January 27, 2008
The Great Gamble
January 24, 2008
Taunting Us Over LeBron
January 17, 2008
Wild Thing States His Case
January 15, 2008
Back Up To Speed
January 11, 2008
Browns: True Or False?
January 3, 2008
2007's Greatest Cleveland Sports Moments - #1 Shoot Boobie Shoot!: Cavs Reach The Finals
December 31, 2007
Extreme Makeover: Holiday Edition
December 26, 2007
2007's Greatest Cleveland Sports Moments - #4 LeBron's Game For The Ages Stifles Pistons
December 26, 2007
Clinch Time? Nope, Choke Time ...
December 24, 2007
2007's Greatest Cleveland Sports Moments - #5 Sabathia Wins Cy Young
December 23, 2007
2007's Greatest Cleveland Sports Moments - #6 Frye Trade, Anderson Promotion Turn The Browns Around
December 21, 2007
The King And His Coach
December 20, 2007
2007's Greatest Cleveland Sports Moments - #7 Dawson's Lucky Bounce
December 20, 2007
2007's Greatest Cleveland Sports Moments - #9 Cavs Clinch The Two Seed
December 16, 2007
Don't Kidd Yourself
December 7, 2007
A Slice Of Humble Pie
December 4, 2007
Real Life
November 30, 2007
That's One Valuable Finger
November 30, 2007
Upon Further Review
November 23, 2007
Hot Dog Heaven
November 21, 2007
Cy For C.C.
November 14, 2007
The Big Letdown
November 13, 2007
The Best Chance
November 10, 2007
Growing Up Right Before Our Eyes
November 4, 2007
Misunderstanding The Cavs
November 3, 2007
Sleepwalking To The Start
October 27, 2007
Driving A Wedge
October 24, 2007
Melting ... Melting ...
October 21, 2007
Back To Boston
October 19, 2007
Avoiding The 3-1 Jinx
October 17, 2007
The Best Is Yet To Come
October 9, 2007
A Close Shave
October 7, 2007
And ... We're Off!
October 5, 2007
There's Nothing Like October Baseball
October 4, 2007
Mark Shapiro's Second Best Trade
September 27, 2007
Removing All Doubt
September 21, 2007
The Chaos Theory
September 17, 2007
Waffle House
September 14, 2007
Welcome To The Stretch Run
August 28, 2007
Handicapping The Quarterbacks
August 17, 2007
The Morning After: Kansas City
August 14, 2007
Time To Get To Work, Brady
August 8, 2007
The Great Garnett Debate
August 7, 2007
Tucker's Transgression
August 5, 2007
Training Camp '07: And Finally ...
August 4, 2007
Men Of Action
July 31, 2007
Training Camp '07: The Secondary
July 31, 2007
Training Camp '07: The Linebackers
July 28, 2007
Leading Off, No. 7, Kenny Lofton!
July 27, 2007
Training Camp '07: The Defensive Line
July 27, 2007
Training Camp '07: The Recievers
July 24, 2007
What To Do With Cliff Lee?
July 23, 2007
Training Camp '07: The Offensive Line
July 21, 2007
Training Camp '07: The Backfield
July 18, 2007
The Gift That Keeps On Giving
July 15, 2007
The Revenge Of Dolan's Pocketbook
July 14, 2007
It's NOT The Economy, Stupid
July 10, 2007
Indians Midterm Grades - Part II
July 6, 2007
Indians Midterm Grades - Part I
July 4, 2007
Cavs Stand Pat
June 30, 2007
Avoiding History
June 29, 2007
The Real Tribe
June 23, 2007
Cavs Of The Future?
June 20, 2007
NBA Finals: The Epilogue
June 16, 2007
A Snapshot In Time
June 14, 2007
A Shot Across The Bow
June 9, 2007
The Man Behind The Mic
June 7, 2007
Five Reasons: Cavs - Spurs
June 6, 2007
The Morning After
June 3, 2007
A Little Perspective
June 2, 2007
The Stage Is Set
May 30, 2007
Border War
May 28, 2007
Like Deja Vu All Over Again
May 26, 2007
The Jordan Factor
May 24, 2007
Five Reasons: Cavs vs. Pistons
May 21, 2007
Searching For The Next Paul Shuey
May 15, 2007
Supporting The King
May 11, 2007
Five Reasons: Cavs vs. Nets
May 6, 2007
Historical Perspective
May 3, 2007
Something Beyond Hope
May 1, 2007
Under Pressure
April 27, 2007
Sympathy For Mike Brown
April 25, 2007
Five Reasons: Cavs vs. Wizards
April 22, 2007
Hello, 2-seed
April 19, 2007
Someone's Idea Of A Sick Joke
April 12, 2007
A Snow Job
April 10, 2007
Snowed Out
April 7, 2007
Stay Just A Little Bit Longer
April 5, 2007
Running With The Bulls
March 31, 2007
Another Slow Start?
March 29, 2007
The Bizzaro Cavs Are Back
March 27, 2007
Wedgiro No More
March 25, 2007
Nine Lives Buckeyes
March 23, 2007
Shapiro Isn't Crazy
March 20, 2007
Postseason Fear Factor
March 17, 2007
A Bad Feeling
March 9, 2007
Pointing At Hughes
March 9, 2007
A Banner Day
March 8, 2007
The Terrible Top Five
March 5, 2007
The Light Bulb
March 5, 2007
The Curiousity of Cavs Draft Picks
February 26, 2007
Standing Pat
February 23, 2007
Is Carlos Boozer Worth It?
February 21, 2007
The Best Deadline Deal Ever
February 20, 2007
The Junkyard Bullpen
February 19, 2007
All-Star Weekend
February 18, 2007
Five Questions For The Tribe
February 15, 2007
Linemen, Please
February 13, 2007
Keeping Shapiro Is The Right Move
February 10, 2007
Five Unorthodox Solutions
February 6, 2007
A Legendary Lineman
February 4, 2007
LeBron Needs To Sit
February 2, 2007
The Curse Of Inexperience
January 31, 2007
Livingston's War Of Words
January 30, 2007
Feeding The Monsters
January 26, 2007
Is Chud Another Dud?
January 24, 2007
Why C.C. Is Expendable
January 22, 2007
The Nixon Administration
January 21, 2007
Show A Fan A Sunny Day ...
January 18, 2007
Maggette Madness
January 17, 2007
The Drive: Twenty Years Later
January 12, 2007
Exploited To Perfection
January 11, 2007
Indians Off-Season Midterms
January 7, 2007
Wherefore Art Thou Romeo?
January 4, 2007
The Morning After: Houston
January 1, 2007
Feeding The Misery Monster
December 28, 2006
The Morning After: Tampa Bay
December 25, 2006
Offensively Defensive
December 22, 2006
Flipping On Flip
December 19, 2006
The Morning After: Baltimore
December 18, 2006
Everything To Everyone
December 17, 2006
Indians Lose Gagne Sweepstakes
December 13, 2006
The See-Saw Battle
December 12, 2006
Man Of Troy
December 11, 2006
The Answer For The Cavs?
December 9, 2006
The Morning After: Pittsburgh
December 8, 2006
Life On A Shoestring
December 7, 2006
Time To Bury The Hatchet
December 6, 2006
The Morning After: Kansas City
December 4, 2006
Cavs Wish List: The Top Ten
December 2, 2006
Platoon: Not Just A Movie
November 29, 2006
Losing Casey
November 28, 2006
The Morning After: Cincinnati
November 27, 2006
A Late November Antacid Tablet
November 26, 2006
Giving Thanks For Cleveland Sports
November 23, 2006
Woody And Bo
November 21, 2006
The Morning After: Pittsburgh
November 20, 2006
A Game That Fit The Rivalry
November 20, 2006
Here We Go Again: Tribe Outbid
November 17, 2006
Who's Really Better?
November 15, 2006
The Morning After: Atlanta
November 13, 2006
Tigers Becoming Win Now Addicts
November 12, 2006
Another Young Gun For The Tribe
November 9, 2006
The Morning After: San Diego
November 6, 2006
Larry Livin' Large
November 3, 2006
Twas The Night Before Tipoff
November 1, 2006
NBA Preview: Western Conference
October 31, 2006
The Morning After: New York
October 31, 2006
NBA Preview: Eastern Conference
October 30, 2006
The Browns Big Three
October 26, 2006
The Morning After: Denver
October 24, 2006
The Best Fans In Football? You Bet.
October 22, 2006
Preview: The World Series
October 21, 2006
A Conversation Between Friends
October 17, 2006
The Legacy Of Jim Paxson
October 15, 2006
Shapiro Unplugged
October 13, 2006
Indians Final Grades
October 12, 2006
The Morning After: Carolina
October 9, 2006
Shapiro Not Looking For Bats
October 4, 2006
The Morning After: Oakland
October 3, 2006
Life At The End Of The Road
October 2, 2006
The Morning After: Baltimore
September 25, 2006
Getting Short With Peralta
September 22, 2006
The Browns Need Urban Meyer
September 21, 2006
The Morning After: Cincinnati
September 19, 2006
Give The Cavs A Break
September 13, 2006
The Morning After: New Orleans
September 11, 2006
Buckeyes Better Where It Counted
September 11, 2006
The Morning After: Chicago
September 3, 2006
Cavs Appear Set To Sign Wesley
September 2, 2006
Status Check
August 31, 2006
Land Of Lowered Expectations
August 29, 2006
The Morning After: Buffalo
August 28, 2006
The Master List: August 2006
August 24, 2006
The Morning After: Detroit
August 21, 2006
This Is Getting Ridiculous
August 16, 2006
Two Teams, Two Moves
August 15, 2006
Be Glad You Aren't ...
August 13, 2006
The Morning After: Philadelphia
August 13, 2006
Cliff Lee Signs Extension
August 9, 2006
Carmona: 0 For 3
August 6, 2006
Drew Deal Dragging Out
August 3, 2006
Learning To Close
August 2, 2006
Regrouping On The Day After
July 28, 2006
We Had To See It Coming
July 28, 2006
Waiting On Charlie Frye
July 25, 2006
Circular Logic
July 22, 2006
Fresh Start Gone Stale
July 18, 2006
Gooden Going Bad?
July 15, 2006
Tribe Trade Values
July 11, 2006
LeBron Likes Us. He Really Does!
July 10, 2006
Central Division Shakeup
July 5, 2006
Please Commit Now LeBron
July 5, 2006
Indians Midterm Grades
July 4, 2006
LeBron Is On The Clock
July 1, 2006
Ferry's First Draft
June 30, 2006
Pre-Draft Daydream
June 28, 2006
Does Larry Hughes Want Out?
June 27, 2006
Sowers Power
June 26, 2006
Soccer Sacked
June 24, 2006
Take Your Pick
June 23, 2006
Hey Vinny
June 22, 2006
Drew Gooden For Jamal Magloire?
June 15, 2006
The Tribe-tanic
June 14, 2006
The Risk Factor
June 12, 2006
The USA Vs. The World
June 10, 2006
Fine Cuban
June 9, 2006
Finally ... The Finals
June 5, 2006
Pruning The Roster
June 5, 2006
Fixated On LeBron
June 4, 2006
The Tribe's Mess
May 30, 2006