Didn't we go to school with him? Oh, MARK Price

Continuing with the theme of recognizing birthdays long after they've passed, I bring you my favorite Cav of all time.

Born February 15th, 1964, Mark Price was a standout at Georgia Tech though whether he could make it as a pro was in doubt due to his short stature, tendency to telegraph his moves, complete lack of defense and overall mobility deficencies. Standing 6 feet tall (right...), Price was less of a leaper than even me. He had the right handed layups down pat, but seriously, he probably went his entire playing career without ever touching the rim. I've seen Carlton from the Fresh Prince dunk in person, and Mark Price couldn't do it.

Regardless of his shortcomings, Price was successful in his niche as a professional player. He was among the league leaders in assists, twice won the 3-point shootout, was a 4 time All Star and retired as the best free throw shooter in NBA history. The draft day trade that brought him to the Cavs also introduced an era of success in Cleveland basketball, with the team making the playoffs 7 of the nine 9 years he was around.

Thinking he was old and washed up, on September 27th, 1995 the Cavs traded Price to the Washington Bullets, and in the process made Cleveland basketball irrelevant for almost a decade. I can still remember the radio breaking the news... "We all knew this day would come someday..." We did? Trading the face of the franchise and fan favorite during a playoff bound season? No sir, I did not know that day was coming.

Not even 2 years after the kick in the balls that was the Bernie Kosar release, the franchise hadn't learned anything about how Cleveland fans apparently react to being fucked without even getting dinner first. (On the plus side, the Cavs got a 1996 draft pick in return and chose Vitaly Potapenko. Who's Vitaly Potapenko? He's the guy who was drafted one spot ahead of Kobe Bryant. Wise move.) Way to be blind, asshole.

Well, that day in September was probably the last day of me being a Cavs fan. I was 14 at the time. I'd been lucky enough to go to probably 100 or so games by that point. I, um, collected all kinds of Cavs crap. I mean, I even had the Mark Price Dream Team jersey (#5) hanging on my wall! Since that trade, I don't think I've been to 3 games. Go ahead and move the team now, save us the months and months of stories about LeBron not being able to bring a championship to his "home town". Sorry Cavs fans, but I can't get behind them and I've tried.

Trade Mark Price? How's that make sense on any level? What's next, Bobby Phils dying and the team signing someone who may have been responsible for his death? Well now that I've gone and sufficiently pissed myself off, I'm outta here.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARK PRICE!