This is a week long review of the five biggest ovations in my memory.

1. coming Friday
2. coming Thursday
3. Cleveland Cavaliers v. Detroit Pistons - May 15, 2005
4. In Your House - April 1996
5. South Korea v. Brazil - Fall 1997

Number Three:
Some scenarios become more powerful as they ferment over time.  This powerful reaction was years in the making.

Cleveland (a market I now live in) is the quintessential “next year” market, as in….”we’ll get them next year”.  A long playoff draught for many of the market’s teams, a longer championship draught, and years of being a hard-luck sports town has make this a market that feels snake bitten….like Red Sox fans, but it encompasses the whole town.

The Cavaliers have been surging in the market with the emergence of LeBron James and as they work they way into serious playoff contenders, the fans have some pent up emotion.  One night last May the emotion was released.

After going down 0-2 to the Pistons the fans looked to be scorned again, but the Cavs won straight 2 home games….and the fans were starting to believe.  As the final buzzer sounded the crowd went bezerk.  The noise was amazing, and you could feel the emotion that this might finally be the run the town was waiting for. 

Detroit ended up winning the series 4-3, but it gave a taste to the fans in Cleveland of what might be….and it gave me a top five ovation memory.

Tomorrow, big noise in a book store?

-Cudo