Written by Sam Amico

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AKRON -- It wasn’t pretty, but at least the Cavaliers know that. And not being pretty after just a few days is no big deal.

“You gotta remember, it’s early,” said Cavs guard Ramon Sessions following the team’s Wine & Gold Scrimmage at the University of Akron on Friday. “This was our fourth practice.”

Actually, Sessions was one of the few players who looked like an old pro in new coach Byron Scott’s new Princeton offense, and he did it while playing next to a bunch of new teammates. In the end, Sessions scored 13 points, passed for four assists and led his Wine team to a 47-41 victory.

Another summer acquisition, forward Joey Graham, also looked pretty good, bruising his way to nine points. For the gold, J.J. Hickson and Jawad Williams led the way with eight apiece.

So how did Scott feel about the Cavs’ first public audition?

“It was OK,” he said. “Just like I told the guys, we’ve got a game in a few days (Tuesday vs. Charlotte), and some guys are still making the same mistakes. We gotta clean that up.”

Scott said the biggest problem has been on offense, where “guys are thinking too much and not just reacting.”

The Cavs were also playing without their three leaders, as Mo Williams (groin), Antawn Jamison (knee) and Anderson Varejao (family matter) each took the night off. All are expected to return shortly.

Either way, Scott is forever honest, and pretty much summed up his expectations in one quick sentence.

“Everybody has to play better than they have in the past,” he said.

OFFENSIVE THOUGHTS

* While most guys didn’t finish plays (again, no surprise this early), the Princeton offense looked solid. There was lots of passing, cutting and finding the open man -- and unlike more than a few times with the previous regime, the ball never really stopped.

* Watching rookie swingman Christian Eyenga has been loads of fun. The kid is already the most athletic player on the team, and plays very hard. But as GM Chris Grant said, “His basketball journey is really just beginning.”

* Meanwhile, forward Leon Powe moved around fairly well, and looked more comfortable and fluid than at any point last season. He could be a guy who comes out of nowhere, something the Cavs are probably gonna need.

GOOD TURNOUT

For a meaningless basketball scrimmage on a football Friday night, the crowd of about 4,000 was loud and very much into the game.

If nothing else, it’s clear that people aren’t ready to give up on the habit of following and rooting for this organization. And the Cavs clearly have no plans to tone anything down, as the Scream Team and screaming in-arena host Ahmad Crump both made the trip from Cleveland.

And you know what? For the first time ever, none of that stuff annoyed me. The fact the Cavs are taking a business-as-usual approach is a very much a good thing.

THIS & THAT

* Staying true to his word of no days off, Scott will hold practice Saturday. But there is some debate as to whether or not he‘ll actually go through with it again Sunday.

* If there is practice Sunday, expect it to end before the San Francisco 49ers kick off. Scott is a big fan of the NFL team -- which, like Cleveland’s NFL team, happens to be 0-3.

* In other words, Scott should fit in here very well.

* Sessions offered praise for Scott after the scrimmage, saying he’s learned more about the game this week “than I have in a long time.” Sessions is entering his fourth NBA season and the Cavs are his third team.

* Meanwhile in Miami … the Heat held their own intra-squad scrimmage Friday night as well. All I will say is Zydrunas Ilgauskas reportedly looked good.

SCORING

GOLD - Gibson 7, Eyenga 4, Jackson 1, Parker 2, Hickson 8, Samuels 6, J. Williams 8, Woods 5.

WINE - Sessions 13, Hollins 5, Mitchell 4, Graham 9, Green 6, Moon 6, Powe 4.

Sam Amico covers the Cavaliers for NBA.com and is a frequent contributor to SportsTime Ohio and The Cleveland Fan.