As the Cleveland Cavaliers keep rolling along, with an NBA best record of 47-10, it is time to remind everyone what we said during their 15-game winning streak to start the season.
It is definitely sad, but the real season for this group starts when the regular season ends, and the playoffs begin. And that’s not being a Debbie Downer. It’s just that the Cavs won a playoff series a year ago, and when your regular season record is as good as Cleveland’s, championship aspirations in play.
That doesn’t mean we aren’t enjoying the regular season either. The style of play this team uses and the togetherness they exhibit make it very enjoyable to watch. For example, last Friday we were looking for a competitive game against the Knicks, and instead it was a 27-point lead on the way to a blowout win.
But we can look ahead because there is no playoff race to speak of. Cleveland is going to be there. In fact, Sunday’s win over Memphis meant the wine and gold have already clinched at least a spot in Adam Silver’s “play in tournament”.
And there are 25 games remaining.
The NBA playoffs are just different. In the regular season, teams rely on what they do well and sometimes it causes an issue against a singular opponent because their strength isn’t something you are good at defending and vice-versa.
But in the playoffs, you are playing the same opponent for perhaps seven consecutive games. And if you can identify a weakness on the other side of the floor, you attack it until the other team adjusts.
Most Cavs’ fans will remember how in the 2016 NBA Finals, the Cavs went after Stephen Curry on the defensive end, taking advantage of the Warriors’ switching on defense until Curry was on LeBron James and/or Kyrie Irving.
That’s the sort of thing we are talking about.
So, as marvelous as Darius Garland has been this season, shooting a career high 49.3% from the floor and 42.5% from three, and a turnover rate the lowest of his career, there will be a lot of pressure on him once the post-season begins.
He would be the first to admit he didn’t play well in either of the last two playoff seasons, and opponents hunted him on the defensive end as well. And we don’t know if he will be better until we see it on the floor.
We were discussing Isaac Okoro over the weekend and agreed he is a very good defensive player. However, opposing teams are going to leave him open in a playoff series until he proves he is willing to take and make shots on the perimeter, particularly three pointers. If he cannot, Kenny Atkinson will have to be very judicious with his minutes.
Again, this is not to be a pessimist, rather it is exciting to see if the Cavs have learned from the past two campaigns and will be better for it.
We want to see this version of Evan Mobley in a playoff series. The All-Star version of Mobley. He’s averaging three points more per game than a year ago, while still remaining one of the best defenders in the league.
It is important to keep winning in the regular season and stay ahead of Boston in the conference standings if only to make them play New York in the second round. And the Cavs do have a six-game lead there.
Regular season success is nice, but in the NBA, teams are measured by playoff performance. And we will have to wait six weeks for that.
Cleveland Sports Perspective 