Cavs Refused To Lose In Win #15 Tuesday Night.

There are so many remarkable numbers associated with the Cleveland Cavaliers this season. They are currently on a 15-game winning streak, their second such span of this season, and their third winning skein of 10 or more game during 2024-25.

They clinched the Central Division title (bet you forgot the NBA has divisions) and their magic number to clinch the top seed in the Eastern Conference is 10. And it’s only March 13th. The season has a month to go.

We have all read stories about how connected the roster is, the remarkable chemistry, and it is led by Donovan Mitchell and Kenny Atkinson. Mitchell sacrificed his numbers for the greater good, playing less minutes, which will hopefully lead to him and all of the Cavaliers being fresher come playoff time.

Winning is learned skill, and these members of the wine and gold have gained knowledge on how to win and they enjoy the feeling of winning.

We understood this about this team, but it was emphasized more during Tuesday’s 15th consecutive win over Brooklyn.

The Cavs were without Mitchell, De’Andre Hunter who was ill, and Ty Jerome who was being rested. As any fan knows, these are three key components to Cleveland’s success this season.

Brooklyn got off to a great start, shooting the ball very well from three-point range. Meanwhile, the wine and gold, normally an excellent three-point shooting team, was ice cold.

In the third quarter, Cleveland fell down by 16 points and it looked like one of those nights in the NBA where a lesser team gets hot, the better team isn’t making shots, and a very good team takes an L. It’s where the term “make or miss league” comes from.

And it would have been easy for the short-handed Cavaliers, with an eight-game lead over Boston in the East, to accept their fate and it wouldn’t have been the end of the world to lose that game.

But the defensive intensity turned up. Dean Wade is a good perimeter defender, but Sam Merrill was out there pestering the Nets’ ball handlers, forcing them to eat up the shot clock and leading to tough shots.

Brooklyn shot 50% (11 for 22) from beyond the arc in the first half, but they hit just 2 of 10 in the third, meanwhile Jarrett Allen scored 11 points and had seven boards in those 12 minutes. The Brooklyn lead, which was 13 at halftime, was trimmed to eight by the end of three.

It was now close enough for Darius Garland to control the fourth quarter, scoring 18 points and Isaac Okoro particularly was tremendous on the defensive end and Cleveland came from behind again.

Another thing on Okoro, we sometimes think the Cavs have limited him by making him a three and D player. He is capable of taking the ball to the basket and had two drives to the hoop in the 4th, including one which put the Cavs ahead.

Yes, the Cavs should’ve won this game. The Nets are 22-43. But sometimes, things aren’t going your way, and it is easy to write the game off. This group didn’t do that, and as usual, it was a collective effort.

Just another reason this team is special and enjoyable to watch.

Looking At Guardians’ Battles With Just Over Two Weeks Left

When spring training started for the Cleveland Guardians, there were a few position battles to watch, and the makeup of the starting rotation was unstable. With the exhibition slate about half over and the regular season starting in a little over two weeks, here is an update.

Second base. We think the front office was hoping rookie Juan Brito would take the spot, although others figured Gabriel Arias would get a good shot since he is out of options.

Brito has struggled to date, going 2 for 21 with seven strikeouts, but two homers. More than likely, we will go back to AAA to start the year. Most insiders think Arias will be the opening day starter, but he hasn’t set the world on fire, going 6 for 24 with just one walk.

Perhaps the guy who should get the gig is Tyler Freeman (8 for 19 with 3 doubles and a home run). We like Freeman, who has always hit in the minors, and last year played mostly in centerfield, and we will get to that later.

Our opinion? We think we know what Arias is. He has some pop in his bat but doesn’t make enough contact. Sometimes, the front office ignores evidence.

Rightfield/Outfield. Steven Kwan is the leftfielder. Now it gets complicated. Lane Thomas will be somewhere in the outfield on an everyday basis. The Guardians were no doubt hoping Chase DeLauter could be a factor, but injuries got in the way again.

Going into camp, the hope was rightfield would be a platoon of Will Brennan and Jhonkensy Noel. We aren’t a fan of the former because singles hitters who don’t walk are kind of useless.

And our concern about Noel is the swing and miss in his game, and he has fanned 10 times in 26 plate appearances this spring.

If Arias wins the 2B job, does Freeman become involved here as the platoon partner for Brennan? We think Freeman is a hitter (Bo Naylor is another) who didn’t mesh with Chris Valaika last season, and perhaps he is getting back to his natural swing/approach at the plate.

A long shot would be Johnathan Rodriguez, who had a cup of coffee with the big club last year. He is just 3 for 15 and a home run, but has walked seven times.

Starting rotation. Coming into camp, Tanner Bibee and newcomer Luis Ortiz were the only locks. Through three appearances in Arizona, Gavin Williams looks like he did as a rookie and seems to have sewn up a spot. Williams has fanned 16 in eight innings, allowing just five hits and a single run.

Ben Lively has had three solid starts and would seem to be the fourth starter. The hope was Triston McKenzie would claim the fifth spot but walked five batters in an outing and gave up seven hits in 3.2 innings yesterday. His WHIP is 2.21.

Who gets that spot? Joey Cantillo has been starting but has walked six hitters in six innings. On the other hand, Logan Allen has been strong, giving up just one run in 10.2 innings, striking out 10 and more importantly walking only two and only allowing one home run.

Rookie Doug Nikhazy is the sleeper, although we would expect him to open at Columbus. The southpaw has pitched seven innings allowing just one hit thus far. However, Allen has faced the more experienced hitters thus far.

The lack of minor league options though probably puts McKenzie on the roster anyway. Perhaps he’s used as a mop up option until he can find the strike zone.

The Guardians always seem to paint themselves in a corner with these players who have no options left. We would like to see them trust their judgment a little earlier in the process.

Garrett Situation Just Gets Stranger

The longer the NFL off-season goes, the weirder and weirder the situation with the Cleveland Browns gets. On Friday it was reported that owner Jimmy Haslam refused to meet with All-Pro DE Myles Garrett.

Now, we understand organizational hierarchy and if say, Greg Newsome asked to meet with the owner, the request should be turned down and have the player talk to GM Andrew Berry.

But it is also true that superstars get different treatment, so to us, when the best defensive player the franchise has had in 65 years asks to meet with the owner, we think he has earned that right.

Now, let’s also remember right now, we would do exactly what the Browns are doing with Garrett, which is nothing. And to repeat what we’ve written before; we would let the situation play out throughout the summer and see what transpires.

We have also maintained the Browns need to fix this situation, and really, there’s only one person who can do that, Jimmy Haslam.

We know what has been published about Garrett’s issues with the Browns, but it is all in general terms. He doesn’t like the direction of the franchise; he doesn’t want to go through a rebuilding process. Those are generalities.

What exactly does he want? To repeat, if he wants Berry gone, we’d do it. Heck, he might want the Browns to change how they select players, feeling they need more guys who eat, drink, and breathe football.

He may also have some ridiculous demands, things the organization simply cannot agree to, and they will have to agree there is an impasse.

Remember that Garrett has no leverage. He is under contract for two more years and then the Browns can use the franchise tag for two more seasons. His only option is to retire, something older supporters of the team can relate to (see Jim Brown 1966).

We still think there is a solution that can be reached, but the way to do it is through communication. Garrett obviously feels more comfortable with speaking directly to the man who signs his checks, and perhaps, as some have pointed out, one of his issues is the GM, the guy Haslam wants him to talk to.

It would be kind of an odd dynamic if Garrett spoke to Berry and said, “yeah, I think you are pretty terrible at your job”.

Our gut feeling is Garrett has an issue with the leadership of the franchise, as in, he doesn’t know who is leading it.

Players know more than people give them credit for. We are sure the players looked at replacing Alex Van Pelt and Stump Mitchell and figure Kevin Stefanski didn’t really want to do that. So that creates a problem for the head coach.

Our other comment is about Garrett seeming to be putting more and more heat on the Browns. They literally could not have done anything yet. The league year doesn’t begin until this week. This leads us to believe the defensive end’s issue is with the front office.

He doesn’t trust them and frankly, most of the fans don’t either.

The Browns can talk about a collaborative process and a chain of command, but the man who can repair things with Myles Garrett is the man who doesn’t want to meet with him.

We will repeat what we said a couple of weeks ago. Fix it!

Need A QB? Better Draft One In Round One

To draft a quarterback or not to draft a quarterback? That’s the debate raging amongst Browns’ fans and media as the NFL Draft approaches at the end of April.

We looked at the quarterbacks taken early in the draft from 2014-2023. We did not look at last year, because even with the success of Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix leading their teams to the playoffs, we don’t like to evaluate QBs based on one season.

There were 31 quarterbacks taken in the first round from 2014-2023, and 15 of them are currently starters in the league. At least for now. Anthony Richardson (’23) is included as the starter for Indianapolis, and the rumors are the Colts would like to replace them.

Based on that number half of the starting signal callers in the NFL right now were taken in the first round in this span. In reality, it’s a higher percentage because we have five teams who right now do not have a legitimate starter: Jets, Steelers, Browns, Raiders, and Giants.

So why do the Browns need to use a first round pick to draft a QB? Current data says 56% of the teams in the NFL have done it.

Now, let’s look at the teams with the best record in the league last season. Kansas City and Detroit were both 15-2 and they had Patrick Mahomes (10th overall in 2017) and Jared Goff (1st overall in 2016) at the helm.

The Vikings (14-3) had Sam Darnold (3rd overall in 2018) and Buffalo (13-4) has Josh Allen (7th overall in 2018). The lone exception of the best regular season records are the Super Bowl champion Eagles, who selected Jalen Hurts in the 2nd round in 2020.

To see if this is the exception, let’s look at 2023. The Ravens (13-4) had the best record and their QB is Lamar Jackson (32nd overall in 2018). Detroit, San Francisco, and Dallas were next at 12-5 and two of those squads have outliers in Brock Purdy (7th round) and Dak Prescott (4th round).

Of the 11 win teams, Buffalo (Allen), Miami (Tua Tagovailoa, 5th overall in 2020), Kansas City (Mahomes), Philadelphia (Hurts), and the Browns (the famed four QB season), three used first round QBs.

Obviously, teams can have great luck at the most important position in professional sports. Hurts, Prescott, and Purdy have all had success in the NFL, but that’s three out of 32 teams, less than 10%. In this age of gambling on anything sports related, does anyone really like those odds?

The proliferation of taking passers high in the draft comes and goes. In 2011, there were four taken, but only Cam Newton would be considered successful. The following year, Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III were the first two picks, with two more, Ryan Tannehill and Brandon Weeden selected later.

We remember people advocating for the Browns to take Tannehill. That would have been a solid choice.

Since 2016, there have been at least three QBs taken in the first round with the exception of the Kenny Pickett year in 2022. Fifteen quarterbacks have been taken in the top three picks of those nine drafts.

So, do the Browns need to take a quarterback early in this year’s draft? It seems that they do. That’s kind of the way every other team has gotten their guy.

Unless you want to go with luck being your guide. And no, we don’t mean Andrew Luck.

Cavs’ Comparison To ’15 Hawks? What About ’15 Warriors?

Many of the national detractors of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ season have used the 2014-15 Atlanta Hawks as the comparison. Those Hawks were coming off of three consecutive first round losses and win totals of 38, 44, and 40 (in a strike shortened season) and exploded for a 60-22 season and the #1 seed in the East.

They were swept in the Eastern Conference Finals by the Cavaliers, who were in their first year of the return of LeBron James to the franchise.

We think those critics are overlooking the difference between the rosters. Yes, four Hawks made the All-Star Game that year, but Atlanta’s best players were Al Horford, Paul Millsap, Kyle Korver, and Jeff Teague, all of whom made the all-star squad.

Side note: Current Cavs’ assistant coach DeMarre Carroll was a starter on that team.

Mike Budenholzer’s team ranked 6th in offensive and 6th in defense, and their leading scorer was Millsap at 16.7 points, with Teague pitching in 15.9 and 7 assists. Millsap was the leading rebounder at 7.8.

Our question is there is another team from the same season that the Cavaliers have much more in common with. Why doesn’t anyone compare them to the 2015 Golden State Warriors?

The Warriors won 47 games in 2012-13 and 51 in 2013-14, and then changed coaches, firing Mark Jackson and hiring Steve Kerr. Cleveland won 51 games two years ago (same as Golden State) and 48 last season before changing from J.B. Bickerstaff to Kenny Atkinson as head coach.

And we think everyone should remember that Warriors’ team went on to win the NBA title, defeating the Cavaliers in six games.

That Warriors’ team led the league in field goal percentage and in three-point shooting. Cleveand is second in the former and leads in three-point percentage.

The Cavaliers currently have the best offense in the NBA and are 7th defensively. Golden State had the second-best offense and the best defense.

Both teams were guard oriented, the Warriors led by Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, Cleveland by Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland.

The Warriors’ slogan in the period was “Strength In Numbers”, an ode to Kerr’s choice to keep everyone’s minutes down. Under Jackson, four players averaged over 30 minutes per game (Curry, Thompson, David Lee, and Andre Iguodala) with the starting backcourt both getting more than 35 minutes per night.

Kerr cut that duo’s time to about 32 minutes per night and Draymond Green was the only other Warrior getting more that 30 minutes per night.

Atkinson did pretty much the same thing with this year’s Cavaliers’ squad. Mitchell averaged 35 minutes last season, one of five players averaging over 30 minutes (Garland, Max Strus, Jarrett Allen, and Evan Mobley).

This year’s group has just three, and Garland and Mobley are barely over the 30-minute threshold. Mitchell is down four minutes per game, and 12 Cavs average over 10 minutes a game, and number a little inflated because two of them, Caris LeVert and Georges Niang, were dealt during the season.

But they were replaced by De’Andre Hunter, so really, Atkinson is using an 11-man rotation.

By the way, that Warriors’ team went on to record a 67-15 regular season record, about the same pace as the 2024-25 Cavaliers.

That Hawks’ team was very good, but let’s face it, they didn’t have the star power of either the Warriors or the current Cavalier team.

We guess the deciding argument occurs in the playoffs. Golden State won a championship.

Good Win For Cavs, But With Reserved Joy

The Cleveland Cavaliers continued their remarkable run Friday night, overcoming a 22-point in the first quarter and coming back to beat the Boston Celtics, 123-116 in Beantown.

The win pretty much cements the wine and gold being the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference heading into the playoffs, extending the lead over the Celts to 7.5 games wit about 20 games remaining.

To play the game many play, if Cleveland goes just 12-11 in their remaining games, Boston will have to go 19-1 just to tie them.

It was a good win, especially after the green took the huge 25-3 lead to start the game, and we know fans particularly loved the comeback win after Jayson Tatum ran his mouth after the Cavs’ timeout that followed the onslaught.

However, Kenny Atkinson didn’t get too excited, pointing out Boston didn’t play two starters in Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis. Donovan Mitchell said the same in the locker room.

And to be fair, fans in northeast Ohio would be saying “yeah, but” if Boston had won with the Cavaliers not having Darius Garland and Evan Mobley available.

Look, it’s a great matchup. The Celtics, despite our dislike for them, are the defending champions and they are an excellent basketball team. Cleveland is having an unbelievable regular season, now at 49-10, and have won only one playoff series.

And Celtics’ coach Joe Mazzulla played it smart on Friday. There was no advantage for him to play the game with all hands-on deck. Boston won two of the first three games and Boston was only totally healthy in one game, the third one, which the Celtics won in Cleveland.

That doesn’t mean the Cavs can’t win the conference finals, though. Although Cleveland has been relatively healthy this season against Boston, this was their first time playing the Celtics with De’Andre Hunter, who played 29 minutes last night and was a +21.

Dean Wade (yes, we’ve been critical of him in the past) missed the first three games vs. Boston, and he is important because of his ability to guard the wing at 6’9″, played 19 minutes and was a +12.

We are sure Atkinson won’t alter his starting lineup if the two teams matchup in May, but we would bet we see a lot of Hunter and Wade on the floor together, and also Ty Jerome, who gives the coach some added size in the backcourt.

Remember, when you are playing the same team in a seven-game series, you have to match up, and a lineup of Mitchell or Garland, Jerome, Hunter, Wade, and either Mobley or Allen does compete with Boston in terms of size defensively.

We did think the Cavs were trying to match the Celtics’ hot three-point shooting early on, settling a bit when they should have attacked the basket more. That was a big reason for the huge early lead for the Celts. Cleveland was missing and that led to transition threes for the home team.

And one of these games, Darius Garland will hit some shots vs. Boston. He’s hitting 49.1% from the floor and 42.3% from three on the season, but against the Celtics this season, his stats are at 32.9% and 33.3%.

If he’s shooting close to normal, it’s a different Cavalier offense.

It was an important win for Cleveland because Boston was missing two starters, losing would have given the Celtics a mental advantage.

But the Cavs pulled it out with an epic comeback. The next time the two teams meet, it will be for higher stakes.

Should Andrew Berry Be Trusted With This Draft?

When it comes to continuity, we don’t see a lot of success for professional teams that change people in their front office or coaching staff on a yearly basis. The biggest reason is if the philosophy changes every season, then likely you don’t have the right personnel, and significant turnover has to happen.

The Cleveland Browns are trying to do that after a decade of reshuffling the deck every season.

When owner Jimmy Haslam talks about his front office, he usually mentions the term “collaborative”, which we aren’t sure works in professional sports. We believe it is far better to have someone who can judge talent in concert with the coaching staff, and let that person make the call.

That makes it very difficult for evaluate GM Andrew Berry.

First, let’s go back to the trade for Deshaun Watson. Whoever had the idea to vigorously pursue Watson via trade should be no longer with the organization. It was that bad of a decision.

However, we don’t know who advocated for the deal, and that of course leads to speculation that it was the owner who pushed for the move.

And dealing the three first round picks makes it hard to evaluate Berry’s performance in the draft. In looking at his record, we find the following:

2020: First round pick Jedrick Wills didn’t pan out as expected and has probably played his last down in Cleveland. Second rounder Grant Delpit is a solid safety. Nick Harris (5th) has been injury prone. Harrison Bryant was also selected in this draft.

2021: First rounder Greg Newsome is a starter at nickel corner and 2nd rounder Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah has made a Pro Bowl, although he had a severe neck injury last season. James Hudson, selected on the 4th round is hanging on the roster by a thread.

Taking WR Anthony Schwartz in the third round wasn’t a good pick.

2022: No first this year, but the top selection, Martin Emerson is a starter, and another pick in that round, Alex Wright shows some promise. Jerome Ford (5th) is a contributor, and Michael Woods (5th) has had injury issues.

2023: Again, no first-round pick, but 2nd rounder WR Cedric Tillman shows promise. 3rd rounder Siaki Ika has been cut, but 4th rounder Dawand Jones should start somewhere if he can stay healthy and DE Isaiah McGuire flashed late last season.

Fifth round QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson looks like a wasted pick and CB Cam Mitchell seems like a solid cornerback. Offensive lineman Luke Wypler missed all of last season.

In last year’s draft, 2nd rounder Michael Hall seems to be the real deal, but has had off the field issues. It’s too early to judge anyone else.

The problem for Berry has been the lack of first round picks for sure, but neither of the two he made is an impact player. In fact, outside of Owusu-Koramoah and Delpit and maybe Emerson, none of his picks can be considered franchise cornerstones.

That might be the most damning thing to say about those drafts. He made solid trades for Jerry Jeudy, Amari Cooper, and other veterans, but free agent signings Juan Thornhill and John Johnson III haven’t worked out.

It’s why fans and media people have issues trusting Berry with this draft, which includes a first-round pick, and is oh so important for the franchise.

And we totally understand.

Love Cavs’ Season To Date, But Playoffs Will Tell The Story

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.

Thinking Like A Coach Or GM

At times we are asked why we think Cleveland area teams should look to add to the roster. It has come up recently because we have written several pieces about how the Guardians should sign a veteran starting pitcher because there are several available on one-year deals.

We would also like the Cavaliers to add another big man, either on the buyout market or from the G-League.

First of all, and this probably comes from our coaching days, we have been trained to look for what needs improvement on a given team. We think there isn’t a team out there that doesn’t have either a weakness or could use a slight improvement to its roster.

Sometimes, it would be a subtle move, such as could you find a better “last man” on the roster. That seems silly to some, but it is how coaches and general managers need to think.

Fans look at players and teams and think if everything goes right, the team they follow will be very good. For example, there are people (influencers, since they were kind of in the spotlight this week) who believe Kyle Manzardo, Juan Brito will become all-stars, and Bo Naylor will return to his 2023 form and the Guardians will repeat as Central Division champions.

Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff are probably hoping that is indeed the case, but they also should be coming up with a contingency plan in case everything goes in the other direction. We believe they are concerned, but perhaps their hands are tied from making such a move.

There is an old adage in baseball that at the end of the year, a players’ numbers will be close to what the back of their baseball card says. But when a player only has one or two lines on that card, it is tough to judge him or her.

Not having a track record is likely the thing that worries an executive more than anything else.

We discussed the starting rotation for Cleveland the other day and really, there is only one hurler, Tanner Bibee, with any kind of record of success as a starter, and he only has two years in the big leagues. Every other candidate for the rotation should be viewed as huge question marks.

And, by the way, we are fans, just like you, and we want all of those pitchers to do well. But we haven’t seen any evidence that calms our fears.

As for the Cavs, on Friday night, we saw Jarrett Allen leave the game with a hand injury. Hopefully, all is good, and Allen plays tonight, but what if this happened near the end of the regular season or the playoffs?

If Allen were to miss a significant amount of time in the post-season, the Cavs probably are in trouble, but if it would be a game or two, you can’t just have Tristan Thompson as the only alternative. That’s why we (and the Cavs’ brass) would be looking for another big man.

They don’t need a starter, just someone who could provide five to ten minutes in an emergency situation.

The coaches and executives need to plan for any problems that should arise, and that’s how they are trained to think. It’s also why they have a lot of stress in their jobs and feel more relieved than happy when things go well.

Looking At Cavs Remaining Schedule

The pre-All Star weekend of the NBA schedule couldn’t have gone better for the Cleveland Cavaliers. They got off to a 15-0 start, and since then went 29-10, which isn’t shabby either.

They are sitting at 44-10, but after tonight’s game against the Brooklyn Nets, they will have some tests coming up.

Keep in mind, this is the time in the schedule, the weeks before and after the All-Star break, where sometimes teams go through a bit of a lull. The wine and gold avoided the pre-break blues, winning eight of nine to roar into their week off.

After the game tonight, the Cavs have two home games against title contenders who both sport 36-18 records, the Knicks and Grizzlies. This is followed by a pair of road games, first against Orlando, who took Cleveland to seven games in a first round series last year, and then another measuring stick game vs. the defending champion Celtics.

The Boston game will be Kenny Atkinson’s first opportunity to see how the addition of De’Andre Hunter works for the Cavs. The Celts have had a size advantage, especially on the wings, and no doubt Hunter was acquired with that in mind.

After this group of games, the Cavaliers’ schedule does soften a bit. The Heat is always a challenge and they visit on March 5th and they travel to Milwaukee on the 9th, and of course, Giannis Antetokounmpo is always tough to defend.

There is also one more west coast swing remaining from March 18th through the 25th, and right now, the game leading off the trip against the Clippers might be the toughest one.

All in all, there are still three more against the Knicks left and that should be regarded as games to watch, two vs. the Clippers, and two vs. San Antonio and Victor Wembanyama.

Cleveland currently has a 5-1/2 game lead over Boston in the Eastern Conference with the Celtics having the tiebreaker right now as a result of winning two out of three this year. And as we said before, there is one more game next week.

The most important thing is obviously to be playing well and be healthy going into the post-season. But getting the #1 seed would be good in that the wine and gold would avoid the Celtics and/or Knicks until the conference finals.

And likely those two teams will have to face off in the second round as it stands right now. That is not to dismiss the Cavaliers’ opponent in the either of the first two rounds, but Cleveland would be heavily favored in both series.

The Cavs did another 6’5″ wing yesterday signing Javonte Green, who was bought out by New Orleans. They also added 6’10” Nae’Qwan Tomlin from the Charge yesterday, giving them another big man. No doubt though, Koby Altman and Mike Gansey are looking for a veteran big who can help down the stretch, and perhaps in the playoffs too.

The other thing to watch is how Hunter plays and how he fits with starting lineup or does he fit better coming off the bench.

It will be a long wait until the playoffs start in mid-April. That doesn’t mean there aren’t things to keep an eye on.