Cavs In A Slump, Concerned? Yes. Worried? No.

For the first 4-1/2 months of the NBA season, the Cleveland Cavaliers lost 10 games. Last week, they lost four in a row. The losses are mitigated by the fact they had won the previous 16 games, so in the last 20 contests, they are 16-4, which is damn good.

However, a late season west coast trip and the playoffs are drawing near, it is likely a challenge to keep focused, and really, when it comes down to it, they need to be ready to go when the post-season starts.

Kenny Atkinson isn’t happy (nor are the players) with the four consecutive defeats, but he’s also admitted he is trying some different combinations with the post-season in mind.

The Cavs are in a shooting funk, particularly from distance. Here are their three point percentages by month, with attempts included:

October 41.1% 36.6 FGA
November 39.9% 38.3 FGA
December 41.4% 44.2 FGA
January 36.0% 42.8 FGA
February 40.7% 40.9 FGA
March 34.8% 42.5 FGA

Before this month, January was the worst shooting month for the Cavs, and coincidentally, it was their worst record at 10-5. So, we can definitely infer Cleveland’s success is based on shooting the ball well. That’s where the league gets its reputation as a “make or miss league”.

Donovan Mitchell is hitting just 18% of his threes this month compared to 37% for the entire season, and Darius Garland is making only 33% from beyond the arc, and is over 40% for the season.

Based on the fact of a smaller sample size, you have to think this is just a slump and both will get back to normalcy soon.

Mitchell is particular is tremendous taking the ball to the basket and perhaps should start with shorter shots and work his way out, but on the other hand, the most important thing for all of the Cavs is to remain healthy going into the playoffs.

During the 16 game winning streak, Cleveland gave up more than 120 points just four times, one during an overtime win over Portland. They have done it three times of the four losses.

Evan Mobley missed the first loss last Sunday and Garland missed the game in Sacramento. Isaac Okoro played just seven minutes in the loss to Orlando, and curiously De’Andre Hunter played only 20 and 22 minutes in two of the defeats.

The Cavs have two more games out west (today vs. Utah and Tuesday at Portland) before coming back home for the home stretch. They still have a five-game bulge over the Celtics for the top seed in the East, and with 12 games to play, they will likely have home court advantage for throughout the conference playoffs.

And we maintain, as we did during the 15-game streak to open the season, that nothing the Cavs accomplish during the regular season matters. We all knew this was a playoff team barring injuries.

What matters is how they will do in April and beyond. And they have plenty of time to right the ship in the last 12 contests.

It starts with breaking the losing streak, and that starts with picking up the defensive effort. It’s a long season and sometimes the players lose a bit of focus. That’s probably all it is.

But if they are the title contenders, we believe they are, they have to get back to playing the way they have all year. The players and coaching staff want the same thing.

Four Guys Who Need To Show For Guardians

Spring training numbers don’t matter if you are Jose Ramirez or Steven Kwan, or even someone like Lane Thomas, whose spot on the roster is assured.

But when you are trying to establish yourself as a Major League player, you probably need to put up some numbers to get big league at-bats when the season kicks off next week.

The Guardians have several players who are in that boat, they haven’t really proven anything at the big-league level, and some of those guys are struggling in Arizona.

Other guys have done well in exhibition play, but how they have performed thus far in the majors have a casting a jaundiced eye.

We have really like Tyler Freeman since he made his major league debut. His minor league pedigree says he should be a solid bat. His AAA numbers are .399/.403/802. Overall in the minors he has a .384 on base percentage.

But he’s had 637 plate appearances with Cleveland and has a .223 batting average with a .304 on base and 632 OPS. He’s been solid this spring going 10 for 32 with two homers and four walks.

How much does the brass trust him?

Then you have someone the front office is giving one last shot to, Gabriel Arias, who is out of options. Arias’ minor league numbers aren’t as impressive as Freeman’s (.337/.456/793 at AAA), but he has the metric the new age folks love–exit velocity. He hits the ball hard. When he hits it.

And that is Arias’ problem. His strikeout rate is 32.3%. The league average is 22.6%.

He hasn’t been strong in the spring training games either, going 8 for 35 with nine whiffs and a 707 OPS. However, most people feel he will open the season at second base.

Will Brennan is another player that needs to start showing something. Brennan came up during the stretch drive in 2022 going 15 for 42 with a HR. That followed a minor league season in which he hit .314 with an 850 OPS. That got people excited.

In the two years since, he’s had over 800 big league at-bats and put up numbers of .308/.377/685. That’s a below average OPS. He’s been solid during the spring, going 9 for 34 with a couple of homers and an 806 OPS.

What would we like to see from Brennan? More patience. He seems to swing at the first pitch a lot and if you don’t have a lot of pop you need to be able to draw walks. Singles’ hitters who don’t walk are very replaceable.

Bo Naylor doesn’t have to worry about making the team, he’ll be the primary catcher, but it remains to be seen what kind of hitter he will be in the bigs. In the second half of ’23, Naylor hit .252 with 10 home runs and an 893 OPS.

His strikeout to walk ratio was 35:25.

Last season, he hit .201 and that ratio was 122:29. Which hitter is he going to be? This spring he has gone 8 for 37 and has drawn three walks with seven punchouts.

For a team that seems to have offensive questions, it would be great if Naylor is a viable hitter. And it would be great for Naylor because 2023 draftee Cooper Ingle will start the year at Akron and is showing signs he can swing the bat.

These guys are on the spot both now and for the first month or two of the season. Can any of them emerge for the Guardians

Talking Leadership (Or Lack Of It) In Cleveland Sports

Leadership is a tricky thing. You can’t quantify it, and we know there are classes which teach it, it is really something you have to be comfortable with.

For the Cleveland Guardians, there is no question that Jose Ramirez is their leader on the field. Ramirez plays the game the right way and even though he’s had several top five MVP finishes, and is likely headed to Cooperstown, he still plays like he did when he was a rookie.

If you are a guy who doesn’t play much and you see Ramirez doing that, no doubt you will do the same, or you won’t be around long. Add in that he also talks to teammates during games, telling them what to look for and giving them tips on how to be better, and it is a perfect combination.

For the Cavaliers, Donovan Mitchell had a meeting with Kenny Atkinson before the season started and they discussed reducing his minutes and “workload”, thus empowering his teammates. Mitchell did just that and you see him during games encouraging and cajoling the other players.

That’s leadership.

On a team, no one has to step up and say he’s the leader. The other players know who it is. One thing we always say is a leader doesn’t have to say he’s the leader, in fact, someone who tells you they are the leader usually isn’t.

Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. We had an interesting discussion the other way with someone who didn’t like the Browns paying Myles Garrett what they did because he’s not a leader.

Our response was it would be nice if your best player was the leader, like in the case of the Guardians and Cavaliers, but it’s not a necessity. The Browns are paying Garrett because of his ability, the fact that every team has to gameplan for him. And that’s alright.

It’s an issue for the local football team because there is a serious leadership void throughout the organization. We have recently referenced the phrase “collaborative effort” when it comes to decision making. That approach does not foster leadership for anyone.

In the recent NFLPA poll, head coach Kevin Stefanski received a grade of C from the players. We don’t know how many players on the Browns responded to the poll, but a few people we have talked to said the grade could stem from none of the players knowing who is in charge.

Is it Stefanski and GM Andrew Berry? Is it Jimmy Haslam? Or even the mysterious Paul DePodesta? Who is the ultimate guy? Perhaps the players feel that void.

It was very telling that backup quarterback Jameis Winston spoke to the team before games. The starting QB didn’t have that gravitas.

Does the organization not want any vocal leaders? They don’t seem to have drafted any recently. Is that because Stefanski doesn’t want or like players like this.

Going back to the Guardians, Terry Francona always liked a veteran player in the clubhouse to echo what he wanted, so it was better coming from a fellow player. It was important to have Jason Giambi and Mike Napoli on the team for that reason.

The Browns haven’t had that. Yes, everyone in the locker room respects Nick Chubb for his work ethic and toughness, but he doesn’t seem like a vocal presence.

Filling the leadership void might be the biggest need the Browns need to address. It is just as important, if not more important than the measurables.

Why Not Go Back To Winston?

The Cleveland Browns are still looking for a veteran starting quarterback. Slowly, the options have been reduced by other teams signing younger, experienced passers in the first round of free agency.

It appears that the Browns miscalculated the market and seemed to be settled on Kirk Cousins, whom they didn’t think Atlanta would pay a roster bonus and thus he would be released. But apparently, Atlanta isn’t going to do that.

So, in waiting for Cousins, Cleveland could’ve traded a third-round pick for Geno Smith, or signed Justin Fields or Daniel Jones in free agency. They didn’t, so if the Browns want a veteran signal caller, it looks like Russell Wilson, Carson Wentz, Joe Flacco, or someone else of that ilk.

We ask this question…why not Jameis Winston?

Yes, we know Winston has a history of throwing interceptions. And he ranked second in the league in interception percentage last season trailing only the Colts’ Anthony Richardson, who appears to be losing his job.

But hear us out. Remember when Winston became the starting quarterback last season after an injury to the starter, and head coach Kevin Stefanski gave up play-calling responsibilities the same week?

Winston never got a chance to run the offense that he came to Cleveland to run. An offense built on running the ball and the play-action pass. Instead, he played in a pass happy attack, one that had him throwing over 40 passes in a game five times, including 58 throws in the loss to Denver.

Then remember the first year Winston started in New Orleans, when the Saints got off to a 5-2 start before he was injured. Running Sean Payton’s offense, the most passes he threw in a game was 35, and he only had more than one interception in one game, when he went 11 for 22 for 111 yards in a 26-7 loss to Carolina.

For that season, the former first overall pick completed 59% of his throws and had 14 touchdowns and just 3 picks.

And we know Winston still has an incredible arm. Instead of signing a guy with diminished arm strength like Wilson, why not go with a passer who still can make all the throws. And in a locker room that seems to need leadership amongst the players, we know the leadership Winston provides.

Also, if Payton can coach the turnovers out of Winston, why can’t Stefanski?

We also think Winston would be a good mentor for whatever quarterback the Browns take in the first round, and we believe they are going to do just that.

Plus, Jerry Jeudy became a Pro Bowl wide receiver when Winston took over as quarterback, and we also are aware the QB wasn’t thrilled at times that wide receivers (Elijah Moore) didn’t try to break up passes that were thrown in harm’s way.

Look, we know it’s not going to happen. It doesn’t seem like Stefanski had a connection with Jameis and no media outlet has reported anything about a reunion between the two parties.

But if the picks were the problem, Flacco would have had the highest interception percentage in the NFL in 2023 had he thrown enough passes to qualify. The league leader was Mac Jones at 3.5%, Flacco’s was 3.9%.

We would like to see how Winston would fare in a run based, throw off play action attack like Stefanski likes to use. Maybe he would still put the ball in precarious situations, but maybe he’d hit on some big plays and give the Browns an air attack that can stretch the field.

For whatever reason, the Browns’ front office and coaching staff isn’t considering Jameis Winston as an option.

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.