The Cavs might as well not even show up; a look at the media previews of the NBA Finals

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Everyone predicted a rubber match between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers since, well, basically 5 minutes after Kyrie Irving drove a dagger into Warriors fans' hearts in Game 7. Or at least since the best team in the league, the one that one an NBA-record 73 games, who had the unanimous MVP, added the second best player in the world to its roster.

Now that the inevitable is upon us, let's see what the experts are saying. (Spoiler alert, nearly everyone believes the same thing.)

Zach Lowe, ESPN.com: (clickthrough to a great, lengthy analytical breakdown.) If Cleveland regresses to somewhere between its current form and its desultory regular-season play, this is a walkover. If the Warriors have another gear in reserve, this is a walkover. If neither of those things prove true, this is not a walkover. The Cavs have a fighting chance....The bet here, though, is that the Cavs fall short in a competitive series. Warriors in 6

Sam Amick, USA Today: Warriors in 6. "Curry, Green and Kevin Durant are playing at their peak, while Klay Thompson is the slumping shooter who's surely about to blow his top any minute now. The greatness of LeBron James, the continued ascension of Kyrie Irving and the better-than-ever comfort level of Kevin Love will be enough to help the Cavs put up a good fight, but this Warriors group is just too good to be beat."

SI's Lee Jenkins: Warriors in 5. "[Durant] doesn’t need to be sensational. Neither does Steph Curry nor Klay Thompson nor Draymond Green. If they simply play well, Golden State wins. The dynamic is different for James, just as it was in ’11. He has to be superhuman."

Sean Deveney, Sporting News: Warriors in 6. "[The Cavaliers] can’t keep pace with the Warriors, winners of 27 of their last 28 games, in terms of depth. The Cavs and Warriors went seven games last year, and Cleveland returns much the same lineup this time around. Golden State has lost Andrew Bogut and Harrison Barnes, but they brought in Durant, and his playoff performance to date — 25.2 points on 55.6 percent shooting — has been exactly what the Warriors wanted when they signed him last July."

SI's Chris Ballard: Warriors sweep in 4. " ...the only way to see the Warriors losing this series is if they self-sabotage, and that appears unlikely...[LeBron will] go down as the best ever and it may not be all that close by the time he’s done. But he cannot overcome this level of talent, cohesion, and depth. Last year, Golden State intentionally chased history in the regular season. This year they’ll make it, becoming the first team to go undefeated in the playoffs.

Kevin Pelton, ESPN.com: Cites a couple sources, from RPM, "Golden State would be expected to win in four games about 20 percent of matchups and win the series 88 percent of the time", and from "market-based PredictWise," "an implied probability of 72 percent for the Warriors to win the Finals."

SI's Ben Golliver: Warriors in 5. "The Warriors lack the best player in this series, but they possess more overall talent, better two-way balance, more useful depth, greater lineup versatility, and more individual match-ups to exploit. That, plus home-court advantage and a renewed focus following last year’s catastrophe, should be enough to complete the redemption mission.  "

SI's Matt Dollinger: Cavaliers in 6. [editor's note: WAIT A MINUTE WHAT IS THIS DOING HERE?] " The Cavaliers have the mental edge. This shouldn't be underestimated. LeBron is in the Warriors' heads. They genuinely fear him after being pushed to the brink of seppuku in last year's Finals. And as for the newcomer who wasn't around last June, why do you think he left Oklahoma City? He's done underestimating LeBron, too."

SI's Rob Mahoney: Warriors in 5. "These Warriors aren’t unbeatable, but to beat them four times in seven games would require some dramatic turn of events beyond what we could reasonably expect. These should be competitive games, all in all. I just don’t expect there to be all that many of them, given that Golden State is better prepared to handle just the kind of counters that wore them down over the course of last year’s Finals."

SI's Rohan Nadkarni: Warriors in 5.  "...there’s no sane reasoning for picking the Cavaliers... The Warriors are the more talented group, and they are playing with a feverish motivation after the embarrassment of last year’s Finals. Frankly, I wouldn’t be shocked if this series was a sweep. But I’ll also happily accept my comeuppance if LeBron makes me eat these words."

SI's DeAntae Prince: Warriors in 6.  "[The Cavs]  don't have enough to overwhelm a motivated Warriors team with a hungry Durant leading the charge. I never feel completely comfortable betting against LeBron, but this is the one team with the talent to overwhelm his Cavaliers.

SI's Jeremy Woo: Cavaliers in 7. [editor's note: WHO PUT THIS IN, AGAIN??] "...his is the best edition of the Warriors so far, [but] jumping to sensible conclusions with these teams isn’t always worth the energy. The best version to date of an all-time talented team that hasn’t even lost once in the playoffs should win, right? After all, the only rational basketball argument here is LeBron James, still at the peak of his remarkable powers, with an ascendant sidekick, Jordan’s records in his rearview mirror and all the motivation to repeat he could ever need. And you know what? Somehow… it all sounds kinda reasonable. Screw it—Cavs in seven."

Scott Rafferty, Sporting News: It's hard to quote from Rafferty's piece, but the jist of it is that the Warriors have a worse-than-death-play with a Durant-Curry pick and roll that is much better than the Green-Curry pick and roll that the Cavs were able to counter last year, and that the league hasn't seen it much because they are holding it for these very Finals. (That's actually Chad Lowe's supposition.)

Chris Barnewall, CBSSports.com: Warriors in 7. "I was so close to picking Cleveland. So very close.[But the Warriors] had the best offense all season. Their defense has been incredible all season. They've just been more consistent and they added Kevin freakin' Durant. Don't be surprised if Cleveland takes this the distance again, but Golden State just has too much incredible talent on its roster."

Tom Ley, Deadspin: "I mean, the Warriors are probably going to win, but I’ve managed to talk myself into believing that the Cavs can win. I will believe this up until Durant drops 40 points in each of the first two games and the Cavs go down 0-2. How about you?"

Maurice Moton, Bleacher Report: Cavs in 7. [Editor's note: OKAY THIS IS GETTING RIDICULOUS.] "Many feel Durant tilts the balance in the Warriors' favor for an early knockout, but Love's arrival on the big stage along with the Cavaliers' deep bench rotation evens the playing field."

Bill Reiter, CBSSports.com: Warriors in 7. "The back-and-forth series is punctuated by LeBron James again rising to another level with a championship on the line, and Curry asserting himself and looking again like a unanimous MVP comes down to the final game. This time, the Warriors win at home at Oracle and the confetti falls for them and their revenge tour." (Editor's note: this prediction wasn't really worth anything, as it didn't say anything.)

Ethan Skolnick, CBSSports.com: Warriors in 7. "While James will be spectacular, and while we saw he can steal a seventh game at Oracle, that home court edge has to count for something at some point. This time, the fortified Warriors, with lessons learned from their sloppy finish, close stronger."

SI's Andrew Sharp: Warriors in 5.  "... LeBron is why I'm giving the Cavs a game here. But the Warriors are probably too good to make this any closer. Golden State has a better chance at sweeping this series than the Cavs do at winning it. They are too explosive on offense, and too relentless on defense, and too good at creating fatal mismatches.  All of that was true even last year, and that was before the third-best player in basketball joined the second-best player in basketball on the best team in the league. I won't overthink it from there. This seems like it may be a more interesting matchup on paper than it will be on the court. It's great that both teams are healthy and rolling, yes, but when this year's Warriors are rolling, nothing else matters. Not even LeBron."James Herbert, CBSSports.com: Warriors in 6. "I would have picked the Warriors in five before the playoffs started, but the Cavs' run through the East makes that seem disrespectful."

Matt Moore, CBSSports.com: Warriors in 6.  "Durant's just too much, he's just really such a great player and when you add him to this team, there's just too much there for the Cavs to handle. The Warriors will overwhelm them with talent, will stay focused, will find enough offensive answers to outlast LeBron James,.."

Jack Maloney, CBSSports.com: Warriors in 5. "Last year's meeting between these two probably would have ended in five games if a certain...um...incident hadn't happened, and now the Warriors have Kevin Durant."

Brad Botkin, CBSSports.com: Cavs in 7. "You can call up all the advanced stats you want, but basketball, when you really get down to to it, particularly in playoff situations that often come down to winning a few crucial possessions, tends to be pretty simple: Best player wins. Give me LeBron in another epic series."

Jeff Zillgitt, USA Today: Warriors in 6. "The Cavs have enough offensive power to win games in the series, but do they have enough defense to win the series? The Cavs’ defense has been questioned all season, and it improved during the playoffs. But Cleveland didn’t face an offense like Golden State’s, nor did the Warriors face an offense like the Cavs’...in this series, the burden of proof is on Cleveland’s defense.]

Michael Singer, USA Today: Warriors in 7. "The Warriors are a devastating group that not only have last year's collapse still lingering in their minds, but also an inherent motivation in Steve Kerr."

AJ Neuharth-Keusch, USA Today: Warriors in 6. "This is a Cavaliers team that struggled mightily on the defensive end in the regular season. Sure, they've been significantly better in the playoffs, but their first three opponents couldn't hold a candle to Golden State. Simple as it sounds, the Warriors are just too strong and talented on both ends of the floor to end another campaign without the Larry O'Brien Trophy."

The ESPN gaggle:

ESPN's Basketball Power Index: 93% chance of the Warriors winning the series (at the end of a large statistical breakdown of the players and teams.

ESPN's FiveThirtyEight: 90% chance of the Warriors winning the series.

ESPN's Fan Panel: 70% chance of the Warriors winning the series.

Worrying about the Cavs on the eve of the playoffs

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Cavs roar into the 2017 postseason, or so we hope

 In this the Year 1 ATC (After The Championship), Cleveland fans may have gotten complacent, maybe even a little bored, watching the Cavaliers slog thorough a long regular season before the only season that matters cranks up in earnest. 

You also have to wonder if the Cavs themselves feel the same, considering this tremendously talented team has complied a 26-24 record since January 1. This season's squad has cycled through two dozen players as well as numerous lineup changes, while displaying an exasperating inability to stop opposing teams at the point of attack.

Call it a championship hangover or frustration at not having a consistently healthy lineup from night to night. For a postseason shoe-in like Cleveland, the regular season is an 82-game lab experiment of rotations and schemes leading to a two-month meat-grinder where all that preparation pays off. But the Wine and Gold appeared to still be figuring things out as Coach Ty Lue eschewed seeding for resting his top stars.

So if there's a switch to be flipped, the Cavs better be flexing their, uh, flipping fingers as they prepare for this afternoon's first-round opener against the Pacers. Nobody needs to be reminded of the all-world talent on this roster. Just as critically, the Cavs won't have to deal with back-to-backs or long road trips. Logic tells me that LeBron and Co. will be focused, rejuvenated and ready for another lengthy playoff run.

Or are those optimistic adjectives just me whistling past the graveyard? It's freaking hard to repeat, and even getting out of the East is no longer the near certainty it was at the beginning of the year. If last year's beautiful championship dream hadn't happened, I'd be grimly waiting for the hammer to fall. As it stands, I'm willing to see how things play out.

Ideally, the next week will lay to rest stories about injuries and lackadaisical play, and reintroduce the intense, fun-loving group that brought Cleveland so much joy one year ago.

note: credit for the image of Lebron used above goes to @elliotgerard and @graphatick

This is our story

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Years ago a Cleveland sports personality - I think it was late broadcaster Casey Coleman - lamented the shortage of good memories among the local fanbase since the Browns had won the NFL Championship decades before.

Not to say we didn't have warm remembrances of certain seasons, or even stretches of seasons, where one team or another was playing at a championship level. Fun was had. High fives were given. A few second place banners were raised up flagpoles or into rafters.

Prior to last weekend, my most cherished Cleveland sports memory was intermingled with my worst: The improbable, near glorious 1997 Indians post-season run, which found a group of dorky Ohio State students crammed into a downstairs apartment on Chittenden Avenue, passing a souvenir Municipal Stadium bat from one sweaty hand to another as a good luck gesture for each successive Tribe at-bat.

It was a great ride, though tied to a 9th-inning Mesa meltdown that became part of the torturous lore of Cleveland sports; a seemingly perpetual way of existence where we named our failures as if they were our kids.   

Cleveland, City of Light

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"It's going to be lit up like Vegas" - LBJ 6/27/03

Let’s start with the hugs and the high-fives.

Hugged old friends and old-fashioned fans, new acquaintances and never-see-you-agains, hotel employees, homeless folks in knock-off gear, Tinder gals in XS throwbacks, hammered guys hanging from fire trucks, and hoards of haven’t-we-suffered-long-enough millennials.

High-fived friendly cops and future criminals, prostitutes and pawn-shop pimps, doubters that wielded pitchforks just a week ago, Hodors and Jon Snows, then, Jesus Christ, himself, resurrected right there on Prospect Ave. I may have even stuck my big-ass head through the passenger's side window of that red Hyundai from Boyz in the Hood and dared a foursome of psuedo-gangbangers to "show me u a champion." They obliged.

The whole planet shared in our joy on Sunday night, but only your fellow Clevelanders could comprehend it. This was truly the evening for no words, for locking eyes with strangers and knowing what surged through their bones. We walked the downtown streets we once thought snake-bit and laughed at the person we were just three hours ago. See, it was a collective out-of-body experience for the entire 216. LeBron would use Doris Burke's mic to scream our name, and we made sure he'd hear us shout back by overstuffing social media with Cleveland vanity vids, solely appropriate for celebrations a half century in the making.

Understand, Sundays of our past were five-star Greek Tragedies: Fumbles, drives, shots, and folding tables on dirt mounds (if you never read them, ESPN publishes the Cliffs Notes). But our Finals triumph felt like a rewrite for a new era. If you're like me and planned to retire from fandom and travel the earth in meditation once the title drought ended, you may want to hold off on your Uber to Hopkins. Because Sunday, June 19th, 2016 didn't feel like a journey's end, but rather the beginning of an East 9th Empire. One that has the fortitude to eventually spread north, and conquer the throne at 100 Alfred Lerner Way. Imagine Chief Wahoo, in his last, half-racist stand, with one dying push past the guards at The Factory of Sadness. OK...maybe scratch that thought. But winning breeds winning. Stipe. The Monsters of Lake Erie. The Larry O'Brien Trophy.

King James and The Land. Forever.

Cavs give the business on way to second straight Finals

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Good times

There was an almost a businesslike atmosphere as Friday night's final buzzer heralded the Cavaliers to their second straight NBA Finals. 

Not to say the team wasn't excited, as hugs were exchanged and daps* given. Locker room footage showed the team dousing each other in water and chocolate milk instead of champagne. Asked by reporters about the lack of post-game bubbly, LeBron James replied matter-of-factly, "We didn't have champagne."

No doubt the celebration got more raucous later in the night, but the team's on-camera demeanor was in some part muted and thoughtful, as if finishing 14-2 in the Eastern Conference playoffs shouldn't be cause for Dom Perignon-spritzing joy.

These Cavs are way past the "glad-to-be-here" stage, even as two members of the Big Three get ready for their first real taste of championship-round basketball. Fully healthy and coming off a series where the average margin of victory was a ridiculous 28 points, this squad is playing the best it ever has a unit.

Obviously, that workmanlike attitude comes from James, who along with teammate James Jones will be tipping off his sixth straight Finals on Thursday. This latest run started two summers ago with a famous 'Coming home' letter, where James and/or his marketing team told a hungry fanbase that nothing is given, everything is earned.

Similar sentiments came from James early this morning after putting the Raptors to bed, as reported by Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com: "We earned the right to be here and represent the Eastern Conference in The Finals," James said. "We're not supposed to be here. We earned our right."

These words echo over a long year that witnessed a mid-season firing as well as stretches of lackadaisical hoopage where the entire roster was seemingly encased in "chill mode." The Cavs play this post-season has been far from chilly, yet the team remains focused, calm and prepared for that next, final step.

*Author's note: "Dap" is street lingo for the knocking of fists together as a form of greeting or respect.

Cavs blow out Blatt. What's next?

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Four days after an embarrassing loss to the defending champs on home court, second-year Cavaliers coach David Blatt is paying for that humiliation with his job. 

David, I hardly knew ye...

At least that will be a major part of the narrative in the days ahead as fans and local media try to deconstruct Blatt's deep-sixing by team brass this afternoon. If anything, the evisceration by the Golden State Warriors may have been the fatal blow in a coaching tenure that had been bleeding for some time.

According to ESPN's Chris Broussard, Cavs players were not convinced Blatt could take this team to a championship level. Early word from beat writer Brian Windhorst claims LeBron James was not consulted on the decision, a bit of lip service so egregious as to be comical.  

Regardless, the Cavs have even more pressure on them now to bring this title-starved city a summertime parade, with assistant coach Tyronn Lue taking the hot seat. The Blatt-led Cavs' gaudy record masked some problems, no doubt, namely an offense where ball rotation was shunted aside for one-on-one hero ball.

Whether that's on Blatt or the players is a question. Both sides are to blame, most likely. However, it's apparent these players didn't respect Blatt, and that was an issue that could not be ignored. Blame the diva-licious NBA era we live in if you will, but as a prisoner of the moment, at least, it's evident Blatt would have been canned at season's end barring a title run.

It sucks, but them's the breaks on a team built to win immediately. After today's controversial move, Cleveland fans can do nothing but hope the gamble pays off big time. 

What CST thinks about the Cavs and the NBA this year...

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NBA 2015-2016 Season Predictions

Cavs record: 61-21
Cavs playoff finish: NBA Champions
NBA Finals: Cavaliers over Clippers
MVP: Mr. LeBron James

Even if the first three lines don't come true, LeBron can't get jacked out of the MVP again. This season may start out a little rocky, but let's not forget they lost to the damn Knicks opening night last year, and weren't exactly coasting along in January. The regular season doesn't matter, and finally the 2015 Champion Warriors* should just never EVER forget the active roster of the team they beat.

Cavs record: 56-26
Cavs playoff finish: NBA Champions
NBA Finals: Cavs over Thunder
MVP: Anthony Davis

I'm glad the Cavs are back, not just because the NBA season starts tonight, but for the whole team as well. It's nice to have a team to root for who says #ALLin, and nothing less than a championship will satisfy them. While the other teams in this town are looking for a way to just get to the playoffs, it's refreshing to have a team that legitimately has a chance to win it all. It should be a fun ride.




Cavs record: 65-17
Cavs playoff finish: NBA Champions
NBA Finals: Cavs over Spurs
MVP: LeBron James

If this team was to remain healthy, and granted that's a big if, and they don't purposely rest key guys (the big three), they could win 75 games. Frankly, it doesn't matter what their record is as long as they're rolling going into the playoffs. With losing last year in the Finals in 6 games without 2 of the big three and a far weaker bench, I don't see how the Cavs aren't the favorites to win it all this season.

Cavs record: 57-25
Cavs playoff finish: Finals
NBA Finals: Spurs over Cavs
MVP: Kevin Durant

The marathon that is the NBA season begins tonight, and as a Cleveland sports fan sick to death of hearing about the mess in Berea, I cannot wait. The Cavs enter the season with an improved bench and a couple of key players coming back from injury. The process will be slow, and it's likely the Cavs will drop a few back-to-backs as the roster coheres. The most important thing is getting Love, Irving, Shumpert and of course #23 fully healthy and ready to go come late April. To quote Robert Carradine in                                                  Revenge of the Nerds,' it's gonna be a great year.    
                                   



 Cavs record: 55-27
 Cavs playoff finish: NBA Champions
 NBA Finals: Cavs over Warriors
 MVP: Steph Curry

Is there anything in sports more pointless than the NBA regular season? I  could pretty much tell you right now at least 14, 15, and maybe all 16        playoff teams. The Cavs will win the East easily even as a 3 or 4 seed; the only question is will the West be won by the Spurs, Thunder, or Warriors? With Kyrie out, Love just getting back, and Lebron likely resting some games, I see this season playing out much like last year... slow start, strong finish. But this year, if healthy, we finally win it all.


                 

Cavs record: 52-30
Cavs playoff finish: Finals
NBA Finals: Warriors over Cavs
MVP: Russell Westbrook

The actual games are often just a footnote during the NBA regular season. As Cavalier Consumers, we are barraged with stupid-ass Facebook clickbait from CavsNation.com, snarky tweets and commentary from jealous national media snobs, and speculation about Coach Blatt's relationship with our other Head Coach, who also happens to play Small Forward and control every nuance of the sporting universe. All the while it's snowing and seemingly dysfunctional on the North Coast, and it's easy                                          to forget how freaking fabulous life will be when June walks in and                                                    we've strutted through to the Finals. I just wish there was a way around                                                  those sniping, swashbuckling Delontes from Oakland.

Cavs record: 55-27
Cavs playoff finish: NBA Champions
NBA Finals: Cavs over Warriors
MVP: James Harden

One of my fellow prognosticators once put his johnson on the shoulder of another fellow prognosticator. Please put your guesses in the comment section below.

Cavs record: 82-0
Cavs playoff finish: NBA Champions
NBA Finals: Wine over Gold in 7
MVP: Richard Jefferson

The Cavaliers' undefeated dominance scares off the Western Conference paper champions, and the NBA Finals are elevated to seven Wine vs. Gold Scrimmages at the Q! In the deciding game, the mighty Jared Cunningham blocks a midrange jumper from Juggernaut Joe Harris and Cleveland wins yet another Championship! Saving your confetti = saving a tree, thank you. We're getting tired of parades!

What CST thinks about the NBA Finals: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Golden State Warriors

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Cavaliers in 6. 

This is going to be a crazy amazing series, I believe. My fingernails are bleeding in anticipation. The Cavs have not seen a team like the Warriors. Steph Curry blows my mind, those shots in 0.0001 seconds, the spin move breaking Chris Paul's (!) ankles, his pretty-darn-cute daughter stealing the show. And Klay Thompson. WTF? 37 points in one quarter? I'm not sure I would have thought that was possible before he pulled that out.

So basically, if Cleveland can't D up on Golden State's guards, it's over.

That said, I think they can. Kyrie's knee notwithstanding, JR Smith and Iman Shumpert have been playing excellent defense, and Coach David Blatt always has "a certain number 23" to switch on when needed. Not to mention Mr. Dellavadova. If he plays his balls-to-the-wall defense on Curry or Thompson, you never know how deep into their heads he can get.  And it's not like the Cavs shooters can't get blistering hot. JR Smith literally can get as hot as Steph Curry, just not every single day.

Then again, LeBron James is the difference. I don't see any of the LeBron stoppers on Golden State shutting him down by themselves, and when they double, if Moz and TT roll to the rim, or JR or Kyrie is open in the corner, the Cavaliers can pour points down with the best of them. And by the best, I mean the Golden State Warriors. I feel the Cavs steal Game One or Two, and close out at home in 6. My heart is there, but my head is saying the Warriors can win in 5, 6, or 7 games though.

So here we go. Because the Warriors haven't seen a team like the Cavs, either.

Cavaliers in 6

What a season its been. This time last year the Spurs humbled the Heat in the finals. Now LeBron is back in Cleveland and back in the Finals. When the Cavs made it in 2007 I was just happy they got there. I foolishly thought they could compete with the Spurs and we all know what happened. This time is different. The team is playing great defense and the shots are falling at the right time. Something doesn't feel the same this time and I mean that in a good way. The Warriors haven't played against this good of a defense this playoffs. It wont be pretty but if LeBron is focused along with the rest of the team, they will be hard to beat.  

Cavaliers in 6

Golden State is an offensive powerhouse that emerged from a Western Conference meat grinder to make the Finals. But the battered, bruised Cavaliers are the tougher team, led by a man on a mission. Lord help me, but the Cavs are going to bring Cleveland its first championship in half a century.

 

Warriors in 7

I'm going with my head and not my heart here. Kevin Love is out, Kyrie Irving is hurt, and I'm just not sure LeBron can do it alone. Golden State has too many weapons, and while LeBron can keep it close and win some game, it won't be enough to win it all.

Abstaining.

Eight days of talking heads and tweets, Finals predictions out the backside, and ad nauseam-analysis. I won't add to the madness. Not because I'm tired of our culture's pre-series rituals, but because I'm not in the business of handicapping which way the ball bounces. That's my longwinded way of saying this matchup is anyone's guess.

What I know: in our CST NBA preview, I suggested that someone besides Irving or Love will be stepping up in June. Because that's what always happens in the NBA Finals--insert random role player knocking down big shots HERE. The good news for Cavalier supporters is that when LeBron is in full-tilt, you can surround him with any four starters in the Association, and he will triumph. Since LBJ was humiliated in the 2011 Finals, he has become such a Grandmaster on the court that beating him four out of seven tries is a few feats short of impossible. The Spurs seem to have the formula, nearly edging him three times, by somehow closing off passing routes before the plays develop. They bait Bron into taking good shots, if that makes sense. In Coach Pop's mind, that beats the alternative of LeBron making All-Stars out of surrounding shooters.

Still, this Warrior squad is hella deep, well-coached and they dig-in defensively at every key moment. And a 10-15 point lead against Golden State is essentially worthless. They shoot themselves back in the game so quickly, opposing teams have to wonder if they were ever winning in the first place. So I fear Steph Curry in a way that I've never feared another baller. Oh, yes, I also rooted for his Dad. Which means I've been doing this Cavs fan thing for so long and I want this so damn badly, I truly have no way of seeing straight right now. I'm sure you understand, Cleveland. CAVS BASKETBALL, TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT...COME ON CAVS!!!

Cavaliers in 7

Dreams fulfilled! Human sacrifice! Dogs and cats living together! Mass hysteria!
 

Cavaliers in 6
The versatility of our guards to defend Curry and Thompson is the key.









On Vacation.
But, trust us, he likes the Cavs.

Cavs clincher demands satisfaction

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This guy! 

Thursday night's semifinal series finisher putting the Cavaliers over the bastard-tough Bulls was by no means the most exciting Cleveland sports victory I've ever witnessed. It had no moments that will be burned into the brain forever, like Kenny Lofton sprinting home from second on a passed ball or LeBron James historically dropping 25 straight points on the Pistons. 

What the win did bring was a warm feeling of satisfaction, which may end up becoming more fulfilling than a few "I remember when" highlights. This Cavs squad has overcome a post-season filled with adversity. Really, it's been a season of strife and injury woes, of newbie coaches on the hot seat and silly TMZ-worthy non-stories about superstar players writing passive-aggressive tweets about their teammates. Remember when the Cavs were 19-20, James was rehabbing in Miami, and rumors of David Blatt's firing were sizzling across the newswires?

What CST thinks about the Cavs and NBA this year

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Well this little blog we started a long time ago has had a toll taken on it by the responsibilities of the writers. Jobs, kids, illness, travel, more kids, bowling leagues, soccer, moving, trips to Vegas, just so many things have kept us from posting as regularly as possible. In the meantime I hope you are following us at @CleveSpTorture where we can vent our anger in 140 characters or less as much as possible.

Regardless, did anything happen this offseason? This article yesterday on fivethirtyeight.com seemed to suggest that our warriors in Wine and Gold made some moves that could pay off.

I think they could be on to something.

Without further ado, here's what we think will happen with the Cavs and the NBA this year.

 Brian

What will the Cavs record be?  65-17. Really, Lebron won 58 games with the Heat last year and 66 games with his old Cavs supporting cast. The 58 o/u is a joke.

What will the Cavs record be in the first 10 games? 7-3. And this is the "slow start".

What will the conference championships results be? Cavs over Raptors. I'll believe a healthy Derrick Rose when I see it. Clippers over Spurs. 

What will the NBA Finals results be? Cavs over Clippers.

Who will win MVP? Come on, man. Lebron James unanimously.

How many PPG will Lebron James average? Dion Waiters?  Lebron: 26.4 ppg, Dion: 13.7 as the microwave 2.0.

How many rebounds will Kevin Love average? Anderson Varejao? Tristan Thompson?  KLove: 13 rpg, Anderson: 10 rpg, Tristan: 9 rpg.

How many assists will Kyrie Irving average? Lebron James? Kyrie: 7.9 apg, Lebron: 7.9 apg.

---

Tom

What will the Cavs record be?  60-22

What will the Cavs record be in the first 10 games? 7-3.

What will the conference championships results be? Cavs over Wizards, Clippers over Spurs

What will the NBA Finals results be? Clippers over Cavs in 7

Who will win MVP? Lebron James

How many PPG will Lebron James average? Dion Waiters?  Lebron 24ppg,  Dion 12ppg

How many rebounds will Kevin Love average? Anderson Varejao? Tristan Thompson?  Love 12, Varajao 11, Thompson 10

How many assists will Kyrie Irving average? Lebron James? Irving 6, James 8

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Doug

What will the Cavs record be?  59-23: Can see a bit of a slow start as the new roster gets acclimated (even the Heat started 9-8 during James's first year) but the remainder of year should be spent mowing down the dregs of the East.

What will the Cavs record be in the first 10 games?  6-4: Local sports radio goes gaga with calls for the Cavs to start Johnny Manziel.

What will the conference championships results be? Cavs over Bulls, Spurs over Warriors

What will the NBA Finals results be? Spurs over Cavs in 6: Will not believe a Cleveland championship can happen until it happens. Also could take playoffs newbies Irving and Love a playoff run to find their mettle.

Who will win MVP? Either LeBron or former Mavs' point guard Mike Iuzzolino.  Seeing as Iuzzolino hasn't been in the league since 1993, I'm predicting James wins the duke.

 

How many PPG will Lebron James average? Dion Waiters?  James, 23.7, Waiters 10.9:  James will get his but scoring distribution among the three stars is fine by me. Waiters's toughness will be as important as his scoring.

How many rebounds will Kevin Love average? Anderson Varejao? Tristan Thompson?  Love, 10.2, Varejao, 9.9, Thompson, 7.7: That's lots of boards to go around, though I don't expect Andy to stay healthy all year.

How many assists will Kyrie Irving average? Lebron James? Irving, 6.5, James, 7.5: Expecting both stars to take on ball-handling duties, though Irving is more of a scorer than a distributer.

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Ryan

What will the Cavs record be?  65-17. An injury to Lebron is the only thing that can keep this team from the Finals.

What will the Cavs record be in the first 10 games? 6-4. I do think it will take a little time to gel.

What will the conference championships results be? Cavs over Bulls. Spurs over Clippers.

What will the NBA Finals results be? Cavs over Spurs in 6. The Spurs' age finally catches up with them.

Who will win MVP? Lebron James. With Durant out, there's no way Lebron doesn't win this.

How many PPG will Lebron James average? Dion Waiters?  Lebron: 27 ppg, Dion: 10 ppg.

How many rebounds will Kevin Love average? Anderson Varejao? Tristan Thompson?  11 rpg, 9rpg, 6 rpg.

How many assists will Kyrie Irving average? Lebron James? Kyrie: 6 apg, Lebron: 7.

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Vox

What will the Cavs record be?  64-18

What will the Cavs record be in the first 10 games? 7-3

What will the conference championships results be? Cavs over Bullets

What will the NBA Finals results be? Cavs over Mavs

Who will win MVoxP? Matthew Dellavedova

How many PPG will Lebron James average? Dion Waiters?  Who cares. On this team, the shooting percentages will tell the tale. I need Bron to be 2013-efficient, and perhaps the shot selection will rub off on Waiters. If not, I expect to see Mike Miller at the 2 in tight games. 

How many times will Kevin Love pull a Roger Dorn on a defensive switch? Plenty, but he'll probably outscore his mistakes. 

Tristan Thompson? Tristan boards well on the weak side, but his defense is attrocious with two Ts! His offensive game is somewhere between DeSagana Diop and JJ Hickson. Coach Blatt made his first great decision by starting Andy. Make no mistake about it- when Klutz Thompson gets an undeserved fat new contract, it's simply a thank you to Rich Paul and Klutch Sports for delivering on Decision 2.0!

How many assists will Kyrie Irving average? Lebron James? I'm not concerned with any individual numbers. I'm not even worried about the regular season victory total. Wins are a given now. I'll be focused on how we win and Blatt's rotations. 

Cleveland, please remember, the Big Three concept is largely a marketing ploy, and rarely plays out that way on the court. In 2008, Boston's Big Three was Garnett-Pierce-Allen, but Rondo was the best player on the floor. The Spurs Big Three is Parker-Ginobili-Duncan, but Kuwhai was the Finals MVP. The Heat had the most famous threesome of all, but it was LeBron surrounded by the sharpshooting of Miller, Battier and Allen that fueled Miami to two titles. Now can we just fast-forward to June and find out which Cavalier role player makes the difference? My money says it won't be Irving or Love.

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Sean

What will the Cavs record be?  59-23

What will the Cavs record be in the first 10 games? 7-3

Who will win MVP? Lebron

How many PPG will Lebron James average? Dion Waiters?  LBJ: 26, Dion:13

How many rebounds will Kevin Love average? Anderson Varejao? Tristan Thompson?  KLove: 9, Andy: 10, TT: 8

How many assists will Kyrie Irving average? Lebron James? 7 each.

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Hope and change: LeBron James returns to Cleveland

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This guy knows what's up

LeBron James the man has been dissected like a frog in a high-school science lab ever since the summer of 2010. Turncoat. Diva. Frontrunner. 

I've written mean things about James and have thought worse. Think an icy road, a steep incline and a cement truck with faulty brakes. To me he was a soulless scumbucket with all the cultural awareness and dignity of a toaster oven. 

Now, The Letter Part 2 has arrived, an old-school lightning bolt from above that has come without fanfare, Decisions, or pro wrestling-style player intros. James's "essay," published on Sports Illustrated's website today, ushers in a new era of Cavs basketball, and, on a much larger scale, serves as an enormous boost for the city of Cleveland in too many ways to count.

Stunned is the operative word right now. Not elated, just a feeling of fullness and possibility, for both the team and for Northeast Ohio. James is the best basketball player on the planet, but much more importantly he can also stand as a symbol for prosperity and change. Maybe the guy many thought was a heartless mercenary has grown up. And maybe the city he's coming back to will continue to evolve right along with him. 

LeBron Watch 2014: Are we having fun yet?

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The waiting is the most difficult aspect.

So dawns another day of refreshing Twitter to see if cupcake lady, shirtless personal trainer guy, or anyone with actual concrete information knows anything about the landing spot of mega free agent/hometown hero/worse-than-Hitler traitorous scum LeBron James. 

Analysts have already predicted a 68 percent drop-off in work productivity regionally today as legions of office drones constantly check their phones for any shred of news. No need to be embarrassed, Cleveland. That's just how we roll, for better or worse.

Whether LeBron Watch 2014 is another Cleveland sports version of Lucy holding the football for Charlie Brown remains to be seen. In the meantime, people seem to be having fun with the so-called Decision II. A local sports-talk radio station has led the optimism charge, creating catchy hashtags and playing "Happy" during ad breaks. 

Money man Irving must step into leadership role for Cavs

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Lead on, dude!

Kyrie Irving signed a max deal this week in refreshingly drama-free fashion. No fuss, no muss, just a tweet from Dan Gilbert and a video of the newly minted gazillionaire dancing in celebration. 

Life is good for the 22-year-old point guard, and better for Cleveland fans tired of the speculation that Irving wanted out of town. At the very least, many thought he would take more than two minutes to agree to a long-term extension.

That's not the case and Irving's here for the long haul. The next step for him is to return to the leadership role he was growing into during his first two years with the franchise. Those were the "Mr. Fourth Quarter" days, when the point guard with the illest dribble in the association (Author's Note: "illest" is street slang for "nothing better than") was breaking ankles and crushing last-second jumpers in fearless fashion.

Bennett pick sheds unkind light on Cavs' GM Grant

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 If only Anthony Bennett let off this kind of steam (Trust me, that's funny).

Michael Olowokandi, Kwame Brown and Greg Oden. Three names that will forever live in infamy as well as compilations of the worst overall No. 1 draft picks in NBA history.

The career of Anthony Bennett  is still in its infancy, but the rookie forward's lack of readiness for the rigors of the pro game has put him on the short list for Bleacher Report's next "NBA's Most Shocking Draft Busts" column. 

If Bennett's numbers spoke for themselves, they'd be slurring like a drunk coming off a four-day bender. In 22 games, the NBA's top selection for 2013 has scored 50 points on 29 percent shooting.  Bennett averages ten minutes a game, though even in these brief stints he appears lost in Mike Brown's offense, getting few looks near the basket and flicking up panic jumpers like a guy playing pick-up at the local rec center.

Bynum-to-Cavaliers a gamble well worth taking

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Bynum brings talent and Moe Howard 'do to Cleveland.

Andrew Bynum has been in the news for all the wrong reasons over the last year.

The former All-Star center missed every single second of floor time while a member of the Philadelphia 76ers last year. Before the start of the 2012-13 season, there were reports that he did additional damage to his already shoddy knees while bowling. In May, he took his dual bone bruises to Spain, where he was taped dancing the flamenco. 

The words "lazy" and "overpaid" have been used to describe the 7-footer. If Bynum wants to get (over)paid in Cleveland, he's going to have to overcome his slovenly reputation, as your Cavaliers have reportedly signed him to a two-year, $24-million deal, with just $6 million guaranteed.

Draft just the first step in Cavs' return to relevance

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Let's get to work.

For three years, the Cleveland Cavaliers have been trying to placate their fanbase with talk of cap flexibility and stockpiled draft assets. The wins weren't coming, but the future was bright, according to the brass. 

Now that the 2013 NBA Draft has ended with another unorthodox selection by GM Chris Grant, it's safe to assume that fans no longer want to hear vague boardroom-speak about what could be. Nor does anyone want to see, cute as it was, another private plane full of ironic bowtie-wearing Cleveland icons jetting  to New York City for the draft lottery. Those days are done, and to their credit, the franchise's decision-makers seem to understand that playtime is over. 

Cleveland athletes love the Heat, then wonder why fans get mad

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"This one's for LeBron!" Gordon probably thought.

So, this thing happened a couple of nights back where the Miami Heat won its second straight championship, and LeBron James grabbed his second consecutive Finals MVP. Some people in Cleveland were angry and bitter about this turn of events. Others shrugged it off and went to bed with their consciousnesses unclouded. Still others lauded the hometown kid for growing up and winning big in South Beach. Many people took to Twitter and other social media platforms to make their feelings known.

Normally, this would not be worthy of note. People can't have a BM these days without taking their smartphones into the can to record the evidence. However, what happens when Cleveland athletes with no connections to Miami, LeBron or the Heat start bigging up the newly crowned champions? How would this go over in a town that has not celebrated a major sports championship in half a century?

Cavs must bring Byron back for one more go

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"You be quiet now, boy. I'm trying to watch 'Quincy.'"

When Byron Scott stands glowering on the Cavaliers' sideline, he looks like that strict uncle you were always a little bit afraid of. The kind of old-school disciplinarian not shy about pulling out his belt to deliver a whoopin' on whoever was fixin' for one, dagnabbit.

Scott needs to take the belt out more on these Cavs, a collection of raw talent that treats defense like a sullen teenager considering a messy room. Overall, the team simply plays too many stretches of lackluster basketball, evidenced again yesterday in a 91-77 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, the Cavs' fourth straight defeat and 14 of 16 overall, for the seven people out there who still give a damn about the 2012-2013 squad's fortunes.

Cavs top NBA power rankings...sort of

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The English call it "taking the piss." In the U.S., we refer to it as "goofing." Wherever you hail from, Grantland writer Wesley Morris had some fun with the Cavaliers' new alternate uniforms, an eye-searing yellow-and-red concoction that reminds Morris of hot dog garnish. While Kyrie Irving and Co. may be a longshot for the post-season this year, Morris put Cleveland No. 1 in his 2012-13 NBA uniform power rankings with the following bit of snark: 

"If you're playing basketball in Cleveland, you should be the happiest player in the NBA. You should. For a decade, it was maroon, maroon, maroon — and what happened? You got marooned. It's been two years since you-know-who left. It's time for a new you, and here it is: French's mustard with Heinz script. It's young, it's exciting, and when I see it I immediately want to put the whole thing on my hot dog. It's only an alternate uniform, it's true. But it's one that says things are looking up: We've still got Kyrie Irving, and we just know he'll be thrilled to spend many nights for many years wearing this and not totally ripping our hearts out. Right, Kyrie?"

Had to mention That Guy in Miami (TGiM), didn't you, national writer guy? Maybe Cavs players can start wearing non-prescription nerd glasses to go along with the hip new threads. Imitation is the highest form of flattery, after all. 

Cavs first round pick Dion Waiters gets to the rack

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Getty Images

Thursday night, the Cavaliers followed through on HOURS of speculation that started, well, earlier Thursday, and indeed took Syracuse sophomore shooting guard Dion Waiters with the #4 pick. The first three picks dashed the hopes of the wine and gold faithful, when Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and Bradley Beal went off the board. Cavs fans had started to cope with the prospect of the enigma Harrison Barnes, but then David Stern fought through the boos to deliver Waiters to Cleveland.

I have to admit, I'm not the biggest college basketball nerd out there. I may be the least of college basketball fans (as I'm one of the minority who prefers the pro game). But I have read up about the draft quite a bit. I'd been so heavily invested in a small (5 or 6) group of players who I thought the Cavaliers would consider, that I didn't even look at Dion Waiters until today.