Are The Cavs For Real?

By Drew.

I know what you're thinking, that can't be a serious question right? This isn't an NBA Blog for toddlers, is it? They have the second-best record in the league, are undefeated at home and their star player has been the favorite for MVP since week one, of course they're for real but the real point is despite their amazing season so far, are they good enough to win the championship? A few weeks ago, it would've been easy to say possibly but not with the way the Celts were playing. The Celts have stumbled a bit but rest assured they will regain their footing, the Magic are playing with a chip on their shoulders, D-Ho continues to improve and their guards have stepped up dramatically but the Cavs surprisingly, are still the team to beat for the Eastern Conference. LBJ's been more than impressive over the past couple of seasons but there was always a resilient, consistent fire missing from his game so that even when he was dazzling everybody, you were still kind of upset because you knew he wasn't at his apex yet. This season is merely the beginning of his apex and luckily the rest of his team is gelling around him at the right time. The missing pieces in that puzzle were the addition of Mo Williams and as Avery Johnson would put it: Team Defense. All Lebron needed the past couple of seasons to put the Cavs over the hump was a reliable second fiddle, not even a Scottie Pippen, but a player that could lead the team and keep hitting shots whenever Lebron wasn't. Mo Williams shoots a decent percentage in all categories and consistently. Combine that with Delonte West's reliable PG/SG skills, Brazilian Sideshow Bob & black Sideshow Bob's defense, the shooting of Sasha Pavlovic and Booby Gibson and the eventual return of aging but solid big man Z. Ilgauskas and you have a team primed for a run in June. Of course, they'd probably be mediocre bums without Lebron but with him on the tear, they've been lights-out all season. That's especially true, considering they're undefeated at home, averaging around a hundred points there and close to that on the road while also holding opponents to a league-best eighty-nine points a game. That’s why Lebron’s the complete package, he’s got the defensive acumen of MJ with the blocking ability of Wilt and the court vision and passing of Pistol Pete and Magic and on the drive, well, no one’s like Lebron on the drive (just imagine if he develops a consistent mid-range jumper). When LBJ watched the Celts win their rings on stifling defense and then he won gold in Beijing with the same mindset, you know he realized good Cavs defense with him leading the fast break and enough good shooters running with him, he'd have an unstoppable team. Or maybe he didn't, maybe things are finally coalescing at the right time for these Cavs, chemistry is everything when it comes to championship teams. Considering they only made the Finals a few years ago with Lebron playing out of his mind and the rest of his team on his back, they’ll be hard to beat now that he’s got players around him (granted Detroit was the only decent East team that year but still). Will they win the East? I say yes. If they face anyone other than the Lakers in the Finals then Lebron and the city of Cleveland will have reached the promised land and deservedly so, they’ve been in the dregs for too long now. And if they lose to the Lakers, it’ll still be one of the most entertaining one-on-one Finals matchups in far too long and the best team matchup since, well, last year.