For Cavaliers, conference finals are academic
The Cleveland Cavaliers are going to the NBA Finals. There will be those who make the case that either the Toronto Raptors or Miami Heat are dangerous, but those folks are liars. Cleveland will crush either team.
The real question for the Cavaliers is how long does the series take? Cleveland has done a masterful job of navigating the playoffs thus far, beating the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks in sweeps. Men like LeBron James and the oft-injured Kyrie Irving need all the rest they can get, and so far they are getting plenty of it.
When Toronto or Miami finally joins the rest of us in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Cavaliers will be ready to go. They will be coming off more than a week or rest and relaxation, along with having home-court advantage. Cleveland simply has to maintain its focus and get the job done quickly, perhaps earning a few more days to put its collective feet up before the Finals.
The Cavaliers are going to need all the rest they can get before playing either the Oklahoma City Thunder or Golden State Warriors. Oklahoma City just knocked off the San Antonio Spurs in six games, using a combination of bruising physicality on the inside and premier athleticism on the wings and point to take care of business. Golden State might be the best shooting team we have ever seen, spacing the floor and then taking advantage with Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.
Both will be tough matchups for Cleveland. The Thunder can present a size issue against the smaller Cavaliers, playing both Enes Kanter and Steven Adams on the inside simultaneously. This was the duo that thwarted the Spurs in the Western Conference Semifinals, cleaning the glass at an alarming rate. The Warriors lack size sans Andrew Bogut, but can score 120 points without breaking a sweat. Guarding Curry and Thompson will be a tall, tall order for Cleveland.
Ultimately, the Cavaliers can only control what happens in their series. Should they play with the same desire and tenacity they displayed in the first two rounds, Miami or Toronto would be lucky to see Game 6. If the Cavaliers are rusty or take their foot off the pedal, we could go six or even seven games.
If James and his charges could deliver a championship to Cleveland, they would forever be remembered as the team that ended the long, painful suffering that has been going on since 1964.
