Cavs are heating up!
Via Cleveland.com
After going on a six-game losing streak, the Cleveland Cavaliers are starting to get into mid-season form, currently having a four-game winning streak. They accumulated two wins in a hostile Staples Center over the Lakers and Clippers, before coming home to the Q and getting a great team win over the Bulls followed by another win over the Jazz last night.
That’s why I am really excited to watch the next few months of Cavaliers basketball.
All five starters logged over 15 points against the Bulls and the Jazz. That really impressed me a lot, because the Cavs are finally starting to get some team chemistry and are not looking like three superstars trying to take on the NBA alone, which is what the first half of the season featured.
This looks like a team that is going to make the Eastern Conference cringe as they hear that the Cavs are next on the schedule.
The ball movement lately has been what really sticks out to me though. It’s almost as if David Blatt has looked at what has made the Hawks and the Spurs so successful and has used it to his advantage becasuse it has worked well. It also really helps when you have a true center playing for you, as Timofey Mozgov has been tremendous.
But, team chemistry is not the only thing going in the Cavs favor, as LeBron James has finally been healthy. He addressed that recently saying “I’ve felt better the last three games than I have the whole season, in the 30 plus games that I have appeared in.” James’ presence back on the court has been big for the Cavs, especially since he doesn’t have to score 30 points a night for the team to win. He has freed up Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving, J.R. Smith and others simply because he is on the court. He is LeBron James and will burn you if you don’t guard him accordingly.
With the Cavs four game-winning streak, we have seen the team that everyone has hoped for since the beginning of the season. The second half of the season begins Monday, and there is plenty of time to move up the ladder in the historically weak Eastern Conference. The Cavs are only six games behind second-place Washington, and 12 behind conference-leading Atlanta. Beating Washington out for second is very manageable, as the Cavs have three months left, and two more games against the Wizards.
So get ready Cavs fans, because these past four games are only a preview for the rest of the season, and hopefully for a championship run.
