Live Thread: Hawks @ Cavaliers (Game One)

The Cleveland Cavaliers return to the floor Monday night in “The Q” looking to stay unbeaten in these young 2016 Playoffs. After taking care of the Detroit Pistons in four semi-contested games, the Cavaliers took the week to refine their games, get some rest and generally hangout.

The Atlanta Hawks didn’t have that luxury only having a few days to regroup after closing out the pesky Celtics. The Hawks battled Boston as a team, combining strong defensive stretches with streak scoring from a variety of players to take the first round series in six games. The team had a block party, netting nearly nine blocks per game to go along with eight steals. Boston played inspired basketball, but ultimately lacked the outside shooting to overcome the Hawks defensive swarm.

Jeff Teague tweaked his ankle in the Boston series but is seemingly healthy to begin Round 2. Both teams hope to avoid the injury issues that plagued them during the 2015 Playoffs. Rarely has a rematch felt so little like one. Going into last year’s Conference Finals, many truly believed the 60 win Hawks to be the better team. Kevin Love’s injury in Round One, and Kyrie’s knee trouble did provide more ammunition to those who supported the one-seed. But the Cavs played bully-ball to sweep the Hawks, pounding the glass and taking advantage of Atlanta’s fallen players.

This year, Cleveland is the clear favorite. The Cavaliers are healthy and humming under Tyronn Lue and LeBron James’ leadership. Check out our podcast extravaganza to hear more about this series’ specific matchups and other news around the league. Sound off.