The Point Four-ward: Excuse Me

Four points I’m thinking about the Cleveland Cavaliers…

1.) Okay, I admit it. I’ve been pretty down on the Cavs for the last couple months. The regular season has become too long not just for players, but for fans of the game, as well. I hit the wall with this Cavs team pretty early (time for a new off-season strength and conditioning program, for sure) and then, watching a string of maddeningly inconsistent play that wouldn’t be considered championship caliber in a CYO league, I braced myself against that very same wall and repeatedly rammed my head into it.

Now that spring is… well, not quite in the air — just ask the players and fans at Progressive Field on Tuesday — I’ve decided that it’s time the 2015-16 Cleveland Cavaliers and I make up.

During an argument with a friend who went on about how unlikable this team is, I found myself getting defensive. Not that I could argue that this is a particularly likable team. The team with the highest payroll in the league… that fired their head coach mid-way through the season… and still frequently played without focus or intensity? That’s not really a story that casual basketball fans can embrace. But, unlike the 2003-04 Los Angeles Lakers — the closest I could come to a similarly stacked, flawed and un-huggable team — this team was my unlikable team.

2.) So, forgive me while I pluck one more (and final?) criticism from my craw, before attempting to stay more generally up-beat and positive as the regular season ends and the playoffs finally begin. This one’s been eating at me, though.

Here goes: a lot of the Cavs problems this year probably stemmed from entering this season with too many built-in excuses. Those excuses, then begat further excuses and the whole thing snowballed into a season that wasn’t always the most fun to watch or cover.

As far back as the off-season, which saw Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love begin their long respective ways back from surgery, this team knew two things: first, it would start the 2015-16 campaign without one or both of these players and, second, they needed to stay healthier as a team heading into the 2016 playoffs.

Thus began the string of excuses. “Well, the Cavs might drop some games early in the season, but that’s because they won’t be whole.” They had Love, but were missing Irving and Iman Shumpert until December. Once Irving and Shumpert returned, it was “Well, there’s going to be some rockiness as those players play themselves back into shape and re-assimilate into the team.” Instead, though, the rockiness was blamed on the team’s dislike of head coach David Blatt and Blatt was fired in January, despite a record of 30-11. After that, it was “Well, you’ve gotta give Tyronn Lue some slack as a first-time head coach” which lead us all the way to “Well, you’ve gotta rest some of these guys heading into the playoffs.”

Well… the time for excuses is over. The team is healthy, the coaching controversy is settled (for now), and the playoffs are a little over a week away. If this team is going to defend, now’s the time to show they can. If they’re going to share the ball, now’s the time to do it. What we see from this team going forward is what this team is. No more excuses.

Ahhh… that felt good. Now, where was I? Oh, right… positivity.

3.) After months of wanting to see evidence that their team was putting it all together, Cavs fans can take heart. So far in the month of April (all three games of it), the team is showing signs of doing just that.

Since the calendar turned last week, the Cavs are sixth in the league in defensive rating (per NBA.com) allowing just 96.8 points per 100 possessions. Not only have they been playing good defense, but they have played it against playoff-caliber competition, with wins against the Atlanta Hawks (ranked first in defensive rating at 91 points per 100 over the same period) and the Charlotte Hornets to go along with the dismantling of the injury-ravaged and lottery-bound Milwaukee Bucks.

Their offensive rating has been equally strong. The Cavs have averaged 111.5 points per 100 possessions (fifth in the league), only one point behind the Golden State Warriors. They are assisting on 72.8% of their baskets (second in the league) and lead the league in assist ratio, the number of assists a team averages over 100 possessions.

What’s more, their Net Rating — the difference between their offensive and defensive ratings — is a league-best +14.7. Over the course of the season, only two teams own a double digit Net Rating: the San Antonio Spurs (+12.8) and the Warriors (+11.6).

Again, small sample size. Sure. But it’s one that suggests that this team might have decided to grace its fans with a switch-flip… and at just the right time.

4.) Finally, it’s Championship Week over for Year Two of Cavs: The Fantasy League.

All of you have been clamoring for news about how your favorite CtB writers — along with this year’s formidable group of readers — are faring in the make-believe land of ESPN Fantasy Sports will be pleased to know that by week’s end we could have a dynasty on our hands. For a second straight year, Evil Genius finds himself in the Championship round with his Steph Curry-led Team Evil Genius. His opponent… in the blue trunks (which currently, at least, is a true statement) is my own Team Klutch Me (I’m Fallin’) headlined by the Cavs’ own Kyrie Irving (sure to be held out for some game this week), Kawhi Leonard (sure to be held out of one or more games this week) and Cavs: the Blog favorite, The Stifle Tower, Rudy Gobert (who may actually play in all of his games this week).

With the Warriors chasing the 95-96 Bulls for the best regular season record in NBA history, Team Klutch expects to see Curry going full bore all week and will need a strong showing up and down its lineup to emerge victorious.

This will be an epic battle rivaled only by this classic confrontation from my youth. “One shall stand. One shall fall.” Indeed. I’m coming for you, Genius!