The love train that the Cleveland Cavaliers and their fans have been on for the last month got hit with a cold bucket of reality last night in their 99-84 loss to the Toronto Raptors. But that loss, as ugly as it was, could actually prove to be a significant win for the Wine and Gold in their pursuit of ending Cleveland’s 52-year world championship drought.
Here are five reasons why:
NO PRESSURE, NO DIAMONDS
The Cavs 10-0 start has been a joyride for the most part. But the words of Robert Griffin III (via 19th century Scottish historian Thomas Carlyle) ring truer than ever when referring to the NBA play-offs. No team has ever run the table en route to a table. The Shaq/Kobe 2001 Lakers won their first 11 games on their way to a 15-1 record and an NBA title. The 1989 Magic-led Lakers started 11-0, but eventually got swept by Detroit in the Finals. The 2012 Spurs started 10-0, but followed that start by losing four straight to the Thunder in the Western Conference Finals.
On the other hand, many recent champions have faced adversity in their play-off runs. Just last year, Golden State was down 2-1 to Memphis in the 2nd round last year. Then won 7 of their next 8 games to get to the Finals against the Cavs. And in case you forgot, the Cavs had a 2-1 advantage in that match-up.
The 2014 champion Spurs lost two straight to OKC in the conference finals, knotting the series at 2-2. San Antonio then raced to the crown by winning 6 of their next 7 , which included a 4-1 Finals romp over over LeBron’s Heat.
Miami won the title in 2013. But they had to win a game 7 over the Pacers in a brutal Eastern Conference finals slugfest. After that, they were down 3-2 when there title hopes were saved in game 6 by the most clutch shot in NBA history…
The 2012 Heat gave LeBron his long-awaited first title. But their backs were against the wall when they went to Boston down 3-2 in the Conference Finals. LBJ then hung an epic 45-point, 15 rebound avalanche on the Celts to save the season.
This adversity list can go on and on. The point is, the path to the Larry O’Brien Trophy is rarely a red-carpet strut.
Saturday’s loss most definitely turned up the pressure gauge for a Cavs’ team that has been on a gliding on magic carpet so far. LeBron and the gang will be walking into a raucous Air Canada Centre Monday night to face a rejuvenated Raptor team that had been skewered by the media after games 1 and 2. Will Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving rebound from their awful game 3 performances, or will they allow those seeds of doubt sprout more struggles?
If the Cavs are gonna get their diamond-laced championship rings, they will have to stare down the pressure.
PREPARING FOR THE PERFECT STORM
Kyle Lowry got his mojo back in game three, and Demar DeRozan scorched the Cavs for 32 points. Can the Cavs still win with this 1-2 punch both riding their the A-games? That will be a tall test for Cleveland. Remember that those two helped Toronto beat the Cavs in 2 of 3 regular season games. And if injured starting center Jonas Valanciunas can return from an injured ankle that has kept him out of the series so far, Toronto would be even more dangerous.
Cavs fans might hope that Lowry falls back into his funk, or that Valanciunas stays in his walking boot. But a Raptor team at or near full strength would actually be an ideal dress rehearsal for the big stage of the NBA finals.
What would you rather face: the A-game of Lowry/DeRozan, or the C-game of either Steph Curry/Klay Thompson or Michael Westbrook/Kevin Durant? To beat the champions of the West, the Cleveland defense will need to be at its best. If the Cavs want to win the title, they likely need Toronto to be a great sparring partner in training for whichever Western Conference heavyweight steps into the ring.
GETTING A NEEDED ENGINE TUNE UP
Game 3 displayed many of the offensive inconsistencies that plagued the Cavs throughout the regular season. In both sports, as well as life, adversity often causes a team, or person, to revert back to their comfort zone, which is often full of bad habits.
On the other hand, losing is sometimes the greatest teacher is adversity. Losing gives you a chances to examine your mistakes, and hopefully make the strides to correct them.
Let’s hope the Cavs choose the latter route and re-ignite that play-off rocket that got them 10 straight wins. Check out my recent blog examining their post-season path to success:
5 Reasons Why The Cavs Are Rolling
REALITY CHECK FOR CLEVELAND FANS
For a fan base that has not won a championship since 1964, many Cleveland fans and media have not been shy in showing their confidence during this play-off run. Most everyone has put their pencil behind their ear and pulled out fat, permanent Sharpie Marker to write the Cavaliers into the NBA finals.
Come on! Didn’t you just watch Believeland on ESPN? In case you missed it, let me give you the sunny summary version: Cleveland has had a few bad breaks over the last five decades.
I don’t want anyone to be a Debbie Downer, but let’s not get too carried away. Remember the wisdom of Han Solo:
NO MORE PLAY-OFF LAY-OFFS
A sweep of the Raptors would have likely meant another week off for the Cavs. Now it is good give LeBron and Company some down time to re-fuel their tanks. But a long lay-off can often add a bit of rust. And to defeat either Golden State or Oklahoma City, the Cavs need to be a fine-tuned machine.
More importantly, having a week off has been a big let down for all of us Cavs’ fans after riding the adrenaline of post-season basketball.
HOMETOWN PARTY
It would be a whole lot more fun to celebrate an Eastern Conference crown in and outside Quicken Loans Arena than watching it on TV. Plus that puts some serious extra $$ into the pockets of owner Dan Gilbert, as well as all of those businesses surrounding the arena.
So let’s hope the Cavs take care of business over the next two games to make that a reality.