I don’t know what to make of this Cavs team.
So far, they have played back-to-back seven game series during this NBA Playoffs. Both series have seen the Cavaliers and their opponents tied at a 2-2 game split after four games. Both series have seen the Cleveland squad narrowly secure a Game 5 win, seeming like momentum could be on their side.
I’m not sure there is a coach/manager in American professional sports where there is a bigger deviation between how insiders (media/teams/organizations) perceive them and they way outsiders (fans/people on the internet, basically) perceive them than Doc Rivers.
So maybe my mind is just contaminated with that spring fever, but I have to say that while the Guardians have seen legitimate success in recent years, I feel especially optimistic about what the next 200 or so days could bring.
A couple of weeks ago, the Cleveland Cavaliers were playing a Sunday national television matinee game against the Oklahoma City Thunder and found themselves down big early. On that national broadcast, former Cavalier and current ABC/ESPN commentator Richard Jefferson said something I found interesting.
Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson has plenty of reason to be positive. After all, he’s seen his team take off over the course of the last month, winning 11 of their last 15 games. The Cavs have the best record in the Eastern Conference over that period of time and have climbed themselves out of the Play-In portion of the standings and into 5th place.
Being the only team with 10 wins in December, the San Antonio Spurs are the NBA’s hottest team right now (and I don’t just say that because they have my Cavs up next in a matter of hours). More than that though, I also think San Antonio is the league’s best challenger to the current Finals favorites in Oklahoma City.
The Cavs currently stand at 14-11 and in 8th place in an Eastern Conference where they were expected to be one of the two best teams in the field, at worst. Expectations were high coming off of a 2024-2025 campaign that may have ended in an underwhelming fashion, but that saw them arguably sport one of the best offenses in league history.
One of the first moves of the baseball off-season was when former Guardian and current Blue Jays pitcher Shane Bieber decided return to Toronto for 2026 by picking up the 1-year, $16 million option on his contract. The right-handed former ace’s decision was surprising for many.
If you have read the news that Carl Willis intends to return as Guardians’ pitching coach in 2026, you likely breathed a small sigh of relief (and if hadn’t read that, you can let it out now!). Part of me wouldn’t blame you. Willis’s reputation as one of the best pitching coaches in the sport presently, and perhaps in the sport’s history, has solidified over the years.
The regular season is built on sustained successes day after day. Days turn to weeks. Weeks turn to months. Months turned into full bodies of work that get you into the post-season. For the post-season itself though, the key moments are ridiculously granular. Key at bats turn into key innings. Those innings change wins into losses and vice versa.
Pick-Up Sports Talk: Cleveland