Cleveland native, Scott Sargent, tackles some issues about his Cleveland Cavaliers being in the NBA Finals. Sargent breaks it down the way only a Cavs fan could.
First, a quick glance around the media:
- "The Cavaliers are coming out of an inferior Eastern Conference."
- "The Cavaliers had an easy road to the Finals."
- "The Cavaliers just look happy to be here."
- "The regular season doesn’t mean anything."
- "Mike Brown isn’t a good coach."
Okay, they may not be exact quotes from any specific source, but you get the idea. I’ll address each idea separately.
- First, the East has some solid teams, it’s just unfortunate that a few bad apples drag down the average – I’m looking at you, Atlanta. Second, the Cavs were 19-11 against the West this season – the best record of any Eastern Conference team against the West.
- Yes, they did... and they earned every minute of it in the final month of the season. The Chicago Bulls had their chance and blew it. The Cavs needed to win, and did. Their reward, a cake walk first round followed by one of the lighter second round match-ups of the playoffs, only to whoop on the Pistons after being doubted by nearly everyone.
- Who wouldn’t? Only one player (Eric Snow, so take the "player" part lightly) has been to the Finals. Only one team gets to win the East every season, so while they’re "happy to be there," every other team in the East – including the Detroit Pistons – gets to watch them be happy on television.
- Okay, so the 2-0 record against the Spurs may not mean that much, but don’t forget that this is the same regular season that LeBron James was chastised for "coasting" through. Well, it looks like that "coasting" may have paid off, as the Cavaliers team over the last six weeks is far from the Cavaliers team that played the first several months of the season. And the more recent Cavs will be the ones that will be facing the Spurs – who were 0-2 against said "coasting" bunch.
- I’m sure Flip Saunders is appreciating this fact, along with the fact that said coach actually outcoached him. He may not be the best with drawing offensive sets, but the Cavs are easily one of the best defensive teams in the playoffs – something Brown must get credit for given their recent history. Plus, who else can give you an offensive set titled "Random?"
