The Cleveland Cavaliers have been scorned for being only a “regular season” team, but Magic Johnson believes in them.
After starting the season on a 15-game winning streak, the Cleveland Cavaliers have never looked back and have boasted the best record in the entire league this season.
After losing in five games in the Eastern Conference Semifinals last year to the Boston Celtics, the Cavaliers have been unable to shake their label as just a very good regular season team, although they have kicked it into near gear this season.
Last year, Darius Garland missed significant time with a jaw injury and didn’t quite recover until the offseason. On top of that, Evan Mobley has continued to improve, and the Cavs look the part of title contenders.
They have by far the best offense in the NBA, boast the sixth-ranked defense, and have virtually no weaknesses up and down their roster, especially after an active NBA trade deadline.
One NBA legend thinks the Cavs, not the Boston Celtics, are the team to beat out East.
As Cleveland cruises through the NBA regular season, no one has been able to threaten their claim as the best team in the league, although they are under a lot of pressure to find success in the postseason.
Still, with a young roster on the rise, the Cavs seem to be here to stay, and Magic Johnson has ultimate faith in them.
“Cleveland is balling, and they got everything to win,” he claimed on Byron Scott’s Fast Break.
“Inside, they got the guards, Garland and Mitchell. They got the fours who could shoot threes. They picked up their boy Hunter from Atlanta.”
The Cavaliers are firing on all cylinders and De’Andre Hunter was, clearly, the missing ingredient. With him in the fold, the Cavaliers look like the best team in the Association.
The Cavaliers are younger than more established teams like the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks, but they’ve had no problem against them this season. Cleveland is 2-0 against the Knicks this season, winning convincingly in both games, and fans won’t be surprised if they are able to sweep them in the two games down the stretch.
The Celtics are seen as a much more real threat to the Cavs in the East, and the two teams have split the season series 2-2, although it seems like Cleveland has Boston’s number in a seven-game series.
“What Mobley did to the Celtics in Boston Garden, just what a week ago in the fourth quarter, he had like 14 in the fourth quarter, I said, ‘Uh, oh, you woke him up now, we won in Boston Garden,’”
Johnson continued. “Mitchell just turned it out. He was unstoppable. It’s gonna be a great playoff.”
Against the Celtics, Donovan Mitchell has been fantastic, scoring 35, 35, 31, and 45 points, looking like the best player on the court.
With no answer for him and some size limitations against Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, the Celtics could get bounced early by the upstart Cavs, ending their bid at repeating as champions.
