In the NBA, no team has ever won a championship in late February, but a team can gain confidence. The Cleveland Cavaliers double-digit comeback win over the Boston Celtics on Thursday was a much-needed morale boost for a team that had previously lost their last eight games, in the TD Banknorth Boston Garden, including the playoffs, dating back to Jan. 2007.The Cavs own the league's best record at 45-14, despite losing three of their last four, including a loss to the defending Eastern Conference Champion Orlando Magic on Sunday. Cleveland is in good position almost 3/4 the way through the long grind of the 82 game NBA regular season, with a 2.5 game lead over the LA Lakers for home court throughout the playoffs. This rebound win is the team's second in a row, and Cleveland's next five upcoming opponents have a combined 37.1 win percentage.
However, the win came at a high price as Shaquille O' Neal left the game in the first half and did not return with a thumb injury, the severity of which to be evaluated tomorrow. Zydrunas Ilgauskas almost guaranteed return to Cleveland cannot come soon enough (as early as March 21, by league rules), but I believe Shaq's potential absence may have some benefits. First, it gives the team an opportunity to mesh newly acquired Forward Antawn Jamison into the already loaded, over-sized and physical Cavs lineup. Also, with Shaq on the bench, the team can experiment with an assortment of combinations utilizing Cleveland's wealth of talent. Finally, the future hall-of-fame O' Neal can get some rest for late April-June on the versatile, Championship-oriented Cavs because every real NBA fan knows; no team has ever won an NBA Championship in Late February.
No comments:
Post a Comment