Five Reasons Why the Cleveland Cavaliers will win the NBA Championship
by Lawrence Andrew L. Fernandez
The Cleveland Cavaliers will engage in battle with the Golden State Warriors for this year’s NBA crown. If things fall into place, it will be the Cavs’ first title in their franchise history. Here are five reasons why Cleveland will take home the Larry O’ Brien trophy.
1) Lebron James – It doesn’t hurt that you have the best player in the planet on your roster. Yes, Steph Curry was hailed as MVP this season but Lebron has the skills set to dominate a game on both ends of the court. Just look at his stat line in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Atlanta Hawks (37 points, 18 rebounds, 13 assists). If Lebron is clicking in all cylinders, the Warriors will have long nights in defending him.
2) A well-rested Kyrie Irving – By sweeping the Hawks, the Cavaliers got a nine-day rest until the NBA finals as a reward. This works well especially for Irving who suffered a knee injury during Game 1 of the Atlanta series. The Cavs point guard can use the lengthy break to heal for he will have his hands full against Curry. On the other hand, a healthy Irving is no push-over. He can force the reigning MVP to exert effort on defense which can limit his offensive firepower.
3) Dominance in the paint – The Warriors makes use of a capable yet undersized frontcourt in their starting line-up (Harrison Barnes and Draymond Green). While they can get the job done, height can be an advantage for the Cavaliers thanks to Tristan Thompson’s inspired play and Timofey Mozgov’s imposing presence. Meanwhile, the Warriors do have Andrew Bogut to match against Mozgov but he hasn’t been the Bogut of old lately. Thus, expect the Cavaliers main big men to fight hard for those rebounds.
4) Championship experience – No current Golden State Warriors has played in the NBA Finals before. This can be a major factor given that the intensity and the pressure for the World Championship multiply infinitely. With the entire planet watching, it is not for faint hearts. On the other hand, five Cavaliers players have played (and won) NBA titles before: Lebron James, James Jones, Mike Miller, Shawn Marion, Kendrick Perkins, and Brendan Haywood. Because they’ve been here before, they know what to expect once the opening tip-off happens.
5) A hungry Cavaliers fan base – To say the least, this hunger stretches to all professional sports teams based in Cleveland because the last team to bag a championship were the 1948 Cleveland Indians. Also, the Cavaliers made it to the 2007 NBA Finals but they were swept by the San Antonio Spurs. Now, the Cavs fan base expect more from their team this year and they will cheer at the top of their lungs to motivate their players.
Will this be the year of the Cavs? Let’s find out as the NBA Finals start on June 4 (June 5 in Manila).
