The Cavaliers have one more box to check for title contention
There is one stop on the way to the top of the NBA
The Cleveland Cavaliers appear to be in the midst of their most memorable regular season to date. They have the best record in the entire NBA at 48-10. The Cavs are on an eight-game win streak only rivaled by their previous win streaks of 12 and 15 games respectively.
They have straight-up kicked the crap out of two of their biggest playoff foes in recent years. Last Friday, the Cavaliers put 2022-23 in the mirror by curb-stomping the New York Knicks 142-105. Then on Tuesday, they took last season’s opening-round opponent the Orlando Magic, and introduced them to how Cavalanches feel firsthand with another decimation to the tune of 122-82.
The Cavaliers appear to be checking all the ghosts of their recent past. Despite the Cavaliers appearing to vanquish their preexisting doubts, they still are not considered the favorite to win it all. The shadow looming over the feel-good vibes resides in Boston, Massachusetts.
The Celtics are currently the standard that teams, even those in the Western Conference, look to for championship aspirations. The Cavaliers, even while thriving, have not shifted their attention from the reigning NBA champs. While it’s true that the title defender has not made it out of the second since 2019, the Celtics’ roster composition obviously is in the back of Koby Altman’s mind.
That was most evident in the acquisition of De’Andre Hunter.
