LeBron James stunned the world last July when he announced that he was leaving the Miami Heat to return to his former team the Cleveland Cavaliers this season. Bookmakers quickly reacted to James’ decision, installing Cleveland as favorites (+250) to take home the NBA championship.
Are these Cavaliers for real though? Can they really go all the way and clinch their first NBA title in their franchise history? Read on below as we break down the Cavs’ chances of winning the crown in their first season as a favorite.
[sc:MultiSportArticles ]Can the Cavaliers win the title this season?
A younger and better Big Three
LeBron James admitted in an interview with the Akron Beacon Journal just weeks ago that he probably would have stayed with the Miami Heat if they managed to beat the San Antonio Spurs in the finals last season. After all, who in their right mind will leave a team that has won three consecutive titles? Fortunately for the Cavaliers, that was not the case as the Heat were humiliated in five games by a determined Spurs squad.
[sc:NBA240banner ]In fact, what made LeBron jump ship was the Heat’s lacklustre play in that finals encounter. During that series, age finally caught up with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh as they failed to generate enough support for LeBron, bringing back memories of James’ first stint with the Cavaliers. Wade’s disappointing play was summed up in Games 4 and 5 of the Finals, as he shot a combined 7-of-25 in the field and was terribly exposed on the defensive end by Danny Green and Kawhi Leonard.
With Wade and Bosh already showing signs of decline, James decided that he was better served forming a new big three instead of hanging on with the old one. He announced his return to Cleveland last July saying that he was excited to hook up with guard Kyrie Irving.
That was even before Irving took the FIBA World Championship by storm as he grabbed the tournament MVP honors. He was incredible in the gold medal match, burying all of his six three-point attempts on his way to scoring a game-high 26 points. That follows his superb 2013-14 season for the Cavs where he averaged 20.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 71 games last year.
As if pairing James with Irving wasn’t enough, the Cavaliers got themselves another All-Star when they acquired Kevin Love in a three-team trade that sent No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins to the Minnesota Timberwolves. It’s tough to comprehend that Love is the third wheel in this triumvirate considering that the forward averaged 26.1 points and 12.5 rebounds last season.
Love’s Cleveland career is off to a great start. He scored 25 points in his preseason debut against the Miami Heat and another 25 in his next outing against the Bucks in a game in which he shot 8-of-11 from the three-point line.
Deeper Bench
LeBron James knows that winning championships is never easy. Yes, he won two titles with the Heat but he also lost two finals series there including last season’s five-game debacle against the Spurs. In that series, LeBron tried to do it all as he averaged 28.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals a game. He also shot 57.1% from the field and 51.9% on three-pointers but still it wasn’t enough as his other teammates failed to contribute.
The Cavaliers know this as well so they made sure that they surround with LeBron with the role players needed for a team to make a deep playoff run. They signed proven NBA champions in veterans Mike Miller, Shawn Marion and James Jones to guide a relatively young Cleveland squad this season.
“It’s going to be a different challenge for a lot of the guys on our team that haven’t played in a big game in a long time,” James said. “We’ve got guys that understand what it takes. It’s the hardest thing you’ll ever do in your life.”
What makes this Cleveland team so dangerous, however, is the firepower that they possess coming off the bench. They have shooting guard Dion Waiters who as a sixth man last season averaged 14.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 27.8 minutes of action last season.
Tristan Thompson will also be doing bench duties as well with Kevin Love now starting for the Cavaliers. Thompson’s numbers were solid last season as well, averaging 11.2 points and 9.7 rebounds.
How the bench players step up this season will be vital not only for the Cavaliers but for LeBron in particular. Last season, especially in the finals, LeBron showed signs of fatigue not previously seen in his playoff appearances before. With LeBron already turning 30 this December, the Cavaliers will need to limit his minutes to keep him fresh for the postseason.
The Verdict
With Love and Irving playing alongside him, the sky’s the limit for LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. With the Cavaliers surrounding the big three and their young guns with veteran role players such as Shawn Marion and Mike Miller, expect Cleveland to at least enter the NBA Finals next June.
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