re: Cavs are fittin' to roll.

cavs killed toronto with offense, finally beat boston with defense.

as i said, this team had waaay more defensive energy than the old guys pre-trade. did not see jeff green having to be the small ball 5 but whatever.

if they get the warriors, expect them to slow it way the frick down the way they did in this last game.

but back to the finals. prediction (deep exhale) correct.

It's crazy how poorly that trade turned out and still didn't matter. Cavs on the hook for 32 mil for Clarkson and Hill next year. At least Hill is an important defender. I almost feel bad for Clarkson with how overwhelmed he looks.

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if they get the warriors, expect them to slow it way the frick down the way they did in this last game.

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That seems like the only chance they have against either team IMO

I don't know if it's enough for them to win and I doubt that it is but they won't get swept for this reason

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Your prediction may have been correct but your reasoning and analysis was not good

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except it was. my prediction was this:

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i don't know what you guys are all celebrating the death of the Cavs this year, but to me this all but assures them, not only a spot representing the east in the NBA Finals, but a MUCH better crack at the warriors than what they had before.

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the cavs became a deeper and more versatile team that was able to play more styles and defend much better while literally having a 125 offensive rating vs toronto, the #1 seed.

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the cavs are gonna run some crazy small ball lineups. Four out or Five out. Lebron at Center (Draymond style). And then when Kevin Love comes back, Lebron will be at the 4.

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and considering that the common consensus on the board and with the talking heads at the time of and before the trade was "the cavs are done"? i'm closer than most everyone else.

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but back to the finals. prediction (deep exhale) correct.

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You got the result, but you botched the process. I think the process was your true prediction, I'd lean towards saying your OP was really incorrect.

You talked up all the guys they traded for, and those dudes have done nothing in the playoffs to get Cleveland to the Finals.

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except it was. my prediction was this:

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They're going to the Finals in spite of the deadline day trades.

Hell, they're comparing this squad to 2007 Cleveland.

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except it was. my prediction was this:

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cmon dude. your prediction as this:

"a lineup of Hill, Hood, Korver, Lebron and Love is definitely beating everyone except the Warriors. so you heard it hear first. Cavs will take a minute to gel, then start scoring 120 points a game on people."

hill has been inconsistent at best, and bad/non-existsent far more than good. same can be said about clarkson, except the bad/good ratio is even worse.

hood is literally not playing

korver has been good, especially defensively.

love was out the last 2 games.

and they are obviously nowhere near 120/game. even adjusted for the hyperbolism, you cant count on this group to score 100 a night. the role players arent consistent enough.

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and you think they would've made the finals with isaiah thomas (can't defend), dwayne wade and iman shumpert?

cmon man.

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Not sure why you can't concede the process.

Reread your OP on the guys traded for, your specific takes on each of those guys. None of that happened in the playoffs, not one bit.

You think those guys played up to your assessment?

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Reread your OP on the guys traded for, your specific takes on each of those guys. None of that happened in the playoffs, not one bit.

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dude. yes it did. it gave them the depth to play and embrace small-ball. it gave them versatility. frick. read.

you trying to tell me that george hill didn't help vs isaiah freaking thomas? george hill enabled them to switch on D vs Boston/Toronto and actually defend that flurry of celtics guards. george hill was the biggest piece of that trade. clarkson gave them shots and minutes. nance gave thompson a chance to heal and rest and rejoin the rotation.

i still maintain this. this team is deeper than team before and actually deeper than last year.

they WON the ECF. i called it when most said they wouldn't.

you're literally looking at one series instead of the scope of the entire season.

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it was 118 actually. and against the raptors.

boston was 97.

indiana was 94.

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so pretrade, when the cavs were getting blown out and unable to stop ANYONE because they had fat dwayne wade/isiah/derrick rose, and you literally just said they were able to win a series while not averaging a lot of points, which means they defended better.

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then start scoring 120 points a game on people.

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i also didn't fricking say they would average 120 points per game against playoff quality teams in the fricking playoffs. which would be pretty much the highest team offensive rating in playoff history.

yet they almost did, against the eastern conference favorites by the way, they averaged nearly 120 points a game. and you want to pick nits.

i literally said the trade made them better defensively and able to score more points once love went back. well love was gone the last two games, and they were able to win with defense.

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like someone else said, your prediction was this trade would put them over the top.

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the trade... did put them over the top? they won the ECF. i said at the very outset. nor did i say that ONLY the players traded for were going to be the ones making the difference.

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i don't know what you guys are all celebrating the death of the Cavs this year, but to me this all but assures them, not only a spot representing the east in the NBA Finals, but a MUCH better crack at the warriors than what they had before.

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so here we are. we'll see how they do against the warriors. i think they'll do better against the warriors than with rose/wade/isiah because this team can defend, but i guess we'll just have to see.

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3 of them barely play at all.

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but the main and most expensive piece of the trades fricking started and locked down Lowry/Derozan and Jaylen Brown/Terry Rozier when it mattered most, while also being the most consistent non-Love cav for the series.



it's fine. pick nits. read back through the thread.

also, again, you're literally looking through the lens of a whole season through like a few playoff series. everything i predicted bore out through the season. you're just picking and choosing. and there's no way i could've predicted the minutiae of each fricking playoff matchup back midseason.

most of this thread is laughing at me for saying korver was gonna get minutes. but fine ya don't want to give credit, don't give credit.