Cleveland punched its Eastern Conference Finals ticket on Sunday with a 30-point road win in Game 7. The reception from ESPN's NBA insiders the next day was anything but a coronation.
Speaking on a Cleveland-centric preview episode hosted by Cavs beat reporter Brian Windhorst, Tim Bontemps argued the Cavs have spent the last six weeks looking nothing like the team that entered October as Eastern Conference co-favourites.
"The thing to point out is they're 8-6 so far in the playoffs," Bontemps said. "So if a team is 8-6, they very clearly have exploitable flaws and also there are flaws that undercut them. And now that being said, they are these are the two teams that at the start of the year were expected to be here. That is the irony of the situation. The Cavs and the Knicks entered the season as the co-favourites in the East for a reason."
He framed the Game 7 demolition of Detroit as an outlier rather than a corner-turning moment.
"You saw in this game seven today, the Cavs played much like the team they were supposed to be. That is why this has been sort of an infuriating run for them because they have not really looked like that team for the most of these playoffs. They have wheezed their way through a Raptor series where the Raptors were all banged up with injuries who couldn't really score and they then wheezed their way through this series against the Pistons who had one guy who could really handle the ball and often couldn't really score and still almost won the series anyway."
Windhorst, who picked the Knicks in five, was even less subtle about Cleveland's defensive standing among the final four.
"Of the eight teams left in the second round, would I — do I want to say this? Do the Cavs have the weakest defense? They certainly have the weakest defense of the remaining teams," Windhorst said. "The Cavs defense is going to be stressed against that New York offense."
The diagnosis was specific. After moving Darius Garland out and James Harden in at the trade deadline, the Cavs' point-of-attack defence has slipped, and Mitchell Robinson's offensive rebounding has historically tortured Cleveland's frontline.
"The Knicks front court historically has given these Cavs problems," Windhorst said. "Specifically Mitch Robinson, who has kicked the Cavs in the backside numerous occasions. That will be a key early thing to look at."
The pair also addressed the elephant in Cleveland's gameplan from the second round — guarding rookie Ausar Thompson by simply refusing to guard him.
"Hey, fresh quote from Kenny Atkinson," Bontemps relayed. "Uh oh. 'The tactical adjustment we made was avoiding Ausar Thompson. We were just like, if he's near the ball, throw it to somebody else.'"
Windhorst's response cut through the laughter.
"Bon Thompson is like, put him on the bench. He's not a starter. But listen — and then, yes, avoid him on one end and invite him to shoot it on the other. That's true."
For Bontemps, the path forward for the Cavs is narrow.
"In game seven, you saw Donovan Mitchell look like a star. You saw the bigs play great. They hit shots on the perimeter. They did all the stuff they can do," he said. "And they're going to have to play like they did in game seven repeatedly if they're going to beat the Knicks with the way the Knicks are playing now."
The Knicks tipped off as betting favourites at -260 on the series line. Game 1 is set for Madison Square Garden, with OG Anunoby expected to return from a hamstring issue after a near nine-day layoff.
