Playoff Live Thread: Cavs vs Raptors

Happy Playoff Saturday, Cavs fans! The longest (non-covid or labor negotiation interrupted) regular season of our lifetimes is over. The ‘offs start today! On deck, a dreaded early afternoon game, and a seven game series with the same Toronto Raptors the Cavs posted an 0-3 record against this year. There is some good news, though. The Cavs have zero players on the injury report. The Death Star is fully operational!

Meanwhile, Cavs Immanuel Quickley is out as per a game time decision. So that bodes well. Also boding well? The Cavs choosing to embrace size with the starting lineup of Allen, Mobley, Wade, Harden, and Mitchell. While normally, the Beard is just rolling out of the back room of Christie’s Cabaret at this hour, one has to hop[e he got his beauty sleep and as NOMAD suggested, the Cavs have been practicing for these 1:00 starts.

We could go in for a lot of analysis, but this game is really about mindset. The Cavs are the Eastern conference team most set up to embrace bully ball, possession based basketball, and a ground and pound offense. The Cavs need to attack the paint relentlessly and use it to set up wide open threes. Embrace the two and three man game with half court executors like Max Strus, Sam Merrill, Jarrett Allen, Jaylon Tyson,  James Harden, and Donovan Mitchell. I think they got this. Cavs in five. LFG!