Predicting Cleveland Cavaliers' Final 2014-15 Record
Cleveland Cavaliers fans have more than a few reasons to be hopeful—if not mindlessly ecstatic—about the upcoming 2014-15 season. For the first time in a long time, a rebuild with no end in sight has given way to very reasonable championship expectations.
The way things transpired this summer, all that patience LeBron James called for in his Sports Illustrated announcement with Lee Jenkins seems a tad unnecessary by now.
"I'm not promising a championship," James wrote at the time. "I know how hard that is to deliver. We're not ready right now. No way. Of course, I want to win next year, but I'm realistic. It will be a long process, much longer than it was in 2010. My patience will get tested. I know that. I'm going into a situation with a young team and a new coach."
That was before this young team and new coach acquired Kevin Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves, a transaction that instantly elevated the expectations surrounding this suddenly star-studded roster.
Questions remain about just how quickly the Cavaliers will begin clicking, but there's little doubt head coach David Blatt's club finishes the season as one of the league's few legitimate contenders.
Here's a month-by-month look at how they'll get there.
October-November
1 of 7
After opening the season at home against the New York Knicks, the Cleveland Cavaliers then face their first real test of the season on Oct. 31.
Meeting the Chicago Bulls in the Windy City.
Though Cleveland's improvements have garnered most of the attention this summer (and for good reason), the Bulls have made some key additions of their own. Most notably, Chicago signed veteran big man Pau Gasol to help anchor what may now be the best frontline in the business. It's the kind of advantage that could actually give the Cavaliers some problems, perhaps previewing the Eastern Conference's most compelling emergent rivalry.
As BrooklynNets.com's Lenn Robbins notes, "Free agency, along with some unforeseeable events, has made the Central Division into the most intriguing in the league. No potential matchup is more intriguing than the Cavs against the Bulls. Call it the I-90 Rivalry."
Otherwise, the Cavs shouldn't have much trouble in the season's early goings.
The other game to circle is a November meeting with the champion San Antonio Spurs, LeBron James' first opportunity to exact some vengeance for the 2014 NBA Finals.
Given that the Cavaliers will still be attempting to forge some chemistry so early on in the season, there's a good chance they come up short against Chicago and San Antonio. It wouldn't necessarily be a sign of things to come, but the first month or two will entail their share of learning experiences for Cleveland.
Even so, head coach David Blatt's team could get off to a hot start.
But for a couple of contests against the Denver Nuggets, two meetings with the Washington Wizards, a game against the Portland Trail Blazers and another against the Toronto Raptors, few of the games in October and November raise any red flags.
The most significant obstacle for Cleveland won't be the opposition early on. It will be the time it takes to get all the new pieces on the same page.
October-November Record: 11-4
December
2 of 7
The Oklahoma City Thunder are the only legitimate contender with whom the Cleveland Cavaliers will have to deal in December.
With Kevin Durant coming off an MVP season and remaining firmly in the prime of his career, OKC should give LBJ and Co. everything they can handle. The Thunder also has continuity on its side after a quiet summer, so this is a team that reasons to be firing on all cylinders when this Dec. 11 matchup rolls around. After coming up short against the San Antonio Spurs in the conference finals, Oklahoma City will be plenty motivated as well.
Cleveland will twice play both the Atlanta Hawks and Toronto Raptors in December, both up-and-coming teams looking to establish their footing in the East. Another two games against the Brooklyn Nets could pose some challenges of their own.
But it will be games against the Charlotte Hornets and LeBron James' old Miami Heat squad that could be even more dangerous.
Charlotte is looking to build upon a breakout 2013-14 campaign, and the addition of Lance Stephenson puts them in prime position to do just that. Meanwhile, Miami is poised to catch some teams by surprise this season. Luol Deng won't replace James on the wing, but this is still a talented and well-coached club with loads of title experience in its back pocket.
The Cavaliers will likely begin forming their identity in December, but that's the kind of process that won't happen overnight. Don't be surprised if Cleveland has a couple of off nights thrown into the mix.
It's also worth noting Cleveland will shoulder five back-to-backs in December, which may also take a slight toll.
December record: 13-4
January
3 of 7
Life will become a little more difficult for the Cleveland Cavaliers in January, namely due to a handful of games against strong Western Conference opponents. The good news is that most of the club's kinks should be worked out after a couple of months under head coach David Blatt.
Just don't expect the newfound chemistry to translate into entirely smooth sailing.
Cleveland's stiffest competition includes meetings with the Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets, Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, Chicago Bulls, Oklahoma City Thunder and Portland Trail Blazers.
That list includes eight Western Conference teams that will be vying for a spot in the playoffs, each of which could steal a game against the Cavs on any given night. Easy as Cleveland's march through the Eastern Conference playoffs may well be, the West is a different kind of beast altogether. Its depth will be on full display at the turn of the year.
All told, this may be the Cavaliers' most difficult month. Whether they can secure 60 wins this season will depend in large part on how they respond to the challenge.
January record: 12-5
February
4 of 7
After visiting the Miami Heat on Christmas Day, the Cleveland Cavaliers host LeBron James' old team in February.
A day later, they travel to Chicago for another meeting with the Bulls.
It's the kind of back-to-back test that should shed some light on the Eastern Conference's balance of power just in time for an All-Star break in which two or three Cavaliers will likely participate. This is Cleveland's opportunity to establish itself once and for all as the East's team to beat—an opportunity to make all the optimistic prognostications a reality.
Cleveland will also play both the Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors for a second time in February, but the rest of the abbreviated month may be a walk in the park. The Washington Wizards or New York Knicks could theoretically make things interesting, but odds are the Cavs bounce back from a rough January by taking February in stride.
February record: 9-2
March
5 of 7
The Cleveland Cavaliers kick off their March with a visit to the Houston Rockets, later completing their Texas tour with road games against the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs.
Those games alone should make the month more difficult than February, but by now Cleveland should have a clear identity. Indeed, this is the time of year in which the NBA's very best teams typically begin picking up steam in advance of the playoffs. It's hard to imagine the Cavaliers looking anything less than dominant as the regular season begins winding down.
Besides the visits to Texas, Cleveland need only worry about games against second-tier competition like Toronto Raptors, Phoenix Suns, Brooklyn Nets and Memphis Grizzlies.
There's also one final away game against the Miami Heat, which will make for entertaining optics if nothing else.
March won't be easy, but Cleveland should be at its very best. Chances are it drops a game here and there, but it wouldn't be at all surprising if the Cavaliers string together a lengthy winning streak before April.
March record: 12-3
April
6 of 7
The Cleveland Cavaliers' final game of the regular season comes at home against the Washington Wizards, an upstart club that should still be searching for some rhythm before the playoffs.
With first-year NBA head coach David Blatt likely looking to rest some of his stars in advance of those playoffs, don't be at all surprised if the Cavaliers lose two or three of the seven games they're scheduled to play in April. They're the kind of losses that mean virtually nothing in the big picture, and it's far more important that this roster's top performers walk into the postseason healthy and fresh.
Home games against the Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls could also make things interesting.
And because those two contests will be Cleveland's first in April, they'll probably still count for something—perhaps the Cavaliers' last real test before the playoffs commence.
All things considered, Cleveland won't emerge from April unscathed, but they'll be ready for what comes next.
April record: 5-2
Final Record: 62-20
7 of 7
A 62-game win season is probably the best-case scenario for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
You could revise that estimate downward for any number of very legitimate reasons. Maybe Cleveland gets off to a slow start as it attempts to integrate its new pieces. Maybe an injury or two interrupts an otherwise promising season.
And there's always some risk that this team's defensive liabilities catch up with it in a big way.
Much will depend upon how younger contributors like Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters and Tristan Thompson adjust to becoming a supporting cast for LeBron James and Kevin Love. Having spent their earliest years in the league as go-to options, this transition will entail a learning curve—and there's really no telling how protracted or complex that process will be.
Still, there's far too much star power on this team to expect the worst.
You have to believe James and Love will mesh fairly quickly, and from there, everything else should fall into place eventually. You also have to believe head coach David Blatt will acclimate to the new gig long before the playoffs.
"I've been living with expectations all my life," Blatt told reporters this summer, before Love's addition raised those expectations even higher. "Now I've never coached LeBron James, mind you, and I'm well aware we just got the best player in the world. Naturally, that's going to set the standards high. But wouldn't you rather it that way than the opposite? I know I do."
It won't necessarily take 62 wins for Blatt and Co. to meet those standards.
But while it's entirely plausible Cleveland wins only between 50 and 60 games, it has a real shot at snagging 62 of them and strutting into the playoffs as the East's No. 1 seed.
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