Cleveland Cavaliers Are Officially Team to Beat in Eastern Conference
The Cleveland Cavaliers are the best team in the Eastern Conference, despite what the standings may show.
Cleveland, 50-27, sits in the No. 2 spot behind the 58-19 Atlanta Hawks. But make no mistake—it's the Cavaliers who truly deserve to be on top.
This isn't a slight on the Hawks, who've been playing great basketball all season. For a team with no superstars, they've done an excellent job moving the ball, playing defense and buying into a team-first concept.
So why are the Cavs, who are just 1-3 against Atlanta this season, the superior team?
It all has to do with momentum heading into the playoffs. Over the past three months, no NBA team is playing better basketball than the Cavaliers.
A Tale of Two Seasons
Cleveland's 2014-15 campaign can be split into two sections.
There was the version that started Anderson Varejao at center, Shawn Marion at shooting guard and relied on Dion Waiters for scoring off the bench. The Big Three of LeBron James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving were playing together for the first time, and coach David Blatt was getting his initial taste of the NBA.
The Cavaliers needed time to mesh, grow and learn about one another's tendencies. On top of that, James appeared sluggish, unable to drive past smaller opponents he previously had little trouble with. Thunderous dunks were replaced with delicate layups. Something was wrong.
Cleveland also ranked near the bottom of the league in rim protection, with no true shot-blockers on the roster. Prior to Jan. 15, opponents were converting at a 62.7 percent rate within five feet. Only the rebuilding Minnesota Timberwolves were worse.
Selfish, losing habits were still prevalent throughout the Cavs. Four years of lottery trips can do that to a team.
James and the rest of the Cavaliers had to combat this, learn from the mistakes and push forward. As he told Bleacher Report's Ethan Skolnick in November:
"It's my biggest test. My patience isn't... I have a low tolerance for things of this nature. So it's something I'm working on as well. Which I knew from the beginning that was going to be my biggest test, to see how much patience I got with the process. What helps me out is I've been through it before. But at the same, I'm a winner, and I want to win, and I want to win now. It's not tomorrow, it's not down the line, I want to win now. So it's a fine line for me. But I understand what we're enduring right now.
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The second version of the Cavs has run much more smoothly.
James took 15 days off from late December to early January, essentially renewing his body. Cleveland traded Waiters, two protected first-round picks and a second-round pick for Timofey Mozgov, J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert. Irving began to catch fire, dropping 55 points in a 99-94 Jan. 28 win over the Portland Trail Blazers and a franchise-record 57 while taking down the Spurs 128-125 in San Antonio on March 12.
Mozgov (1.3 blocks) has given Cleveland its much-needed paint protection. Smith has spread the floor on offense (46.1 percent three-point shooting over the last 12 games), and Shumpert holds the team's best defensive rating (98.4, via NBA.com).
Players such as Marion and Mike Miller were once regulars in a rotation struggling for answers. Now with so many options to go to, both have found minutes hard to come by.
The Cavaliers are growing more comfortable with each other by the day, a key for a franchise with so many new faces. As Irving told Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group:
"We said we trust each other enough where we're going to have to be closer right now, at this moment. And since that game when LeBron came back from the back (and knee injuries), we've been great. The relationships have just gotten a lot better, because now we're open dialogue and we say what's on our mind. Film room, practice, games, come to the bench, everyone's talking. It's a great environment to be a part of.
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When looking at the overall body of work, the Cavs have been pretty good but not best-in-conference good.
One needs to only study this new, upgraded version of the Cavaliers to truly measure their level of success.
Why Cleveland Is East's Best
Since mid-January, the Cavs have not only been the best team in the Eastern Conference but the best team in the NBA as well.
Cleveland is 31-7 over the past three months, good for a winning mark of 81.6 percent. Atlanta is 26-11 and just 5-5 in its last 10 contests.
Here's how the new-look Cavs and Hawks stack up in other key categories, with league rank in parentheses.
| PTS | Opp Points | Plus/Minus | ORtg | Net Rtg | REB | |
| Cavs | 107.1 (4) | 96.5 (6) | 10.7 (1) | 111.5 (1) | 10.1 (2) | 44.7 (8) |
| Hawks | 102.3 (7) | 97.8 (12) | 4.4 (5) | 106.5 (6) | 4.3 (5) | 39.5 (30) |
Cleveland has been on an absolute tear, leading the NBA in offensive rating, point differential and win percentage.
Atlanta has still been very good but not quite on the Cavaliers' level.
What began as the Hawks' main area of strength could quickly turn into their weakness during the playoffs.
Team ball is obviously important. The Spurs have proved this in past years with their ball movement and unselfishness. This stamp is all over the Hawks thanks to head coach Mike Budenholzer, a San Antonio assistant for 17 seasons.
Atlanta has a solid overall roster. Five players average over 12 points a game, led by Paul Millsap's 16.8. Even more impressive, six Hawks are dishing out at least 2.5 assists. All this extra passing and finding the open man is great, but it can only carry a team so far in the postseason.
Eventually, stars have to step up.
For the Cavaliers, this isn't a problem. Not only do they possess the star power, but Cleveland also has shown the ability to create a free-flowing offense by playing team ball. Having this kind of versatility will be invaluable when facing opponents simply with one or the other.
When teams play each other four, five, six or even seven straight times in a series, playbooks and sets often become predictable. This is when star players take over.
Cleveland has James. Atlanta has...Millsap?
Every NBA champion over the last 10 years has possessed at least one surefire Hall of Fame player to lead it.
Tim Duncan with the Spurs. James in Miami. Dirk Nowitzki leading the Dallas Mavericks. Kobe Bryant guiding the Los Angeles Lakers. Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce in Boston captaining the Celtics. Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O'Neal with the Heat. The list goes on and on.
All champions. All future Hall of Famers.
As solid as the Hawks have been, they have no one who fits this bill.
The Cavaliers have the personnel to win the Eastern Conference, if not an NBA title, with James leading the way.
Conclusion
So if Cleveland and Atlanta do end up meeting in the conference finals as most expect, shouldn't the Cavaliers be worried about their 1-3 record against the Hawks? After all, Atlanta is just one of two teams the Cavs have a losing record against this season.
To shed some more light on that 1-3 record, some key factors have to be considered. First of all, three of those games came before that magical Jan. 15 turnaround date. Cleveland and Atlanta split the first two contests, with the Hawks topping a James-less Cavs squad on Dec. 30.
Only one game has been played between the two powerhouses in 2015. The Hawks won in Atlanta 106-97, pulling away late after Cleveland had the lead in the fourth quarter. It's worth noting the Cavaliers were playing their sixth game in nine nights, while the Hawks had just one in their past five.
For all the time Atlanta had to game-plan around stopping James and the Cavs, Cleveland still had the lead in the fourth.
Even with the Hawks' victory, it was clear which side possessed the most talent. As Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes stated:
"And while we've spent plenty of time this season lauding the effectiveness of the Hawks' system and equal-opportunity offense, perhaps we've forgotten how much raw talent matters. The Cavaliers' starting unit of Kyrie Irving, Smith, James, Kevin Love and Mozgov has been rolling over opponents since coming together, posting the top net rating among five-man units with at least 300 minutes together this year, according to NBA.com/Stats.
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National outlets are all beginning to realize the Cavaliers' dominance when it comes to power rankings. Bleacher Report, ESPN, Yahoo, Sports Illustrated, NBA.com and Fox Sports all have the Cavs in their top two to three teams. All have Cleveland ranked higher than the Hawks as well.
Seeding is important in the playoffs, and Atlanta should be congratulated for securing the No. 1 spot.
Guess how much that matters to James?
Only once in four seasons with the Heat did Miami actually earn the No. 1 seed. All four years, however, the Heat ended as the Eastern Conference's best franchise.
The Cavaliers are the hotter team, have a more talented roster and possess a proven champion and future Hall of Famer in James leading the way.
Atlanta may sit atop the standings, but Cleveland is truly the team to beat in the East.
Greg Swartz has covered the Cleveland Cavaliers and NBA for Bleacher Report since 2010.
All stats provided by Basketball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.
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