Top 5 Cleveland Cavaliers Storylines with 1 Month Left in Regular Season
The Cleveland Cavaliers don't officially begin their title defense for another month, but that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of juicy storylines to follow throughout the remainder of the regular season.
It's already been a wild 2017 for the Cavs, spearheaded by the trade for Kyle Korver and signings of Derrick Williams, Deron Williams, Andrew Bogut and Larry Sanders.
J.R. Smith is back following December thumb surgery, and now only Kevin Love remains sidelined before head coach Tyronn Lue can finally piece together a healthy, complete rotation.
Can't wait for the playoffs? While we can't blame you, the following are five major reasons to stay tuned in during the final 16 games.
No. 5: Fighting for the First Seed
1 of 5
Securing home-court advantage throughout the first three rounds isn't a big deal—or is it?
The Cavaliers' 44-22 record is good enough for first place in the Eastern Conference, a spot they've held essentially all season. The Boston Celtics are just a pair of games behind, while the Washington Wizards (3.5 games back) and Toronto Raptors (5.5 games) remain within striking distance as well.
While Cleveland proved it could win on the road during last year's postseason (5-2 away record in first three rounds), it's been remarkably average apart from Quicken Loans Arena this year. The Cavs' 27-7 home mark is second-best in the NBA, trailing only the Golden State Warriors' 27-4 record. On the road, however, the Cavaliers are just 17-15 overall, tied for seventh in the Association.
Is this kind of discrepancy enough for Tyronn Lue to continue to pile big minutes on his stars?
Absolutely not.
As great as the No. 1 seed would be, Lue has to value a healthy roster over any seed. Despite their pedestrian road record, one only needs to look at Games 5 and 7 of the NBA Finals this past June to see that they can succeed in hostile environments when necessary.
The battle for first will be fun to watch, but won't ultimately mean much come June.
No. 4: The Larry Sanders Revival
2 of 5
Sanders officially ended his NBA absence by collecting one minute and 58 seconds of game time in a 128-96 clobbering of the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday.
His presence didn't affect the outcome of the game, but it was a monumental step in the return of a man who's spent the past two years away from basketball.
"For us as his brothers now, it was great to just see him back out there," LeBron James said, according to Cleveland.com's Chris Fedor. "To have a two-year hiatus like he had and doing the things he needed to do to shore himself up to be a part of this league again, he was back where he belonged tonight."
Sanders, 28, is signed for the remainder of this season and has a team option for next year at $1.8 million, per Spotrac.com. After Tuesday's game, the Cavs assigned Sanders to the D-League's Canton Charge, where he's expected to spend most of the next few weeks getting back into game shape.
Despite previous suspensions for drug use (he's also dealt with anxiety and depression in the past), the Cavs felt they could provide the best possible home for Sanders as he works his way back into the league.
As reported by Fedor, Cavs general manager David Griffin said:
"Nobody else has our particular situation. Nobody has our locker room. Nobody has the leadership that we have. We obviously have an alpha both in Ty Lue and Bron. Kyrie (Irving) is growing as a leader. We've got a group that's excited about the ability to add particularly what could possibly be the right piece.
There's obviously the potential that this doesn't work, and that it takes much longer. And that's OK. Our group's OK with that because they know this doesn't complete us. This just gives us a chance to do something that's unique. If you had a setup like we have, you'd bring him in. If you're a younger team trying to find your way, you couldn't do it. So I think this just set up well for everybody.
"
Sanders at his best is a high-level defender and rebounder who doesn't need to touch the ball on offense to affect a game. He may or may not make a real on-court impact for the Cavaliers this season, but their investment in him as a player and as a person should eventually pay off.
No. 3: Defying Defensive History
3 of 5
Apparently, defense is kind of important when it comes to winning championships.
Last season, Cleveland allowed just 98.3 points per game (fourth overall) and was 10th in defensive efficiency (104.5). This year? The Cavs are giving up a whopping 106.5 points (21st overall) with a defensive rating of 109.7, also 21st in the league.
This plunge in defense has largely been covered up by a blitzkrieg offense that scores 111.0 points per game, third overall in the NBA.
Nevertheless, this 21st-overall rating carries a lot of concern.
Only three teams in the past 40 years have won a title in a season they ranked outside the top 10 in defensive efficiency. The Los Angeles Lakers were the last to do so in 2000-2001 when they were also 21st overall.
Much of Cleveland's problem has come on the perimeter. In wins, opponents average just 9.6 made three-pointers per game with 34.7 percent accuracy. During losses, they allow 12.0 threes on 40.0 percent shooting.
"That's something that we had to clean up and get better at," LeBron James said, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. "Guarding the three-point line, we understand how much of a weapon that is and if you don't guard the three-point line it can hurt you."
The good news? The return of J.R. Smith gives Cleveland arguably its best wing defender back to help cut down on opponents' outside success.
There's no way the Cavs can trim their defense into a top-10 unit before the playoffs start, and they must hope to become just the fourth in 40 years to overcome it.
No. 2: Return of Kevin Love/Bulding a Rotation
4 of 5
With J.R. Smith back following thumb surgery, the Cavaliers need only Kevin Love to complete their regular season and playoff rotation.
Love has missed the past month following arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, a procedure that was originally scheduled to keep him out six weeks. Despite this diagnosis, Love has resumed full practice activities and could rejoin the Cavs as early as this Saturday in Los Angeles.
"Whenever the medical staff clears him, he'll be ready to go," Tyronn Lue said, via ESPN.co.uk's Dave McMenamin. "He reacted well. After the practice today he said he felt good. Hopefully [he will] continue to keep progressing as well. That's a good sign for us."
Cleveland is just 7-6 since Love's surgery, clearly missing its All-Star big man and leading rebounder.
Channing Frye and Richard Jefferson have shared starting duties in Love's absence, and both will revert back to reserve roles once he returns.
This is where Lue faces some tough rotation decisions. Smith, still on a minutes restriction, will eventually return to the starting lineup to join Love, LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson. After them, Cleveland could conceivably go 11 deep with Deron Williams, Frye, Jefferson, Kyle Korver, Derrick Williams and Iman Shumpert. Larry Sanders could eventually come into play as well.
Of course, rotations don't exactly expand in the playoffs, and minutes will be hard to come by for anyone outside the starting unit.
The Cavaliers are far deeper than their championship roster of a year ago and will have to figure out their best eight or nine guys by postseason's start.
No. 1: Can LeBron Win His Fifth MVP?
5 of 5
Although hard to believe, we're not talking enough about LeBron James.
With so much attention delivered to Russell Westbrook's triple-doubles on a sixth-place team or James Harden's hopped-up stats in Houston Rockets head coach Mike D'Antoni's offense, James is quietly putting together the best statistical season of his career.
The 32-year-old is averaging 25.9 points (his highest in three years back in Cleveland), 8.4 rebounds (career-best), 8.9 assists (career-best) all while shooting 54.0 percent from the floor and 38.5 percent from deep.
Cleveland is 44-17 when James suits up and 0-5 without its star. Few teams in the NBA go from title contender to JV squad when one player goes missing. James' on/off rating of plus-16.7 leads the team and is over four points higher than his carer average.
His MVP performances don't just occur during games, either.
"Every day in practice, just setting the tone," Tyronn Lue told Bleacher Report. "He sets the tone offensively and defensively when we’re going over the plays. Going through defensive walkthroughs. It’s great for the guys to have him around to know what’s going on. The younger guys getting the chance to see him work in the weight room, get his body right, stretching, lifting and things like that. Just having him around means a lot to guys like Kevin and Kyrie and the young guys on our team."
Even James himself has grown tired of the voter fatigue that's set in year after year following his Hall-of-Fame level of play.
"Just try to be an MVP for this team every night that I go out on the floor," James said via ESPN.co.uk's Dave McMenamin. "And I don't know. Look at my winning percentage. Look at my winning percentage when I'm on the floor and when I'm not on the floor. That's what it's all about. That's what this league is all about. Just win. And also produce. So I don't know. So many great guys, so many MVP candidates this year, guys having great seasons. So we'll see."
A fifth MVP would put James with Michael Jordan and Bill Russell, just one shy of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's record of six.
The best player on a first-place team having a career year? James is worthy of another trophy with a strong finish to the regular season.
Greg Swartz is the Cleveland Cavaliers Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @CavsGregBR.
Stats via Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com unless otherwise noted and are accurate as of March 15.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
