Are the Cavs Really the Team To Beat in the East?

Listening to the talking heads on ESPN and TNT, you'd think Cleveland is a lock to go to the NBA Finals. To borrow a quote from another ESPN talking head from a different sport, "NOT so fast my friends".

At the trade deadline last week the Cavs added Antawn Jamison, while the other team in this fight—Boston—added Marquis Daniels and slam dunk champion Nate Robinson. Does this signal that these teams are really serious about going for it this year? Perhaps.

But let's take a look at the third contender shall we? The Orlando Magic, last year's finalists, stood pat. What does this mean? Are they giving up? Hardly. I believe it means they already like what they have.

The Magic didn't throw away two cards and take two others, they are keeping the hand they have been dealt.

How is it working so far?  The Cavaliers were riding a 13 game win streak into the All-Star break. Lebron James made the statement that "The break coudln't have come at a worse time for us. We want to keep playing." How prophetic.

With its new toy, Jamison, the Cavs have started 0-3. The third loss was to—you guessed it—Orlando. Big deal. It's just a regular season game, right? Well, yes. And the Magic are still 1-2 vs. Cleveland this year.

However, in the Cavs' wins, the Magic played Cleveland twice coming off a game played the night before in a different city. In the first matchup, the Cavs hadn't played in a week before that one. I believe it was Orlando's fourth game in five days.

They also had to catch a plane the second time while Cleveland was at home snug in their beds. And they hung in until late in that game.

This time, the Magic were already in Orlando the day before the game. Think it made a difference? One thing we do know, in the playoffs, both teams are on the same travel schedule.

Plus, these are the sqauds that each team is bringing to the playoffs. And while Cleveland is working on chemistry and how to get everyone their right number of touches, Orlando is already there. The team they are bringing to the playoffs has been together all year.

Of course, you say, the Cavs will have the home court advantage. That will be huge, right? Well, let's see, who had it last year?

Can the Cavs make it to the Finals? Absolutely. Is it a foregone conclusion? Absolutely not.