Good morning. It’s Tuesday, December 9th. The Cleveland Cavaliers are 14-11. Let’s talk about how badly they need this chance to rest.
The First Sip
The Cavaliers need to reset. That much has become obvious.
It’s been a grueling schedule that hasn’t been particularly kind to a team that’s already struggling. The Cavs, who have entered the season with various injuries, have played more back-to-backs and more games overall than any other team in the NBA. 25 games in 47 days have had the Cavs playing almost every other day for
nearly two months.
Their recent five games in seven nights couldn’t have come at a worse time. The team has been in a funk — and having Jarrett Allen, Max Strus and Sam Merrill on the sideline, while Darius Garland and Lonzo Ball are only half available, hasn’t helped.
This isn’t an excuse. But pretending their dense schedule and poor health haven’t been a factor is disengenious.
Let’s be clear about something. The Cavs have lost games to other shorthanded teams this season. The Golden State Warriors just beat them without Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, or Jimmy Butler, for example.
But Cleveland has also won games it should have lost. Remember when the Power of Friendship prevailed in their win over the Miami Heat just a few weeks ago? Or when they beat the Atlanta Hawks at the start of November without Darius Garland or Jarrett Allen available.
My point is — this has been a roller coaster start to the season, where the downs have felt more damaging than the highs have felt rewarding. Keeping the big picture in mind is important.
The Cavs won’t have much of a chance this season if they continue to be this banged up. And getting healthy is just the starting point. They’ll have other issues to solve once they are at full strength, if that ever even happens.
However you’re feeling about the team now, I think we can all agree this break in the schedule has been much needed. The Cavs don’t play again until Friday, giving them five days to reset. They’ll return to play against the Washington Wizards, Chicago Bulls (twice), Charlotte Hornets and New Orleans Pelicans. This gives them a prime opportunity to get healthy and rack up wins against inferior opponents.
If the Cavs take care of business during this upcoming stretch, they could realistically improve to 20-14 before taking on the New York Knicks, Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs and Phoenix Suns to close December. A few inspiring wins there could have us entering the New Year with newfound hope.
Maybe it’s wishful thinking… but this is the path to rejuvenating the season, should they take it.
