Why the Cavaliers are 53 win team

As the Cavaliers embark on another NBA season I am often looked at and called names because of the high expectations I have for this Cavs team.  I consider this team a potentially very good team that can beat anyone in a series when totally healthy.  In this blog I will explain my reasoning and would like to challenge all the readers in what they agree or disagree with.


HEALTH:  IMO, this is the biggest question mark of the team because once the Cavs get past this issue they are a very dangerous team.  I for one think that the Kyrie Irvin and Anderson Verajao injuries last year were flukes and don't go as far as calling folks injury prone like some others.  I think that sometimes players have the misfortune of being at the wrong place at the wrong time and get injured.


In saying that those two players alone being relatively healthy will help this team immensely.  Andy was averaging a double double each and every night with his hustle and I don't need to mention all the superlatives for one Kyrie Irving.  I do understand the question marks around Andrew Bynum's health because having missed an entire year one will be wise to not count on him until he actually takes the court.  Bynum in my mind is the key to the Cavs being a 7-8 seed or a 3-5 seed.  Once Bynum takes the court, works off the initial rust, he allows the Cavs to be able to matchup with anyone in the NBA including the likes of Miami, LAC, BKN and everyone else in the NBA.


GROWTH:  Yes the Cavs have a number of players that are still getting better at their respective positions.  It's safe to say that with improved play around him that Kyrie Irving is going to be that much more effective, I expect Dion Waiters to take a major step forward both on the offensive and defensive end(Kyrie on defense). It was apparent to me that Dion is much more confident in his jumper today as opposed to last year.  Tristan Thompson seems to be getting better and better each and every time he plays.  I would be stunned to not see him average a double double each and every night.


Let's not forget the rookies who will grow and get better as the season progresses in Bennett, Karasev and Felix.  Bennett showed flashes in the preseason in that he is going to be a very good player once he gets into shape, mixes up his game a bit better and has more confidence in imposing his talents on others.  Karasev on the other hand has shown he can shoot from outside and is a wonderful passer.  Karasev does need to get stronger but that will come in time.  Felix will be used primarily on defense which he is very good at.


DEPTH:  When everyone is healthy you have to admit that the Cavs have one of the better benches in the NBA.  No matter who you start at the #3 you have depth and versatility throughout.  Let's take a look at it.

Assuming the starting five of

Bynum

Thompson

Gee

Waiters

Kyrie

which when healthy is a damn good starting five

Bench:

Verajao

Zeller- who unfortunately we didn't get to see in the preseason because of injury and surgery.  I heard that he had looked as though he had vastly improved his game too

Bennett

Clark

Miles

Karasev

Jack- who if not mistaken came in 2nd in 6th man of the year award. 


Off the top of my head it's only two benches I would rather have in the NBA more than the Cavs' bench and that's Denver Nuggets and the Brooklyn Nets other than that the Cavs are as good if not better than any bench in the NBA. 

On aside, I think alot of ppl underestimate the importance of production off the bench is and IMO, this is why I'm not as high on some teams like Warriors, Thunder, Bulls and others.  By the time the last part of the year roles around you can usually tell the teams that have good benches because the teams that don't are inconsistent and injured because they logged far too many minutes.


All in all the Cavs will wear teams down during the course of the game and year with the ability to adjust and play multiple guys.



DEFENSE:  Damn, it's so good to have Mike Brown back.  I say this because no longer do we have to wonder if we will win once we get a 27-30 point lead, no longer will we see the same mistakes over and over again with guys not knowing who guard in the last seconds of games.  Yes I still remember in games last year where Austin Carr would ask "why are we switching?" while in pick and roll defense.   Brown is going to demand excellence on defense and from the very first game of the regular season you could see that the defense is so much better.

We saw better pick and roll defense, we saw a rotating defense that had purpose and dictated to the offense what it could and could not do, etc.  In the Case of Dion and Kyrie buying into the defense it's going to lead to them being more successful because they will get steals and easy baskets because of it.  In order to beat some of the better teams it will be this that will keep them in the games when their shots aren't falling. With the added depth the Cavs can be relentless for all 48 minutes because they don't have to worry about guys getting tired or guys playing way too many minutes.


  Please give feedback on my analysis:


BTW, I do acknowledge that the East has gotten much better but the Cavs should be able to hold it's own against anyone.