Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Pregame Preview Q&A

LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers head out to Portland tonight to take on the Trail Blazers, but do they have what it takes to pull off a win?

After starting out 1-1 on the season, the Cleveland Cavaliers are traveling west to Portland to try and pick up their second big win of the season. It won’t come easy though, as the team faces a brutally tough and fast rising Trail Blazers team that sort of reminds us of what he Cavaliers could have been back in the mid-2000s.

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The Cleveland Cavaliers and Portland Trail Blazers tip off in a potential NBA Finals Preview tonight, and we had a chance to catch up with Blazers blogger Dave MacKay from Rip City Project to pick his brain about tonights game.

Q: The Blazers are a fast rising team. What’s their ceiling this year in the West?

Dave McKay: Their ceiling is about fourth seed in the West this year. As much as we hate to see anyone get injured, the absence of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant in Oklahoma City for the immediate future has opened a window for the Trail Blazers to get a head start in the Northwest Division. If the Trail Blazers can duplicate their success from last season (54 wins), that will likely be enough to secure favorable position for the post-season. Will they duplicate that success? It is hard to say. They probably won’t get off to the 22-4 start we saw in 2013-14, but they’ve improved the bench with Chris Kaman and Steve Blake, so hopefully their overall success will be widespread and longer lasting this season.

Q: This game is being billed by some as a potential NBA Finals preview. How likely is it we will see that happen?

Dave McKay: Not very. A lot can happen between now and June. The West is so tight that there is virtually no room for error among teams with championship aspirations. The Trail Blazers are somewhat of a long shot to begin with. In a way this makes things far more interesting because any playoff team in this conference could advance to the NBA Finals and nobody would be entirely shocked. So assuming the Trail Blazers make the playoffs (early to do this anyway), they would have to execute perfectly to have a chance. As for the Cavaliers, I do not doubt that a deep playoff run is in their future, but the finals are no given either.

Q: Besides Damian Lillard, who do Cavs fans need to be worried about tonight?

Dave McKay: The Cavaliers absolutely must beware of LaMarcus Aldridge. He is the backbone of this team. Lillard has actually been struggling to find his shot lately, so don’t be surprised to see the Trail Blazers lean heavily on Aldridge if that continues. Aldridge has averaged 25.0 points per game so far. Perhaps less conspicuous a threat, but still worth mentioning, is Wesley Matthews. As a bullish two, Matthews has added shades of a post-up game to his outstanding 3-and-D style of play. He has started the 2014-15 season on a tear to the tune of 18.7 points per game.

Q: If you could take one of the Cavs players — outside of the Big 3 — who would you want on the Blazers roster and who would they replace?

Dave McKay: Hands down Matthew Dellavedova. As tempting as it would be to take Tristan Thompson for his rebounding, the Trail Blazers do that well enough already (league-leaders by a wide margin last season) and there aren’t a lot of minutes available behind Aldridge. Dellavedova, however, would fill an immediate need. He is one of the most tenacious backcourt defenders in the league right now, and soon enough people will catch on. He is practically designed for Terry Stotts’ Soft ICE pick-and-roll defense. At 24 years old, I would love to see what he could do with a little growth in a red and black jersey. I suppose this would displace C.J. McCollum, but it is only hypothetical.

Q: Who wins tonight and why?

Dave McKay: I’m going to go with the Trail Blazers. They are not happy about that last minute loss to the Warriors on Friday and are chomping at the bit to redeem themselves at home. Lillard’s shooting woes will not last forever, and if the drought ends tonight, the Cavaliers could be on the wrong end of a scoring deluge. Interestingly enough, in career head-to-head matchups, both he and Kyrie Irving have averaged exactly 25.7 points, so it will be fun to see who breaks that tie tonight. If Lillard gets hot and Aldridge puts in a typically excellent performance, I think Portland will come out on top—just barely (105-101).

Cleveland and Portland tip-off tonight at 10pm ET/9pm CDT.

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