Beighle: ESPN perfectly predicts Cleveland Cavaliers’ upcoming season in Summer Forecast
After ESPN’s Eastern Conference Summer Forecast came out, I couldn’t agree more with how they predicted the Cleveland Cavaliers upcoming season.
Every summer, ESPN releases their Summer Forecast, a list of predictions for the upcoming season for each NBA team. As painful as it sounds, ESPN predicted the Cleveland Cavaliers to finish 2nd in the East, and I’d agree with them.
This is the brief summary ESPN wrote about the Cavs:
"There are two huge questions to consider when attempting to forecast the Cavaliers’ win total: For how many of Cleveland’s 82 games will Kyrie Irving be on the roster, and how much does Cleveland even care about the regular season? Last year, the answer to the latter question seemed to be “not in the slightest,” and the Cavs still won 51 games — then went 12-1 in the East playoffs, when they finally seemed to reveal who the “real” Cavaliers were."
Their final record prediction was 52-30, one more win than this past season. Last summer, ESPN gave the Cavaliers too much credit in the regular season. The Cavaliers, who ended up winning just 51 games, were predicted to have a 57-win season. Three months of having a sub-.500 record killed the Cavaliers this past season, and there is no reason to believe that meltdown couldn’t happen again, especially with Kyrie Irving’s continued frustration and trade request.
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LeBron James played another exhausting season, so even with the season starting sooner in order to reduce back-to-backs, it’s unlikely he will put the same intensity that we see come playoff time. Along with that, the Cavaliers have had underwhelming offseason additions. Highlighted by Jeff Green, the Cavaliers have yet to fill their gaping defensive issues, finishing 22nd in defensive rating last season. That said, the Cavaliers will certainly be the best team in the East, but just like ESPN predicted, they might not end the season with the best record.
Teams like Washington and Milwaukee could both surprise the Cavaliers. The East, while it has gotten much weaker this offseason, is full of talent that could breakout this upcoming season, including superstars like John Wall and Giannis Anteokounmpo who could take their talent and efficiency to the next level.
The only reason that the Cavaliers could outperform ESPN’s prediction is just that — the Eastern Conference has grown incredibly top-heavy. No Jimmy Butler or Paul George means about 8 fewer games against a superstar talent for the Cavaliers. 52 of the 82 games the Cavaliers played last season were against an Eastern Conference foe, so it’s a critical to realize how weak the East will be this upcoming season compared to the West.
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As we’ve seen, LeBron James looks ready for this upcoming season, but with all the controversy surrounding the Land, it is hard to see them coasting their way to over 52 wins.
Let us know. Do you think the Cavaliers will win over or under 52 games this season?