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Beech: Who do the Cleveland Cavaliers want to play in the first round?

By Sam Beech

CLEVELAND, OH - MARCH 1: Ben Simmons
CLEVELAND, OH - MARCH 1: Ben Simmons /
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CLEVELAND, OH – FEBRUARY 22: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers handles the ball during the game against the Washington Wizards on February 22, 2018 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH – FEBRUARY 22: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers handles the ball during the game against the Washington Wizards on February 22, 2018 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Opponent No. 2: Washington Wizards

Pros

The biggest problem for Washington is that their Achilles heal on the offensive end is at the power forward position, which means James may have less work to do on the defensive end.

The Wizards could be a team that James particularly matches up with, as their best players would have to guard other positions. On top of that, the Wizards have been struggling on the defensive glass all year long, ranking near the bottom of the league in defensive rebounding.

The trio of Love, Tristan Thompson, and Larry Nance Jr. could all potentially have success grabbing offensive boards, creating more opportunities for the Cavs to exploit the Washington defense.

Cons

The lethal All-Star duo of John Wall and Bradley Beal could provide some major match-up issues for the Cavs backcourt. It is hard to see the Cavs having a backcourt combination that could slow down that guard combination. Washington is also the best team defensively against the three-point shot, holding opponents to under 34% from deep this season.

The length they can throw out towards the perimeter could give players like Kevin Love and JR Smith problems, which would inevitably hurt the Cavs offensively.