King James Gospel
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Cavs 30.5-win over/under likens them to New York Knicks

By Doug Patrick

Cleveland Cavaliers Collin Sexton (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Cleveland Cavaliers Collin Sexton (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 15: Collin Sexton #2 of the Cleveland Cavaliers brings the ball up the court against the Toronto Raptors during a quarterfinal game of the 2018 NBA Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 15, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Cavaliers defeated the Raptors 82-68. 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. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV – JULY 15: Collin Sexton #2 of the Cleveland Cavaliers brings the ball up the court against the Toronto Raptors during a quarterfinal game of the 2018 NBA Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 15, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Cavaliers defeated the Raptors 82-68. 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. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

The Cleveland Cavaliers: 30-52?

Las Vegas oddsmaker Jeff Sherman recently gave the Cleveland Cavaliers an over/under of 30.5 wins.

To me, this number seemed low (that probably comes as no surprise, this is a Cavs blog after all).

Still, I wanted to be responsible, so I wondered: what would a 30-win Cavs season look like?

Enter: the Knicks.

Remember last year’s Knicks?

Probably not. Unless you saw them before the All-Star break.

They hovered in-and-out of contention throughout the start of the season. On February 6, the team was 24-31. That same night, Kristaps Porzingis tore his ACL.

Soon after, New York began a “youth movement” (read: tanked). They traded for Emmanuel Mudiay, who, at the ripe age of 22, held the league’s worst plus/minus at his position when acquired. The team went on to win only five more games.

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To go from perennial Finals contender to last year’s Knicks is quite the fall from grace, even when considering LeBron James’s recent departure.

But it might not be so crazy.

K-Love (and the K stands for Kristaps)

Kevin Love could be the Cavs’ Kristaps Porzingis.

No, he isn’t a seven-foot-three Latvian phenom. However, Love is the Cavs’ best player like Porzingis is for the Knicks and both are vital to running their teams’ offense.

Furthermore, Kevin Love has a history of getting injured. In both the last two seasons, Love has missed large chunks of playing time.

Last season, he fractured his left hand in January and tore a ligament in his thumb in April. In 2017, he had surgery on his left knee—on February 14, only a week later in the season than when Porzingis had his injury.

Love played 59 games last year and 60 games in 2016-17. Porzingis played 48 last year.

Without Love playing more than 60 games, the Cavs will struggle to get into the playoffs.

If he plays less than 48 though… well, they probably turn into a 30-win team, especially if they start out with a record like the Knicks’.