Cavs News: Schedule Strength, Free Agents, what’s next?
The Cleveland Cavaliers are currently 38-23, two games back of the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference. FiveThirtyEight is predicting them to finish tied with the Sixers at 51-31. Why is this? Primarily, it comes down to the difference in schedule between the two teams.
The Cavs have the league’s fourth-easiest remaining schedule, per Tankathon.com. They only have three total games remaining against the other three best East teams; the Sixers have five. Even more impactful are the games left against the bottom of the league. The Cavs still have seven games against the five worst teams in the league; Philly has just one.
Finally, Cleveland’s games are more spread out down the stretch. They have just 21 games left, tied for the fewest in the league, while Philadelphia is among those teams with 25 games still to play.
In fact, the remaining strength of schedule plays in Cleveland’s favor throughout the East standings. The remaining schedules for the Boston Celtics, the Milwaukee Bucks, the Brooklyn Nets, the Miami Heat and the New York Knicks are all among the 11 most difficult in the league. Those teams will be playing each other a lot, while the Cavs get to play lower-tier competition. That could be crucial in determining the final standings and playoff matchups down the stretch.
More Cavs news
While the rest of this season and the playoffs are the most important thing ahead of the Cavs, managing their roster now and in the offseason beyond is important, too. Yesterday on the website we looked at each pending free agent on the team and discussed whether the Cavaliers should bring them back. This morning, we highlighted three guards playing well in the G League they could sign to a 10-day contract.
Also on the site, new contributor Caleb Crowley made his King James Gospel debut with a look at the season ahead for the Cavs. What have we learned from the first 61 games that provide optimism down the stretch?
NBA news
The LA Clippers decided the best way to fix shaky team culture and poor leadership was to sign a former superstar who doesn’t know he’s a “former” anything. Russell Westbrook is not only signing with the Clippers, but he has also been promised a starting spot. This is almost certain to end poorly.
Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks caught a break when imaging on his injured wrist came back negative for any major damage. He will likely miss a few games, but his return should be sooner rather than later.
Coming up: The All-Star Break continues, with players stretching out on the beach while coaches try desperately to hang out with their families while they compulsively scribble after-timeout plays on napkins and socks.