The Cleveland Cavaliers have opened up the 2025 NBA Playoffs in a dream-like manner. Cleveland holds a commanding 2-0 series lead over the Miami Heat entering Game 3, with franchise player Donovan Mitchell leading the charge with back-to-back 30-point games.
As the Cavaliers begin to ponder just how far they can ride this wave of momentum, a critical strength that won the Boston Celtics the 2024 championship is rearing its head.
Cleveland defeated Miami 121-100 in Game 1 behind a dominant showing from its guards. Mitchell led the way with 30 points, five rebounds, four assists, and four steals, while Darius Garland poured in 27 points and five assists on 10-of-17 shooting.
Ty Jerome rounded that effort into form with 28 points off the bench, adding five rebounds and three assists in an explosive showing that helped set the tone for the series.
in Game 2, Miami made things a bit closer, but Cleveland still prevailed 121-112. Mitchell added another 30 points, while Garland tallied 21 points and nine assists, and Evan Mobley scored 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting.
More importantly, Jerome shot just 2-of-8 from the field—only for De'Andre Hunter and Max Strus to step up in his place.
Cleveland, much like Boston, has explosive scoring depth
With Jerome struggling, Hunter put up 12 points in just 23 minutes, burying a pair of three-point field goals along the way. It was an impressive statement from a team that has come to trust Jerome, but remains deep enough to produce bench points even when he's having an off night.
The starting lineup admittedly had to do more heavy lifting in Game 2, but Strus stepped up with 14 points, six assists, two steals, and four three-point field goals made to fill the void.
Through just two games, four different Cavaliers have already scored at least 20 points in a single outing: Garland, Jerome, Mitchell, and Mobley. Jarrett Allen and Hunter, meanwhile, bring the tally to six different players who have scored at least 10 points.
Sam Merrill has also buried four three-point field goals between the first two games of this series, thus revealing the true strength the Cavaliers possess as a contender: Depth.
It's an attribute that has translated to championship glory as recently as 2024. Boston won the title last year not by relying on Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, but by supplementing their talent with a deep cast of players who are capable of taking over for extended stretches.
Look no further than the 2024 NBA Finals, when five different Celtics averaged at least 12.3 points per game, seven posted at least 7.0 points per contest, and no one tallied more than 22.2.
Brown and Tatum still need to take over when the chips are down, much as Garland and Mitchell will be expected to in 2025. Much like Boston, however, Cleveland has the invaluable ability to find and stick with the hot hand, no matter what their name value may or may not command.
The All-Star players are thriving and the supporting cast is picking up the slack for one another. The Cavaliers are performing at a proven championship-caliber level.