The Eastern Conference Finals starts tomorrow and while it may seem fairly obvious that the first and second seeds in the East face-up in the Finals, the path to the finals of the Cavs and the Raptors couldn’t possibly have been more varied.
While the Cavs steamrolled their way to the Finals blowing the Hawks and the Pistons off the court with their high-powered offense, the Raptors were a symbol of inconsistency and bemused many in their way to the Finals.
The Raptors, according to many and even their own fans might have reached their peak. This is the best ever playoff run by the alienated franchise from the North and while the Finals are upon them, one can’t fault pundits and even fans to have already written them off.
The Heat and the Pacers series were no ordinary playoff battles and we may be right in questioning if there is enough left in the tank for them to make it a contest against the Cavs. Lowry and Derozan had humongous games to finish the Heat series, but they have been too sporadic in the playoffs to genuinely be considered a threat to the Cavs.
Many have questioned the fact that the duo, who have often been termed as the second best backcourt in the game and averaged over 44 ppg in the regular season, can be given a pass for their erratic and rather frustrating performances. Everything for the Raptors in the play-offs till now has been a herky-jerky roller-coaster ride, marked by phases in which they blow teams off the court to stretches where they seem to struggle to buy a basket.
The Cavs under Tyronn Lue have excelled implementing their own version of up-tempo run-and-gun basketball and as is paramount with such a system they have managed to find combinations and the personnel who excel in such situations.
The Cavs are too good offensively and with the Raptors being amongst the worst teams in the league at defending the three-point line, the Cavs are primed for another sweep. This, despite the fact that the Raptors managed to win the season series 2-1.
So, yes the Raptors may not have much of a chance but in Dwane Casey they have one of the best Coaches in the game and he will do everything in his power to make this a competitive series. So, who exactly will be the key players in the series. Here is a look at our top 5.
#5 JR Smith
Yes, the Cavs success story has all been about the Big Three and how effective the LeBron-Irving pick-and-roll has been. LeBron in particular excels at setting up open shooters, but still for all his efforts, he needs a legitimate shot-maker.
Smith just seems the perfect guy for the job right now. Smith in the playoffs so far, has shot better than 50% from beyond the arc, while averaging 11 ppg as the fourth option scorer whilst also averaging a neat 1.6 steals/game.
Smith's decision making may still remain suspect, but Lue realizes that Smith needs to have the freedom to play to his natural instincts and he gives him the offensive freedom to be a no-conscience high-risk shooter. Lue has often implored Smith to shoot the ball more and with Lue and LeBron backing him, Smith seems to be in a comfort zone that has eluded him almost all his career.
While his exploits may have been under the radar it needs to be pointed out that his consistent shooting and stellar defense has been a significant part of the Cavs juggernaut.
Against the Raptors, he will have the tough assignment of keeping DeRozan in check. Smith's defense more than offense is sure to set the tone for the series.
#4 Bismack Biyombo
The Toronto Centre is surely the darkhorse in this list. The 23-year-old 6'9” Centre wasn't expected to be in this conversation. But, ever since Valanciunas went down, Biyombo has been nothing short of spectacular. It did help that Whiteside got sidelined due to injury and the Heat had Deng guarding Biyombo.
But, we still need to give credit where credit is due and the former Charlotte man does deserve his fair share of it. The Congolese was exceptional in Game 7 against the Heat and in the series against the Heat he averaged close to 8.5 rpg to go with 1.6 blocks/game. His offensive rebounding and activity in the paint earned the Raptors several second-chance opportunities and when the Cavs do switch to Love at the Center, it is imperative that Biyombo takes advantage.
Valanciunas was a huge loss for the Raptors and is only expected to be back by Game 3. The Lithuanian was the best Raptor in the playoffs before being injured. In the three games he played against the Heat, Valanciunas averaged 18.5 ppg, 12.7 rpg.
While Biyombo might not be able to give that kind of offensive protection, he surely is a better rim protector than Valanciunas and needs to be at his best to keep LeBron and co. off the paint. This is imperative as with the Cavs offensive firepower, the last thing you need is for the Raptors to gift them second-chance points.
#3 Kevin Love
Tyronn Lue called Kevin Love a top-10 player in the game today. Lue has the right to bloviate about his star forward, but for the sake of objectivity, one needs to realize that this is high praise for a player who was maybe the biggest disappointment for the Cavs till the All-Star break.
Love has been through his share of turmoils with the Cavs. Many have questioned his big-game ability, his inept post-up game, and his anemic defense. Many pundits reckon that to be a superstar in the game you have to do well in at least 5 categories. Love is a great shooter and rebounder, but for a big man his shot-blocking, his low-post ability, his pick-and-roll defense as well his play-making ability doesn’t match up to what is expected from an elite forward.
However, Love has always been and shall always be the quintessential stretch four and for the Cavs that is all he needs to be right now. In eight playoff appearances, he has managed 28-63 (44%) shooting from beyond the arc. He leads the team in rebounding with 12.5 rebounds per game and while Thompson may still be the best offensive rebounder for the Cavs, Love does his fair share of cleaning up the glass.
Against the Raptors, we can expect Love to have a field day as he will be up against Patterson or Ross and there is no way that either can defensively bother the 6'10” pure shot from UCLA. The Raptors struggle to defend the three-point line and they couldn't possibly have feared a tougher nemesis than Love right now.
#2 Kyle Lowry
Kyle Lowry has the momentum on his side. The former Houston man was phenomenal in the series-clincher against the Heat as he finished with 35 points, 9 assists and seven rebounds. He played like the All-Star that the city of Toronto knows and wants him to be, but if one were to look at his playoff run there have been far too many slumps for him to inspire any confidence in the fans.
However, the Cavs need to be wary of Lowry who just has a knack of saving his best for the Cavs. In three meetings so far he has averaged over 31 ppg, on 66% shooting from the field and 48.3 % shooting from beyond the arc to go along with 8.3 assists/game.
Lowry also had his career-best 42-point regular season game against Irving and the Cavs. It is no secret that Lowry with his size prefers going against a smaller point-guard. Lowry was up against stifling on-ball defenders in George Hill, Winslow and Richardson for most of the playoffs so far, but against Irving, he will surely have far greater freedom and leeway.
If the Raptors have a shot it lives and dies with their star point guard.
#1 LeBron James
This season has been another spectacle for LeBron for both good and bad reasons. His Cavaliers team after the initial glitches seems to have fortified into becoming the best offensive team in the game, barring maybe the Warriors.
Lue's up-tempo basketball brings the most out of the sagacious basketball genius of LeBron. He is scoring at will, creating for his teammates, who to his delight, are knocking down shots. His numbers are off-the-charts and his team is playing at a level unseen since his return back to his hometown.
LeBron seems miffed that Curry won the first ever unanimous MVP and that seems to have fueled some kind of deep-rooted fire in his belly. He disputed the valuable tag in Curry’s MVP and he just seems too determined to prove his point.
De Marre Carroll is maybe one of the best on-ball defenders in the game and he did a great job on Wade in Game 7 of the Semi-Finals but with LeBron at this kind of rhythm, you are talking of a different beast altogether. LeBron seems to have his eyes set on the NBA Finals and he seems in no mood to be bothered much by the Raptors. We can expect him to be equally ruthless on the court.
