Are the Cavaliers Now a ‘Step-up’ on the Lakers?

Cavaliers Lakers

March 31, 2009 – Alex Curtis-Slep

This is the first post on The Hoop Doctors by Alex Curtis-Slep from NBA Tipoff.com fame, who many of you may also know as the founder/writer of the basketball blog Basketball Notes by Alex. Alex will be bringing you analysis of current NBA issues as well as some entertainment pieces from The Hoop Doctors. In his first piece he takes a comparative look at the top powerhouse from both the Eastern and Western Conferences.

With the Boston Celtics struggling with injuries right now, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers are clearly the two teams to beat as we wrap up the regular season. With that said, Cleveland currently seems to be even a little more refined than Los Angeles. The Cavaliers seem to have a couple things going for them that the Lakers still have yet to perfect, intensity and chemistry.

Overall Intensity

From game to game, the Cavs bring it more than the Lakers. If you’ve seen both of these teams play, you’ve seen the Lakers have some bad games against teams they should beat. The Cavs are doing what the Lakers should be doing and with less talent. The Cavs dominate teams. LA only does that occasionally; but they’re only truly awake for the big teams. That may not affect things when these teams play, but it will determine who gets the best record.

Chemistry

Everyone’s seen the Cavs friendship develop over the course of this season. It’s not just the pre-game routines, it’s the bonding on the bench, doing everything together on the road. I’m not saying the Lakers chemistry is bad, no team even comes close to matching the Cavs chemistry.

It’s not Kobe’s fault the Lakers aren’t at the same chemistry level; he’s a different kind of leader than LeBron. LeBron is more vocal, a guy who can always laugh. Kobe brings a more serious attitude anytime the ball touches the court. I’m not going to blame him for that, but it’s the little things like that that can give the Cavs an advantage.

Ultimately, the playoffs will be different from any regular season happening. These things may be big now, but they could totally change when the “other” season begins. A championship team wants to get any edge on the opponent it can; and currently, the Cavaliers are out performing their western counterpart.

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Comments

Jacko

The only reason you think the Cavs are better right now than lakers is because of wins. But it’s close, and if you look at the fact that Lakers play more games against western conference which has overall better teams you realize that Lakers would have much better record than Cavs if they were in the East.

Lakers will win it all this year.
Chris

Hey Jacko, the Lakers are 20-8 against the so-called weak Eastern conference, whereas the Cavs are 25-4 against the strong Western conference. What gives?

For what it’s worth, I really don’t think the Western conference stands out that much against the Eastern conference anymore. The West presently have 7 of the 8 worst teams in the league. The following article sums up my feelings well:

“Why NBA Eastern Conference is Better than West”
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/138277-why-nba-eastern-conference-is-better-than-the-west

Anyway, though, I still do think LA has better talent Cleveland, but I totally agree with the Alex that the Cavs have better chemistry and intensity. Whether that will be enough to win it all, I don’t know. You never know what could happen in the playoffs.
http://nbatipoff.com Alex

I didn’t say it because of wins, I said they play harder and have a more tight knit team. You are probably right, LA would be better in the East; but they have to play bad teams better. LA has a great chance to win it all, I’m not going to go out of my way to pick a favorite right now though.
bron42

The lakers beat the cavs twice…so that says enough for now. And to say thelakers would be better than the cavs in the east is dumb. The mavs mopped the floor with most of the west teams including the lakers, does that mean they’d be the top team in the west?
bron42

magic* not mavs
Deli_Cura

I agree with Alex that the Cavs are better chemistry. They have a lot of fun playing with each other on the floor.

The Lakers are good, but Lebron is way better than Kobe and in a 7 game series that will be deciding factor. Lakers may not even get to the finals anyways. Spurs, Hornets, and Utah all have good enough teams to knock off the Lakers.
CAVZFAN23

cavaliers are a better all around team than the lakers. cavs dont have alot of talent but they have guys that can do waht it takes to get it done. their record shows it. they play good against everyone and their consistant. lakers arent consistant, they have their times when bad teams like the grizzlies will give them a run for their money. in my opinion, if it comes down to cavs and lakers in the finals(which it most likely will) my prediction is cavs win in 6 games