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Statement from RealCavsFans on passing of founder @Ben: "It is with profound regret and sadness that we have confirmed the passing of Ben. He passed away rather suddenly after falling ill on Christmas. He did not suffer, nor was he in pain. There are no words that can express the enormity of our loss. He was the captain of our fandom and a man whose boundless grace, character and kindness touched the lives of so many. There are so many examples. Whether it was taking the time to treat visiting out of town fans (often people he had never met in person before) to the deluxe Cavs game experience, raising funds for animal shelters or simply offering a helping hand, he always had time to help others. Ben founded and ran RCF for nearly 20...

Call it champagne problems. Head Coach Kenny Atkinson has helped revitalize the roster to the extent it’s hard to find a weak point or a bad contract. Boy, what a year and a different coaching regime makes. Kenny has made President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman’s team building look good but so good it’s going to be expensive. (Hey Dan, how’s that checkbook feeling?) These are champagne problems. Being good in the NBA comes at a cost and the Cavs are about to find out what it costs. And in today’s NBA there’s cost consequences. Gone are the days of writing a check to play above the tax line. Now, not only do you pay more as you spend more but transactional restrictions increase the more you spend. So, if you like that sweater...

Forty-eight hours after their loss on Sunday in Cleveland, which broke their 12-game winning streak, the Cavs get another shot at the Pacers. The Cavs were up by 13 at halftime but imploded in the second half, being outscored 68-40. The Pacers upped the defensive pressure resulting in 7 Cavaliers turnovers in the 3rd quarter alone and 12 points off those turnovers. The Cavs shot 40% for the game and 27% on 3’s despite 25 of their 41 three-point attempts being uncontested according to NBA tracking data. It was their lowest 3-point percentage of the season. This makes three games in a row where the Cavaliers gave up 37-43 points in the 3rd quarter. Obviously they are not coming out of halftime ready to put the game away. Atkinson said...

If there was a game to miss it might have been this one. If you didn’t miss this game, well… It’s not hyperbole to say this might have been the Cavs worse effort on the year. It’s the first time they’ve scored under 100 points this year, and the Pacers shot 61% in the second half while the Cavs shot just 28%. The Cavs had gone 98 straight quarters scoring at least 20 points. They scored under 20 points in the first and third quarter and just 22 points in the fourth quarter. Even when a team has shot the ball well, the Cavs have been able to overcome it with their offense. This was not one of those games. Despite their season worst offensive effort, the focus in the post-game press conference with Kenny Atkinson was focused on defense...

The Cavaliers, riding a second 12-game win streak, stay home to take on the Indiana Pacers for the first time this season. This will be the last game of a four-game home stand and will be followed by another game against the Pacers in Indianapolis on Tuesday. The Pacers are 21-18 overall and one of the NBA’s hottest teams, having won 11 of 14 with the losses coming against OKC, Milwaukee, and Boston. However, 9 of those 11 wins have come against teams .500 or below and the other two were against 19-17 Miami and against Boston, which has lost 6 of its last 12. For the season the Pacers are 11-11 against teams .500 or better. As is the case every year, the Pacers are an offense oriented team, ranking 10th in scoring and 22nd in scoring...

When you don’t have one of your All-Stars, it’s good to have your other three. (Well, hopefully other three). Donovan Mitchell sat out on the second night of a back-to-back due to rest which was likely related to a knee he banged up against the Oklahoma City Thunder. They could have used him but didn’t need him. 40 points, 9 assists, 2 rebounds and 3 steals on 63% shooting. 18 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and 1 on steal on 88% shooting. 21 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal on 63% shooting. Those are your other three All-Stars picking up the slack with Mitchell out. Jarrett Allen provided a spark when they needed it the second quarter, and Darius Garland provided them with a closer when they needed it in the fourth...

Coming off their most impressive win of the season so far the Cavs stay home and take on the Toronto Raptors on the second night of a back-to-back. Fortunately, the Raptors are also on the second night of a BTB having lost to the Knicks in New York last night 112-98. The difference is they had to travel after their game and they’re on the road so edge to the Cavs. This will be the third of four meetings with the Cavs leading 2-0 after winning the season opener 136-106 and the second game 122-108 on Nov. 24. The Raptors are in a world of hurt having lost 14 of 15 to put them at 8-29 on the season and 1-16 on the road. On paper they have no shot at winning this one, but the Cavs may be overconfident and have a letdown after their big...

30 lead changes and 8 ties but only one lead change mattered. The Cavs took the lead in the fourth quarter at the 9:05 mark on a Max Strus layup and they never looked back. From that point on, the Cavs outscored the Thunder 23 to 15 to protect their lead. This game was billed as a historic matchup, and one of the best regular season games in recent memory, and it certainly lived up to its billing. The Cavs ended the Thunder’s franchise record 15-game win streak and extended their win streak to 11 games. Oh, and these teams meet again in eight days. It was the team first in ORTG versus the team first in DRTG – guess which team won that battle? The Thunder’s DRTG of 103.3 was leading the league by a pretty wide margin. The Cavs said “oh...