Game Preview – Wednesday April 14, 2010 – Cleveland Cavaliers @ Atlanta Hawks
With just 1 game remaining, us fans are already looking forward to this weekend’s start of the playoffs. With just one goal in mind from the outset, it’s the same thing the Cavaliers have been looking forward to all season. In fact, it’s been stated that the Cavaliers really haven’t put on the after burners yet, as they have been waiting for the real season to start. This is especially true after they sealed up home court throughout the playoffs.
The history of Cleveland sports suggest that we should prepare for doom & gloom. Hell, it’s made things a lot easier for some fans, so they won’t be disappointed. But things are different now. A new aura is in the air in Cleveland. Something that the city has not felt since the Indians teams of the mid 90’s, perhaps not even then. Sure, Cleveland teams have been favored before & have lost. Yes, Cleveland teams have had the best record, only to lose without the championship rings. But, something is different. Something is different, because in each of those instances, we’ve been beaten by the better player (Michael Jordan, John Elway), the better pitching (Atlanta), the better team play (Florida), and the better personnel (Orlando). Never before has the best player on the planet been on the Cleveland team with the personnel in tact. LeBron knows the history of Cleveland sports. He knows of the fans’ hearaches & pains. It’s been 46 long years without a piece of the championship pie. We’ve said this before, but I personally have never said it with greater confidence – Is this the year?