Heading into their home matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers, the Cleveland Cavaliers were looking for stability on the court. Sure, the rash of injuries the Cavs have dealt with have and continues to play a part in that. But, to some Cleveland players, this late-season grind wasn't just a journey the Cavs had to endure – it was part of the destination and something they needed to embrace.
“I told the team yesterday that the standings are so tight at this point that you want to kind of get as much home-court advantage as possible,” said Cleveland veteran Marcus Morris Sr. “We got to kind of like start fine tuning and getting into like a playoff mindset where like it's one game at a time, and each game is approached as if the intensity is if we're in a playoff game.
“It's very important to be going to the playoffs with that instead of like an up and down type of thing. I've been around a long time. Most times those teams that's going into the playoffs were taught with some structure. You could tell they were fine-tuned and when they turned it up, those were the teams that actually could make the run.”
The Cavs have found a new identity
In the Cavs' 117-114 home win over the Sixers, it didn't take long for Cleveland to take Morris's message to heart. This matchup had all the trappings of a playoff-like game. Whether it was the 27 lead changes between either side or the fact that the game wasn't decided until there were fractions of a second left, with neither team having complete momentum.
“I don't know if you ever want to feel that way. But when there was point one seconds on the clock, I definitely felt that momentum was in our favor,” joked Cavs forward Georges Niang to ClutchPoints postgame.
“But with that being said, you can't ever just think that you have won,” Niang continued. “Those guys are scratching and clawing for playoff position as well. And I think the next eight games that we have we're expecting them to have a playoff atmosphere and be playoff-type games because the West Coast teams are playing are fighting for seeding and so are we.
“I think we're gonna have to bring that same type of aggression, that intensity on this West Coast trip. But that being said, we're going to try our best to peak at the right time and just try and go 1-0 five times on this road trip.”
While it may seem dramatic for Cleveland to have found a new identity less than 24 hours after Morris Sr. spoke with the team on the surface, this is something that's been brewing for a while. The Cavs have been dealing with adversity since training camp and there are still no signs of that changing before the playoffs begin.
Sure, the adversity chafed and rubbed Cleveland the wrong way some nights but, with eight games left in the regular season, the Cavs aren't running from it. Instead, they've begun to embrace the grind, taking everything on a game-by-game basis, treating every matchup like it will decide their season's fate. For as battle-tested as Cleveland has been all season long, the Cavs have found their true grit, which will likely carry them in the postseason.
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