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No one has played more games than the Cleveland Cavaliers this season, sitting at 16-1 heading into a home matchup with the Toronto Raptors. Although the Cavs have been dominant to start the season, starting the year 15-0, fatigue eventually caught up to them. Playing 17 games in 28 days made Cleveland look lackadaisical on defense. So, when the Cavs got a brief three-day reprieve after defeating the New Orleans Pelicans, it allowed the team to recharge their battery for the remainder of the regular season grind.
“You could tell in practice today we had a lot more energy,” Cavs big man Jarrett Allen told ClutchPoints. “It was a huge weight off of our shoulders knowing we didn't have to play yesterday. It just feels good to have a breather for a couple of days.”
Allen jokingly compared Cleveland's time off to a mini-vacation. However, with these breaks being few and far between for the Cavs, they have to take them when they can. Thankfully, Cleveland's next 17 games will take 43 days. That stretch decreases to 40 if the Cavs somehow reach the NBA Cup championship game in Las Vegas.
Regardless, Cleveland has taken their lumps and remains the best team in the NBA. But when breaking down the remainder of their NBA schedule, will the Cavs get another reprieve like this? Or will Cleveland need to prepare for a lengthy grind for the remainder of the regular season?
Breaking down the remainder of the Cavs' schedule
Looking ahead, the next time Cleveland gets a lengthy break won't be until the start of the NBA Cup. If the Cavs make it to Las Vegas, they're guaranteed to play at least two games. If Cleveland plays its quarterfinals on December 10 and wins, they will have a three-day break until their next contest. If the Cavs win that subsequent matchup, Cleveland will get a three-day break until they play for the NBA Cup championship.
However, if the Cavs lose at any point during their NBA Cup run, those three-day breaks will likely be reduced to two-day siestas. But looking beyond the NBA Cup race, the next time Cleveland has a lengthy break will be the three days they have off before they take on the Denver Nuggets on the road after hosting the Utah Jazz.
After that, Cleveland has to tackle back-to-back scenarios or gets a brief one or two-day break. The grind would continue until the Cavs reached the All-Star break, which, like every other team in the NBA, is a lengthy pause for teams to rest and recover for the second half of the season.
From there, Cleveland's trend of taking back-to-back scenarios or brief one—or two-day breaks continues. In reality, the Cavs won't get another lengthy pause until they get roughly a week off before the playoffs start. So, Allen and the Cavs enjoying their mini-vacation truly are few and far between.
Unfortunately, there's no sympathy for the weary since Cleveland's opponents are also trying to handle the 82-game grind. Hopefully, the Cavs can remain healthy during the remaining 65 games on their regular season schedule. If they don't, it could make (or break) their chances of being a playoff threat and contending for an NBA championship.
