Cavs not as bad off as it seems

Before the Cavs/Mavs game, Charles Barkley reaffirmed his opinion that the Cavs would not make the playoffs. He said that the Cavs were lucky that Miami and Chicago were a mess and reminded everyone that the Cavs making the finals last year was the luckiest playoff run of all- time.

I am not here to hate on Charles Barkley. He knows the game of basketball and he is paid to say whatever pops in his head but not think long and hard about anything. Charles is there to entertain and he does that well.

But he is missing one aspect that I think is very important. LeBron is a huge factor in helping the Cavs compile luck.

Granted the Cavs right now are a mess. After all this time, Larry Hughes still has not figured out how to fit in. Now that Sasha Pavolvic has his contract, he can't seem to find the rim. With Donyell Marshall's injury and Anderson Varejo's holdout the front-line rotation has been a mess and Z and Drew Gooden have had to play bigger minutes than desired. The veteran guards are all upset with a lack of playing time and the team has been in turmoil.

As Barkley pointed out they are below .500 but you take away the losing streak that occurred when LeBron was injured- the Cavs are slightly over .500. And frankly just over .500 is not only enough to make the playoffs -- it is also enough to win an NBA championship.

Before you accuse me of getting all Pollyanna, the simple truth is that it is no easy task to defeat a LeBron James team four out of seven games. The Cavs did not match up well against the Spurs last season and San Antonio used their championship experience to sweep. But as I said all during the playoffs last season, if the Cavs are within five with five minutes to go - I will take my chances with LeBron on the floor.

Now that I am not saying that LeBron is all you need to compete for a championship. But the sky is not falling as much as many would have you believe. The biggest difference between last season and now is the defense. The Cavs have no chance unless they can find the defensive intensity they had last spring. And there are signs that can happen. And just the fact it will be the playoffs will help the cause. The NBA season is a grind and truthfully many regular season games lack meaning. You just can't play with powerful intensity every night. The Cavs led by LeBron almost always play better against the best teams. Sure they have lost to teams like the Knicks but they Knicks will not be in the post season. The magnitude of the games allow will help the Cavs.

Now I am not saying that the Cavs can just turn on a switch and win. They have to find a rotation that works. But I believe the roster is better suited for a seven game series than a 82 game regular season. And while the need to bolster the roster is there- I do not believe the Cavs really need a superstar point guard. I want no part of Mike Bibbey- I am a firm believer that if the Cavs had made that trade last season- they would not have beaten the Pistons. Gooden is one of the more valuable members of the team combined with Z and LeBron- the Cavs have an advantage on the boards against just about every team. I would like to see the Cavs trade Larry Hughes. He just doesn't fit in. He has flashes of solid play but he belongs on a team like Washington, Golden State or Phoenix. He needs a team that runs and guns. If Sasha could snap out of it- trading Larry would be easier. I am just not sure anyone wants Hughes at the cost of his contract. While I would love point guard like Andre Miller, I just don't buy it is life or death for this team. I know Snow is frustrated and Damon Jones is trying to talk his way off the team but both have more value in the playoffs than the regular season. Snow won the Detroit series with his defense in the fourth quarter just as much as LeBron willed the team with his offense. I know Jones wants more than five minutes, but he is a shooter that could and has come up big. If there is a trade out there to be made, personally I would want a another shooter that could come off the bench. If there is a Vinnie "Microwave" Johnson type player out there on the market, we need him.

In short, I see light at the end of the tunnel. The Cavs may not look very good more often than not right now but I am still willing to take my chances in a seven game series against any team in the East.