Cleveland looks to avoid elimination in game six of the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics. Can LeBron and company force game seven?
Game six of the Eastern Conference finals is tonight as the Cleveland Cavaliers look to avoid elimination at home against the Boston Celtics.
If Boston eliminates Cleveland, this will be the first time that LeBron James has missed the NBA finals in eight years.
It’s quite impressive what Boston has been able to accomplish. They are without their two centerpiece players, Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward.
It’s equally impressive what LeBron has been able to do during the postseason. He’s averaging 33 points, eight rebounds and eight assists per game in the playoffs.
I mean, he has no other choice. This is arguably the worst team that LeBron has been on since his first tour of duty with the Cavaliers.
In game five, ESPN made it a point to keep showing the fatigue that LeBron was facing throughout the game. At age 33, it’s hard to carry a team that lacks so much talent.
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I’d be willing to bet that this Cleveland team finishes ten games under .500 without LeBron James on the roster. That’s how bad it is. Boston, on the other hand, finished as the two seed in the Eastern Conference without their two best players.
That speaks to what a great coach Brad Stevens is. That also speaks to what great depth they have on their roster.
If Boston looks to clinch the series, they’ll have to continue to get production from the core that has got them to this point. Marcus Morris must be the lead role from that group.
He’s been a bit of an enforcer on this team during the conference finals. He’s been in a couple different altercations with Tristan Thompson and Larry Nance Jr.
Morris has also been one of the bodies that Boston runs at LeBron defensively throughout this series. He’ll need to continue his mean streak tonight if Boston wants to be in the NBA finals.
For Cleveland, Kevin Love has to be a factor tonight. LeBron just physically can’t do everything for this group and Love needs to be the guy that Cleveland thought they were getting when they signed him. He certainly hasn’t been that guy in the Eastern Conference finals.
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The Rundown:
- Date/Time: May 25, 2018 — 8:30 p.m. ET
- Location: Quicken Loans arena— Cleveland, OH
- TV: ESPN
- Spread: CLE (-6.5)