CLEVELAND, Ohio — David vs. Goliath. Big brother vs. little brother. Varsity vs. Junior Varsity. Rocky vs. Drago.
In each of the previous three seasons, that’s what a matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks — the NBA’s winningest team since 2018 and a Central Division juggernaut — would’ve felt like for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Not anymore.
“This is not the Cleveland we knew in the past years,” reigning Finals MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo said following the Cavaliers’ 115-99 statement win Wednesday night. “They’re a good team. They have a better record than us right now. It’s a team that we’ve got to be careful, we’ve got to scout better and make sure we respect them even more now. They’re a playoff team and they’re fighting for the title themselves.”
Think about what Antetokounmpo said for a minute. It would’ve been unfathomable last season when the Cavaliers collapsed after a surprising start. It would’ve led to cackling months ago when they were once again predicted to finish near the bottom of the Eastern Conference.
Who’s laughing now?
Certainly not the defending champion Bucks, who fell behind Cleveland in the standings and, for the moment, lost grip of the season tiebreaker, something that could loom large as April draws near. Not the Brooklyn Nets, another team that Cleveland recently beat and leapfrogged in the standings, now sitting third in the East. Not the New York Knicks or Atlanta Hawks, a pair of playoff teams a year ago that Cleveland has displaced.
The Cavs are legit. Everyone in the league knows it. Time to shift to a much more pertinent question: What’s their ceiling?
“I don’t think we know the answer to that,” Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff told cleveland.com following the game. “I know the future is bright but there are so many experiences we haven’t faced as a group that this year’s story can’t be predicted. We have to keep passing tests and accepting challenges in order to see where we can ultimately go.”
Wednesday was the latest. It’s the biggest win of the post-LeBron James era.
The Cavs led mighty Milwaukee by as much as 21. Over the final 22-plus minutes, the Bucks never got within single digits. There was a 30-point discrepancy from 3-point range and almost a 40-point gap in bench scoring. The Bucks were held to 38% shooting over the final three quarters.
“We feel that if we play hard and stay true to our system that we can beat anybody,” Kevin Love said. “We beat a very good team tonight. But now it’s getting guys in a mindset of, can we do it again? Can we do it night in and night out? To get to where we want to go, we’ve got to do it every single night. We want respect in this league. We want teams to understand that we want to bottle this up and make something special here.”
This wasn’t some serendipitous performance, catching Milwaukee at the right time — like December’s blowout win.
A dominant performance at both ends, the Cavs outplayed the fully-loaded, streaking champs who entered the night 45-6 against Central foes over the last four seasons and were 18-3 in games with Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday all in the lineup. Antetokounmpo said he was surprised by Cleveland’s physicality and how tough it was going one-on-one against so many quality individual defenders. Middleton spoke about its unmatched size.
The swarming defense, third in rating this season, held Milwaukee, which averages 111.8 points, below the 100-point mark while forcing Antetokounmpo into seven turnovers — matching his season-high.
“We had a couple things when we came into the season about our identity: We wanted to be the hardest-working team out there and we wanted to always give 100 percent on the defensive end,” Jarrett Allen said. “I think tonight was a perfect example of that. Obviously, we have ups-and-downs but overall, we have stuck with our identity and it’s carrying us.”
The Cavs, now 30-19 overall, have three wins in a row. They are 8-2 in their last 10 games. Already have double-digit victories this month. Boast the league’s fourth-best point differential — even better than 31-win Miami. They are also in the top 5 of net rating — a ranking shared by each NBA champion over the last decade. Their net rating, No. 4 overall, is 6.3. It was minus-8.3 last season — an unprecedented transformation.
They’ve won 15 games against teams above .500 and are 9-11 against the top 6 in each conference. Given the schedule gauntlet already faced, the Cavs have the third-easiest remaining road, giving them a legitimate path to the East’s top spot.
They play hard and together, with a palpable bravado and irrational audacity required to reach the postseason without LeBron for the first time since 1998 — and make noise when they get there.
“They believe in each other,” Bickerstaff said. “They have no fear. No matter what’s going on, good or bad, they always feel like somebody’s got their back. We take challenges. We don’t run from anybody. We don’t back down. And we give everybody our best shot.”
For three years, Cleveland’s best shot wasn’t nearly good enough. It is now. The rebuild is over. This team is the perfect blend of talent and chemistry.
“You can have all the talent in the world and have poor chemistry and you’re going to underachieve every time. You can have less talent and more chemistry and you’ll achieve,” Bickerstaff said. “The beauty of it is, you can’t put numbers to it, you have to put time and care into it. That’s the human aspect of what we do. The computers want to take all that away from us. There’s so much more to be said about — especially in teams — togetherness, a genuine trust and care for one another. That support gives you an opportunity every night to be more than what you are as an individual.”
Earlier this week, Love referred to the Cavs as the ultimate share-the-wealth group. That was highlighted against the Bucks.
Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and Allen rightfully receive most of the attention.
Garland has made the third-year leap, morphing into the leader of the team, engine of the offense, a potential All-Star and one of the league’s best point guards. Allen, who drew the assignment against Antetokounmpo Wednesday, will also garner All-Star consideration. Mobley is transcendent — the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year and a legitimate Defensive Player of the Year candidate who looks like a video game create-a-player. He’s already changed the trajectory of the franchise — and is only scratching the surface.
Those three are the franchise cornerstones. They accelerated this process.
On Wednesday night, that trio, which Love referred to as a “three-headed monster,” combined for 45 points, 10 assists, 12 rebounds, two steals and two blocks. There was even a filthy, jaw-dropping connection between Garland and Mobley that ended with the rook putting Antetokounmpo on a poster — a moment that sent shockwaves through Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
But the beauty of the Cavaliers is it can be anyone’s night. Lamar Stevens on the road in Oklahoma City. Dean Wade on Monday. Love and Cedi Osman Wednesday.
Love finished with a team-high 25 points — another throwback to his younger days. Osman, who was a ghastly 1-of-20 from 3-point range in the previous five games, went 6-of-14 from deep and tallied 23 points. Those two helped blow the game open with their shot-making, especially against a Milwaukee defense that allows the most 3-pointers. Beating them requires drilling those looks.
“Just continuing to tell him to be himself,” Love said of Osman. “I don’t care if you shoot 0-for-12 or 12-for-12, we need you to be Cedi. When you get hot, you get hot. Just go out there, be yourself, play both sides of the ball. He’s one of those guys that he’s really hard not to like. When he’s hitting, we all get excited. It’s not only the whole crowd, it’s the bench, the coaching staff, it’s everybody. I love Cedi. I mean, he’s one of my favorite teammates, and one of my better friends in the league.”
Then Love jokingly called Osman annoying while critiquing his jacket and saying Osman shadows him too much on the road. After Love sent a few barbs at Allen, it was the big man’s turn to return the favor.
“It’s Grandpa Kev, not Uncle Kev,” Allen said with a laugh.
Those playful exchanges don’t even begin to encapsulate the camaraderie that pours onto the court.
Love chest-bumping teammates after big shots. Garland hopping back to the locker room with his arm around veteran Rajon Rondo following the win. Collin Sexton, who only recently began to walk following November meniscus surgery, stepping onto the court to direct his teammates or clap back at a shouting Bobby Portis after a technical foul. Ricky Rubio sending congratulatory postgame text messages despite recovering from a season-ending torn ACL. Isaac Okoro ripping on Bickerstaff for his old-school musical playlist. Teamwide barking.
The Cavs aren’t just one of the league’s best teams. They’re one of the most connected. Fun is their secret ingredient.
Bickerstaff insisted before the game that the Cavs are still a work in progress. Love would prefer they continue behaving like underdogs while flying under the radar, not wanting to talk about ceilings.
“I almost don’t even want to acknowledge it because I just want to bottle what we have right now,” Love said.
That’s getting much harder. The secret’s out.
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