277. Journey to the West
After resting until March 3, the Cleveland Cavaliers began to kick off their away journey again. For the Cleveland Cavaliers, this four-game away game is particularly critical.
Their record is 28 wins and 27 losses, while the Atlanta Hawks, a team that ranks fifth in the Eastern Conference, currently has a record of 31 wins and 25 losses. Although there seems to be some gap, it is not too big to count.
At least it is still very hopeful to catch up, especially now that the Cleveland Cavaliers are experiencing a high momentum of six consecutive victories. If they can continue to rush forward to win the game, it will not be impossible for the Cleveland Cavaliers to catch up with the Atlanta Hawks, who are currently ranked before them.
But now it seems that if the Cleveland Cavaliers want to win all the next four away games, they must always maintain their focus.
Because of these four games, the opponents faced by the Cleveland Cavaliers are not weak. In addition to facing the New York Knicks, which is currently ranked first in the Eastern Conference, the Cleveland Cavaliers also need to play a game with the Dallas Mavericks before playing this game, then fly from Dallas to Portland to play a game with the Trail Blazers, and then fly back to the Eastern Conference to play a game with the famous "strong team killer" Washington Wizards!
The Cleveland Cavaliers will only go to New York at the end to challenge the Knicks who feel very bitter and revengeful...
These three games before the start of the New York Knicks were the difficulties that the Cleveland Cavaliers must overcome first. But this is not simple for them. Although these three teams are not the top strength in the league at present, the Dallas Mavericks are still strong. Dirk Nowes is not in good shape in the basic season, but he still has terrifying performances from time to time. And it is played at the opponent's home court of the American Airlines Center, which is not an easy game for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
After playing the Dallas Mavericks, the Cleveland Cavaliers are going to Portland without stopping, and they will challenge the Trail Blazers, currently ranked 11th in the Western Conference.
Although the Trail Blazers' current ranking is not good, their record does not make people feel unsightly. Their current record is 27 wins and 28 losses, which is close to 50%. The Cleveland Cavaliers' current record of 28 wins and 27 losses is only just over 50%. It is not long before they can go to 50 steps and laugh a hundred steps...
And it's still a away game, and the Portland Trail Blazers in the Rose Garden Arena are in a very strong momentum this season. It won't be an easy game for the Cleveland Cavaliers, because the Portland Trail Blazers are a team that focuses on shooting.
As we all know, although shooting teams are very keen on the weather, if their condition is overwhelming on that day, it will become very difficult for the Cleveland Cavaliers!
Especially Lamarcus Aldridge, the core of the Portland Trail Blazers, is a projecting power forward player. If his touch comes, that high jump shot will make people feel in pain...
In addition to these two opponents, the Cleveland Cavaliers returned to the east to Washington, the capital of the United States, to challenge the Wizards. This would not be a simple battle.
Although the Washington Wizards are still very fragile this season, at the same time, this team with poor record has always played the role of a strong team killer this season!
This season, countless strong teams have fallen under their command, including old strong teams in the league like the San Antonio Spurs. At the same time, there are also emerging strong teams like the New York Knicks that are very popular this season!
So even though the strength of the Cleveland Cavaliers is indeed much better than that of the Washington Wizards, they are still not able to take this game lightly. Considering the opponent's special ability to restrain strong teams, the Cleveland Cavaliers naturally have to be more careful in this game.
After playing these three games, the Cleveland Cavaliers will go to New York to challenge the Knicks. This is the final highlight of their away trip. As for this away trip, it is something that no one knows.
Of course, all this depends on the Cleveland Cavaliers themselves, and nothing else can help.
However, although this away trip was indeed quite confident and dangerous, the Cleveland Cavaliers still had great confidence when they set off on March 3rd.
They have already won six consecutive games and are still very confident in the next four away games. Before setting off, the Cleveland Cavaliers have also set ambition to achieve a 10-game winning streak!
Of course, they cannot be afraid of anything, but although they are not afraid of their opponents, the Cleveland Cavaliers players still need to face the next opponent carefully. Especially in their first game of this away trip, they need to face the Dallas Mavericks and Dirk Nowitzki who once gave them some colors in the finals.
However, the Cleveland Cavaliers are no longer the Cleveland Cavaliers they used to be, and the Dallas Mavericks are no longer the Dallas Mavericks they used to be.
Both teams are in the middle of their respective leagues, but compared to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Dallas Mavericks are obviously in a worse situation. Their current ranking is only eighth in the Western Conference, and there is the danger and possibility of being kicked out at any time!
The Cleveland Cavaliers are at least in an upward period, so the situation of the two teams is still incomparable.
However, even so, the Cleveland Cavaliers still cannot be taken care of in this game. Although the Dallas Mavericks' current lineup and strength are much worse than before, with Dirk Nowitzki here, the dignity and confidence of this team also exist!
If you have any slackness, then Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks will give you the most deadly blow!
This blow may ruin the 10-game winning streak that the Cleveland Cavaliers had thought before setting off, so the Cleveland Cavaliers did not dare to relax at all in this game.
The two sides opened the curtain of the battle at the American Airlines Center. The Cleveland Cavaliers played very proactive from the beginning, but the game was quite anxious. Because the core player of the Dallas Mavericks, Dirk Nowitzki, performed very well in this game, and made consecutive shots in the opening game, making Dallas fans and Mark Cuban on the sidelines close to being crazy...
Dirk Nowitzki's condition is the biggest reason why the Cleveland Cavaliers encountered obstacles in this game. If Dirk Nowitzki had not performed such an excellent state from the beginning, then the Cleveland Cavaliers would still be very confident that they would establish a leading advantage in the first quarter!
But this is not the case now. Due to Dirk Nowitzki's outstanding form in this game tonight, the Cleveland Cavaliers did not take any advantage at the beginning.
The game was very stalemate. If it weren't for the fact that the Cleveland Cavaliers were still much better than the Dallas Mavericks in terms of overall strength, then this game was really a very suspenseful game!
Because the Cleveland Cavaliers had one more Dwight Howard than in the finals against the Dallas Mavericks two seasons ago, while the Dallas Mavericks lost Tyson Chandler!
With one increase and another deterioration, the Dallas Mavericks' inside line is naturally greatly affected, and in this game, their pressure on the inside defense issues has become much greater than before!
And it is precisely because the Cleveland Cavaliers' current advantage in overall strength is much higher than that of the Dallas Mavericks, that although they were hindered at the beginning, they finally won the game!
101:95, on the away game, the Cleveland Cavaliers led the Dallas Mavericks with a 6-point lead, and they finally won the game. Although the process was a bit hard, the final result could still make the Cleveland Cavaliers feel accepted.
Team head coach Byron Scott is not dissatisfied with the players' performance in this game. Although the process of this game is also very anxious, it is different from the game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Charlotte Bobcats at home in the last game.
At least the reason why this game is anxious is not caused by the team's slackness. This alone is enough to make Byron Scott, the team's head coach, feel very satisfied.
After this game, the Cleveland Cavaliers also achieved a seven-game winning streak, turning their record into 29 wins and 27 losses, and they continued to make great strides.
After playing against the Dallas Mavericks, they immediately boarded the plane and headed to the Rose Garden Arena in Portland to challenge the Trail Blazers.
The Trail Blazers are currently ranked 11th in the Western Conference. Although it was said earlier that this is still not an opponent that the Cleveland Cavaliers can underestimate. However, the Cleveland Cavaliers are still confident about facing the Portland Trail Blazers!
After all, the Portland Trail Blazers are currently only ranked 11th in the Western Conference, and their strength is not even as good as the Dallas Mavericks who just played against the Cleveland Cavaliers!
So for this game, the Cleveland Cavaliers, who have won seven consecutive victories, are naturally bound to win! And compared with the previous game, the Cleveland Cavaliers' confidence in this game can be said to be even stronger!
The seven-game winning streak brought not only the growth in numbers and data, but also brought more psychological advantages to the Cleveland Cavaliers. These advantages are inquantifiable, but they can bring more and greater help to the Cleveland Cavaliers on the basketball court!
For the Cleveland Cavaliers, after just winning the Dallas Mavericks, their confidence is growing at a storm. At this time, when they meet the Portland Trail Blazers, the Cleveland Cavaliers naturally have to make every effort to win their eighth game winning streak!
So at the Rose Garden Arena, the nightmare place for the Los Angeles Lakers, the Cleveland Cavaliers played very strong from the beginning of the game, while the Portland Trail Blazers, who played at home, looked completely unstoppable.
This game quickly entered the pace of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Wu Dawei and Dwight Howard led the game, which made the Portland Trail Blazers look like they had no master at all.
They were controlled by their opponents from the beginning, and until the last quarter of the game, they were all behind. Of course, it was inevitable that they would lose this game at home!
The Cleveland Cavaliers' eight consecutive wins were a win. They easily won the game, and by the way, they further improved their record to 30 wins and 27 losses!
The Cleveland Cavaliers, who were advancing, did not encounter much difficulties during their Western Conference away trip. Although the game against the Dallas Mavericks once gave them some difficult scenes, they still quickly survived.
For them, winning the game in these two away games in succession is the most realistic thing for them. And now they have achieved a record of eight consecutive victories, and they are getting closer and closer to their goal of 10 consecutive victories before setting off!
After playing these two away games in the West, they still haven't got much rest time after finishing their trip to the West. Because next, they will continue to board the plane, and then they will rush to Washington to face the so-called "strong team killer" Washington Wizards.
Chapter completed!