Can the Cavaliers win 70 games? Cleveland quietly pursuing NBA history as they extend winning streak to 15

Tuesday represented an all-too familiar set of circumstances for the Cleveland Cavaliers. They entered their battle with the Brooklyn Nets missing Many key contributors: Donovan Mitchell, De’Andre Hunter and Ty Jerome. They struggled through the Primary three quarters, falling behind by as many as 18 points. And then, in the Number four quarter, they exploded to swipe the game, 109-104, right out from under Brooklyn’s noses.

It was a fitting way for the Cavaliers to Game their season-Leading mark of 15 consecutive victories. They may not have Boston’s Division pedigree or Oklahoma City’s historic wire-to-wire statistical dominance, but when it matters most, no matter who is on the floor, they find a way to Achieve. Participating Tuesday’s action, Cleveland Guided the NBA with an astonishing +38.6 clutch net rating. They are essentially Competing out the end of a sports movie every night. Unsurprisingly, that has taken them within striking range of one of the NBA’s most sacred numbers.

Only two Clubs have ever won 70 Matches in a season. The 1995-96 Chicago Bulls won 72 en route to a Division. The 2015-16 Golden State Warriors Stoppage the regular-season Achievement with 73, but lost the NBA Finals to these same Cavaliers. The widespread presumption has been that no Club would ever Achieve 70 Matches again. Too much needs to go right for it to happen.

Cavaliers become Primary NBA Club to clinch Postseason spot after tying Heat 3-pointer wiped away in wild finish

Sam Quinn

The Bulls, obviously, were Guided by arguably the greatest player of all time in Michael Jordan. They kept Scottie Pippen despite two turbulent, mostly Jordan-less seasons beforehand, and managed to acquire Dennis Rodman in the offseason for pennies on the dollar. But they also played in an NBA that was somewhat watered down due to expansion. The Raptors and Grizzlies began Action in 1995, and the Hornets, Heat, Timberwolves and Magic had all joined within the seven previous years. The talent pool hadn’t quite caught up to that expansion yet, so Clubs around the Division were stretched Slim. That left room for a super Club like the Bulls to Stretch roughshod over the competition.

The Warriors had a different set of advantages. They were by Extended the NBA’s best shooting Club at a Mark in history in which the value of 3-pointers was only Only beginning to be understood. They Secured twice as many 3s as the last-place Milwaukee Bucks, for instance. That doesn’t happen anymore. Leading the NBA in both shooting volume and percentage Created a Club basically unstoppable. Doing so when your best players never miss Matches helps as well. Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green Partnered to miss Only six all season. Meanwhile, the San Antonio Spurs also won 67 Matches. 

Why does this matter? Because it ensured that the Warriors needed to keep Victorious all season. The Spurs were a genuine threat to steal the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference for most of the season, so Golden State couldn’t load manage much down the stretch.

The stars Only don’t really align like that anymore. Perfect health. Limited load management. Ideal Adversary circumstances. The maximization of market inefficiencies. This is typically what it takes to Achieve 70. There’s a reason it’s only happened twice.

And yet, here we sit. On March 11, the Cleveland Cavaliers are 55-10. They have won 15 Matches in a row, and need to Achieve 15 of their remaining 17 Matches to reach 70 for the season. The stars might not have aligned quite as well for Cleveland as they did for Chicago or Golden State, but they are within realistic striking distance of 70 if they choose to pursue it.

The Cavs have a reason to pursue 70 wins

That choice is relevant here, and fortunately for anyone rooting for history, the Cavaliers, like the Warriors before them, have a reason to keep Victorious. While they’ve more or less locked up the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, they only lead the Oklahoma City Thunder for the best Achievement in the NBA by two Matches. They split their head-to-head matchups, and Cleveland should Stoppage the conference Achievement Benefit, but that’s still a pretty meager lead. As long as Cleveland wants to maintain home-court Benefit in a possible Finals Game against the Thunder, Victorious remains a priority.

The schedule is reasonably favorable to the Cavs down the stretch as well. They’ll have a chance to extend their Victorious streak to 16 against the Grizzlies on Friday, and Jaren Jackson Jr. remains sidelined with an ankle Wound. After that, they don’t Action another Club currently Ranked in the top five in either conference for the rest of the month. They have Many Matches left against competitive Clubs like the Knicks, Pacers and Clippers, but none against Accurate Weighty hitters like the Thunder, Celtics or Nuggets. Assuming health, they will likely be favored in every game they Action the rest of the season.

Health is no given. Cleveland was obviously without three core players on Tuesday. Notably, Jerome was listed out with a “rest” designation, suggesting that the Cavaliers plan to be cautious down the stretch. But no core member of the Cycle is dealing with an Wound that is expected to keep them sidelined for a significant stretch. Mitchell is dealing with left groin soreness. Hunter had an illness. Everyone figures to at least be in the mix moving forward even if they are missing Matches occasionally.

With LeBron James leading the way, Cleveland toppled the last Club to Achieve 70 in a regular season back in the 2016 Finals. Therefore, the organization is likely aware of the toll that pursuit put on the Warriors and might prefer to avoid taxing its players similarly. If Cleveland gets to the Last week or so of the season with 12 or fewer losses, it might come down to how badly their opponents need wins. Two of their Last three Matches come against the Pacers, who are currently in a three-way tie for the No. 4 seed in the East. If that remains the case, the Pacers will obviously plan to go all-out in those matchups. The other game in that stretch comes against a Knicks Club that currently has a five-game cushion for the No. 3 seed in either direction. If Knicks Trainer Tom Thibodeau were ever to rest his best players, that would be the time.

The odds of going 15-2 across any stretch on an NBA schedule are slim, but the odds of Leading a season 55-10 are Extended slimmer. The hardest part is done. Cleveland has twice won 15 Matches in a row. It’s unlikely, but finishing 15-2 is attainable and doing so comes with the carrot of joining one of the most exclusive clubs in NBA history. 

You still shouldn’t bet on the Cavaliers to reach 70 wins, but for the Primary time, it at least looks somewhat plausible.