5 Reasons Why The Cavaliers Will Fail
NBA Betting fans have to be concerned with the Cleveland Cavaliers after they took their worst home playoff beat down in 40 years on Monday night. The supposed best team in the NBA is all of the sudden on the ropes a little bit and now without home court advantage. The Boston Celtics were supposed to be an old team with chemistry issues and a closed window of opportunity, but that has been far from the truth these playoffs.
The Celtics should advance but even if they somehow don’t, here are five reasons why the Cavaliers won’t win the NBA Championship this year:
5. Shaq Is Old And Slow
Online betting fans know that Shaquille O’Neal is no longer a difference maker. As a matter of fact, if he’s making a difference, it’s because he’s a detriment to Cleveland.
Shaq has averaged 10 points per game in the first two contests against the Boston Celtics but the bigger concern is the paltry four rebounds a game. He also has no blocks and has shot just 36% from the field this series.
The Diesel is done. He isn’t an offensive threat, he’s not a rebounding monster and he sucks from the field. It was a good idea to add him but he has faded as the season has progressed and he should be retiring after this season.
4. Mo Williams Is Inconsistent
As Biggie once said, mo money, mo problems.
Mo Williams is a nice regular season player but it seems like every year we are talking about his inconsistency in the playoffs.
Most of his scoring numbers are down in the playoffs (in comparison to the regular season) and he is getting absolutely schooled by Rajan Rondo. When it’s Rondo, Jameer Nelson, Derrick Rose or whoever else he’ll have to face, he can’t defend any of them.
Furthermore, on offense, you’ll have to expect nights where he gives you 20 and a few threes and then there are nights where he gives you give four points on one-of-nine shooting.
He’s just too inconsistent to trust at such a vital position.
3. Free Throw Struggles
This is an easy one. The sportsbook odds makers who compile all of the historical statistics know that a team with poor free throw shooting does not go far in the playoffs.
The Cavaliers are the worst free throw shooting team in the league and it shows. Night after night, they give away freebies.
They had 20 more free throw attempts than the Celtics in Game 2 and still managed to lose at home by 18 points.
2. Anderson Varejao’s Back Spasms
While few people want to admit it, Anderson Varejao is a key member of the Cavaliers roster. Sure, he’s not a dazzling scorer but he is their best big defender and he is an absolute nuisance to play against.
He’s dealing with back spasms and had to leave Game 2. He’s questionable for Game 3.
The bottom line is he is ailing and the Cavs need him to be a factor on the defensive end – especially since Shaq is struggling. Without Varejao, it further weakens this teams defense.
1. LeBron James’ Elbow
If it wasn’t clear to you before, it should be fairly evident now. LeBron James’ elbow is a problem.
He was extremely tentative in the first half of Game 1 before turning it on and then he did the same in Game 2 – although he continued it for the entire game.
Sports betting fans should note that he hit only one outside shot in Game 2 and the Celtics have completed back off of him to give him the room to shoot. This is a problem and it is not going away.
Whether he wants to tell the fans not to panic or not, the reality is that his elbow is a lingering problem that will not go away for the rest of the playoffs. As the competition gets tougher, that’s going to be the nail in the coffin for the Cavaliers.
