Cavs' GM 'very confident' team's best basketball is in front of them
The Cleveland Cavaliers will barely have time to celebrate their first NBA championship before speculation season begins full bore. Leading the way will be the future of Kevin Love, a question that has been building almost from the time he arrived alongside LeBron James in 2014.
While debate about Love's fit with the Cavs can temporarily be put to rest because they just reached the pinnacle of their sport, every season is about the chase - and Cavaliers general manager David Griffin offered some candid remarks about his team to ESPN's Zach Lowe.
"This team did not fit particularly well for playing Golden State, and that's my fault," Griffin said Sunday. "But against the East, we were historically good. Now that we've experienced this, I'm very confident this group has its best basketball in front of it. They know what they have now."
Not many pundits gave the Cavs a chance against the Warriors entering the Finals. Among other factors, Love's defensive shortcomings were highlighted against a squad that had one of the top offensive ratings in NBA history.
Yet defense, like basketball itself, often boils down to specific, one-on-one situations. And with under a minute left in Game 7, Love more than delivered with tight defense on Stephen Curry, ultimately harassing the two-time league MVP into an airball.
Along with James' massive block on Andre Iguodala, it was a key defensive moment in the Cavs' holding the Warriors scoreless in the last 4:39 of the biggest game of the year.
Whether that performance alone is enough to keep Love a Cavalier remains to be seen. It's predictable teams will have interest in the 27-year-old stretch-four, and the right trade may come along.
Rumors are sure to swirl regarding earlier scuttlebutt about a three-way deal that could land Carmelo Anthony next to LeBron, but the Cavs also need to retain James first. Few are doubting they will lose the Finals MVP, and Griffin sounds supremely confident about the team's future.
"We're really built for sustaining what we do," Griffin said. "And LeBron - he makes everyone better. He makes our team bigger than life."