CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – While the Cleveland Cavaliers appear locked into the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference, they aren’t giving up hope that they’ll catch the Philadelphia 76ers for the third seed.
Entering play Friday night with five games remaining, Cleveland is 2.5 games behind Philadelphia and four games in front of the New York Knicks.
“We just continue to play the games that are in front of us and whatever happens, happens,” Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “This isn't a find one thing and settle type of group. This is whatever's in front of us, figuring out a way to get the job done. So we're going to continue to go out and try to get the job done.”
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The Knicks lost star Julius Randle for at least two weeks with a sprained ankle and there’s no guarantee he’ll be ready to go then.
Friday night’s game is a likely round 1 playoff preview between the two teams but can clinch home floor in the first round with a victory Friday night.
“It's always nice to have a close proximity in your preparation of understanding what people are and what their strengths are and what they feel like,” Bickerstaff said. “Because you can watch a lot of tape on guys, but a lot of times you can't judge the speed or the shiftiness, those things defensively, understanding their length and their coverages and pick and roll. So it is beneficial to have this game just as close as it is and again, force something on the line tonight.”
Bickerstaff is trying to use the stretch run since clinching their first playoff berth since the 2017-18 season to prepare his team, who have won nine of their last 12 games, for the post season.
“In the playoffs, in a seven-game series, physicality changes,” Bickerstaff said. “The willingness to put your body on the line changes. The intensity of your opponent changes. So that's where we're trying to usher our guys in that direction of understanding, and it's not going to be a surprise.
“We've been fortunate to play the Philly’s [76ers] that [are] ahead of us and have some of those games that have a little bit of extra meaning…but I want our guys to really be prepared for that. And you know, don't really know it until you feel it. But again, how quickly you adjust to it is going to make the difference.”