CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cavaliers tip off a six-game West coast road trip tonight in Portland.
The swing through the left coast is the longest of the season and takes the Cavs through Oakland, Sacramento, Utah, San Antonio and Oklahoma City before returning to Cleveland on January 17th.
But life on the road isn’t so bad for these Cavaliers. The Wine and Gold boast a 10-8 record away from Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse this year, built in large part because of an early-season gauntlet that galvanized the squad.
The Cavs embarked on a five-game, four city trek just days into the season, going 3-2. The journey began with a convincing 99-87 win over reigning the NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets and culminated with a 113-110 nail biter over the Hornets in Charlotte.
There have been some big moments, too. They held Denver to 9-of-38 shooting from 3-point land and forced 22 turnovers to kick off the trip before securing their first road win against the Clippers since March of 2016 two nights later.
The Wine and Gold closed out the trip by staving off the Hornets furious fourth quarter rally that ignited a four-game win streak.
Even in the losses, there were signs this team had undergone a dramatic transformation. They led the Suns by as many as 14 points before they used a 50-12 run to break open the game.
Also this year, the Cavs ended their 20-game losing streak at American Airlines center on a three-game trip where they swept the Mavericks and Wizards.
There’s some familiarity with their opponents on this trip. Their opponents have a combined record of 115-112. The Cavs have already knocked off the Kings and Trail Blazers this year and were a Darius Garland buzzer beater away from taking Utah down.
The Trail Blazers are 0-2 in one-possession games, including the Cavs 107-104 win back in November. Cleveland is 4-3 in such contests.
“It's going to be a long road trip. It's almost like two weeks of just straight being away from home. We're going to have to really lock into playing our basketball,” center Jarrett Allen said. “We did it at the beginning of the year when we went west the first time against some really tough team, and we're going to have to do it again. We're going to have to come out and play our basketball and stay consistent.”
But this road trip also provides an opportunity for more than just wins. With Rajon Rondo’s acquisition earlier in the week, the trip gives the Cavs a chance to really get to know their new teammate.
“It's going to take time for us to catch that rhythm. These next two days will be really big for us,” said Cavaliers’ head coach J.B.
Bickerstaff. “To get some practice time in before we go and hit the road, you know, to acclimate Rondo, what we want to do, you know how we're going to play, how we can use him.”
Rondo had a couple of opportunities to get some work under his belt before the Cavs departed. He said the team kept it simple early on, focusing on defensive assignments and running through some plays on offense.
“I think this road trip will help a lot. I think we're on a seven-day road trip. Mot the best cities in the world. So, it'd be a lot of time to get in a room and we were able to kind of coordinate and kind of speed the process up as far as getting to know one another,” Rondo said.
Rondo said he’s excited to get on the floor with the Cavs big men, having never played with a trio of seven footers before. He had the opportunity to watch some of the Cav’s games before joining them on the bench Tuesday night and feels like his experience can aid in the offense while also helping the core continue to utilize their own strengths.
“I was looking for guys tendencies. You know where a young fella likes to shoot the ball, his most dominant spot on the floor. How K-Love checks in the game and he’s ready to go,” Rondo said. “It’s different. Personnel driven, which you learn through scoring reports playing different teams. Now to be on your team to try to play the guy strengths and cover up for each other's weaknesses.”
He’s most excited to mesh with his back-court mate Darius Garland. Garland reached out to Rondo when the trade was consummated to get an early start in team building. The pair share a workout partner but have never been able to get together on the court.
“He’s definitely a hell of a talent. He's one of one. He can score, shoot, pass. He’s a hell of a playmaker,” Rondo said. Most importantly, what I like to see is he competes on both ends of the floor. And if you have that on the court, you know, I'm willing to go to war any night with any guy on the court like that.”
Jarrett Allen said that early road trip was one to put the league on notice that the Cavs, that it was time to stop overlooking the Wine and Gold and that they were for real. This latest voyage could help solidify it.
As for if Rondo believes he’s a fit with this group, there’s really no question.
“I've always been an underdog my entire career, and I love the expectations of being done or not expecting to do things.” Rondo said. “That's why I kind of pride myself on, doing the impossible, doing the unthinkable. This group has the talent to do it and I’m looking forward to making some noise.