Over at ESPN no one is giving Orlando a chance. Whereas they are giving the Lakers an overwhelming majority pick.
That's fine. Everyone has their reasons. But none of the ones picking Clevland are giving any reasons that make any sense. It's like they are entirely ignoring the team's head to head meetings or their outcomes. Some acknowledge the phrase- they match up well with Cleveland and then entirely discount it.
To me, Orlando has the edge. At Center they are way ahead with Howard over Z. All I can see for Varajo and Szerbiak is a lot of fouls called on them, as neither one is capable of guarding Lewis or Hedo. If Varajo concentrates on the boards and stays in the game, he'll be useful, but it won't stop Orlando's forwards from having career games. LeBron is the one player the Cavs have who could guard Lewis or Turk, but they need him to score and stay out of foul trouble. Orlando's forwards are taller than James and their length is not something he's used to seeing.
The one thing Orlando doesn't do well is rebound. When they're on offense, they are very concerned about getting back early to prevent run-outs and layups. But because they are often outside shooters, their rebounds bounce long so they get a fair number of 2nd shots. This is a big area for Cleveland if they can get lots of second shots, they can stay with Orlando.
Both teams shoot well from outside, and both teams are vulnerable to not defending the perimeter. But Orlando is three crazy and prepared to hork up shot after shot. It' doesn't sound like much, but when they have three different players out their bombing away and the balls are all swishing through the hoop the game can get out of hand very quickly.
Here's the thing: Cleveland was unable to stop Orlando the last time they played. I don't think they have the players to do it even if they wanted to. And, I also doubt that LeBron can score enough to keep them in the game for more than half the series.
We'll find out soon if ESPN's writers are better prognosticators.
