Cleveland to face San Antonio in NBA Finals
CLEVELAND — For those who are old enough to remember — and for those who weren’t even born yet, the most popular song in 1964 was The Beatles’ “I Want To Hold Your Hand.“ Back in ‘64 Lyndon Johnson was President, and the first Ford Mustang rolled off the assembly line in Detoit. Though it seems unbelievable, it was back in 1964 — some 43 years — since a Cleveland team has won a major sports championship.
On Saturday night the Cleveland Cavaliers became the NBA Eastern Conference champions in a Game 6 victory over Detroit. Before the work crew is finished sweeping confetti from the floor of Quicken Loans Arena, we should pause to reflect on the black hole that is Cleveland’s sports history to fully appreciate the Cavs‘ achievement. For starters, this will be Cleveland’s first appearance in the NBA Finals. Prior to Saturday, the Cavs have earned only one title, a 1970 division title. That’s it!
For the record, Cleveland does hold No. 1 ranking over every other sports city in America! It’s a rather dubious distinction, however: In 2004 Cleveland was named “The most cursed sports city” by ESPN.
Therefore, congratulations are well-deserved for Cleveland, a city to whom the sports gods have been unmercifully cruel. At least for the moment, the clouds have parted and joy overflows in the hard-luck Midwest sports town. The Cleveland Cavaliers, led by their young superstar, superhero forward LeBron James, have broken through to the NBA Finals to face the San Antonio Spurs. James could well be the most coveted player in any sport today. His heroics in Game 5 — which may be regarded as one of the greatest individual performances in NBA history — almost single-handedly put the Cavaliers in a position to win the series at home in Game 6.
Before organizers in Cleveland call for a parade, however, let’s remember that the Spurs have put down each of their Western Conference challengers — Denver, Phoenix and Utah — in dominating fashion. And most analysts would agree that the Western Conference is 10-teams deep overall, making the Spurs even more formidable. From here, the Cavs’ work becomes exponentially more difficult. The Spurs have a smothering defense and a cohesive offensive unit that works with mechanical efficiency. More on the Spurs later. Until Thursday when the NBA finals commence, let’s savor the Cavs’ success. To fully appreciate how deserving of success Cleveland is, from any of its sports franchises, let’s take a look at Cleveland’s history of sports agony.
Cleveland has the longest-running titles-drought of any other American sports city (43 years). The last major sports team in Cleveland to win a title was the 1964 Cleveland Browns. Prior to that, the Cleveland Indians won the World Series: in 1948.
Cleveland’s football history has been particularly dark. To end the 1995 season, Browns owner Art Modell packed up the franchise and moved it out of Cleveland and into Baltimore. At the time, Browns fans feared that they may have witnessed their last NFL game in Cleveland. The NFL did return to Cleveland five years later, but it was a sad and wretched period in the team’s history.
The Cleveland Indians were just two outs away from winning the World Series in 1997. But a blown save in the 9th for Cleveland enabled the Florida Marlins, an expansion team with just 5 years in the major leagues, to win the World Series and continue Cleveland’s suffering.
Say the name “John Elway” and how do most Cleveland sports fans react? In the late 1980s the Cleveland Browns lost NFL playoff games in 3 out of 4 years to the Denver Broncos, including two AFC Conference Championship games in unforgettable fashion. There was “The Drive” and “The Fumble.” Anyone who witnessed “The Fumble” would have to agree that there might be some truth to the ”curse” on Cleveland sports teams. Either way, a Cleveland team was turned away again with nothing but a stake through the heart.
All things considered, maybe America is ready to embrace a championship team representing the city of Cleveland! America is certainly excited to see LeBron James, the 8th Wonder of the World, make it this far. So the Cavaliers have not only history, but a very daunting opponent in the Spurs, to overcome as the NBA Finals begin Thursday night in San Antonio. The Spurs are perhaps the league’s most experienced team. Call them old, slow, boring, whatever you want — the fact is that the Spurs are an incredibly strong team that has tremendous depth on the bench and a deadly 3-point shooting game.
Who knows though, maybe not even the Spurs can hold off destiny. We don’t yet know what story shall be written in Cleveland’s history this time.
