Cavs Weekly Notebook: West Coast Success

Two weeks of Cavs basketball is now officially in the books, and of course, the highs and lows have already hit. A pair of two-game skids with a three-game winning streak sandwiched into the middle has been their start to the 2021-22 campaign.

As they come into a new week, it's time to look back at the West Coast trip and take a look at what's to come.

Started Strong

The first two games of the West Coast trip saw the Cavs come away with wins that they so desperately needed. With the season back at 82 games now, there is a slightly larger room to make errors. But even so, you want to see your squad be as perfect as possible for as long as possible.

CLE went out and took down the Nuggets in a game where they played some exceptional defense. They limited Nikola Jokic in the second half and had him pretty much silent in the fourth. And then, against the Clippers, they shut Paul George down and wound up only surrendering 79 points for the game.

Those were performances that they played perfectly in, building off the Hawks' win previously. It's a team that plays hard and knows how to get it done, how to roll. They won those first two, and all was well.

Coming Back Down to Earth

The Lakers and Suns made sure to take Cleveland down a peg, handing them a pair of losses over the last several days. Friday and Saturday did not go too well for the team, though they certainly gave the Lakers a run for their money. The team does have three stars, and in the end, they did what was expected of them.

As for the Suns game, the final score shows a nine-point loss. But it was worse than that. And once more, Collin Sexton had a quiet night. He has not done too well in this year's system, the only player to thrive last season, which is yet to come around.

The three new additions of Lauri Markkanen, Ricky Rubio, and Evan Mobley have all been stellar. But, clearly, it has come with a cost. When Isaac Okoro returns, they'll be at full strength once more.

2-2 on a very early West Coast swing really isn't bad. The Cavs should be proud.

This Week's Slate

The Cavs will play four games this week, three of them coming away from home. They will begin Monday with a matchup against the talented Hornets squad, proving some doubters wrong in the early going.

They come home on Wednesday for a date with the TrailBlazers, in a game where the backcourt play could determine a lot of what may happen as a final result.

Friday night, they head to Canada for a matchup with the Raptors. It will be their first time crossing the border in quite a while, but it's great it's possible again. Watch for Fred VanVleet.

And to finish it out, they will see the Knicks on Sunday at MSG. A good chance to play in front of a raucous crowd.