00:00How long is an acceptable length for this series with the Cavs and Raptors?
00:03Also, Todd Munkin, you're going to want to hear him coming up at 722.
00:06If you think how the Browns did, you hate how the Browns did last year,
00:09you've got to hear Todd Munkin about it.
00:11How long is an acceptable length of this series for the Cleveland Cavaliers?
00:14I actually have some people in the internet, it's only the internet,
00:19but they have conversated about the Cavs before,
00:23get in and say that they think actually the Raptors could win.
00:26No, I don't. I think it's a five-game series.
00:29Wait a minute, who's saying the Raptors are going to win?
00:30There's a few fans out there that are a little bit dour about it.
00:33I've seen a few pundits say, hey, maybe it goes six or seven.
00:37Most are saying Cavs in five or six.
00:41Well, I've been hearing more about, Kenny, you need to respect Detroit more
00:44than I've been hearing about you need to respect Toronto more.
00:47Yeah, Detroit should be respected. They're the number one seed.
00:49They won a lot of games without Kate Cunningham.
00:51And it's going to be a physical series.
00:53Now, I think the Cavs are a bad matchup for them regardless of Kate Cunningham,
00:57but I did get some naysayers going, well, they're 0-3 against Toronto this year.
01:02They were 0-4 against Indiana last year.
01:04I go, well, yeah, but we didn't have James Harden when we lost those three games
01:07to the Toronto Raptors.
01:08Last time they played Toronto was late November.
01:10It's been a long time since you've played the Toronto Raptors.
01:14So I kind of throw that out in so many ways.
01:17Team's healthy now.
01:18What is an acceptable length of the series?
01:20Because some people say, guys, just win.
01:22Yeah, I'm talking about your emotions, though,
01:23because this has been a weird year.
01:25The team's 52-30, but people are down on them.
01:29They're a four seed, but people are down on them.
01:32I'm not down on the healthy Cavs at all.
01:34I think when they're healthy, they're a totally different animal
01:37than anything we've seen basically this entire year.
01:39I totally understand that.
01:40That's coming from you.
01:41We have had a weird year with Cavs fans.
01:43So if they go to seven games and win that game against Toronto,
01:47Oh, that would be problematic.
01:48Exactly.
01:49I'm thinking a lot of people are going to be down on them.
01:51So I'm going, hey, you can't expect a sweep every season.
01:54It's not LeBron back in the day in the Eastern Conference.
01:57I say a five-game sweep.
01:59If it goes to six, I think we'll get a few naysayers,
02:01but I'll take it.
02:02I think it's a five-game series.
02:03You should be worried if this series goes seven.
02:06You should be worried if it goes six
02:07and all the games are coin flip in the fourth quarter.
02:11You should be worried because that's the answer I wanted to hear.
02:14It's the tax on Donovan Mitchell when it comes to that.
02:17We've seen Donovan Mitchell on fumes basically when he's getting knocked out
02:22in the second round, and he's had to put the team on his back.
02:25The whole point of this roster right now,
02:28especially as healthy as they've been all year,
02:30they just had an actual practice.
02:32They've had James Harden for how many months now,
02:35and they finally had a practice where everybody was healthy,
02:37and it was a sight for sore eyes.
02:40If you listen to Kenny Atkinson and everybody around the organization.
02:43He seems relieved.
02:44He really seems in the best place I've heard him all year.
02:47I didn't know we'd get to see the team healthy.
02:49So no excuses.
02:50They're healthy.
02:51They've got real playoff experience,
02:53so much more than all the teams are going to be going up against,
02:56with the exception of New York and Boston.
03:00So given all of that, you don't want this series going six or seven.
03:04You don't want this to be a hard-fought war.
03:07You don't want it to be, hey, they came out on the other side.
03:09They've learned so much about themselves.
03:11Nonsense.
03:12They need to try to dispense of the Toronto Raptors ASAP.
03:16So, my God, you'd love a sweep.
03:18You'd love five games.
03:19If it has to go six, because sometimes series do go six,
03:23they just are a little more competitive than you think they're going to be.
03:25But no, I don't want this to be a hard-fought six- or seven-game series.
03:28I think if somebody is saying that they are only results based on this,
03:31I think they might be protecting their feelings,
03:33because I think you want –
03:36Cavs fans want to feel really confident about their team.
03:38I think in sincerity, there's a lot of people who do not take Toronto
03:43extremely seriously.
03:44I take them seriously as a professional basketball team, clearly.
03:46But I think that this isn't Miami like it was last year,
03:51but you should win this series, and you should win this series in five games.
03:54And if they win it in six or seven games, and it's like you said,
03:57if it's six and the games are tight,
03:58I think there's going to be some wishy-washy folks out there.
04:01If they win it in seven, I think that a lot of people are still going to be down
04:04about this team.
04:05I think they want to buy in, they want some positivity,
04:08they want to believe that they're going to the Eastern Conference Finals,
04:11because you and I have been fighting this battle for the last two months.
04:13There's a lot of people just flat-out disagreeing and think that we are
04:15sticking our head in the sand about how good this basketball team is.
04:18You and I have been pro-Cavs, but there's been a lot of people thinking
04:21that we are full of it when it comes to how good this team really is
04:24and how deep they can go.
04:24Yeah, by the end of this series, I do not want an Evan Mobley
04:28with all sorts of self-doubt, not knowing what his role is.
04:31I don't want a situation where we have no idea who should be starting
04:35and, more importantly, who should be closing.
04:37I don't need any of that.
04:38I certainly don't need Donovan Mitchell to re-aggravate anything.
04:41Jared Allen is, I think, the most banged up of any of the guys right now.
04:46And Jared Allen says, kind of, at least if he's being honest about his mindset,
04:53he understands he's going to have to play through pain.
04:55Well, he's under the microscope, too, because, obviously,
04:58there are a lot of people that have labeled him soft and labeled him
05:01a not-for-prime-time guy come playoff time, and he knows that.
05:05You know, he is a very sophisticated guy that opens up about his feelings
05:11and how he is while the playoffs.
05:13We don't have a lot of time for feelings.
05:14And so I wonder if this stage, Jared Allen, he's just come to accept
05:18that he's going to have to deal with pain and manage that pain as best he can.
05:22But either way, outside of all of that, like, the Cavs are more talented.
05:25They have the best player in the series.
05:28Toronto posts some threats.
05:30They want to play fast.
05:31They score inside the paint.
05:33They especially, if Emmanuel quickly doesn't go,
05:36it actually improves their defensive lineups,
05:38even though I don't know where their points are going to come by.
05:42Brandon Ingram, in a playoff series, does have a couple good ones under his belt,
05:47but it's been few and far between based on the teams he's been on.
05:51And, you know, he wants to take a lot of tough twos, by all means.
05:54I think the Cavs would be okay with that, giving those up.
05:57And the Scottie Barnes matchup with Evan Mobley is personal at this point.
06:03Not because they hate each other or anything like that.
06:05It's because they've been compared to so often in their draft class.
06:08And Evan Mobley has had to hear now for a while
06:11that Scottie Barnes is the better player.
06:13And I think we have a chance in this series for a lot of that conversation to shut up.
06:18You have this article from, was this The Athletic about Donovan Mitchell?
06:23It is, yeah.
06:24All right, go ahead and read it.
06:25From Sam Amick.
06:26Amick.
06:27So it's Donovan Mitchell unplugged behind the scenes,
06:29the hardened trade, his Cavs future.
06:32And it talked a lot because there's a competing report today from Fred Katz,
06:37who covers the Knicks but also covers the NBA out of New York.
06:41And he says if Donovan Mitchell does not agree to sign an extension after this season,
06:47that the Cavs are going to be looking to trade him.
06:49And my answer to you was, yeah, they're going to have to.
06:53Well, John said it.
06:54You didn't answer me.
06:55You just answered John.
06:55I didn't say a damn word.
06:57I was writing stuff out for the rest of the show.
06:58But this.
06:59Planning things.
07:00But this piece and similar things I've heard behind the scenes
07:03that Donovan Mitchell thinks this team has as good of a chance
07:06as he's ever had to make a deep playoff run,
07:08something that has followed him now.
07:10It's been seven years and seven times that he has gone to the playoffs
07:14and not gotten past the second round.
07:16So he has a very favorable outlook based on his pairing with James Harden,
07:20how seamless it's been really from moment one.
07:23Now they're actually able to practice.
07:24They're actually able to have the healthy bodies together.
07:26This is as healthy as the team has been all season long.
07:29I know we've seen the defensive numbers have been awful since Harden came along.
07:34But what happened since Harden came back?
07:35Jared Allen exited.
07:37So Evan Mobley had been banged up.
07:39So they hadn't had their real defensive players.
07:42There's Jalen Tyson, one of their best defensive players.
07:45Dean Wade, one of their best defensive players.
07:47Well, guess what?
07:48All of them are available now for the postseason.
07:51And it goes on to point out that not only is Donovan Mitchell happy
07:54where he is right now, but maybe more importantly,
08:00his fiancée?
08:01Is she a fiancée?
08:02I keep getting this mixed up.
08:04I keep getting miles in his situation mixed up.
08:06I have misplaced my fiancée.
08:08But Coco Jones.
08:09So he says, we're happy.
08:11Like, she's happy with Cleveland, too.
08:13Which you imagine is pretty important.
08:15You couples, man.
08:16We dig our hooks into you.
08:17And then all of a sudden you blink and you've been here 45 years.
08:20It says, I love Cleveland.
08:21I've said it before.
08:22I want to play here for as long as I can.
08:23And the goal is to win.
08:24As long as we're continuing to win at the highest level.
08:26But I love it, man.
08:27It's a place I feel like I can call home.
08:29You know what I mean?
08:30And I feel good.
08:30My fiancée feels good about it.
08:32All you guys, you sit there and Cleveland this and Cleveland.
08:35I'm talking outsiders here because I know a lot of people listening are nodding their heads.
08:38Cleveland this and Cleveland that and all this other nasty stuff about Cleveland.
08:41And then you stay here and you're with somebody and all of a sudden you blink and you're doing funeral
08:45plans.
08:45You've been here the rest of your life.
08:47He was at the baseball game.
08:49Donovan?
08:49Well, he's a baseball fan.
08:50He's a Mets fan.
08:51Which I did have the quip yesterday.
08:53I go, man, I've been a Browns fan and there's been times I've stared into the abyss as a Browns
08:56fan.
08:57I go, I can't imagine being a Jets fan turning right around and then going, let's go Mets right after
09:00that.
09:01I mean, that's insane.
09:02I mean, the Guardians, say what you will about all Cleveland sports.
09:05The Guardians are a fantastic franchise.
09:08This is a crossroads for Donovan.
09:10This postseason.
09:11If he doesn't do it, like nationally, locally, I think there's going to be a lot of pressure on Evan.
09:15I think there's going to be a lot of pressure on Evan.
09:17I think that Kenny Atkinson is going to deal with some pressure.
09:20I think nationally, though, it's all on Donovan.
09:23Yeah, this is a crossroads.
09:26If he gets to the Eastern Conference Finals, loses to Boston, I still think there's going to be some conversation
09:31about him.
09:32But if they fall short of the Eastern Conference Finals, I'm telling you, man, the heat is on now.
09:38You've been in this league how long?
09:40You've not been able to take your teams where?
09:43Are you a number one?
09:44You may think you're a number one, should fate intervene here?
09:47It's happened to a lot of players, man.
09:49It's happened to a lot of guys.
09:50And we've had, he's been an MVP candidate.
09:54He has been, I think, the second greatest Cavalier.
09:57I mean, you watch the way he plays.
09:58I know that this is a strong thing to say.
10:00And this may be a little bit prison of the moment.
10:02I know we've got fond memories of a lot of great players.
10:04He's better than Kyrie.
10:05Nate Thurman is in the rafters, obviously.
10:09You just said he was better than Kyrie.
10:11I think at first blush, people go, what?
10:13And then you get past the shot, which the shot is the shot, but Robert Horry hit big shots.
10:19Gosh, it just sounds like I'm dumping all over the greatest shot ever hit.
10:21I'm not trying to do it.
10:22You know me.
10:23I absolutely love Kyrie.
10:24Kyrie's top five, top three, probably number three.
10:26Donovan's a better.
10:27Donovan's number two.
10:28He's a better overall player.
10:29Exactly.
10:29He's a number one.
10:30You know, Kyrie tried to go be a number one for a few years in Boston.
10:35It did not work at all.
10:36That's the whole point of it, Tone, is that we could be sitting here in five years going,
10:41Donovan tried to go be a number one in Cleveland, and nope, wasn't going to work.
10:45But hey, listen, I totally will admit there are major doubts still to this day.
10:50Obviously, that Donovan Mitchell can be your best player on a championship team.
10:53Which is why we've been waiting on Evan Mobley.
10:56And I will tell you, while this year Evan Mobley is not going to be the best player on the
11:00Cavs,
11:00Evan Mobley has a chance to have a really, really good playoff run coming up here.
11:06I hope so.
11:06And change a lot of minds on some people that are down on him.
11:08I think you're right about that, and I sure as hell hope so.
11:11And let me just add this.
11:12We've got Nathan coming up at 9, and we've got coming in hot at 9.45.
11:16You've got this series coming up.
11:19If you hear about him possibly leaving, quote-unquote, like was it Sam Amick or Fred Katz?
11:24Frank Katz?
11:25Fred Katz?
11:25Fred Katz?
11:26Yeah.
11:26Who had said they would look at possibly trading him if he can't sign a contract after this year.
11:33That's only common sense in business.
11:35But if you know what?
11:36If you were to happen, if the impossible were to happen, and you lose against Toronto,
11:41or you know what?
11:42You don't look as competitive, and you don't win against Detroit.
11:46There are probably going to be a lot of fans who even turn around and say,
11:49you know what?
11:49Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.
11:51Let's see what we can get here, because this ain't working.
11:55One way or the other, there's no staying the way they are after this postseason.
12:00We all know.
12:00That's what I, honestly.
12:01This is going to be, there's some change of comments one way or the other.
12:04I kind of feel like it's oddly freeing.
12:06We all know what the score is.
12:07We all know what's at stake here.
12:08There's like no debating that if they fall short and they lose in the first or second round,
12:15then this team is going to look drastically different next year.
12:17I still want to see.
12:18I'm different.
12:18I'm getting more worried or more, more, not worried.
12:22I'm getting more pensive because I want it to last at least one more year.
12:26I'm going to take a swing at it next year.
12:27I want to see if they bring back LeBron.
12:28I want to see if there's a conversation to be had about Giannis Antetokounmpo.
12:32Just having conversations.
12:33Just want to have some conversations.
12:34I want another year to see this before we get ready to go back to 18 win land.
12:40I don't want that to happen.
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