Cleveland Cavaliers About To Face Toughest Test Of Season So Far

The Cleveland Cavaliers will play multiple current playoff teams in the second half of December.

Apr 6, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) moves the ball against Los Angeles Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell (1) during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Cavaliers remain one of the top teams in the NBA. They've beaten the teams they're supposed to while also putting together some quality wins against the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors.

However, nothing gets easier for the Wine and Gold from here, and they're about to face their biggest test of the season so far. This trial is the Cavalier's upcoming schedule.

Here's a look at Cleveland's schedule to close out December:

Dec. 20 - vs. Milwaukee Bucks
Dec. 21 - vs. Philadelphia 76ers
Dec. 23 - vs. Utah Jazz
Dec. 27 - @ Denver Nuggets
Dec. 30 - @ Golden State Warriors
Dec. 31 - @ Los Angeles Lakers

Dec 16, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) dunks against Brooklyn Nets center Day'Ron Sharpe (20) and guards Tyrese Martin (13) and Ben Simmons (10) during the second quarter at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Of the six teams the Cavaliers will play over the next two weeks, four of them have winning records and are in the playoff picture in their conference.

Cleveland may beaten the Milwaukee Bucks twice earlier this season.

However, they've been playing much better as of late, and the Damian Lillard-Giannis Antetokounmpo duo even led the Bucks to the NBA Cup Championship. Plus, Khris Middleton is finally back in the mix after missing the first quarter of the season rehabbing from injury.

This Bucks team is completely different from who the Cavs played in October.

Then there is the West Coast trip that will consist of playing the Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, and Los Angeles Lakers.

Each team presents a unique challenge, and Kenny Atkinson must diligently game plan for Cleveland's opponent.

Nikola Jokic remains the MVP favorite, the Warriors still have one of the best defenses in the league, and LeBron James always has extra motivation when facing his former teams.

It'll be a tough task for the Cavaliers to remain first in the Eastern Conference after this stretch, as the Celtics are right on their tail.

However, Cleveland will have a better understanding of where they stand among the NBA's best teams after this test.