Finals Contender? Cavaliers Have Passed Every Test So Far

The Cleveland Cavaliers' 11-0 start is proof they're ready to contend for the NBA Finals.

Oct 26, 2024; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) celebrates with Cleveland Cavaliers guard Caris LeVert (3) after a made shot during the second quarter against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images / Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

Who would've thought that after the first three weeks of the new NBA season, the Cleveland Cavaliers, under new head coach Kenny Atkinson, would be off to the best start in franchise history at 11-0 and sit at the top of the Eastern Conference?

The Wine and Gold are finally getting national recognition for having the best start since the 73-9 Golden State Warriors.

It's still early in the season, but the Cavs have passed every test thrown at them through the first few weeks and are proving they're capable of more than just a playoff appearance this spring.

They've convincingly beat the teams they were supposed to, such as the Toronto Raptors, Detroit Pistons, and Washington Wizards. They've also gone on the road and defeated the New York Knicks (last season's two-seed). There's also Cleveland's blowout win against the ever-dangerous Los Angeles Lakers.

Cleveland's biggest challenge of the season was supposed to be against the Warriors last Friday.

Golden State entered Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse with the top defense in the NBA and a 7-1 record. With that in mind, the Cavs scored 83 points in the first 24 minutes and stretched their lead to 41 points, rolling to an easy victory.

Cleveland has everything you're looking forward to in a Finals contender. They have a superstar guard who can score at will in Donovan Mitchell, a true playmaker in Darius Garland, and an elite frontcourt duo in Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen.

Kenny Atkinson has done a tremendous job dividing up the usage and shot attempts of the core four, making their offense hard to guard for opponents.

Also, one of the Cavaliers' biggest strengths so far has been their depth and bench, led by Caris LeVert and Ty Jerome.

As a team, Cleveland currently has the best offensive rating (122.0) and a top-ten defensive rating (109.9) in the NBA.

Nov 4, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) celebrates with forward Isaac Okoro (35) during the second half against the Milwaukee Bucks at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

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Sure, you can point to Cleveland's early-season schedule and say they haven't played the toughest opponents. But the Cavaliers don't make their schedule, and they've capitalized against every team they've played against.

A team doesn't start 11-0 by accident.

With that being said, Cleveland's November 19 matchup against the Boston Celtics will be their biggest game of the season to date.

We're far enough into the season to get a feel for the Finals contenders and pretenders. In that time, the Cavaliers have established themselves as true Finals contenders, granted, with a lot of basketball still to play this season.