When the Cleveland Cavaliers announced that they had made a trade for the All-Star forward Kevin Love, pairing him with the returning LeBron James, one of the worst teams in basketball became a championship contender. In the “Coming Home” hoopla, someone forgot to tell the Golden State Warriors and the Atlanta Hawks that this was Cleveland’s year.
As the Cavaliers worked to find their identity, the Warriors and the Hawks rolled to insurmountable leads in their conferences by playing team basketball (with a healthy dose of star power).
A championship for either team would be a major shake-up for the dynasty-prone N.