CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cav rolled into Orlando looking like a team ready-made for defeat. Arriving at their hotel beds between 4:30 and 5 a.m. ahead of the second night of a back-to-back, missing four key players, and facing a talented Magic squad — all the ingredients for a schedule loss were in place.
Instead, they dominated 119-105, capturing their fifth win in six games and tenth in their last fourteen.
This isn’t the same Cavs team that stumbled through the season’s first half. This version is gritty, resilient and finding different ways to win ugly when needed.
What’s driving this sudden ability to overcome adversity? According to cleveland.com columnist Jimmy Watkins, it’s a fundamental shift in their approach to challenges.
“It’s a better response to adversity and it’s a better response to physicality. The Cavs are bringing it at a baseline level. This the thing that has eluded them for a long time, readiness and engagement and the things that we were criticizing them. The most frustrating part of this season has been at least temporarily corrected. And that’s, that’s progress. That’s legitimate progress,” Watkins observed on the podcast.
The wine and gold’s schedule hasn’t gotten any easier — in fact, it’s been brutal — but their mentality has shifted.
Games that would have been nearly automatic losses early in the season have become statements of resilience. The team that once wilted under pressure now seems to gain strength from it.
Perhaps most importantly, this stretch of adversity has forced the Cavs to rediscover what made them special in the first place: defense.
With offensive weapons sidelined, Cleveland has leaned into defensive-minded lineups featuring the likes of Dean Wade alongside Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen.
“I think the Cavs kind of got bullied into rediscovering their defensive identity here out of necessity,” Watkins pointed out. “And I would like to think that they’ll carry it forward because they’re learning some interesting things, relearning some interesting things about like the Dean Wade, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen lineup that’s been an elite defensive trio for a couple of seasons now.”
This defensive renaissance isn’t merely a temporary band-aid. It represents the team reclaiming their foundation, the identity that once made them Eastern Conference co-favorites before their stumbling start.
The significance of this turnaround extends beyond current standings.
Now just two games back from the second-seeded Celtics, the Cavs have transformed from play-in tournament candidates to legitimate contenders in a wide-open Eastern Conference.
Perhaps most impressive is that this evolution wasn’t sparked by a blockbuster trade or dramatic coaching change. It emerged organically through necessity, adversity, and a collective decision to embrace the grind.
As the All-Star break approaches and injured players prepare to return, the question becomes whether this newfound resilience will remain the team’s foundation — or if old habits will resurface.
But for now, these battle-tested Cavaliers are showing they’ve learned how to win when everything is stacked against them, a skill that could prove invaluable come playoff time.
Here’s the podcast for this week: