In the offseason, the Cavaliers made reinforcements, traded Wade, Rose, signed Bosh, and seemed to be going to form the Big Six.

However......

At the end of the season, the Cavaliers were in fourth place in the East.

It's an awkward ranking.

If the Cavaliers are not as good as the Celtics, it is not impossible, after all, the Celtics' lineup this year is too strong, if it is not for the regular season has been running-in, the Celtics' record will be very terrifying.

But the Cavaliers can't compete with the Raptors, or the 76ers, which is incredible.

The 76ers are rebuilding much faster than they thought.

After getting the bridge in the draft, and Embiid and Ben Simmons, the 76ers are already on the road to a rebuild.

Embiid played only a short period in the first three seasons, but he didn't play a single game, and if there was anyone who could match Embiid on the inside, it would be Anthony Davis.

Although Embiid has been questioned because of injury concerns, the 76ers have negotiated a contract with Embiid before the start of the regular season, with an annual salary of nearly $25 million, which is really a terrifying number.

For the first time in the history of the NBA, there is such a rookie who has not played many regular season games and received such a high salary.

After the Cavaliers, it's the Pacers, the Heat, the Bucks and the Wizards.

The Pacers traded Paul George, but the depth of their roster is very high, of course, more importantly, the Eastern record is crossed, and the Pacers' record is only worthy of entering the playoffs in the West, and they have to be excluded if they are not careful.

The Heat dropped Wade in a cold-blooded, but sensible choice.

Wade thought he could get an annual salary of 20 million, but who knew that the 10 million Heat didn't want to give, and Pat Riley's gold calculation was really speechless.

For such a team, James' decision 2.0 is not wrong at all.

The Bucks also played well, and the team's boss quickly matured, with good offense and defense, and there were no flaws except for poor shooting.

The Wizards have been a little panicked this season because the core of the team, John Wall, has been injured for half a season, resulting in a poor record for the team.

With such a schedule, the Wizards are dangerous.

At the end of the regular season, the team quickly began preparing for the Mavericks.

For the Mavericks, this championship means a lot.

After this offseason, the Mavericks will usher in major changes, and Kevin Durant, one of the core of the team, is bound to leave, and the team roster will be greatly changed.

Other players who need to renew their contracts will also have problems.

It will be even more difficult to win the title next season.

This is the last chance to win the championship relatively easily, with Qin Yang and Kevin Durant here, it is difficult for other teams to win.

Before the playoffs even began, the media and pundits began to discuss the winners of this season's playoffs.

Experts from TNT News organized a wave of discussions on the strength of the team:

"There is not much difference in the strength of the Western teams, even the Timberwolves, who are recognized as the weakest of the eight teams in the West, the Spurs are not weak, and the other six teams are all likely to enter the Western Conference Finals, we think the Dallas Mavericks will be one of them, and the other team needs to compete for a spot in the Western Conference Finals."

"The Eastern Conference teams are more competitive, and the Cavaliers are weaker than expected, but with LeBron James here, they are also very hopeful of reaching the Eastern Conference Finals. If the Cavaliers fail, it will be the first time in eight years that LeBron James has missed the Finals, or semifinals. ”

……

The media is always undisciplined.

In this season's playoffs, the biggest focus is on the Cavaliers.

It would be the biggest shame for James if the Cavaliers accidentally did not make it to the Eastern Conference Finals, since entering the league, James's statistics have been excellent and dominant, even in the last two years of the Cavaliers, he has never missed the semifinals, and every year since then, he has reached the finals.

James's strength is beyond doubt.

Although many people still played well this year after hyping James as a thirty-year-old man, it is undeniable that James's strength has not declined much.

If the Cavaliers don't make it to the Eastern Conference Finals, that's really big news.

……

The team trained intensively, and Kevin Durant was silent.

The whole team knew about Durant's own rumors, and Durant did not hide his idea of leaving at this time.

Therefore, the relationship within the team is slightly more complicated.

When Gobert and a few others looked at Durant, their attitude was not quite right, and they were obviously unwilling to deal with it.

It is understandable to come to win the championship and leave after winning two championships, but it is also a little too pitiful, especially the honor of the team boss.

Gobert and others have opinions.

A teammate who is destined to go, few people will like it.

Qin Yang wanted to persuade his teammates, but he didn't speak. I can't start with this, but let my teammates show favor to a player who is about to leave.

The hearts of the team are scattered, and it is the most difficult to lead.

You can feel it from the games this season.

"It's okay to go, if you go on like this, if you stay here next year, it will be even more difficult to win the championship!" Qin Yang is also angry in his heart, Durant has been here for more than a year, he won the Finals MVP last season, and he still wants to win it this year, which is a bit excessive. Qin Yang let one, it is impossible to let the second.

After all, Qin Yang is the boss of the team, and Durant is not.

Letting one is compensation for Durant coming to the Mavericks, but there is no need to say that he wants to let the second.

This year, there are also issues within the Mavericks.

On April 15, one game of the playoffs.

The Mavericks host the Timberwolves.

The Timberwolves are not weak, and after Jimmy Butler joined, he did improve the team's defense, and the Timberwolves' offense is really strong.

Needless to say, Downs' defense is scary, but on the offensive end, Downs is already one of the best interior in the league.

Good at breaking through singles with the ball, three-point shooting is very good, such an interior line, it is difficult to defend.

However, it is not a problem to be difficult to defend, as long as it is guaranteed to limit the opponent's hit rate and memory, Qin Yang leads the team, and he is still as stable as a dog, the offensive end is very efficient, and the defensive end is very attentive.

Qin Yang misplaced the defense of Downs many times, which greatly reduced Downs' shooting percentage.

A player like Downs is not very strong, and it is difficult to force Qin Yang alone, so he can only rely on his height advantage to shoot, but Qin Yang's height and arm span disadvantage are not large, and he can interfere with some of them, so that the Timberwolves' offense will be blocked.

At the critical moment, it was Jimmy Butler who looked for an opportunity to make a move.

Jimmy Butler isn't a great core, but he's a very good second-in-command, three-in-command.

It's kind of like Draymond Green.

Endless running, defense, and defense fought with all their might, and on the offensive end, he took the ball when he had the opportunity, ended the offense, didn't have a chance to pass to his teammates, and never wasted.

Such teammates are easy to work with.