Cavaliers Facing Elimination Again in Game 7 Against Pistons

After winning three games in a row and their first road game of the playoffs, it looked like Cleveland was going to roll their way into the Eastern Conference Finals. Unfortunately for them, Detroit is a team that will never quit, and they answered every question on Friday night with a dominating 115-94 win, the largest victory for either team this series.

Before Friday’s no-show, prediction markets gave the Cavs nearly an 80% chance to advance; that number has fallen to 37% with a massive Game 7 on the horizon.

Obviously, every game 7 is a must-win, but it means far more for Cleveland. Since LeBron left in 2018, the media have not respected the Cavs. They’ve been painted as a soft team that cannot win in the postseason. Now, they expedited their contention window by trading for James Harden, a move that needs to result in at least an Eastern Conference Finals appearance.

Cleveland is the most expensive roster in the sport, and if they spin out again in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, I’m not sure Dan Gilbert will be willing to keep eating the exorbitant tax bill he's been taking on. If the Cavs lose, we might be watching the end of the Donovan Mitchell and company era in Cleveland.

Now, this isn’t to take anything away from Detroit, but this whole season has felt like it’s arrived one season early. I think if you ask even the most biased of Pistons fans, they would admit this team is not ready to contend for a championship.

Cade Cunningham looks like a future face of the NBA, but he desperately needs more help, something he finally received in Game 6. Seven Pistons not named Cunningham scored at least 8 points, and role players were a very solid 42% from behind the arc.

Paul Reed continued to be a spark plug off the bench for Detroit, but more importantly, Jalen Duren finally had a very solid performance. He dropped 15 points and 11 rebounds, which were the most points and second-most rebounds he’s had in a game this series.

He’s simply the biggest X-Factor going into Game 7. Duren is likely to be awarded with All-NBA honors this year, and he needs to perform like an All-NBA player to help Cunningham.

Game 7 opens with Detroit as 4.5-point favorites, and I think that’s a little bit high. This game comes down to one thing for me: will Cleveland’s guards show up?

Outside of too many turnovers, James Harden didn’t have a horrible Game 6, but Donovan Mitchell absolutely no-showed and was a net negative every time he stepped on the court. It has been a horrific postseason for Mitchell, but all could be forgotten with a legendary Game 7 performance. In the playoffs, nobody remembers how they got there; they only remember who the victor is.

Against my better judgment, I would lean Cleveland +4.5 in Game 7.