Cavaliers suffer a Canadian reality check

The Cavaliers had not visited Canada to face the Raptors in the playoffs since May 3, 2018. The context then, of course, was very different from now: LeBron James, backed by a team of questionable talent – that much, for whatever reason, has not changed – beat in Toronto a franchise then led by Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, one that had won 59 games in the regular season, finished first in the Eastern Conference and had Dwane Casey with the Coach of the Year award practically under his arm.

None of it mattered. The Ohio franchise beat its rivals for the third straight season, the second time by a resounding 4-0, and the second time in the conference semifinals after meeting them in the 2016 Eastern Conference finals. That one finished 4-2, a hugely entertaining series in which Bismack Biyombo briefly looked like a good basketball player. A lot of time has passed since then.

LeBron’s reign felt eternal after those playoffs, despite defeat in the Finals against the Warriors. He left Ohio for Los Angeles and won the 2020 title with the Lakers, the fourth of his career. Before that, in 2019, the Raptors had won it all themselves. After that painful defeat, they dismantled the team, sent Casey home, promoted Nick Nurse to head coach, traded DeRozan for Kawhi Leonard and won the first championship in franchise history in 2019 – against those same Warriors whom LeBron had challenged so many times.

And that was the end of the story between the superstar and the Canadian franchise, one dominated by the usual man. Much has happened since then, but the legend is still active at 41, with 23 seasons behind him. The Cavaliers of today, though, are not the Cavaliers of yesterday. And the Raptors, obviously, are not the same either.

After a three-season absence, and under Darko Rajakovic, who arrived to close the Nurse era on the bench, the Raptors were playing a home playoff game again. At Scotiabank Arena, they welcomed an old acquaintance – for the Cavs – who was entirely new to them, given the roster. They did so trailing 2-0 after losing both games in Ohio, but with the excitement of a child seeing something grand for the first time.

They wanted to have fun, with nothing to lose and the hope of extending the series against an opponent who, with James Harden and Donovan Mitchell, had its sights set on going as far as possible in the playoffs. The two home wins, by 13 and 10 points, had confirmed Cleveland’s theoretical superiority and favorite status. But Toronto, in Canada, was where it would become clear whether this team was made of the right stuff. Canada was witnessing playoff basketball again.

In the end, the Raptors made their home crowd count, claiming their first playoff win since April 23, 2022, against the Sixers, and their first at home since 2020. They did it emphatically, 126-104, entering the fourth quarter only two points ahead, 83-81, before unleashing a 43-23 run over the final 12 minutes that left the Cavs frozen and without answers.

As many as six visiting players reached double figures, but none reached 20, and Mitchell’s 18 points – on 3-of-10 shooting from three-point range – felt underwhelming. For the home team, it was a party: 14-of-23 from beyond the arc, 61%, 29 assists to Cleveland’s 23, 33 points, five rebounds and 11 assists from Scottie Barnes, 12 from Brandon Ingram, 33 from RJ Barrett, who went 6-of-8 from three, 22 points and eight rebounds from Collin Murray-Boyles, and 14 from Jamison Battle.

An emphatic win, a celebration in Canada and a very clear warning to the Cavaliers: this is not going to be a walk in the park.

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