Congratulations are in order for the two top seeds in the NBA's Eastern Conference.
First to the Toronto Raptors, who booked their first-ever conference finals berth with Sunday's 116-89 Game 7 victory over the Miami Heat.
But also to the Cleveland Cavaliers, who were long ago penciled in as NBA finalists and now skip the potential headache of "LeBron James vs. embittered former club" headlines. The only thing separating the Cavs from the championship round is a Raptors team that should be thrilled to be there.
Sunday's contest might have cemented this matchup, but why even play the games, right?
Toronto is physically worn down after playing consecutive seven-game series and losing its starting center, Jonas Valanciunas, along the way. Meanwhile, Cleveland is remarkably fresh, with back-to-back sweeps to its credit and an empty injury report to its name.
The Cavs' Big Three of James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love have never played better together, and the team's perimeter collection is suddenly a record-setting group, according to SAP Sports (via the NBA). Mean ...
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Article written by Zach Buckley