Three Championship Losses in One Year
You might think that it is just nice to be successful enough to have teams in three championship games/series in one year. You would be wrong. Between the Ohio State Buckeyes football program losing to Florida in one of the most embarrassing routs in NCAA championship game memory, the Ohio State Buckeyes basketball team losing to a heavily favored Florida Gator team, and now the Cleveland Cavaliers dropping 4 straight in the finals, this has probably been one of the worst sports fan years in the history of local sports.
I know that the Spurs were heavily favored and everything, but the nature of being a fan is that there is always a chance. And don’t think for a second that the Cavaliers team that beat the Pistons were the same ones who got trampled by the Spurs. The Spurs are a great team, but if there is one regret from this series it is that the Cavaliers team that rattled off victories over the Pistons never showed itself after the final buzzer of the Eastern Conference Finals. Don’t get me wrong, it still would have been a total longshot that the Cavs would have beaten the Spurs, but don’t think for a second that the Cavaliers were able to give them their best shot. NBA basketball is a streaky sport sometimes and the Cavaliers went from being super hot against the Pistons to being an Antarctic chill in the NBA finals against the Spurs.
Regardless, it is now all over. The Cavs go home disappointed. And that is really the worst part about this whole thing. In almost every sport, every team goes home disappointed except for the one team that stands at the end as the victor. I understand the fact that there can only be one winner. At the same time, it is much much more painful to get so close so many times in a single year and not come out on top with one victory.
In Cleveland, we know what it means to wait for an opportunity. We know what it means to lose late. We know what it means to come close. We were tired of coming close before this season began, and now that it is over, we are still tired of it.
Bill Said,
June 17, 2007 @ 10:42 pm
It was a great run by the Cavaliers. While you can’t be pleased with the ultimate result, it was great to see the excitement and enthusiasm return to the city.
Jen's mom Said,
June 18, 2007 @ 2:53 pm
Dude, my heart goes out to you.