The Cleveland Cavaliers are the best team in all of basketball.
As such, it only made sense that they got that recognition.
However, it seems that they had to defeat the Oklahoma City Thunder in a nationally televised game to finally receive the praise they deserved.
That’s why they’ve swapped places with the Thunder in the latest edition of the league’s official power rankings.
Boasting the Association’s best record, they now have the No. 1 spot in the rankings.
The Cavs and Thunder swap spots again ahead of their rematch in OKC, Thursday at 7:30pm/et on TNT 🍿
Find out where @johnschuhmann has all 30 teams in the latest NBA App Power Rankings!
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— NBA (@NBA) January 13, 2025
Notably, the Cavs and Thunder will meet again, this time in Oklahoma City, on Thursday night.
Given how the narrative around the Cavaliers has been, they will have to approach this game as a playoff contest again.
The media and the fans refuse to give the Cavs the place they’ve earned with their play this season.
Also, if they fail to beat the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night, the best record in the league could be up for grabs again during that rematch.
Things won’t be much easier on the road.
Then again, Donovan Mitchell should have a better game than the one he had in their first encounter of the season, so that could also shift the scale in the Cavaliers’ favor.
Whatever the case, numbers don’t lie, and numbers show that Kenny Atkinson’s team has been the absolute best in the Association this season.
Hopefully, they will hold onto that distinction throughout the entire season and, more importantly, in the playoffs.
NEXT: Cavs Will Have 2 National TV Games This Week
