Cavs are struggling with the lack of exposure from the "No Bubble Invite"

The Cavs, having been ripped from their chances at continuing their 2020 season in the Orlando Bubble is a good assumption as to why their season is not as successful as they had been hoping for. The season is not over, but this is not the winning season they were expecting going into preseason.

Via Phoenix Suns twitter

In the Cavs last game against the Phoenix Suns on Monday, you could see at the very last seconds how crucial the extra game exposure had been to the Suns team. At the start of the bubble the Suns were running on an 8-0 record. Being in the bubble, every game counted. This gave the players the drive to put their all into every single game to get to the championship. Whereas with the regular season, losing a few games here and there is manageable.

When asked about the critical moments of their last game and if the lack of play had anything to do with it, Cavs coach J.B Bickerstaff had a few good things to say about Sun’s Guard Devin Booker

“You see what they did in critical games, you take Devin Booker for example, to be able to play and have that experience and having those games, for them it was every game was a must-win, so there were those pressure-filled moments that he got to experience.” Bickerstaff said.

“I definitely feel like it’s helped him. He’s grown immensely, he’s a heck of a player, there’s no doubt about it. But that experience is definitely what you need in those moments.”

In the last 46.1 seconds of the game on Monday, the Cavs would’ve tied up the game with a layup from Collin Sexton. This play was then called an offensive foul creating a turnover. Suns Mikal Bridges had four free throws sealing the game win 119-113 in the final 17.2 seconds.

It doesn’t matter how hard or how often they practiced during their offseason while the other teams were still playing, they weren’t able to get the real-game experience or the mentality needed for playoff games. The teams that played in the bubble were able to get right back into it shortly after their bubble experience ended whereas the Cavs had to figure out how to get back into the swing running quickly into preseason.

If the Cavs were to receive an invite to the NBA Orlando Bubble, this season would be going a lot differently than it currently is with the Cavs now being (10-15) losing four in a row, and six of their last seven. The Cavs need to have a quick turn around and find the momentum and chemistry within the team to get back on track to where they want to be.