Cleveland Cavaliers: Greatest NBA Rivalry Suspended?

By Joshua Howe | Oct 13, 2014

Jan 29, 2014; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat small forward LeBron James (6) is pressured by Oklahoma City Thunder small forward Kevin Durant (35) during the first half at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /

One of the best parts of the NBA season is waiting with eager anticipation for rivalry games. Last season in the East, the conference was so weak that those sorts of games were few and far between. Fans waited with bated breath for Miami Heat-Indiana Pacers matchups, hoping the two colossal foes would create something epic to fit the significant story lines they’d been given.

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But due to the weak state of the East, there were few games that pitted two strong opposite-conference clubs against one another. One of these matchups, however, was perhaps the

most

entertaining of all NBA rivalry meetings.

When the Miami Heat would play the Oklahoma City Thunder, things changed. Amid the hub and bub of a ho hum winter, those special nights gave a certain spark to the air that basketball fans recognized and were drawn to like moths to a flame. Two of the best teams in the best sport would take to the hardwood for one of the very limited chances to prove their superiority over the other. This was especially relevant last season, with the charged debate surrounding the MVP race.

All of this was fueled with both of those teams showcasing their respective superstars in LeBron James and Kevin Durant. The best player on the planet and reigning MVP butting heads with a four-time scoring champion and MVP contender.

James would force his way to the basket, seemingly always ending with a monster flush or a tough layup. In response, Durant would drain an impossible shot, using his incredible handles to free himself. The two would guard each other almost the entire 48 minutes, doing their best to adjust to the others’ nearly automatic game.

That is the best rivalry in the league. You can make arguments for the Golden State Warriors-Los Angeles Clippers or Houston Rockets-Portland Trail Blazers, but this is the best. The two greatest players today duking it out on high level teams, throwing haymaker after haymaker in a vain attempt to knock the other down for good.

And now?

Durant has sustained a Jones fracture in his right foot that will keep him out at least for six to eight weeks. Terrifyingly, this is the same type of injury that Brook Lopez and Yao Ming dealt with. Lopez was out all last season and Yao’s career ended much sooner than he would’ve liked due to injuries such as that one.

Thankfully, the Cleveland Cavaliers do not match up for the first time with the Thunder until Dec. 11. It is possible that KD could be back on the court again by that time, but it seems unlikely at this point. The second potential meeting between James and Durant would be on Jan. 25. These two games are the only regular season meetings we could see until the 2015-16 season.

Can you imagine that? No classic LeBron-Durant duels until the 2015-16 season?! When the two best players in the league play in opposite conferences, one should be scrambling for any chance to see them compete against one another. LeBron will be into his 30s by next season and Durant may be starting to entertain the thought of leaving OKC.

All we can hope for now as fans of the game is that Durantula makes a full recovery and is able to take to the floor for at least the second game against James and his new Cavaliers team. These two were supposed to be the next Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, always clawing at each other for bragging rights.

This season, that appears to be nothing but wishful thinking. So all we can do is mark the appropriate dates on our calendar and pray that Durant makes a speedy recovery, so he can bring us back the most exciting and emotional rivalry in the NBA. And until then, like the rest of us, LeBron will be waiting.

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