NBA: 1 Thing fan bases of all 30 teams should be rooting for to close season

Cleveland Cavaliers

1 Thing to root for: Avoiding a first-round rematch with the New York Knicks

Even if the Cleveland Cavaliers are able to enter the NBA Playoffs healthy, this is a team that is going to have a difficult path to the second round if they end up facing the New York Knicks in a 4-5 first-round series. What Cavs fans should be rooting for is to avoid the Knicks in the playoffs. Especially if OG Anunoby and/or Julius Randle make a return to the lineup, the Cavs could have their hands full in such a potential first-round playoff series.

And considering what transpired between these two teams in the first round of last year's playoffs, the Cavs don't exactly have the best memory of the Knicks. Even though the Cavs have enough talent where they shouldn't be ducking teams, the Knicks are simply not a great matchup for the Cavs. In fact, the Knicks are probably a bad matchup for most teams in the Eastern Conference not named the Boston Celtics.

It's already trending in that direction, but if there's any chance that the Cavs can avoid the Knicks in the first round, Cleveland fans should absolutely be rooting for that. The last thing Donovan Mitchell needs in his mind before making a decision to sign an extension with the Cavs or not is the memory of back-to-back first-round playoff losses at the hands of the Knicks.