NBA: Ranking the 20 projected playoff teams based on their record vs. winning teams

With the NBA Playoffs around the corner, we begin to rank the 20 projected postseason qualifiers based on their record vs. winning teams.

Oklahoma City Thunder v Los Angeles Lakers
Oklahoma City Thunder v Los Angeles Lakers | Ronald Martinez/GettyImages
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10. Cleveland Cavaliers (16-18)

The fact that the Cleveland Cavaliers are sitting as a top 3 seed in the Eastern Conference standings despite all the injuries that they've faced this season is nothing short of remarkable. The big questions for this young Cavs team heading into the playoffs are whether or not they can avoid the injury bug in the postseason and whether they can finally get over the hump of being afraid of the big playoff stage.

Last season, the playoff spotlight was a bit too big for the Cavs. They ended up having an embarrassing showing in the first round of the playoffs against the New York Knicks. There's a real chance the Cavs are going to head into the first-round series against a much more experienced team, perhaps one like the Miami Heat. It'll be interesting to see how they stack up in a series.

The natural next step for the Cavs is to win a playoff series. And if they want to sell Donovan Mitchell on winning, that'd be an ideal postseason scenario.