The Cleveland Cavaliers barely got past the No.5 Toronto Raptors in the opening round of the 2026 NBA playoffs. Cleveland needed all seven games in the series to put away feisty Toronto team.
But despite advancing to the second round, not many think that the Cavs can go beyond that, especially since their next opponent is the top team in the East — the Detroit Pistons. However, former Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith disagrees.
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During his appearance on the “Run it Back” show on FDTV, Smith said the current Cavs team has everything needed to win an NBA championship and that losing is not an option for them.
“They definitely have enough. I think they have bench presence. I think they have bigs. They got the guard play. They defend. They got a great coach. To me, there’s no excuses,” said Smith.
The most experienced backcourt in the postseason
When you look at the Cavs, they have an athletic center who can protect the rim and block shots in Jarrett Allen. His frontcourt partner is the 2025 Defensive Player of the Year, Evan Mobley. Cleveland also has a solid bench, featuring Dennis Schroder, Max Strus, Keon Ellis, and Jaylon Tyson.
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Then the Cavs have one of the best backcourt duos in the playoffs — at least on paper. Donovan Mitchell is one of the best scorers in the NBA today, and he was named to the All-NBA First Team last season.
His partner is 2018 MVP James Harden, whom the Cavs acquired before the trade deadline. Harden was averaging 25.4 points and 8.1 points per game for the L.A. Clippers before coming over to “The Land.”
“That backcourt right there should be the most experienced in the postseason. When you really look at pound for pound, player for player, as far as resumes, I mean, they got it all. There’s no reason why they shouldn’t get it done. I understand that they have some mishaps in Game 7 between the two of them, but that team, I think, they got way more than enough,” he added.
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Their starting guards have disappointed so far
Mitchell played well in Games 1 and 2 against the Raptors, but aside from those games, he’s struggled with his shooting this postseason. Meanwhile, Harden also had an impressive Game 2 against Toronto, but aside from that, he’s having a subpar postseason.
In Game 1 of their second-round series against the Pistons on Tuesday night, Mitchell scored 23 points on 9-19 shooting with three turnovers. On the other hand, Harden had 22 points, but he shot just 6-15 from the floor, including 1-7 from 3-point distance. “The Beard” also committed seven turnovers in the game and has committed 43 turnovers in eight games played so far.
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“You look at my turnovers, and a lot of them are just on me and nothing they did, which led them to have way too many transition points. That’s the game right there. You get half of that, and it’s a different ball game. I gotta and will be better,” said Harden after the game.
It’s still a long series and all the Pistons did was hold serve in the opener. However, with the offense revolving around them, the Cavs’ superstar duo has to be more efficient in scoring and take better care of the ball. As Smith said, they are the most experienced guard duo in the postseason, but their numbers right now aren’t showing it.
Related: James Harden on the relationship with his son: “It’s a different kind of love”
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on May 6, 2026, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.