CLEVELAND, Ohio -- With the NBA Finals less than a week away, there has been much speculation as to if the Cleveland Cavaliers have what it takes to best the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals starting Thursday, June 4th.

The Cavaliers have faced adversity all year long. They started the season an unimpressive 19-20, causing analysts and fans to wonder if the team could rejuvenate and gel as a squad.

With two mid-season trades, Cavaliers GM David Griffin made some savvy moves. They addressed their most glaring weakness on January 5th by conducting a three-team deal, trading away combo guard Dion Waiters and a few bench players.

In return, they picked up their number one target since the beginning of the season in Iman Shumpert, a lengthy, defensive wing player who could guard ones through threes. The New York Knicks required that the Cavs take back a player in J.R. Smith with a checkered off the court past. They received a first-round protected draft pick from the Oklahoma City Thunder, who received Dion Waiters in the deal.

What Cavs GM David Griffin was banking on was that J.R. Smith could return to his 2012-2013 form, when he won the KIA Sixth man of the Year award. 

The second most glaring weakness they addressed in these series of trades was a rim-protecting center. They focused on Denver Nuggets backup center Timofey Mozgov. On January 7, 2015, the Cavs offered up two protected first-round picks (the Oklahoma City Thunder protected first rounder they received in the trade for Waiters and the heavily protected first rounder from the Memphis Grizzlies). Wisely, the Denver Nuggets accepted the offer and Mozgov became a Cavalier.

Cavaliers head coach David Blatt had coached Mozgov when he played for the Russian national team, so there was an instant connection there. Immediately, the national media reported that the Cavs gave up too much for the 7’1” center from Russia. What they didn’t expect was the fact that their new big man would rejuvenate his game and become exactly what the Cavaliers needed, a rim-protecting big man with strong defense and an offensive game many didn’t know he possessed.

The Cleveland Cavaliers played very well since January 15th, becoming the number one team in the NBA with a 34-9 record in that time period.

Humbled by their 19-20 start, they worked hard to incorporate the three new pieces in Smith, Shumpert, and Mozgov. Cleveland’s team defense improved dramatically. They no longer had to win games just by outscoring teams.

They worked their way up to the second seed in the Eastern Conference, which after a 19-20 start was impressive to say the least. The Cavs finished the regular season at 53-29.

The Cavaliers have grown into a tight-knit NBA squad, having been decimated by injuries in the postseason.

In Game 2 of the four-game sweep of the Boston Celtics in the first round of the NBA Playoffs, the Cavs All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving experienced a right foot injury that continues to be a nagging injury to this day.

In Game 4 of the same series, the Cavaliers lost power forward Kevin Love to season-ending shoulder injury.

In Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Chicago Bulls, Iman Shumpert suffered a groin strain that he has been playing through and been effective. He has started at shooting guard since J.R. Smith’s two-game suspension for a flagrant 2 foul.

In Game 4 of the same series against the Chicago Bulls, LeBron James rolled his left ankle, which he winced through for the remainder of that game, hitting an 18-foot jumper at the buzzer for the win.

With all this adversity, you would think the Eastern Conference Finals would be a disaster. The M.A.S.H. unit Cavaliers were facing the one-seeded Atlanta Hawks and had only one starter remaining from the starting squad that led the Cavs to a 34-9 ending to the regular season in LeBron James. But what they learned is their bench is better than the stats from the regular season dictated.

Tristan Thompson has started at power forward since the Kevin Love injury and has become a beast with his mantra “See Ball, Get Ball” showing up big time. He has become one of the better rebounding power forwards in the postseason, especially on the offensive glass.

Matthew Dellevadova has showed his gritty, hard-nosed style of basketball starting for the injured Kyrie Irving at the point. He played well in Games 2, 3, and 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Atlanta Hawks, becoming a Cleveland favorite because of his humble, well-mannered personality and his #ALLinCLE play.

The Cleveland Cavaliers swept the Atlanta Hawks in four games.

We have learned that with LeBron James, the Cavaliers floor general and arguably the best player on the planet can win with a highly efficient defense.

Going into the NBA Finals, the Cavs should have a much healthier Kyrie Irving for offensive production and a team that LeBron James has prepared for this moment by preaching what coach David Blatt has all season long - that defense wins championships.

The Golden State Warriors are arguably the best team in the NBA right now, with a well-rounded two-way team playing at a high level in the postseason. What the Cavaliers need to do is at times double Stephen Curry like they did Derrick Rose. If they can take the MVP out of his game, forcing him to create for others that should help the Cavaliers slow the Golden State Warriors down.

The Cavaliers frontcourt can matchup against Golden State. With Tristan Thompson having a very good postseason and center Timofey Mozgov protecting the paint, the Cavaliers should be able to bang down low with the Golden State Warriors center Andrew Bogut.

The key to this game, as it seems to have been all postseason long, is the leader and two-time NBA champion LeBron James. If James can continue what he started in the Eastern Conference Finals by averaging nearly a triple-double and increasing his offensive efficiency, we will see a NBA championship for a title hungry Cleveland. It seems like its time - 51 years since the city has seen a championship in any sport.