Cleveland Cavaliers will conclude their regular season against the Toronto Raptors Wednesday night, and LeBron James will miss his second straight game. James, who last played in the game against the Atlanta Hawks, will take get additional rest and get ready for the playoffs. LeBron played 47 minutes in the Hawks game and he ranks first in the NBA in minutes per game with 37.8.
James is 32 and he should have gotten more rest this season. However, the Cavaliers have had a few bad stretches and he had to play some heavy minutes in order to help them win. Despite that, the Cavaliers may still not finish first in the Eastern Conference as the Boston Celtics are one game ahead of them and will look to win their final game and keep the first seed.
Cavaliers can still get the first seed
Cleveland Cavaliers are 3-0 against the Toronto Raptors and they could sweep the regular-season series Wednesday night. However, if the Raptors win, they will have the same record as the Cavaliers, but will stay in the third seed since Cleveland owns the tiebreaker.
On the other side, with a win over the Raptors, the Cavaliers could reclaim the first seed and finish the season with a home-court advantage throughout the first three rounds of the playoffs. In order to achieve this, the Cavaliers will need the Boston Celtics to lose their final game. The Celtics will host the Milwaukee Bucks for the conclusion of their season, and considering that the Bucks are a tough team who needs a win to move to the fifth seed, it won't be an easy game for Boston.
LeBron James deserves to rest
James has played 74 games this regular season while averaging the league-leading 37.8 minutes per game. He has given his maximum effort to help the Cleveland Cavaliers win as many games as possible, and has broken numerous records at the same time.
LeBron is the first player in NBA history to average career highs in rebounds and assists per game, which is a great testament of his consistency and durability.
If someone deserves to take rest, then it's LeBron James. He has reached six consecutive NBA finals and it is in his best interest to stay healthy and win more championships. He is 32 and he is still in his prime, dominating the league and turning the Cleveland Cavaliers into one of the best teams in the NBA. With James on the roster, the Cavaliers will always stay competitive and there is a good chance they will defend the championship title this year.