CLEVELAND — The Cavaliers' 2024 playoff ride seems to be off to a much better start than a year ago.
Cleveland raced out to a 33-26 first-quarter lead over the Orlando Magic in Game 1 of their first-round series on Saturday. While the action on the court certainly has the crowd fired up, it was one of their fellow spectators who elicited the largest ovation of the afternoon so far.
Browns star Myles Garrett is among those taking in today's matchup. Early in the second quarter, the Cavs put the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year up on the jumbotron, and he responded by doing his best to fire up the fans at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
Naturally, Wine and Gold Nation responded in kind, waiving their rally towels and even barking as if they were in the Muni Lot. Perhaps it gave the team on the floor a spark, as Cleveland extended its lead following Garrett's cameo and eventually took a 53-41 advantage into halftime.
Myles' love of basketball is well known, having shown off his own hoop skills numerous times (despite the concerns of Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski). He even became a part of the Cavaliers family last year when he purchased a minority ownership stake in the team.
Which means... if the Cavaliers end up winning the NBA championship this year, Garrett will earn himself an NBA championship ring before getting a Super Bowl ring. Strange times!