The opening round of the Eastern Conference playoffs has been cloaked by an air of inevitabilityone that has upcoming semifinal matchups all but etched in stone.But even though the Cleveland Cavaliers' progression into Round 2 is a foregone conclusion, taking care of business in what could be the decisive game of their quarterfinal tilt with the Boston Celtics remains imperative.Cleveland has a stranglehold, up 3-0 following a 103-95 Game 3 win in enemy territory. As a result, the Cavaliers have a shot to sweep a postseason opponent for the first time since they dismissed the Atlanta Hawks in four consecutive contests during the 2009Eastern Conference semifinals.That puts Cleveland on a collision course for a second-round showdown with the Chicago Bulls, despite their 92-90 Game 4 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday evening."No NBA squad has ever erased a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven series," Bleacher Report's Dan Favale wrote. "Teams that win their first three tilts are a perfect 110-0, according toWhoWins.com. The question of whether the Bulls and Cavaliers will meet, then, isn't actually a questionit's a forgone conclusion."Inevitability is hardly an excuse for complacency, though.With Chicago's series result all but decided, the Cavaliers can't afford to waltz into Game 4 (1 p.m. ET on ABC) with an unabashed sense of confidence. The Celtics have been a formidable and scrappy foe through three games, losing the last two contests by eight points apiece. The scrappy designation is, of course, a tacit designation of inferiorityin and of itself, but the Celtics won't back awayespecially at homewith their postseason life at stake.LeBron James knows it, too."I mean, it's a very important game," he said, according to Northeast Ohio Media Group's Joe Vardon. "You know the type of pressure that the opposing team is under. It's win or go home for them, and they're going to bring everything in the tool box that they have to try and get this victory and compete in this game."The incentive is clear: Win, and Cleveland will earn more rest than the Bulls, who now have to host Game 5 on Monday. Lose, and the Cavaliers will travel back to Quicken Loans Arena for a Tuesday night clash with the Celtics that will cut down on their preparation time significantly. Against a Bulls squad that's just starting to hit its stride, with a rejuvenated Derrick Rose and scalding Jimmy Butler, the Cavaliers can't afford to add extra miles to theodometersof their three stars.Especially James and Kyrie Irving.While Kevin Love's playing time has actually dipped fractionally from the regular season, James and Irving have each watched their share of minutes increase noticeably.Furthermore, head coach David Blatt's rotation has (predictably) become more refined over the past week, with seven players doing the majority of the heavy lifting. Specifically, those seven playersJames, Irving, Love, J.R. Smith, Timofey Mozgov, Tristan Thompson and Iman Shumpertare all racking up at least 23 minutes per game.During the regular season, Blatt didn't have a single player top 37 minutes per game, while eight players were exceeding 20 minutes a night.Blatt may be overextending James a bit against the Celtics, but his logic isn't hard to follow. The Cavaliers aren't a particularly battle-tested club outside of their leading two-time champion, with Love and Irving just now getting their feet wet in the postseason pool.Consequently, Blatt has leaned on James to set the tone."He's the guy that not only guys follow, but they sense him, and his control in these games has been outstanding, both in terms of seizing the moment but also talking guys through situations," Blatt said after Game 3, according to USA Today's Jeff Zillgitt.Compared to the Miami Heat's first-round sweep of the Charlotte Bobcats last postseason, James' playing time is up an average of 2.6 minutes. And based on Blatt's rotational preferences, it's hard to see that distribution wavering against the Bulls in Round 2which amplifies the need for extra rest between series.But an extended breather will require tenacity and concentration on Sunday afternoon as the pesky and precocious Celtics aim to stave off elimination."We have to be ultra-desperate and ultra-urgent because of where we are, but we pretty much play that way anyway," Celtics coach Brad Stevens said, according to NBA.com's Peter Stringer.After surrendering 113 points in Game 1, Boston limited Cleveland to an average of 101 points over the course of Games 2 and 3. With an extra jolt of offense in front of their home crowd, it's not inconceivable to think the Celtics can parlay energy and desperation into a hard-fought battle that stretches things out another two days. History shows the crown jewel of East playoff matchups will soon be upon us, regardless of Game 4's result, but if the Cavaliers want to maximize their potential with the Bulls on deck, a forceful and unforgiving effort on Sunday afternoon is in the team's best interest.All statistics are current as of April 25 and courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com unless noted otherwise.
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