According to alot of websites that deal with NBA talk they are ranking cavs to win. I was looking at the depth chart to judge for myself. There bench is disgusting. I was looking at golden state and there bench and there 2nd string is better then some starting line ups. I just dont see lebron bringing a team to the finals and winning out of 7 games. kevin love, irving and waiters havent had deep playoff experience. Im just not convinced.
Benches don't matter in the playoffs. You win and lose by your starting lineup + 3 subs. 8 man rotation is all you need. The Cavs have one of the best 8 man rotations in basketball including the best player in the world. Benches are nice for the regular season where you play more guys, gets guys rest, etc.
Deep playoff experience doesn't mean much either, especially when your leader is a 4 time MVP with 5 trips to the NBA Finals in his career. That said Marion, Varejao, Haywood, and Miller all have deep playoff runs (3 of them even have at least 1 title). They still may yet add Ray Allen. The Cavs have the perfect mix of veterans and young guys.
They are the clear team to beat in the East. I do think they may struggle with the team from the West, but if you are putting out odds to win, Cleveland should clearly be the favorite since they really do have limited competition in the East. Out West I think you could legitimately argue that any of 8 teams could realistically make the Finals if everything goes right for them (SA, OK, LAC, HOU, GS, POR, MEM, DAL), the East I think you are looking at 2 (I just don't see Washington, Brooklyn, etc. having a realistic shot of getting by Chicago and Cleveland without injuries).