Cavs to face Magic in first round of playoffs

With the Cleveland Cavaliers gaining NBA playoff experience last year and adding more of it through offseason transactions, veteran forward Georges Niang would like to think they are capable of schooling the Orlando Magic on what the postseason is all about.

The Cavs will face the Magic in the first round beginning Saturday. Game 1 of the best-of-7 series will be held in Cleveland.

“Playoff experience is real, right?” Niang said. “These guys [in the Cavs locker room] last year got to have a taste of that and what playoff intensity looks like, playoff preparation. And we’re going up against a team that obviously has young, hungry guys that are going to play hard every single night. They’ve been doing that, but we’re going to have to show them what playoff basketball is.”

The Cavs (48-34) have the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference and homecourt advantage against the fifth-seeded Magic (47-35). The winner of the Cavsmagic series will advance to face whichever team prevails between the topseeded Boston Celtics (64-18) and the eventual eighth seed. The No. 8 spot will be determined by the NBA Play-in Tournament, which includes the Philadelphia

76ers (47-35), Miami Heat (46-36), Chicago Bulls (39-43) and Atlanta Hawks (36-46) in the East and runs Tuesday through Friday. The Cavs and Magic played each other four times this season. Each team won twice.

“They’re a young team,” Cavs center Jarrett Allen said. “They’re going to be fighting for a lot. I think we just have to go in with the mentality that we have to throw the first punch.”

Niang noted he heard what Allen said about striking first.

“That’s what you’re looking to do in any type of fight because that’s what playoff basketball is,” Niang added. “It’s a seven-game series, and it’s a fight.”