Why I'm a fan of the Cleveland Cavaliers

Welcome to the refreshed Fear the Sword! To celebrate the new look and feel of our sports communities, we’re sharing stories of how and why we became fans of our favorite teams. If you’d like to share your story, head over to the FanPosts to write your own post. Each FanPost will be entered into a drawing to win a $500 Fanatics gift card. We’re collecting all of the stories here and featuring the best ones across our network as well. Come Fan With Us!

Here, a few of Fear the Sword’s contributors share their first Cavs memory and their favorite Cavs memory:

Chris Manning: I was just starting fourth grade when LeBron started his NBA career. While I know I loved and watched the Cavs before, my first sense of fandom was the first day of fourth grade when me and three of my friends all wore matching LeBron jerseys. Later that year, I’d go to my first game with my Dad, something we’d do at least once a year until I went to college. Without my Dad — who isn’t even a big basketball fan — the Cavs don’t become my team.

My favorite Cavs memory also involves my Dad. I was in Norway with my Dad for most of last year’s Finals and came back with the series tied 3-3. I’d watched the few other games on my phone in the middle of the night and had filled my Dad in over coffee in the morning. On June 19 — Father’s Day — I got to watch Game 7 with my Dad at home. When that buzzer sounded, and the Cavs had won, I ran over and hugged my Dad. Neither of us really believed what had happened and, for that night, my living room might as well have been downtown Cleveland.

David Zavac: I think my first real memory of being a Cavs fan (and many of you know I came to the game pretty late) is getting really invested into the pursuit of Larry Hughes and Michael Redd in free agency. The process of going from a very casual fan to someone who cared deeply about the team was really slow, but I got really excited when Hughes signed. The other early memory I have is of coming back from college and asking my family for Cavs tickets for Christmas, and my dad being in shock. He had no idea I liked the NBA at all.

Alex Ralston: My first Cavs memory is from when I was 5 or 6 and my dad took to me to meet Larry Nance at a Napa Auto Parts Store opening. There were not a ton of people there and Larry showed me how to shoot a basketball and signed a whole bunch of stuff for me. I've loved the Cavs ever since. Fast forward 20 years and you get my favorite Cavs memory. My dad and I got to go to Game 3 of the 2016 Finals. It was like a storybook thing to me, me and my dad watching the team we love destroy the Warriors as they took the first step towards eventually winning the NBA title.

Brad Ward: I can remember the first time I ever went to a Cavs game. My father took me to the Cleveland Coliseum in Richfield. The first time I felt the energy in the building, the buzz through the crowd. I was too young to remember plays or players names, but I will never forget the roar of the crowd and the way it felt to be there in the moment. It was my favorite place to go from that point on and I was I fan for life. We would go to a lot of games over the years and I learned everything there is to know about the Cavs. But it will always be my first experience at a game that stands out.

It's not difficult to recall my favorite memory as a Cavs fan. It was just a year ago at this time. The terrific ride to the NBA Finals provided it's share of memories as there was this feeling throughout as if we were witnessing something special. The Cavs improbable comeback against the heavily favored Golden State Warriors and the unbelievable joy when it was all over and the Cavs had won the title. To be able to embrace with loved ones and share that feeling with Cavs fans everywhere is what it's all about

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