The Cleveland Cavaliers are looking to redeem their recent run of postseason heartbreak in the 2026 NBA playoffs, so why not call upon a former local athlete who knows what it means to persevere in the face of bleak odds. Before Saturday’s Game 1 showdown with the No. 5-seeded Toronto Raptors, the Cavs asked near-World Series hero Rajai Davis to raise the sword.
Although the speedy outfielder did not win a ring, he exemplified the heart of a champion on baseball’s biggest stage.
The 2015-16 Cavs produced one of the most exhilarating moments in modern American sports when they overcame a 3-1 series deficit versus the Golden State Warriors to win their first-ever NBA championship. The city did not have much time to gather their bearings following this surreal experience, as the Cleveland Guardians (then known as the Indians) battled the Chicago Cubs for the World Series crown less than five months later.
In a cruel twist of fate that reestablished Cleveland as a hub of pain, the ballclub squandered a 3-1 series lead and fell just short in an all-time great Fall Classic. Though, before everyone left Progressive Field in despair, one man temporarily jolted them back to life.
Rajai Davis hit a game-tying 364-foot home run off top-notch closer Aroldis Chapman with two outs in the eighth inning. He then recorded an RBI in the 10th, doing everything possible to will Cleveland to its first championship since 1948.
Instead, the Cubs hung on for an 8-7 win and ended a record-108-year title drought. Even so, Davis is still remembered for his valiant effort in a winner-take-all Game 7. Perhaps his presence inside Rocket Arena will remind the Cavs of the fighting spirit that is required to compete for the Larry O’Brien Trophy.