Does the Path to the End of Cleveland's Championship Drought Begin Today?

Today, the Cleveland Cavaliers will play their first postseason since 2010, the final year that LeBron James was with the team during the first part of his career. In his four years with the Miami Heat, he went to four straight NBA Finals, capturing two NBA Titles along the way. Now, he's back "home" with the Cavaliers, facing the mission that nobody in the world has been able to complete since 1964: bring a championship back to Cleveland.

The Indians last won the World Series in 1948. We were tortured in the mid-90s with teams that should have won it all, only to come up short. The Cavaliers have never won a championship, and the Browns haven't brought one home since 1964.

The majority of you have probably suffered through more years of disappointment in sports than I have. Even at my young age, though, I'm tired of it. I grew up with the Indians being the team to beat and having sellouts every single game. I took that period for granted as I've seen what has become of the team over the past decade. James' first run in Cleveland didn't end how it was supposed to: we didn't win the big one, and after he broke our hearts in favor of South Beach, we watched him pick up two titles...without us. Who knows when the Browns will ever taste the playoffs again, let alone a Super Bowl.

With LeBron back and the type of supporting cast behind him, this could finally be it. We say that we don't let jokes about our championship drought from other cities' fans bother us, but deep down inside, it does just a little bit, even if it's just the fact that we have to spend time acknowledging it. Cleveland has needed a city-wide cultural change when it comes to sports teams. When one team can finally break the drought, that good fortune can carry over to the other teams, including the Browns. Will this be the year the drought is broken?

Don't forget to head on over to Fear the Sword for all of the Cavaliers coverage you need throughout these NBA Playoffs. If you are a Browns fan and want to chat about the game among some of your more common friends and enemies, feel free to use this thread as a venting space.

LET'S GO CAVS!