"I'm really scared for Cleveland" - Shaquille O'Neal raises red flag for Cavaliers despite 55-10 record ahead of playoffs

The Cleveland Cavaliers have posted their best regular season record in nearly 10 years. Despite their undeniable excellence on the offensive end, one former NBA champion-turned-analyst is skeptical of their chances in the postseason.

On Thursday's episode of "The Big Podcast With Shaq," Shaquille O'Neal posed a question for the Cavs, who have yet to make the Eastern Conference finals in recent years despite solid win-loss records.

"Teams that do this [go on a steady ascent] but you chip them off at the top, do they have enough to come back?" O'Neal asked. "I'm really scared for Cleveland. If you shut Donovan (Mitchel)] down, who's going to be the other guy?"

Mitchell, who played in his sixth All-Star Game last month, is averaging 24.2 points per game on 45.1% shooting. His 38.4% shooting percentage from beyond the arc is one of the better outside shooting clips in his career.

To O'Neal's point, Mitchell is clearly the driving force for the Cavaliers, who have been leading the league in offensive rating (121.8). The question, then, is whether Mitchell's supporting cast of Darius Garland (21.0 ppg, 6.7 apg), Evan Mobley (18.6 ppg, 56.8% FG) and Jarrett Allen (13.6 ppg, 10.3 rpg) can step up when the Cavs' main man is swarmed by defenders.

The Cavaliers, it should be noted, are capable on defense themselves. Cleveland is seventh in the league in defensive rating, which bodes well for their postseason chances as playoff series inevitably come down to slow-paced, halfcourt execution.

Cleveland Cavaliers within striking distance of historic feat as regular season winds down

While the Cavaliers continue to read and hear doubts about their postseason chances, they are quietly closing in on an accomplishment that only two other teams have pulled off in NBA history.

On Tuesday, the Cavs defeated the Brooklyn Nets 109-104 to pick up their 15th straight win. While this winning streak is impressive in its own right, Cleveland (with its 55-10 record) is actually within striking distance of a 70-win season.

To pull off this achievement, the Cavs will have to win 15 of their last 17 games. If Mitchell and his running mates manage to do this, they'll be just the third 70-win team after Michael Jordan's 1995-96 Chicago Bulls (72-10) and Steph Curry's 2015-2016 Golden State Warriors (73-9).