Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving said that he thinks the Cavs can reach the playoffs this year during a radio interview on Tuesday. The reigning NBA Rookie of the Year is confident that the young core of talent the Cavs have put together, including 2012 first round picks Dion Waiters and Tyler Zeller, second year forward Tristan Thompson, and himself, can keep improving as a unit.

Another big piece of the puzzle in Cleveland is forward Anderson Varejao. Varejao has suffered season-ending injuries in each of the past two seasons, and his health is the key to the Cavs' front court being effective, especially defensively.

The Cavaliers finished the 2011-2012 season with a 21-45 record, which was 14 games behind the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference, the Philadelphia 76ers. Making the jump from that position to making the playoffs in only one year is a large task, but if Irving is right about the young core developing together, he may not be far off.