Indians 9 Tigers 6: Homers, The Mafia, And Bad Tiger Defense
June 7, 2012NFL to Allow Fujita et al to Appeal Bounty-based Suspension
June 7, 2012With the NBA Finals drawing near, it’s only natural for fans of teams not currently playing basketball to look on from a distance, wondering what it must take to be one of the teams representing their conference in the Finals.
Make no mistake about it, the Cleveland Cavaliers are a very long way away from getting there. The first key component is in place. Kyrie Irving was everything the Cavaliers were hoping for, and more, in his rookie season, but when you consider the 4 Conference Finalists, it’s clear that much work needs to be done.
In the West, the Oklahoma City Thunder have Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden1 as part of their “Big 3”. The San Antonio Spurs featured Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker.
The Eastern Conference Finals have their own clash of “Big 3s”. The Boston Celtics have the original Big 3 in Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen. Not to mention Rajon Rondo, who is currently better than any of the original Big 3. The Miami Heat have the most infamous Big 3 in the NBA with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh.
There’s more than just the Big 3s, though. If you look at the Thunder, beyond Durant, Westbrook, Harden, and Ibaka, there’s a deep core of solid role players who all excel at knowing their roles and playing their part. Whether it be Derek Fisher, Kendrick Perkins, Thabo Sefolosha, Nick Collison, Daequan Cook, or Nazr Mohammed, the Thunder have surrounded their stars with role players who can contribute something to the team’s success.
Part of why the Celtics have outplayed the Heat thus far in the series is because of contributions from guys like Mickael Pietrus, Brandon Bass, or Keyon Dooling. It’s not that the Celtics need all their role players to contribute equally every night, but thus far they have seemingly been given a clutch effort by at least one of these guys every game. The Heat, on the other hand, outside of a random Shane Battier three pointer here or Udonis Haslem rebound there, have gotten practically nothing from anyone outside of James and Wade, and even Wade has had long stretches of inefficiency in this series.
The point is, while the NBA has always been a superstar-driven league, and superstars have always surrounded themselves with other stars to win Championships, the recent trend of superstar Voltron-esque2 teams has upped the ante. Three superstars alone may not necessarily be enough to win the title anymore.
For the Cavaliers, this can be something of a sobering realization. Anyone who had thoughts of the Cavaliers being just a couple years away now that they have Kyrie Irving are probably in for a rude awakening. This thing is a process and the Cavaliers are still in the early stages.
If the Thunder are the ideal team the Cavaliers are trying to emulate, you have to consider they drafted Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka, and James Harden over three consecutive drafts. The Cavaliers are going to try to take that next step in this year’s draft, but the point is, the Cavaliers have to hit on these next two drafts. Even then, the Thunder drafted James Harden in 2009 and didn’t make the Finals until 2012. If the Cavaliers nail all their draft picks in the 2012 and 2013 drafts and follow the same schedule, they’re looking at 2016 before the Finals are in the picture. And that’s if everything goes perfectly.
This is why even though this year’s draft may not be as important as last year’s was, it’s still of the utmost importance that the Cavaliers don’t miss on these picks. Alonzo Gee and Tristan Thompson are nice players who can be a part of those role players the team needs, but the Cavaliers only have one potential superstar. If Irving is the Cavaliers’ Westbrook, they still need to find their Durant and Harden in these next couple drafts.
Every draft that they miss on sets them back at least one season, if not more. The more misses the Cavaliers compile, the more likely Kyrie Irving is to eventually leave. These are the stakes of building a Championship team.
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Of course, there is one other option, the elephant in the room in the shape of the rumor that just won’t die. And that’s the chance of LeBron James returning to the Cavaliers. James can opt out of his contract with the Heat in 2014, and if the likes of Brian Windhorst are to believed, LeBron could be trying to work his way back to Cleveland. If the Heat don’t win the title this year, that gives them two more shots at it before LeBron can leave. The Heat could easily win any or all of the next 3 championships. They have the talent. But they are a fundamentally flawed team.
The Celtics, Spurs, and Thunder were all constructed to be teams. They found pieces that all could fill different roles and niches. The Heat were constructed to just be an insane collection of talent. A museum of basketball greatness, if you will. But the problem is, LeBron and Wade have identical skill sets. Neither player is all that great playing off the ball. Both excel in creating with the ball in their hands. Neither one is a great outside shooter. Both players prefer using their physical abilities to bully themselves into the lane for either a layup or to draw fouls. Or both. Chris Bosh does give them an inside presence and the Heat have tried their best to surround them with outside shooters, but the whole system is flawed.
In the NBA playoffs, the games tend to slow down, resulting in a half court game where offensive efficiency and creativity is at a premium. The Celtics run that phenomenal pick and roll game with Rondo and Garnett while Pierce and Allen work their tails off without the ball to set themselves up in prime position to score. It’s a thing of beauty to watch, actually, when it’s working. The Heat just take turns between James and Wade creating a shot for themselves or just kicking it out to someone like James Jones or Norris Cole for a corner three.
It’s the same fundamental flaw that makes one wonder if welcoming James back to Cleveland is a smart basketball decision. Set aside the emotional side of it because obviously the vast majority of Cleveland fans do not want LeBron back. But from the basketball side of things, as sacrilegious as it sounds, LeBron James and Kyrie Irving may not be a great fit together either.
LeBron is one of the most unselfish superstars the game has ever seen. So it seems strange that it’s so hard to figure out how to build the ideal playoff offense around him. The problem is, LeBron just has never been a great off-ball player. He doesn’t want to post up, and he doesn’t like to work around off-ball screens. He’d rather have the ball in his hands and run the offense through himself. Which is a problem when you already have Kyrie Irving.
Look, if the choice was as simple as winning an NBA title with LeBron in Cleveland or never winning one without him, I’m taking the Championship with him. But it’s not that simple. The Cavaliers tried it once and couldn’t figure out how to win a title with LeBron. The Miami Heat are struggling mightily to figure out how to make that work. Beyond even play style or skill set, there are other distractions with LeBron.
James fell out of favor with Mike Brown, and he’s been a thorn in Erik Spoelstra’s side. As early 17 games into his first season with the Heat, there were rumors that LeBron was trying to sabotage Spoelstra and to get Pat Riley to coach the team. Do the Cavaliers want to go through a similar experience with Byron Scott?
For all the on court greatness LeBron can deliver, there’s no doubt a certain circus sideshow is always surrounding him. Would he help Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson, and whoever the Cavs draft in the next two years win a Championship in Cleveland? Or would he become a gigantic distraction to what the Cavaliers are now trying to build?
If the Thunder win the Championship this year, it should embolden not just the Cavaliers, but all small market teams throughout the NBA that with some smart drafting you can build a team that can take down the so-called evil empire that is the Miami Heat with LeBron James.
For most Cavalier fans, the only thing better than winning a Championship with LeBron would be winning one by going through him. We’re still several years from a point where that can be reality, but make no mistake, that’s the route the Cavaliers are currently trying to go. We’re a long way from a point where LeBron returning to the Cavaliers makes any kind of sense whatsoever.
75 Comments
” the elephant in the room in the shape of the rumor that just won’t die. And that’s the chance of LeBron James returning to the Cavaliers”
Andrew, please, that’s not the rumor so not sure why you’re using it as a springboard to fantasize on-court scenarios. The rumor, the only source of which can be LeBron, is that he is thinking about it. Maybe he is, or maybe this is another of his weird gestures to change the current narrative of his “brand,” to try and reclaim the positive attention he lost. But even if it’s genuine, he doesn’t decide, and it’s hard to believe that after what Gilbert and his organization put with – the prima donna attitude, the entourage, holding organizational moves hostage while he supposedly pondered but in fact colluded to leave, and then the public classless shaft – Gilbert would risk any part of that again. And no, the world’s most overentitled, egotistical athlete/monster creation will not come back here a changed man, suddenly content to do everything for the greater good. Gilbert won’t do it, and shouldn’t.
Again, let’s stay accurate about what Windy writes and not let nostalgic memories morph the rumor into something reasonably possible. The rumor will indeed die if you just repeat it accurately. This is just more LeBron nonsense. Whether he’s just sorry that he now has a selfish villian image or whether he’s actually sorry that he burned his bridges with Gilbert to the ground, he’s no longer The Decider within the Cavs org. Gilbert is. When you have any reason to think Gilbert would rather sell than seethat guy in the home locker room again, go ahead and picture him and Kyrie together.
‘if Sacramento somehow make the playoffs or comes close’ ?? That’s not happening out West buddy. You must be listening to some Bob Marley.
yes, it is impossible for the Kings to match the might that is the Suns (who are losing Nash) for that coveted 10seed in the West
You don’t even understand the point so who cares.
Yeah he is a real star in the making.
What planet are you on that someone that can’t shoot and has no post game can get 20 a game.
Your wrong. The Knicks wanted Brandon Knight and the cavs did not like how far down they would of drafted. They passed on it.
Name one draft pick they got right. I don’t care where you pick there is always people that can contribute in the top 20. They have made terrible moves drafting. They have had opportunities to improve the team and they have missed every single time except for Kyrie. It’s there responsibility to get a roster that has talent and they have proved they are one of the worst in the league at doing that over and over again.
opinions vary
Who cares about danny green. He was non existent in the playoffs. D Fisher has made big shots his whole career. You don’t even get it.
I couldn’t disagree more. People hire people who make stupid picks so the draft fluctuates. Teams have always weighed potential and skill forever it’s just some people are wrong. The draft is different year after year because the players coming out of it are different and teams have different needs. It’s obvious when you are picking in the top 5 that your team most likely has a lot of needs and you just need to land your superstar whether than pick for a system. You pick for a system when you land 2 or 3 great players and you have something to know where your needs are. So yeah maybe 5 or 10 teams are picking for a system but that has happened every year forever. It’s nothing new.
It’s such a tough argument because when lebron entered the league I thought he was destined to overtake Jordan for the greatest player ever because of his physical tools and skill level. I have never seen anyone come into the league and play that well for this much pressure put on him. When he made the decision to bring his talents(what a joke) to miami he took himself right out of that conversation because jordan would of never done this move. Can you imagine jordan going to Kobe’s team to play with him to win a championship. Never would jordan be this type of guy. If lebron stayed with cleveland he would of gone down as the greatest player ever to play. Now he is a a great skilled athlete that’s incredible player but not even close to jordan. He’s not even at Kobe’s level anymore. So for this reason I would take Durant because lebron missing that mental piece is such a critical part to being a champion.
This is some of the most amazing craziness I have ever read.
Where’s that guy posting as breakfast, we need to ask him to stop pooing in floyd’s Wheaties.
At 8 oclock last night I might have disagreed with you. Consider me a prisoner of the moment after Durant’s game 6. You couldn’t be more right.
Lunch? More like out to lunch
Fine, the Knicks would have been willing to trade up to #4 to get Knight. But all they had was the #17 and little to no young talent on the roster. There wasn’t any way they could give up enough to get the #4.
If you’re just going to look back and find one guy who was drafted later than contributed, then you need to find something else to entertain you, as the Cavs apparently just drive you nuts.
But considering where they got drafted, Brown, Hickson, Gibson, and Green all played above what should have been expected. And I’ll still defend the Eyenga pick. I love the idea of taking fliers on athletic foreign players at the end of the first round.
No, we definitely cannot safely say that, and I’ll still take Lebron the vast majority of the time.
??
both were UFA pickups that few teams seemed to want. they both played important roles at times and were ignored at others. those guys are important for any team.
Got it. Your saying you like most of the cavs picks the last 7 years. I couldn’t disagree more.
I’m talking about a player who has made big shots at crucial times in the playoffs his whole career. Danny Green had a good season with the Spurs from the 3 pt range. Yeah I see how they have a lot in common
What Lebron did is no different than some tiger presenting for another. The only thing is I didn’t know lebron was the presenter. Lebron is so much more physically dominant than Jordan it’s a joke so of course lebron should be better but he’s not. Jordan has lost hundreds of millions of dollars betting on golf playing against better players because he is that competitive. Lebron is not even in the same league.
they pretty much play the same role for their teams. get in, play good enough defense, and hit the 3pter when open.
Well your argument sure is waterproof. Oh wait, what was it again?