The Cleveland Cavaliers have had a very rough start to the 2017-18 campaign, going 3-4 in their first seven games. Going into the season, a lot of eyes were focused on this group and a lot of high expectations were placed on the team with all the talent at their helm. But an obvious lack of chemistry and lack of effort in defense has forced Cleveland into a hole to start the season - a hole they didn’t wish to get stuck in.
Although injuries have kept star players including Isaiah Thomas, Derrick Rose, and Dwyane Wade out of some or all games to start the season, the Cavs are still expected to win most their games, especially when facing teams like the Brooklyn Nets, New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, and the New Orleans Pelicans.
These are being teams that did not make the playoffs last season or even finish with a record above .500. The Cavaliers were expected to get off to a fast start this season with the lackluster opponents they faced to start the season in early October, but that just hasn’t happened.
Time and time again in the NBA, when the going gets tough and a team loses a bunch of games they’re expected to win, the blame gets thrown on the coach. And this looks to be another example of it.
Coach Lue not a good fit?
Tyronn Lue has received both praise and criticism in his time as head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, after taking over in January of 2016. The year he became the head coach, his team went on to win the NBA championship over the historically good Golden State Warriors team.
But the season after, they just didn’t have enough to overcome the powerhouse. At the end of the day, it’s the players on the court who play the game. The coach makes the call but the players are the ones who have to perform so it’s hard to judge a coach. However, there’s been some indication that Tyronn Lue isn’t as great as he may seem.
Tyronn Lue is a laid-back coach and is rarely seen demanding more from his players. In the past we have seen players on the team, mostly LeBron, make the big decisions. Dwyane Wade made the decision to come off the bench this season, and LeBron James told K-Love he is starting at center. These decisions were seemingly made by the players and just agreed on by the head coach.
Before GM David Griffin was fired, he would make sure there were no locker room issues, but now without Griffin, Coach Lue doesn’t have that helping hand, or so it doesn’t seem. But will Cavs new general manager Koby Altman make a decision about Cleveland’s head coach or is he fine with the way it is?
We’ve seen it happen before
Back in January of 2016, after the Cavaliers got off to a 30-11 start, general manager David Griffin fired head coach David Blatt when he felt the vibe after games in the locker room wasn’t what it should be. This turned out to be a good decision as the Cavs went on to achieve the ultimate success that season, earning the championship trophy. But just a year and a half later, it seems Cleveland might be in need of a fresh start again after a bad string of games, and a lack of chemistry both in the locker room and on the court.
With a lot of new players and injuries, the likelihood is that the Cavaliers will just try to get better as the games go on, without making any huge changes. But if the Cavs keep playing like this, we may see a change of coach, and it may happen very suddenly.
