Cleveland Cavaliers: Is This the Turning Point For Cavs?
By Austin Remo
Thankfully for the Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron James is back. Even more importantly, though, LeBron James is playing the way we’ve been accustomed to seeing him play the past few years when he was with the Miami Heat: Like the best player in the world.
He’s been back on the court for three games now, and has scored more than 30 points in each game. After sitting on the sidelines for two weeks, he’d watched his team crumble in front of him, going 1-8 during that time.
They weren’t just losses. They were beat downs. And they were embarrassing, especially to James.
But it wasn’t just the losses that were piling up. Over the two weeks he was out, there were rumors and reports about head coach David Blatt being ignored by his players and undermined by his assistants.
Take a look here what ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said in a story he wrote after the Cavs lost to the Phoenix Suns last Tuesday:
"They see players appearing to run different plays than the bench calls, see assistant coach Tyronn Lue calling timeouts literally behind Blatt’s back during games, and hear Cavs players openly talking about coaching issues with opposing players and personnel. Not once, not twice, but frequently over the past several months.For weeks now, the small talk when league personnel run into each other at college games, airports or pregame meals has frequently started with: “What the hell is going on in Cleveland?”Griffin and the Cavs media relations staff have been run ragged attempting to manage all of it. Griffin has been slapping Band-Aids on everything from intrateam relationships to his roster while dealing with what now seem like impossible expectations. All with half his team on stress-inducing, one-year contracts while working for an owner who chews through executives and coaches on a regular basis."
Yeah, it’s been pretty rough on the shores of Lake Erie this season.
TURNING POINT
After all the controversy and rumors about Blatt and possibly being fired by Cleveland, the Cavaliers came out and finished their five-game road trip on a strong note.
In what was perhaps their biggest win of the season, they held off a very good Los Angeles Clippers team to win in the second night of a back-to-back in L.A., 126-121.
As I mentioned before, LeBron James playing like his old self was a huge part of that.
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In fact, the King became the youngest player in NBA history to reach 24,000 points at 30 years and 17 days in the win over the Clips. What knee and back issues?
In the three games since his return, he’s scored 33, 36 and 32 points for an average of 33.7 points per game during that stretch. He’s also been much more efficient since coming back, shooting 52.3 percent from the field in those three games.
The Cavs have won two straight and are 2-1 since he came back from his knee and back injuries, snapping a six-game losing skid when they beat the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night in L.A.
Kyrie Irving, James’ new sidekick, was on fire in their win over the Clippers, dropping 37 points on 12-of-18 from the field and 5-of-7 from deep.
But, what was more encouraging for the Cavs and the rest of their season was on an inbounds play. It came with 47 seconds left in the game and Cleveland up 119-115, in which David Blatt drew up something special for.
It was a good play, yes, but the main thing to look at here is the love LeBron gave to Blatt after Tristan Thompson got the and-1 on the call.
He pounds his chest and gives a long point and look over at David Blatt, giving him all the credit for the play call. Of course, he deserves it. He’s the coach.
Here’s what Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com had to say about Blatt’s inbounds play:
"The Cavs were leading, 119-115. There was less than a minute remaining. They had just called timeout to set up a sideline inbounds play. James rifled an inbounds pass to an open Thompson for the layup and foul. Thompson completed the three-point play, giving the Cavs a seven-point advantage.Blatt knew the defense would key in on Irving so he used him as a decoy to draw to defender. Griffin hesitated and left Thompson open as expected. The play design led to the bucket and James pointed to Blatt, acknowledging the head coach for a great play at the perfect time.Blatt pushed the right buttons and his late-game strategy helped get a second straight win. It’s those kinds of moments that can galvanize a disjointed team and help Blatt earn the trust of his players."
Now, it’s only one game and one instance of LeBron showing his love and respect to Blatt on the court. But, it’s two straight wins for Cleveland in hostile environment that they desperately needed.
With a four-game home stand coming up, the road wins couldn’t have come at a better time. If there is one thing you can take away from this game and the future of the Cleveland Cavaliers, it’s that this was a step in the right direction for all parties involved.
Can the Cavs turn their season around after their big win in L.A.?
Stats via ESPN.com.