Cleveland Cavaliers: Stay Healthy, Stay The Best

The Cleveland Cavaliers landscape is currently being dominated by the contract situation with Tristan Thompson. Several days ago, he was reportedly $14 million apart from Cavs management. Then, a couple days ago, there was a false report that he’d signed a three-year deal (which seems, at this point, too good to be true).

Thompson and his holding out has been written and talked about at nauseam, so let’s clear our heads and take a step back for a moment to look at the big picture – the overarching storyline of maximum saliency this coming season.

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What could I possibly be talking about? Why, health of course. And this idea of healthiness is, admittedly, one of the reasons that Thompson would be valuable to bring back. Excluding his rebounding prowess and ever-improving defensive skills, his resiliency on the court is one of his most appealing attributes.

In three out of the four seasons Thompson has been in the NBA, he’s played in 82 games. Only in his first season did he play less (60 games) due to injury. Looking at the Cleveland roster, there is arguably no one (save LeBron James) who is as durable while contributing such a large role to the club.

Just look at the frontcourt: Kevin Love is an injury-prone player (though he was healthy last offseason until Kelly Olynyk tried to rip his arm off in a Beowulf-Grendel-style collision), and Anderson Varejao has been out for so long that he could be mistaken for an Armani model.

That leaves poor Timofey Mozgov out there alone (let’s be real, Sasha Kaun won’t be providing much help) in the trenches. Much like last season/offseason, if something happens to Mozgov, the Cavs are screwed.

That nagging concern would be at least somewhat relieved if Thompson reaches a deal. Merely by the fact that he could show up and be in uniform, the Cavs could rest easier. Just knowing that there’s another player to step in and who isn’t made of glass is a confidence booster of strange magnitude.

Yes, the Cavaliers’ 2015-16 run depends almost entirely on health. Of course, the same can be said for any team, and health is always a factor once the playoffs arrive. But the Cavs are one of those teams that requires special care. Every fall, every reckless leap, every charge taken is enough to make a Cavs fan wince.

It doesn’t help that Cleveland’s Big 3, comprised of LeBron, Love and Kyrie Irving, all had injuries last season. James has always been supremely durable, but Father Time is creeping up on him at double speed due to the extensive minutes he’s played in the past. Both Love and Irving often are plagued with injuries, and can never seem to shake them fully.

When two of your three best players struggle to stay on the floor when things matter most, it damages a team in a panoply of ways. The Cavs need most of their production to stem from these players; they are not an excessively deep squad.

True, I’m being a worrier here. But it’s a valid concern with this team. They are still the best group in the East by a wide margin, and they can handle guys missing a few games here and there. But one has to wonder if they will ever be able to string together an entire postseason without major issues, lest it become the legacy of this version of the Cavs.

So here’s my plea to the basketball gods: please watch over the Cavaliers this season (and the rest of the league, please!) and allow all of these guys to display their talents harm-free. Then let what will be, be.

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