Cleveland Sports Forum

rusty - I agree and I am all in on the Celtics - as far as their coach and disciplined and team oriented players.

Love them.

That said, I still think the Cavs were sucking last year at this time but come April they went to a completely different level.

So I would predict them doing the same this year but being easy fodder for the Warriors - just like last.

As a result, I say no way you sacrifice that pick for a veteran player because it's in the best interests of all parties for Lebron to move on after the season. Best for Lebron - best for Cavs.

Hell, they got their title and that's huge. Anyone would have done whatever it took to do that.

Now - reset but with that pick.

PS - ok though, if they could get a really good YOUNG talent with that pick, that's different.

Going to be interesting to see what Gilbert does..... I wish they would just outright release JR Smith but he has a very valuable partially guaranteed contract this summer.

LeBron scores 16 points against the Magic. 2 for 8 from the free throw line. Who is tanking to force a move. No wonder Kyrie told this piece of crap toot a loo ! Wanted to play for a real team and not a team run by an egotistical baby......

Cavs need to go all in on the rebuild

After this season yes.

rusty2 wrote:LeBron scores 16 points against the Magic. 2 for 8 from the free throw line. Who is tanking to force a move. No wonder Kyrie told this piece of crap toot a loo ! Wanted to play for a real team and not a team run by an egotistical baby......

You have some points there, but I have a different opinion.

Kyrie is still really young, and the veterans on the Cavs are really quite lax about the regular season. The ups, the downs both during games and during the season is a really crappy way for a kid like Kyrie to go through a regular season.

I watch a ton of him in Boston and you can tell he likes the enthusiasm and the discipline on the team. The play defense and play it hard. YES, during the regular season.

LOL, I see it on Kyrie's face all the time. He is loving life right now - he made a great move for his career.

rusty - David Griffin now often comes on Sirius XM radio and he was with Joel Meyers today for 3 hours. (he works as a host, not a guest)

OF course, quite a few questions came to him about the Cavs - although in 3 hours callers covered all kinds of NBA stuff and I must say David Griffin is quite the NBA genius.

But regarding the Cavs he made a couple of points.

1. Isiah Thomas at this point is a liability because until his offense is up to par, his defensive deficiencies outweigh his compromised offense.

2. However more importantly, he talked about Tristan Thompson. Pointed out that TT is far from 100% (although getting there) and he is the defensive lynch pin. Without him being healthy they lose by far the most important cog in their defense. He ALSO pointed out that the NBA is still changing, and that TT in the lineup with Kevin Love is now playing TOO big.

Oh, by the way he pointed out during a different caller that Phoenix's win last night was mostly due to Tyson Chandler dominating the game defensively. He also mentioned that there is only 1 year left after this season on Chandler's contract. You may know that Phoenix is a clusterfuck of big men right now with Chandler, Greg Monroe then the young guys Alex Len, Marquese Chriss and Dragan Bender. Basically, I believe the Suns are showcasing Chandler and Monroe for the deadline so they can move them out and play the young guys like they should be.

Summary - if it were me as GM (or as Seagull would say GM Mark) I would get Chandler on the cheap (should be very doable) and go for it one last time this year. Then I would ASK Lebron to leave and start the rebuild.

The Chandler contract would come off the books after the following season which is fine. And it is only $13 mill

Griffin also pointed out that if Lebron leaves, the Cavs would still be screwed the following season financially. So the goal is to get contracts off the book after that dead season post Lebron. Chandler fits that.

Look we know there are financlai (Gilbert making huge money with Lebron on the team) and public relation reasons not to move on from Lebron, but he is old enough now that they would be better off without him to have any future at all. At this point, IMO, keeping him is like the scorched earth (WWII) policy in Germany - you would be trashing the franchise for a long, long time.

Move on, use that pick, trade salaries away and eat a season. Then start again.

Going to come out at some point in the future that Griffin was the guy that told Kyrie or Kyrie's agent that LeBron wanted Kyrie traded for Chris Paul.

As much as I would love it I would never see a scenario where Gilbert would want LeBron to leave. (Even older)

Griffin is buddies with everyone in the NBA. Not sure that Gilbert liked that.

IMO, LeBron is ruining the regular season NBA. Waste of money or time to even watch it. LeBron thinks it is an all star game.

LeBron supposedly makes everyone around him better. Really ?????? I would have a hard time naming a player.....

Only gave up 76 today so far...... (just half time)

rusty2 wrote: As much as I would love it I would never see a scenario where Gilbert would want LeBron to leave. (Even older)

IMO, LeBron is ruining the regular season NBA. Waste of money or time to even watch it. LeBron thinks it is an all star game.

I'll comment on these 2.

That is unfortunate, but I would understand it. Gilbert can't be the guy who first lost Lebron then booted him. He's a hero now after the title and he can't screw that up. Besides, with merchandising, tv etc Lebron is making him tons of cash.

I agree he ruins the regular season for the Cavs. But guys like Popovich, and increasingly the Warriors are following suit.

Interestingly, I actually think Lebron came out extra strong early on because of no Kyrie and no Isiah. I think he's running on fumes right about now and is going to need to get his breath before the playoffs. Unusual situation for him - he usually coasts until late February.

Look, they got their freaking title. I guess at this point the price they pay is a total crumble of any infrastructure they might have to survive his old age and then departure.

Bad timing for him personally, the Warriors are in his way and making a Paul/Kyrie trade an actual conversation. Suicidal.

If true, then the package they DID get for Kyrie was darn smart and pointed more towards his departure. Maybe he will be offended enough to continue his quest to conquer the Warriors elsewhere. Right now, the Cavs are unwatchable and headed towards a crash and burn.

Lebron has always been the guy that if you make him work too much he quits !

I think the Cavs are headed for another one of his faked injury left handed free throws like he did years ago in the playoffs.

This guy is just too cool for school. Won the genetic lottery and has not had to work for it. "The Chosen One" according to himself

3. Even LeBron James is privately acknowledging to those around him that this is the worst it has been since he returned. Worse than trying to stomach David Blatt’s unfamiliarity with the NBA, worse than the 19-20 start that first season and much, much worse than anything he endured last season, when he skewered the organization for a “top-heavy” roster while questioning the franchise’s commitment to winning. This is worse. Much worse.

4. But James isn’t even angry anymore. He didn’t go on a tirade after the Cavs matched the franchise record for points allowed in a regulation game Saturday. He didn’t put the organization on notice or demand a trade to fix the roster. Instead he left the locker room in a fairly good mood, but stunned and dazed like everyone else. What he doesn’t want, he said, is for Tyronn Lue to be fired.

5. “I would hope not, but I really don’t know,” James said. “I don’t know what’s going to happen with our team. I have no idea what conversations have been going on. … I can’t worry about job securities and trades and things of that nature. I just stay as focused as I can every night to go out and compete and try to help us win ballgames.”

Good stuff rusty. Be interesting to see how this develops.

That said, bottom line, it's time for all parties to move on after the season - AFTER getting Tyson Chandler to make a last run.

It's been said Brad Stevens finds ways to get the best out of guys. I think Jae Crowder is another example.

So beware of trades with Boston because a guy just might be at his peak value there with Stevens. Absolute stroke of genius by Danny Ainge landing that guy - and THEN Jayson Tatum in the last draft...trading DOWN no less!!

It is hard to believe that everyone was so high on Fultz. I had no comment because I had never seen him actually play. Once again it shows the error of drafting for a position rather then by skill level.

Even if Fultz turns out fine, trading DOWN and getting a player of Tatum's skill and potential (19 years old!!) is just genius.

Then they sort of had the "luck" of Hayward going down which thrust Tatum into a major role. Huge development which now makes their future even brighter.

It was said that Irving trade was really made for AFTER Lebron. If Lebron leaves, Hayward comes back, they still have Kyrie, Tatum had the extra development.....wow Boston is primed for a long run.