The Cleveland Cavaliers just suffered a massacre of epic proportions at the hands of the Indiana Pacers in Game 6 of their first-round playoff matchup. The Cavs lost in embarrassing fashion, 121-87. The 34-point drubbing that the Cavs received just shows that the team may not be ready for an even more pressure-packed situation in Game 7.
No LeBron James team has ever exited the first round and this might be the first time he experiences a loss of this magnitude in his career. Despite missing the playoffs during his first two seasons in the league, he has made it to the semifinals every single year and he’s advanced beyond it more times than not.
But now, in his 15th year in the league, James faces the possibility of exiting the playoffs in April, a prospect that no one expected would ever happen to any of his teams. Most pundits had the Cavs winning their series against the Pacers handily with a Game 6 win by Cleveland — the most the series would extend.
But a must-win Game 7?
Even the most die-hard LeBron-hater couldn’t have predicted this series to go this far. Most expected James, despite the shortcomings of his roster, to make it to the second-round of the playoffs with little to no problem at all. However, the Pacers appear to have found the formula for beating the Cavs. Indiana already stole the first game of the playoffs from Cleveland on the road and they have the confidence to do it again in Game 7.
If the Cavs lose their series against the Pacers, it’s very probable that James will have played his last game as a Cavalier. The humiliation may be too much for someone like James who loves the spotlight and the adulation of millions. Losing to an inferior team in the first round may be an indication to the Akron native that the front office isn’t equipped to give him the team that he needs to compete for a championship every year.
The Supporting Cast
When Cavs GM Koby Altman made the Feb. 8 trade deadline deals to bring in new blood, the team received younger players, those who could run with James in the open court and spot up for the three. The team’s January struggles necessitated the trade, believing that the players they acquired in the offseason didn’t really fit in with James and the Cavs’ style of play.
For the first few games, the Cavs played like world-beaters, dismantling the best teams in the league such as the Boston Celtics and Oklahoma City Thunder. Then came the All-Star break and the Cavs were struggling once again as they were plagued by inconsistency and injuries.
By the time the playoffs rolled around, the Cavs had supposedly found their groove back, winning 11 of their last 14 games.
But the Pacers came to the series with the determination that they can win against the Cavs. The confidence that they have is brought on by head coach Nate McMillan, a no-nonsense individual as a former player. He brought along the defensive mindset he had during his playing days and the team has responded with their best season since the 2013-14 season as Victor Oladipo took over as the leader from Paul George.
The Cavs players (new and old) have not given James the support that he needs. Kevin Love, his right-hand man since Kyrie Irving was traded to the Celtics, has not played well in this series despite going up against non-All-Star talents from the Pacers’ frontcourt. He’s only averaging 11.0 points on an atrocious 32.3 percent shooting from the field and 9.8 rebounds in this series. No one else is scoring in double-figures from the team.
Kyle Korver has helped James win a couple of games with 18- and 19-point games but has been non-existent in a few others. J.R. Smith has been worse and Tristan Thompson has been on the bench almost the entire series. Jeff Green has had a horrible series, unbecoming of a veteran of his caliber. And whatever happened to Jose Calderon? The veteran was a steadying factor for the Cavs before the postseason but now he looks like an inexperienced rook.
As for the new guys? George Hill has only appeared in three games and has missed the last three with a back injury. Jordan Clarkson and Rodney Hood are playing poorly and only Larry Nance Jr. appears to have shown some consistency in his role.
If James were to look at the entire roster, it’s difficult for him to be confident that the Cavs can contend for a title if he stays.
But there may be a more pressing reason for the Cavaliers’ woes and why a loss in Game 7 may cost Cleveland its greatest player ever in the offseason.
The Coach
Over the past year, much of the Cavs’ poor performances were being blamed by the media on the players. The trade deadline deals didn’t address the Cavs’ maddening inconsistency as well.
Very few considered that head coach Tyronn Lue might be the problem.
But something happened in March that may have pointed the Cavs’ problem at Lue. When he got sick at halftime of a game against the Chicago Bulls, assistant coach Larry Drew took over and the Cavs won. And they kept winning most of their games, too, as Drew led Cleveland to a 9-1 record under his watch. During that stretch, the Cavs defeated playoff teams such as Milwaukee, New Orleans, and the Toronto Raptors twice.
How did that happen?
The Cavs were fifth in offensive rating in the regular season but only 29th in defensive rating. But during Drew’s time as head honcho on the bench, the Cavs were number one in the league in offensive rating at 114.3 and improved to number 19 on the defensive end at 108.3. That resulted in a net rating of 6.0 which was good for seventh in the NBA during that span.
Additionally, prior to Drew taking over the coaching reins from Lue, the Cavs had only won five of their last 12 games. As soon as Lue took back his head coaching position, the Cavaliers have gone 5-5 including the last four regular season games and the last six games of the playoffs.
Lue may have won Cleveland a championship in 2016 but this season shows that he’s no longer the man for the job. Despite James’ public support of Lue, he knows the Cavs can get a better coach when he sees the job that McMillan has done with the Pacers, Quinn Snyder with the Jazz, Brad Stevens with the Celtics, Dwane Casey with the Raptors, Alvin Gentry with the Pelicans, Mike D’Antoni with the Rockets, and Brett Brown with the Sixers. Anyone of those coaches could have done a better job coaching this Cavs team than Lue.
James needs a coach that can maximize the potential of his team’s talent and Lue has failed in that regard. The Cavs’ roster isn’t as bad as you may think. Having the best player in the world can only make you look good up to a point but the Cavs’ disappointing performance this year can only be attributed to Lue’s ineptitude.
“LeBron Gone” a Foregone Conclusion if the Cavs lose Game 7?
There’s a huge possibility that James leaves Cleveland in free agency with a Game 7 loss. But there is a way to try and bring him back.
If team owner Dan Gilbert doesn’t replace Lue with a better coach, he may as well say goodbye to James in the offseason. Lue needs to go. There are good coaches available such as David Fizdale, Mike Budenholzer, Mark Jackson and Frank Vogel.
Next, the Cavs need to either land a franchise-type player in the draft (if they get one of the top three picks) or trade it away to get another All-Star player that James can rely on. Whether that’s Kawhi Leonard, Paul George or DeMarcus Cousins, Altman needs to pull the trigger on a trade/sign-and-trade that will make James think twice about leaving his hometown team.
Regardless of how well he plays in Game 7, Love’s poor showing in the playoffs may have cost him his future in Cleveland. If James decides to stay, Love is likely to be traded for a more reliable second or third wheel. His inconsistency may have doomed his chances of ever playing with the Cavs again.
If the Cavaliers fail to advance to the second round of the playoffs after Sunday’s game, James is practically gone from Cleveland. It will be a herculean task for the front office to try and talk him out of leaving town. More than just talk, however, the Cavs need to make a flurry of moves to keep their star in a wine and gold uniform next season both from the bench boss to the supporting cast.
The four-time Most Valuable Player has about seven more seasons left in his career and if he wants to continue chasing “the ghost of Chicago,” then he wants to be on a team that will give him the best opportunity to achieve this goal. It’s no secret that James wants to be known as the greatest player ever and to surpass his idol, Michael Jordan. But in order to do that, he has to win championships and losing in the first round with this Cavaliers team will be the last straw.
That’s why Game 7 is so important for both Lue and James’ running mates to show that they haven’t abandoned him to do everything for them. It’s time for them to show up or else the King will soon reside in another kingdom.
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