Since the Boston Celtics eliminated the Cleveland Cavaliers in the conference semi-finals, many experts have jumped on the bandwagon in saying that the talent surrounding LeBron James simply isn’t enough to win a title.
Where were these people about a month ago?
Many of these same people were saying that the acquisition of Antawn Jamison made the wine and gold the odds on favorite to win the NBA championship.
Others have criticized Dan Gilbert and Danny Ferry for making trades designed to win the title this season, and leaving the franchise with little or no salary cap space to work with heading into the 2010-11 season. They also say the Cavs tried to mix and match up the roster instead of building a solid nucleus of talent to surround LBJ.
What choice did the franchise have?
The answer is they didn’t have one, and LeBron James himself is partially to blame.
James wanted to keep his options open, which is his right. His decision kept the franchise constant pushing to make a championship run, and for the most part, that’s a good thing. However, it also stops the front office from building a solid foundation for a championship team.
Once the Cavaliers were good enough to make deep runs in the playoffs, they no longer could use the draft as an option to get an all-star type player. Those guys don’t come along in the bottom half of the first round.
Therefore, Ferry had only one option to upgrade the roster, and that is to either sign free agents to large contracts or make trades for good players on other teams who have large contracts that their current teams are trying to get rid of.
If LeBron James had made a commitment to the organization that he was going to be here for an extended stay, the GM would have had more time to build a younger core of talent.
It also would have encouraged other star players to want to play for the Cavs, knowing LBJ was here for the long run.
As for the current Cavs’ roster, there is most definitely talent. It’s amazing to me how players all of a sudden are better when they play for championship teams.
For example, there are people saying that the Lakers’ Pau Gasol is the wingman for Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles. However, when Gasol was toiling in obscurity in Memphis, no one was hailing him as this type of player. An all-star? Certainly, but not a key contributor on a championship team.
The point is people might be looking at Antawn Jamison the same way if the Cavaliers were playing Thursday night in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Players on title teams always have enhanced reputations because people seeing them playing on the big stage more often.
A championship for wine and gold would have everyone talking about the energy of Anderson Varajao, the grittiness of Delonte West, and how long the team is defensively with Shaquille O’Neal and Zydrunas Ilgauskas.
However, an early exit means these guys aren’t good enough to help LeBron James win a title.
The 2009-10 Cleveland Cavaliers had some good players, and had a deep roster. We all thought that a month ago. The problem was not utilizing some of them properly.
To say there isn’t talent here is a mistake. They were good enough to win 61 games in the regular season, despite a lot of injuries. That doesn’t happen by accident.
JK
Cleveland Sports Perspective 