People’s views on the just finished Cleveland Cavaliers’ season probably depend on what their definition of progress is.
Yes, the Cavs have improved in each of the last three years since LeBron James departed for a second time via free agency. In the first season, they were 19-63, a .232 winning percentage.
The following season, the win total stayed the same, but due to the COVID pandemic, the season was shortened to 65 games, so they won at a 29.2% rate. That was followed by an increase in the win column, from 19 to 22, again in a non-traditional 72 game slate, so the winning percentage increased to .306.
The last two seasons came with a draft pick selected in the top five.
If you like a slow rebuilding process, these Cavaliers are for you. But at this pace, the wine and gold will make the playoffs around when this decade ends.
That may not be fair, but this franchise hasn’t made the NBA playoffs without James since the 1997-98 season, so pardon everyone if they are skeptical about the future of this team.
It has been reported that owner Dan Gilbert is contemplating making some changes to the front office, so we guess that would put the man at the top in the not so patient class.
If Cleveland had approach the 30 win mark this season, a figure that should have been attainable, we doubt anyone would be calling for a review of how things have been done over the past three seasons. As Bill Parcells famously said, you are what your record says you are.
However, there is more to putting together a basketball team than collecting talent. And we don’t know if Altman and the current front office understands this. You need players that can play off each other, amplify the strengths of their teammates and minimize the weaknesses.
In short, you need players who play for the rest of the men on the roster.
You also need someone with a vision. Can they see the team winning with Darius Garland and Collin Sexton getting the most minutes at the guard position? And if you go forward with them as a backcourt duo, what do you have to do around them to lead to victories.
And what to do with Isaac Okoro, who played well as a rookie and took the task of defending the opposition’s best scorer pretty much on a nightly basis. Okoro can play in the NBA, but his size screams that he’s a two guard. Can he provide the offense that position requires?
The point is all three of those players have talent. In a vacuum, you would say Altman made solid choices on each player. But can you win with them playing point guard, #2 guard, and small forward? We wouldn’t bet our career on it.
We have said this before, but improvement in the win column has to be a priority. No matter what happens with the draft lottery this season, it should be made clear the franchise doesn’t want to be involved in it again following the 2021-22 season.
We believe winning is a learned skill, and it hasn’t been taught around this franchise since James left. That has to change right now, and that starts with ownership and Altman, or whoever is in charge of the basketball part of the operation.
The Cavs don’t need to be a playoff team at this time next year, but they need to take a significant step in that direction.
Cleveland Sports Perspective 