Everything you need to know about Cavs new head coach Tyronn Lue: WFNY FAQs
January 22, 2016Rough start for a new coach: Cavaliers vs. Bulls, Behind the Box Score
January 23, 2016After a 2014-2015 NBA season that I frequently ridiculed as a soap opera named As the Cavs Turn, I was looking forward for the 2015-16 to be a Cleveland Cavaliers basketball season that was predominantly about, well, basketball. So much for that.
Though the Cavaliers were a few lucky bounces away from leading the NBA Finals 3-1 last season1 and were 30-11 after Thursday night’s legitimate win against the Los Angeles Clippers (who had won 11 of their last 12 games), the Cavaliers fired head coach David Blatt on Friday afternoon. Never before had a NBA coach been fired mid-season while his team sat atop its conference, as the Cavs do in the East.
Blatt’s firing was as shocking a managerial decision as possible in 2016 — when it’s nearly impossible for something to happen without whispers or signs in the approaching hours; news of a secret meeting or vote of confidence. But, not on Friday. The Wojbomb fell from the sky with nary a warning; blasting perceptions, incinerating conventional wisdom, and evaporating any notions of certainty about the Cavaliers. It would have been less surprising if the Cavs had announced that they were going to replace their uniforms with polyester suits and the basketball with a beach ball for the remainder of the season.
The Wojbomb fell from the sky with nary a warning; blasting perceptions, incinerating conventional wisdom, and evaporating any notions of certainty about the Cavaliers.
The second reason the move left NBA followers aghast was the timing. Depending on what you read (or believe), Blatt’s job has been imperiled since before Day 1 of the 2014-15 season. Stories about Blatt’s inability to win the adoration of James and the other players lingered over the 2014-15 season like a bad stench.
But why make the move now? The 34-point ass-whooping from the Warriors didn’t help matters. But, the Cavs responded with two consecutive persuasive wins. What did owner Dan Gilbert and general manager David Griffin learn about Blatt in the last 41 games (or 10 or five) that they didn’t already know after the Finals last season? It was as if they kept Blatt until there was the least amount of suspicion that he’d lose his job. It was as if the Cavs held onto Blatt out of spite, waiting until the media least expected it. It was as if the team wanted to convince us that the organization came up with the idea on its own.
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General manager David Griffin’s Friday afternoon press conference was representative of the internal struggle of Cavs fans and of the organization itself. He projected confidence and certainty that appeared to be the product of thoughtful deliberation, mixing prepared thoughts (a rarity for Griffin) with succinct beliefs. But, while justifying the move as a product of the organization’s clarity of vision, Griffin side-stepped the idea that Blatt’s hiring was a result of the same clear vision; that Blatt struggled with a roster at the beginning of last season that required significant overhaul; and that owner Dan Gilbert needed to be convinced by Griffin that the coaching change was the proper course of action.
To Griffin, the Cavs were weighed down by the urgency to win a title, an urgency that’s certainly multiplied by an abrupt coaching change. Griffin repeatedly alluded to the fact that the Cavs didn’t handle prosperity well — that they weren’t “galvanized by wins.” He found this concerning, but noted the team’s ability to thrive in “chaos” — which I suppose is good, since Blatt’s firing throws a brick through the window of organizational continuity and grabs the nearest stereo. Griffin acknowledged that the move may inspire some chaos on its own, so if it was a deliberate move to abandon under-achieving stability in favor of prosperous anarchy he’s either a genius or a madman.
Which brings us to Blatt’s replacement, the future of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the possibly damaging precedent set by the dismissal of Blatt. Blatt’s replacement will be Tyronn Lue, a former player who was recruited before last season as ” associate head coach” after Blatt’s hiring. Griffin lauded Blatt for encouraging the team to bring aboard Lue (who was made the highest-paid assistant coach in the league), even after Lue was seen as the runner-up for the Cavs head coaching position that Blatt won (however briefly). In fact, Griffin was effusive with his praise for Blatt overall with the exception being his inability to foster “connectivity” with the players.
Griffin particularly complimented Blatt’s leadership delegating authority to his assistant coaches like Lue … the guy who ended up taking his job. Even Griffin couldn’t ignore that it was “ironic” that Lue ended up replacing Blatt because Blatt was partially responsible for bringing Lue aboard and producing valuable evidence that convinced Griffin and Gilbert that Lue was capable of coaching the team.
But, will this move is sure to be interpreted by players and other coaches as an ambiguous message? Be careful delegating responsibility, giving power to an underling, or helping the development of a younger player because he may come for your job someday. It sets a strange precedent. One gets visions of Mo Williams giving Jared Cunningham the wrong directions to the airport or of Tyronn Lue shoving Jim Boylan in a locker during film sessions. A feedback loop setup by Griffin fostering paranoia.
Lue was diplomatic about remaining to loyal to Blatt while sympathizing with the frustrations of players. But, Lue’s ascendance to head coach of one of the most talented rosters in the NBA could also be seen as the kind of Machiavellian power move reserved for teetering dictatorships and banana republics, not basketball teams.
The unceremonious elimination of Blatt seems to put anything in play. For the past season-and-a-half, my refrain has been, “Relax, the Cavs will be fine. They’re not going to do anything crazy.” And, for the most part, the Cavs have been fine. I’ve used “chill out” and “deep breaths” to rebuff speculation that the Cavs will fire Blatt or trade Love since last November. Now? I have no idea what to think. Nor should anyone else. Anything seems in play. Mozgov? Love? Who isn’t expendable now? I’ve lost my credibility in arguing that the Cavs will take a patient, steady approach.
The whacking of Blatt may well be a brilliant move by Griffin and the Cavs. Maybe it settled all family business like Michael Corleone did at the end of The Godfather, or maybe it’s the first in a series of moves that will further transform the Cavs. “Blatt’s gone. Today I settled all team business, so don’t tell me you’re innocent, Mozgov. Admit you don’t attack the rim aggressively enough to force a foul. … Get him a drink.”
The Cavs have been winning … but was it because of David Blatt or in spite of David Blatt? If the Cavs lose before the seventh game of the NBA Finals, Blatt’s firing will be an epic blunder. If the Cavs win the Finals, the move to Lue will be a brilliant shakeup. But knowing Cleveland, it won’t likely end much better for the Cavaliers than it did for Fredo.
- Yes, they were also a few unlucky bounces away from being down 1-3. [↩]
15 Comments
Keeping in mind that we fans have only a vague idea of what really goes on with any team, it’s still clear that LeBron’s public disrespect for Blatt was over the top and greased the skids. Moreover, LeBron controls the mood of the team, so if the locker room was unhappy, he either made it that way or he allowed it to be.
On the other hand, if you’ve ever had the misfortune to work for a boss you couldn’t stand and didn’t respect, you can understand LeBron’s frustration. Several Plain Dealer writers hammered Blatt in this morning’s paper for some of his actions and some of his behavior.
So both Blatt and LeBron are “to blame” for the Cavs’ supposed problems, and neither one of them comes out of this smelling very good.
So here we are, hitting the familiar old “reset” button again. There’s an old saying that sounds like a blessing but is actually a curse: “May you live in interesting times.” Boy, we sure have lately.
What coach has LeBron ever liked besides Joyce and Dambrot? It’s really bizarre.
Time for a much needed break I thought it was bad enough with the Browns but this tops the cake for me. Listening to Griffin yesterday I couldn’t help but think being that he’s in the locker room so much maybe he should have been the head coach. Clearly he’s familiar with this teams low self-esteem I mean when you can’t enjoy a win somethings obviously wrong with you.
Anyways some people around here talked about Kevin Love and his lack of defense and they were 1000% correct. I stuck up for this guy but after reading numerous stories, hearing Twitter comments and watching him I think he’s a soft sulking whiner who produced in Minnesota frankly because he was their only good player. I feel let down. Reading that he was almost traded last year to Phoenix just sealed the deal.
So maybe Lue can provide the backbone this weak minded coddled entitled team needs. Maybe they’ll listen to him because they “like” him. They “respect” him. Maybe he’ll be a better head coach then a player. Maybe maybe maybe.
Rick Carlisle http://sports.yahoo.com/news/carlisle-embarrassed-league-over-blatt-100600680.html I’m with you. It’s just a shame that the Cavaliers run an organization more like the Browns then you know all of the other winners in professional sports.
The Love stuff is seriously disturbing. The guy has a chance to compete for multiple titles and this is how he acts?
This team is clearly 3rd in the league behind SA and GS.
Tyronn Lue
here’s my biggest concern:
“Like, if you watch the Clippers, Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan, they go and talk to Lawrence Frank. Or in Phoenix, to [Mike] Longabardi, the defensive coordinator. They’re going to talk to him. Or in New Orleans, with Darren Erman, the guys are going to talk to him. So that’s the position I was put in, and the media kind of took it and ran with it like they’re going to talk to me more than Blatt, which is not the case at all. It was just mostly defense.”
Ty Lue said that. And the Cavs were getting eaten up on D lately. I’m hoping that was just to appease the media because, by the numbers, he hasn’t earned the promotion.
He knows how he got his job and if I was him I wouldn’t exactly be doing somersaults over it. If I was him I wouldn’t turn my back on this team if you catch my drift because Lue could be next. Meanwhile in Golden State Luke Walton slides over a seat and welcomes back Steve Kerr as head coach. That’s how it’s supposed to work.
and Chris Jent. But JM’s point is surely about head coaches. Head coaches can’t play good cop all the time and still be effective.
This reflects my thinking as well. I’d only add: if the season ends without a trophy and the big 3 are still relatively healthy, this will fall upon LeBron, not Griffin. Because no one will (or should) believe that LeBron didn’t prompt this or at least set the environment and then put on his headphones and stroll away while the knives were sharpened.
This org is LeBron. He’s opted for one year contracts in order to constantly keep his sneaker on all necks at all times.There’s no Pat Riley or Wade to modify his behavior or tell him: no, this is the coach, work it out. Good or bad, add it to the Cleveland part of LeBron’s legacy.
Yep, LeBron is the most important person in this organization. More important than Lue, more important than Griffin, more important the Gilbert. You know that. I know that. The American people know that.
It’s all on him now — but of course, it’s always been. Now there’s just no cover.
BTW, Griffin is the anti-Haslam. He didn’t take a poll and look for consensus. He did what he was hired to do. I prefer that way.
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After Griffin’s press conference, I thought I understood why Blatt was fired. Thirty-six hours later, and multiple statements from the coach that are inconsistent with what Griffin, I can’t think of a single basketball reason that makes sense. More and more I’m coming around to the idea that Lue didn’t so much get promoted as much as have his boss replaced. Lebron’s the coach. It’s semi-official.
Love has not played the worst D. He is often ones in position but does not try to block the shot. Seems like he can often but never does