Since the Cleveland Cavaliers made the trade before the deadline that brought in four new players, LeBron James has been living his best life.
After one of the initial games with his new teammates, James gave the bench celebration of the season after Jordan Clarkson made a 3-pointer, per Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints.
Now that the All-Star break is over and he’s gotten more time with his new teammates, James is starting to realize how much they are helping on the defensive side of the ball. He detailed that after Friday’s blowout win over the Memphis Grizzlies, per Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com.
“Our league is all pick and roll,” James said. “So when you’ve got a point guard (Hill) and a center (Nance) that can play two on two and the other three can kind of stay at bay, it helps out everybody.”
The Cavs acquired Clarkson, Larry Nance Jr., George Hill, and Rodney Hood in exchange for six of their players. Since that day, there has been a rejuvenation in the locker room of Cleveland, and that has translated to James and his energy as he plays the stretch run of the season.
It’s clear that the trade was the right thing to do. The Cavs got younger and more athletic in just a matter of hours, and have resuscitated their season as a result.
The Cavs — and the rest of the league for that matter — don’t have many games left in the season. It will be important for the teams that have something to play for to create as much connectivity as possible for the stretch run.
And with the trades, Cleveland did just that. Now it’s time for the Cavs to put it together on both sides of the floor and make something happen in order to get themselves back to the finals.