After Monday night’s 118-108 loss to the Golden State Warriors inside Quicken Loans Arena, the Cleveland Cavaliers find themselves as losers of nine of their last 12, which includes four straight.
The Cavs led the Warriors by seven points at halftime, but poor shooting in the fourth quarter (6-of-23, 26.1 percent) spelled their demise.
According to a report from ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, several Cavs players acknowledged a certain level of discontent in their ability to fix the issues that have plagued the team as of late.
“Several prominent players, speaking on condition of anonymity to ESPN, Cleveland.com and The Athletic, expressed doubt that the problems — an aging roster, defensively challenged personnel and a glut of redundant role players — could simply be worked out through patience and a chance to coalesce when fully healthy.”
There have been several contributing factors in the Cavs’ recent slump, including injuries to their rotation, acclimating new players into the lineup, and age (yes, the Cavs are the oldest team in the NBA).
The Cavs started this season with a 5-7 record, then later cranked out 18 wins in 19 games. Now, however, they’re mired in a funk.
Another glaring issue is the fact that the Cavs have struggled against the NBA’s top-ranked teams. In fact, Cleveland has posted a 1-6 record this season against the top three teams in both conferences.
There could be another adjustment period looming on the horizon for the Cavs, as Derrick Rose (ankle) and Iman Shumpert (knee) are nearing returns from injury.
Although the NBA’s February 8 trade deadline is drawing near, Cavs head coach Tyronn Lue says he isn’t anticipating any roster moves.
“I’m not anticipating anything,” coach Lue told ESPN before Monday’s loss to the Warriors, referring to the trade deadline.
The Cavs, now 26-17, still have time to iron out their proverbial wrinkles. The sky is not falling. However, if they truly want to compete for another championship in June, improvements will need to be made sooner rather than later.
