The Golden State Warriors chased down the Cleveland Cavaliers to sweep the regular season series on Martin Luther King Day and, while that game suddenly moved to the back-burner in light of the late night madness in Los Angeles, the effects of the performance could be long-lasting.
While it was “just” a regular season win for the defending champions in many ways, the result was unfortunate for LeBron James and company in that the team is absolutely reeling right now. In fact, there is legitimate speculation concerning issues within its structure.
One such report comes from Kristen Ledlow of NBATV, who brings word of a “broken” scene in the Cavs’ locker room after this most recent defeat.
“It’s very rare to walk into a Cavalier locker room and to feel as though the team is broken. That was very much the mood.”@KristenLedlow on the state of the Cavs. #10BeforeTip pic.twitter.com/5rWjcoXGax
— NBA TV (@NBATV) January 16, 2018
Much of the attention has shifted to whether Cleveland will execute a deadline trade in an effort to level the playing field a bit but, even with a lights-out first half and a friendly home venue, the Cavs simply didn’t have enough on Monday. While this isn’t a “normal” team in that the Cavs have earned the benefit of the doubt throughout the second LeBron era, four straight losses (some of which came in lopsided fashion) can certainly produce some level of worry and the vibes emanating from Quicken Loans Arena are not ideal at the moment.
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Of course, it has to be noted that the Cavs may simply flip the switch, especially on the defensive end, and it seems unwise to bet against a team led by James until he actually doesn’t reach the NBA Finals. Still, whispers like these are becoming louder as January unfolds and, this time around, the roster questions appear to be more founded in reality than in previous seasons.
