The start of the 2017-18 NBA regular season has not been kind to the Cleveland Cavaliers. As of November 1, the Cavs sit at 3-4, and while we’re less than three weeks into the NBA season, if the playoffs started today, they’d be on the outside looking in. In fairness to the Cavs, they’ve had some rotten injury luck. Isaiah Thomas hasn’t played a game yet, as expected, due to the hip injury he suffered last season in Boston. In addition to Thomas, guards Derrick Rose and Iman Shumpert have also missed time.
Regardless of injuries, however, a team captained by LeBron James and Kevin Love should be better than 3-4 in a relatively weak Eastern Conference. The Cavaliers are better than this, and they know it.
The rough start has sparked a lot of soul-searching in Cleveland. Shortly after getting thoroughly destroyed by the New York Knicks at home on Sunday, the Cavaliers held the infamous team meeting, where they agreed to ‘air out’ whatever issues they had. According to Dave McMenamin of ESPN, LeBron was vocal, as expected, but everyone said their part. The Cavaliers walked away from the meeting in good spirits, as is often the case when something like this takes place.
The Cavaliers’ issues didn’t stop LeBron James from hosting his yearly Halloween party on Monday. The party featured LeBron James as Pennywise from IT, and Kevin Love as WCW icon Sting, among other fantastic costumes. If nothing else, the Cavs haven’t let the slow start stop them from having a little fun.
With everyone searching for answers as to why the Cavaliers are playing as uncharacteristically poor as they are, LeBron revealed just how difficult the start of the season has been for him at shoot-around on Wednesday. James opened up about a nagging ankle sprain he suffered in training camp that caused him to miss most of the preseason, and James made it sound a lot worse than it was reported at the time.
Transcript via Dave McMenamin, ESPN:
“This was probably the worst training camp for me in my career because of the injury,” James said at Cavs shootaround Wednesday morning before their game against the Indiana Pacers. “I didn’t get an opportunity to do the things that I like to do and with the summer that I had, I kind of had a setback.”
When you consider the fact that James has played in 217 playoff games over the course of his 15-year career, he was due for a bad training camp at some point. It’s also worth noting that the NBA started the regular season in mid-October this year, and LeBron’s deep playoff run in 2016-17, coupled with the early season start, could have contributed to “the worst training camp” of his career. He’s played a lot of professional basketball.
“Training camp has always been like my favorite point in the season, it sounds weird, but to be able to get back into it, get the team going, having that camaraderie, getting back on the floor, getting that system back in place,” James said. “For me to be in and out and much more out that in and to be able to implement what I do, especially with [eight] new guys, that kind of hurt.”
Does LeBron’s ankle injury excuse the Cavaliers’ poor start? No, but it does provide some context for what they’ve gone through. If history is any indication, the Cavaliers will figure this thing out eventually, but the bigger concern is with LeBron and his durability.
While one sprained ankle in training camp isn’t really cause for long-term concern by itself, James is going to be 33-years old later this season. At some point, his body is not going to be able to perform at the level we’re all used to seeing, and it’s not as if the Cavaliers are doing anything to manage his minutes right now. They can’t. They’re struggling, and they have major injury concerns at point guard. James, being the outstanding player he is, is picking up the slack, but how much longer is he going to be able to do this? Time will tell.
