Point Four-ward: Reinforcements on the Way

Lance Stephenson, one of the free agents coming to try out today.

2017 has not been kind to the Wine and Gold.  While I don’t believe there is anything to suggest that the Cavs will completely fall off the rails and not compete for a championship, there’s not much evidence a repeat will be easy.  The Cavs may need some help and it looks like a little bit may be on the way.  It’s important to remember that the Cavs and LeBron have shown the ability to get through some terrible things, including a 19-20 start or a 3-1 Finals deficit.

1. Cavs close out January with a whimper….

The Cavs ended the January misery with a loss to the lowly Mavericks.  Despite beating the Oklahoma City Thunder convincingly the night before, the Cavs closed out the month with a record of 7-8, making January one of the worst months of the last decade of LeBron James‘s career.

The Cavs finished 7-8 in January 😮 pic.twitter.com/Z52VYX5yQm

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 31, 2017

Despite all this losing, the Raptors were actually the most disappointing team in January, finishing 8-10 and losing the #2 seed to the Boston Celtics.

2. Help is on the way…. sorta

With LeBron demanding a “playmaker”, the Cavs hosted a workout with NBA veterans in order to fill the empty roster spot.  The names in attendance were a bit underwhelming but included Lance Stephenson, Mario Chalmers, Kirk Hinrich and late addition, Jordan Farmar.  Hinrich is a very limited player at this point in his career and Chalmers and Stephenson have had recent injuries, which is why none of these guys has a team.  Also to note, there are some reports indicating that the Cavs would be willing to waive Chris Andersen, who is out for the season with an ACL injury, to free another (very costly) roster spot.

While I believe any of the four aforementioned players could provide a modicum of depth and “playmaking”, the only one of the bunch that might see the light of day in a playoff series is Lance Stephenson.  Stephenson is a solid defender and what he lacks in shooting he can make up for with his athleticism and dribble penetration.  He’s my favorite of the group and hopefully he impresses enough in the workout to get another opportunity, despite the blows (pun intended) he’s taken in his young career so far.

Update: Per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, Jordan Farmar impressed the Cavs the most and would be willing to do a 10-day contract.  Lance Stephenson would also be willing to do a 10-day contract while veterans coming off injury, Mario Chalmers and Kirk Hinrich, would want a rest of the season guarantee.  A 10-day contract would cost the Cavs over $200,000 in real dollars due to the luxury tax, where the player gets just over $50,000.

3. Charles Barkley and LeBron James

After Charles Barkley questioned his competitive spirit, LeBron decided to go nuclear, ripping Barkley for everything from being friendly with Michael Jordan during the ’93 NBA Finals to some of Barkley’s more damning off court incidents.   This isn’t a LeBron we’re used to, and maybe he recognized as much when he declared “There’s a new sheriff in town”.  Colin Cowherd thinks LeBron’s attitude may be due to mental fatigue.

The Cavs are coming off a dumpster fire of a month to start the new year.  There’s not much to be happy about in Cleveland but the Cavs must find a way to break out of this funk and winning some games will remove the noise and distractions.

4. All Star Break Comes at Great Time for the Cavs

With the break coming up, the Cavs will be best served to relax and come back with a refreshed mind.  This will be the first time in decades that the Cavs have three representatives playing in the all-star game, let’s enjoy the ride.