'Prominent' Cavaliers players anonymously tell reporters the roster needs upgrades

“Prominent” Cleveland Cavaliers players quietly told several reporters on Monday that the team needed a roster upgrade after a 118-108 loss to the Golden State Warriors, which was the team’s eighth loss in its last 10 games. The journalists, from ESPN, Cleveland.com, andThe Athletic, all quoted anonymous sources saying the team’s roster simply wasn’t good enough.

From ESPN’s Dave McMenamin:

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.

It’s reasonable to assume that LeBron James was one of these players, given that he has never been shy about speaking out about perceived player personnel problems before. Last season, he told McMenamin on the record that the team needed a “f***ing playermaker,” and his wish was eventually granted when Cleveland signed Deron Williams.

Cleveland.com’s Joe Vardon quoted a league source, who said this: “Rotations are awful. IT (Isaiah Thomas) is so much worse than Kyrie (Irving) defensively it’s insane. There is not a great feeling anywhere. They need to limp into the All-Star break and get away from each other.”

Cleveland has been spiraling for weeks

The Cavaliers have only won twice since Christmas, when they fell for a first time to Golden State. Their 3-9 record in their past 12 games comes immediately after the team won 17 times in 18 games — clearly, this season hasn’t been all bad. But Cleveland expected to be trending upwards and instead has been sinking despite growing healthier, including Isaiah Thomas’ return to the team.

The past six games has been especially troubling. Cleveland lost by 14 points to Boston, 28 points to Minnesota, 34 points to Toronto, and now 10 to Golden State. They allowed 127 points or more in three straight games, including their one win, a 131-127 victory against Orlando. The team’s defense likely can’t be fixed — not with this roster.

Anything less than a fourth straight Finals appearance would be disappointing for Cleveland. That’s why players are speaking up, because they’ve realized the truth about their hamstrung roster.

Cleveland has one huge bargaining chip

Thanks to the Kyrie Irving trade, the Cavaliers have the Brooklyn Nets’ 2018 first-round pick. The Nets currently have the sixth-worst record in the league and are almost guaranteed to miss the postseason.

I outlined the argument for trading that pick in the piece linked about Cleveland’s struggling defense above:

- It’s dumb for Cleveland to balance “building for the future” and “winning now” when LeBron James is on your roster. How often does any franchise have the best player in the world on its team? How often does it get three straight trips to the finals and a reasonable chance at one or two more?
- A mid-lottery pick would be nice if James leaves, but it won’t make a huge difference. If James leaves, Cleveland is and should be bad, probably for several seasons.
- Even if James stays, how many years do you have left at this peak? Is a mid-lottery first-rounder really going to change everything for this team? Can you trust that player to be an immediate difference maker, even during a lengthy finals run as a first- or second-year NBA player?

Given that, and given that players are now speaking publicly (if still anonymously) about it, Cleveland’s front office may see that they have no other real choice. The team badly needs a two-way wing and could use a better rim protector, too. Perhaps there’s a trade out there — Wesley Matthews and Nerlens Noel? — that could provide that to their talent-deficient roster.

Cleveland could absolutely still make it to the Finals without touching its roster; the Cavs should still be the favorites, even if there will be stronger contenders facing them than ever before. But they lost badly to Golden State last year, and it would likely be even worse this time around if they do make it that far.

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