On December 18th the Cavaliers beat the New York Knicks 109-102, which would be their last win until last Friday when they beat the Clippers, snapping their NBA record 26 game losing streak. In fact, the woeful Cavs have lost a mind boggling 37 of their past 39 games. But lets rewind for a little bit so we can better understand how the Cavaliers got into the position they're in today.
It really all started in 2002-2003 when the Cavaliers finished 17-65, when their leading scorer was, drum roll please....the immortal Ricky Davis. They would proceed to win the lottery and of course selected a high schooler named LeBron James. LeBron immediately made a huge impact, winning Rookie of the Year, breaking numerous rookie records, and helping the Cavs improve by 18 wins. The Cavs actually had a nucleus, albeit very small, with Carlos Boozer, who averaged a double double the previous season. But then, inexplicably, they let him sign for 6 years with the Jazz at a very reasonable price. While the details surrounding his departure are hazy, and both sides have different accounts, the bottom line is that Boozer and James together (see Rose and Boozer circa 2011) could have won a championship together. After Boozer left, the Cavs would get no big man, who would come close to his production.
In the next three years James became a superstar and the Cavs did absolutely nothing to help him. The big signing was Larry Hughes. Yes that Larry Hughes, who sucked (what a surprise) as the team continued to develop high ceiling players such as Drew Gooden (Kansas Alum) and Zydrunas "I am the ugliest man in the NBA with no discernable talent besides being tall" Ilgauskas. But even with zero supporting cast in 2007 James led the team, by himself, to a finals appearance and of course the greatest single performance I have ever personally witnessed against Detroit in the conference finals.
By the 2007-2008 season the Cavs were a team to be reckoned with. But lets be honest, as much as what LeBron did was very special, the NBA during that time was very weak, especially the Eastern Conference. It wasn't until this year that the influx of incredible talent started to propel the NBA into the popularity it currently possesses. The Celtics added two guys you may have heard of, Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett, and the Cavs added, drumroll please... Wally Szczerbiak and Ben Wallace via trade. And the Celtics would go on to beat the Cavs in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, surprise surprise.
The next season was a prime opportunity for the Cavs to win a championship. Here you have the greatest player in the world, in his prime, about to win the MVP and a number of opportunities to improve the team. This was also at the same time when the "countdown" for free agency began and you would expect the Cavs ownership to feel some pressure to get this team over the hump. So the Cavs traded for Mo Williams. But they didnt address their interior since of course that would make too much sense after the emergence of Dwight Howard, whom they would lose to in the Conference Finals. Their front line was, drumroll please..., Ilgauskas and Ben Wallace. And say by some miracle they did beat Orlando, would they have had a chance against Bynum, Gasol, and Odom? I think not.
The 2009-2010 season was the tipping point. It was James' last season before he could pursue free agency and the Cavs, to their credit, although it took them 7 years, upgraded their front court by adding ninety year old Shaquille O'Neal and Antawn Jamison. They proceeded to finish first in the East and frankly I thought they would get over the hump but sometimes unforseen events occur, i.e. Delonte West decides it would be a good idea to try and give his herpes to LeBron's mom. The Cavs lose to the Celts and I guess the rest is history, culminating in the "Decision" and Cleveland falling apart, although I'm not sure there was much there to begin with.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/20/calvin-murphy-lebron-jame_n_583135.html
So whats the moral of the story? The Cavs brought this on themselves. Now I'm not going to defend the way LeBron left since it was kind of a dick move, but frankly I don't mind it. If any of you do judge him for his actions I suggest you take a look at this movie and maybe you can better understand why he did what he did. http://www.morethanagamemovie.com/.
Now I should make sure to emphasize, this is in no way a representation of Cleveland as a city. I can assure the city is much worse. Before LeBron left 50% were unemployed and when LeBron took his talents away I guess he took all their business too? I have never seen a city more in ruins because an athlete left to go to another city. Stop your complaining, get back to work and build some shitty American cars. I think the only good thing about their city is the Kosher Subway to be honest. I'd die for one in Boston.
But before we get too far off topic, lets get back to the present day. Now, after actually being in prime position to become one of the most successful franchises of the decade, with one of the greatest players ever, the Cavs are mired in historic awfulness, never before seen.
And remember when people thought the Cavs could sneak into the playoffs because they beat the Celtics, and everyone was freaking out about the Heat? Wow, how things have changed... Now I dont intend to take credit for predicting it since you have to be an idiot not to but this is my facebook post from October after the Cavs beat the Celtics and the Heat were very mediocre:
So what about the future? Well the "future" is composed of JJ Hickson and, umm, uhh, Ya I think thats about it. Well at least there is the draft! The prize of course being umm, uhh. No one. If they had LeBron they could have added another superstar from the incredible class, maybe even Carlos Boozer (remember him?) who averaged a double double nearly every season in a Jazz uniform, and has helped Chicago become an elite team. But hey it's not the end of the world. At least they have this guy and this tourism video can certainly help bring some people to their beautiful city. Cheers!
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