Point Four-ward: Reinforcements on the Way
2017-02-03
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.
Cavs missed out big with Yogi Ferrell. He seems like a better fit than Kay Felder – good spot up shot; good facilitator; and he’s a bit older and more experienced than Felder. He’s been tearing it up for the Mavs…
ACCORDING TO BLEACHER REPORT—MAVS HAVE SIGNED YOGI –2 YR CONTRACT—-STILL BELIEVE IF / WHEN CAVS PLAY KSHRIMP MORE MINUTES HE WILL BECOME A VALUABLE PLAYER —-( MAYBE NOT QUITE A I.THOMAS —BUT EVEN CLOSE TO THAT WOULD BE A PLUS )—LET THE KID PLAY / GROW
THE ONLY THING WITH NEW PLAYERS ( YOU SEE IT IN BASEBALL ALSO ) HAVE SUCCESS EARLY—-THEN AFTER A FEW GAMES TEAMS GET TO SCOUT THEM MORE THOUGHOURLY / DISCOVER THEIR WEAKNESSES —-STATS –SUCCESS SEEMS TO DECLINE—MAYBE NOT —WE SHALL SEE —-BUT AGREE ( CURRY ON THE MAVS ALSO ) SOME PLAYERS MAY HAVE SLIPPED THRU ” GRIFF ” —CAN’T WIN THEM ALL
So when can the Cavs talk to Yogi without it being tampering?
Yeah, 32 pts and nine 3s last night. I still can’t believe he sat on the bench for the lowly Nets. I am puzzled why Griffin didn’t just check the pulse of several D League players like Weber, or Yogi when he was cut.
ARE YOU AT THE GAME NATE—-” MY MAN MORELAND ” IS BEASTING IT EARLY IN THE GAME—WATCHING IT AT HOME
Sounds like Kev and his back will be back tomorrow…
https://twitter.com/joevardon/status/827582632431075331
I don’t think Cavs want Andy back… nor do I think he’d want to come back if they did. Would bet on some team signing him to be their fourth big… already rumors that Nuggets want him…
Can I say how glad I am that Benedict Varejao didnt get a ring?
Nate, the Warriors are picking up that D-League PG you wanted after cutting AV…
Cavs should swoop in and sign him out of spite.
If so, and if there was a Cavs Warriors rematch, he would have played for both finals participants for the second year in a row. He’s the only guy to even do it once.
I know. Was irritated. Watch him be a gem. Read about Quinn Cook below.
Don’t know what teams gave him offer, but got offers from multiple teams.
Proposed rotation, Starting lineup: Lebron, TT, Kyrie, Love, Korver. Second unit initial: Lebron, JR, TT, Shump, Frye. Second unit alt: Kyrie, JR, Shump, Frye, Love. Korver will do better surrounded by good team defense, spacing the floor and getting the best of Lebron and Kyrie. JR will anchor the second unit and give a big spark from time to time. Frye and Korver should never play together due to defense.
1. JR is injured.
2. A MAJOR problem for the Cavs is D. They only have four + defenders: LBJ, TT, DL, and IS. LBJ is playing too many minutes already. Need to find minutes for DL, preferably with a lot of firepower surrounding him.
1. Obviously I’m referring to when JR gets back. 2. DR won’t get as many minutes when that happens.
DL..
How come no mention of RJ in those lineups or did I miss something? He’s still a valuable part of the Cavs.
Where did you hear about when or if JR will be back?
Mid March is what I heard.
Anderson Varejoa waived by the Warriors. Would we take him back on a vet’s minimum or too many burned bridges? Or just too ineffective?
Pretty sure the Cavs would love to give Birdman’s spot to Varejao if they could…..
yes but they should wait for possible Bogut buyout.
I don’t think we have a choice. Pretty sure we can’t sign Andy V until his year is up.
Did they cut him so they could get Bogut back?
Didn’t think of that. The plot thickens.
Bogut back to the Warriors would be trouble.
Can’t get Bogut back…. Has to be a year after the trade to re acquire a player you traded.
Did that change with the new CBA? For some reason I thought that was a six month window…
Not sure… people are saying on Twitter that the Cavs can’t pick up Varejao until Feb 20, which is a year anniversary….. if that logic applies to Bogut, Warriors wouldn’t be able to until the summer..
Windy says Andy will be attractive to teams under the new CBA salary floor. Supposedly saves those teams $980,000 by acquiring Andy.
Typo….$940,000.
From CBA FAQ:
A team cannot reacquire a player they traded away during that season (a season being July 1 – June 30). If he is waived by his new team, then he cannot re-sign with his original team until the one-year anniversary of the trade, or until the July 1 following the end of his contract, whichever comes first. However, if a team trades a player’s draft rights, they can reacquire the player during the same season.
Varejao waived so they can sign Briante Weber to a 10 day.
Is Farmar’s defense as bad as I feel like it is? I don’t remember it being a favorable point for him.
Probably.
I think your memory is accurate. Also has fragile hammys, from what I recall. I wouldn’t expect much.
LIKE THE IDEA LANCE WOULD SIGN FOR 10 CONTRACT ALSO —GIVES YOU MORE OF A CHANCE TO EVALUATE IF IT IS A GOOD FIT OR NOT —YET KEEP A ROSTER SPOT OPEN IF NOT A GOOD FIT
I’m still kind of amazed that Lebron didn’t punch Stephenson in the face for his behavior (although at the time I enjoyed it). Lebron is willing to let it go, I guess.
Lebron wouldn’t punch anyone in the face. He’s not that kind of dude.
Yes, I’m impressed by Lebron’s composure, which is unimpeachable on the court. Cause, man, that would have pushed me over the edge.
AGREE—EVEN THOUGH ( ACCORDING TO REPORTS ) FARMER HAD THE BETTER WORKOUT —I WOULD PREFER THAT THEY SIGN ” THE LEBRON WHISPERER “—BELIEVE HE HAS MORE TOOLS THAT CAN HELP COME PLAYOFFS ( ALSO HAS THAT EDGE THAT WE NEED )—BELIEVE CAVS WILL CREATE 1 IF NOT 2 MORE ROSTER SPOTS– TRADE BIRDMAN ( OR WAIVE) AND ALSO TRADE OR WAIVE THE MAMBA —–OFF NIGHT FOR CAVS BUT YOU CAN WATCH POTENTIAL ” CAVS CANDIDATES ” CANTON CHARGE TONIGHT
Nice profile on Quinn Cook. Might go see them tonight. http://www.cantonrep.com/sports/20170203/charges-quinn-cook-making-his-nba-case
I forgot just how short Mark Price was at 6 ft even as he is dwarfed by his teammates. What a fearless player for his diminutive size. Like the last paragraph says, we’ve got to enjoy the ride because once LeBron retires who knows how long it will be before the Cavs have three all stars again. Price, Nancy and Daugherty made it in 1989 and again in 1993; so it’s been almost a quarter century.