Friday, February 9, 2018

Saving the marriage?

And now, it's LeBron's move.

This after the Cleveland Cavaliers took all their junky furniture, moved it to the curb and hung a big crayoned sign on it that said "Best Offer." The man of the house (LeBron James) wanted new stuff, so everything that must go, went. If Bron was grousing and dispirited because the Cavs weren't making any moves ... well, he can't use that excuse to grouse and be dispirited now.

Not after the Cavs turned over most of their roster at the trade deadline yesterday, dealing Isaiah Thomas, Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade, Jae Crowder and Channing Frye for some fresh young talent that (presumably) will be the re-set they need to again challenge the Warriors. In an eyeblink, a dysfunctional team with a lot of pieces that didn't fit has become (again, presumably) a team with pieces that will fit -- and with whom LeBron can actually work.

That is, of course, the key to all this, because LeBron has been the key to everything in Cleveland  since he announced he was coming "home." It may be late in the day, but he's got a point guard who can shoot now (George Hill), and a young, athletic frontcourt player willing to do all the little things that win games (Larry Nance Jr.) and another decent young wing player (Rodney Hood).

None of them are Chris Paul or Paul George or even Blake Griffin, who just landed in Detroit from the Clippers. But the Cavs clearly think this is a greater-than-the-sum-of-its-parts sort of deal, with the (again presumed) added benefit that LeBron will shed his blue mood and start playing like LeBron again.

Will it be enough to win the East again, and push the Warriors -- or the Rockets -- to the wall in the Finals?

Maybe. There are, after all, a lot of "presumed" and "presumablies" in this -- a frankly uncomfortable number of them. But that's not the question that matters here.

The question that matters, as always, is will it be enough to entice LeBron to stick around Cleveland when the LeBron Sweepstakes opens for business this summer?

The Blob, which has already been wrong about the Cavaliers once this year, says no, alas. The rift between James and management -- in particular prickly owner Dan Gilbert -- seems too deep to be healed by a frenzy of housecleaning at the trade deadline. All that will do is enable Gilbert to at least make points in the PR war when LeBron takes a powder and heads for the Lakers ... or the Celtics ... or (God forbid, but don't think it couldn't happen) the Warriors.

Stay tuned.

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