Windhorst Radio Show & Updates

[tristan+kyrie=$]

depressing if true...nothing ever seems to be going Clevelands way...

 

[Cayman13]

How can this ALWAYS be here???? ALWAYS drama!!! If this is all true, I swear I am so fed up with the teams in this city. And frankly I am sick again, of LeBron James. He is a PLAYER. Not the coach. Why are these guys worried about friends and cliques? Play the effing game and listen to the coach. I am so frustrated with this news.

 

[Douglar]

Corey Brewer Trade thread is here:

Corey Brewer Traded to Houston

 

[cavsfever]

Cavaliers need to make 3 defensive acquisitions. Love isn't that big. Surprised we're getting out rebounded. Thinks the Cavaliers look shorter than the opponent. People jump over us to grab rebounds.

We need a true 7 footer, that probably will not come until this next offseason. Brian thinks the Cavaliers could use Haywood to get Greg Monroe next summer? Weird guy to add.

THis set of comments indicates to me that Windy is much less optimistic than he has been for the past couple of weeks -- the Atlanta game shook him I guess. Saying we need to make three acquisitions is saying we need to really make significant changes to the team -- someone who can defend at an NBA level and not totally fuck up your offense does not come cheap and you are not going to get three such players with Dion and a draft pick. You could get two with Haywood, Dion, and two draft picks maybe.

He's right that we look short. It's an odd thing because when you look at listed heights we don't seem to be, but Love and Varejao just look totally outmatched on defense and (surprisingly) rebounding against teams with long, athletic frontcourts. I think it's about athleticism as much as height.

 

[LeShaq]

We don't need Greg Monroe.

Blatt has never seemed to be LeBron's favorite guy. I'm not saying he doesn't like him, but I always felt like LeBron would rather talk with Lue than Blatt.

Remember earlier in the season, LeBron said something like "I don't need David Blatt to tell me that" about something that a reporter asked.

Blatt can coach. He's still adjusting to the NBA coaching grind though, and how the NBA works. It's a shame he's not being given the assistants he might prefer. I understand if the Cavs want to suck up to LeBron, but if the coaching staff isn't in sync with the players then we aren't going anywhere.

I don't know if LeBron wants "his guys" as coaching assistants because of Blatt. Maybe so. My own thought is that he might want more of "his guys" around to hold down and rein in other players. Like Kyrie, for example.

Whatever the case, things need to get figured out. The players have to do what the coaching staff says, and the coaching staff needs to get the job done and be on the same page.

 

[Rich]

Reposted for emphasis.

Seem to recall another coach of a Lebron super team not getting much "player buy-in" at this point in the season....

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vowNwPPhciM

Yea, this was the same line used early when he joined the Heat. "He's not buying in, it'll only be a matter of time before Spoelstra is replaced by Riley, etc." It's the go to position for all sports journalism. If the team isn't playing well then the players aren't "buying in." If they start winning then suddenly they are "buying in." How many times have you heard a beat reporter or an analyst interviewed and the question is something like "Why do you think team X is starting to play better?" and the answer is inevitable "Well, I think they are just starting to buy in to the Coach Y's philosophy." It's lazy. No one knows what that really means. It's just easy to use.

Frankly I really haven't seen anything different from LBJ than I saw the last two seasons in Miami. He was taking long stretches of games off on defense then. He only really started trying on defense after the all-star break last season. Like, this isn't a "he hates the coach" thing. It's just him not wanting to go all out on that end. Criticize that if you want, but I really don't think it has much at all to do with the coach.

As for the Lue stuff, remember, Lue was hired exactly 3 days after Blatt was hired. He didn't come here with LeBron. He was picked by the Cavs front office and I'm guessing there was at least SOME input from Blatt.

Now, Windy has always struck me as an honest reporter but never as a guy who knows a lot about the game. To say that we need 3 defensive players, including a center, and then toss out Monroe's name is just silly. Monroe is NOT!!!!!!! a good defensive player.

EDIT: But I guess I've just seen all of this before and nothing came of it. Early on in Miami there was talk of him being upset Riley didn't let him have things his way, how he didn't like Spoelstra and how Spoelstra wasn't going to last and it all turned out to be nonsense.

DOUBLE EDIT: And while it's not great, we are in the top half of the league in total rebound rate and defense rebound rate, and in the top 10 in offensive rebound rate. So it's not nearly as bad as it's being made out to be in that department.

TRIPLE EDIT: Finally, some of you guys need to remember what real drama is. Essentially all this boils down to is LeBron coaching KYrie after a game and Lebron being good friends with Damon Jones and Ty Lue, right? Not saying there isn't something to that, but that's the "drama." Now that's waaay different than the rumors last season of players punching each other during team meetings and getting kicked out of practice for arguing with coaches, isn't it?

 

[Green Lantern]

Man I don't like reading this stuff. I thought they all come in trying and looking at the big picture of helping the coaching staff and keeping winning and personal feelings seperate.

 

[Damien O'Connel]

Absurd that this has to cross my mind...but I just can't stop thinking about it.

Is this a white-black thing with lebron? I mean seriously... He's very very active in standing up for the interests of African Americans (started with Obama)...which is great.

But I wonder if when he has the choice of listening to a black coach or a white coach...he'll choose the black one.

It's the pettiness I see out of lebron that makes this a reasonable question, the guy is still a child. I don't think he's changed at all since he was last here, we were just victims of the new marketing team he hired after the decision.

We didn't see him on a daily basis and just bought into the hype that his team generated.

 

[MH32246]

Absurd that this has to cross my mind...but I just can't stop thinking about it.

Is this a white-black thing with lebron? I mean seriously... He's very very active in standing up for the interests of African Americans (started with Obama)...which is great.

But I wonder if when he has the choice of listening to a black coach or a white coach...he'll choose the black one.

It's the pettiness I see out of lebron that makes this a reasonable question, the guy is still a child. I don't think he's changed at all since he was last here, we were just victims of the new marketing team he hired after the decision.

We didn't see him on a daily basis and just bought into the hype that his team generated.

You do realize Mike Brown use to coach the Cavs and Lebron left and went to Miami and was coached by Erik Spoelstra for 4 years and was successful and coachable. He also played on two olympic teams coached by Coack K and was successful so your assumption is pretty off base.

 

[Kevin Ollie]

Absurd that this has to cross my mind...but I just can't stop thinking about it.

Is this a white-black thing with lebron? I mean seriously... He's very very active in standing up for the interests of African Americans (started with Obama)...which is great.

But I wonder if when he has the choice of listening to a black coach or a white coach...he'll choose the black one.

It's the pettiness I see out of lebron that makes this a reasonable question, the guy is still a child. I don't think he's changed at all since he was last here, we were just victims of the new marketing team he hired after the decision.

We didn't see him on a daily basis and just bought into the hype that his team generated.

He respected the hell out of Pat Riley. This isn't even worth discussing.

 

[MRMsix6]

Yea, this was the same line used early when he joined the Heat. "He's not buying in, it'll only be a matter of time before Spoelstra is replaced by Riley, etc." It's the go to position for all sports journalism. If the team isn't playing well then the players aren't "buying in." If they start winning then suddenly they are "buying in." How many times have you heard a beat reporter or an analyst interviewed and the question is something like "Why do you think team X is starting to play better?" and the answer is inevitable "Well, I think they are just starting to buy in to the Coach Y's philosophy." It's lazy. No one knows what that really means. It's just easy to use.

I'll tell you what, Rich. I'm really starting to buy into your posts.

 

[I-77 NORTH]

Get Blatt all the way the fuck outta here already.

 

[daytripper]

My kneejerk reaction..
I had a feeling that Lue would eventually end up coaching this team. It was just a gut feeling the way all the NBA analysts were questioning the Blatt hire after LeBron decided to come back. Alot of that shitstorm apparently started with Mark Jackson too per The Bullshit Whisperer. Obviously Blatt is a smart, successful, proven HC and could've been successful just about anywhere else in the NBA. Hopefully Mark Jackson is hired by Sacramento so we won't have to deal with that douche in the mix. Someone needs to step up and get Damon Jones the hell out of that lockerroom too. Always thought he and his constant Miami talk was part of the reason Bron ended up down there too.

 

[killerkev369]

What the hell is Damon Jones's actual role with the team anyway?

 

[wuck]

What the hell is Damon Jones's actual role with the team anyway?

I don't think the Cavs have ever issued a press release defining a formal role.

He lists himself as "shooting consultant for the Cavs and the Canton Charge" on his twitter page.