LeBron James needs a new diplomatic answer coach.
Rumors have started running rampant in the wake of the Cavaliers’ 18-12 start. They have the fifth-best record in the Eastern Conference, a bottom-10 defense, a top-five offense, missing bodies and a whole lot of questions.
Critics are naturally starting to point fingers at rookie head coach David Blatt. Though the team’s defense was always doomed, the offense isn’t as inventive as advertised. The Cavaliers are slow, and their ball movement is marginal. And given the team’s failure to take the Association by storm, the integrity of Blatt’s system and organizational clout—along with Cleveland’s decision to hire him in the first place—has come under siege.
No matter, though. LeBron had the opportunity to squash all of this on Monday while talking with reporters and fielding questions about the Cavaliers’ rocky start. And to an extent, that’s just what he did. Kina. Sorta.
Okay, not really:
From ESPN.com’s Dave McMenamin:
LeBron James when asked if David Blatt is the "right" coach for the Cavs: "Yeah, I mean, he’s our coach, what other coach do we have?"
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) December 29, 2014
Before we enter dissection mode, here’s more of what he said:
LeBron James' full response when told an endorsement of coach David Blatt would carry a lot of weight: pic.twitter.com/FPArIYZHpt
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) December 29, 2014
Blatt might want to send LeBron a “Thank you” card—thanking him for absolutely nothing.
Look, all of us are guilty of reading between the lines from time to time, often making a mountain out of a molehill, overreacting to even the slightest signs of something. For some of us, like yours truly, it’s an occupational hazard. Writers are tasked with analyzing situations and, in many cases, giving their opinion. Hot takes are bound to creep their way into the public sphere because people believe different things. And sometimes those beliefs don’t coincide with what’s actually happening, creating a jarring stir that, in turn, incites another uproar. Part and parcel of that second uprising is calling out said people for getting it wrong, like LeBron kind of did in his comments.
Here’s the thing: LeBron had the chance to really stick it to these rumors of discord and disrespect. He could have outright said they were wrong, that he wanted Blatt to be his coach. That would have ended—or, at the very least,—discredited any talk to the contrary.
Instead, he gave a poorly practiced politician’s answer.
This is the equivalent of what he said:
“Hey, Anna Kendrick, why are you going to marry Dan Favale, the byliner of this article?”
“Well, he asked, and he was there. So he’s my fiancé.”
Never mind if LeBron truly wants another coach. Why not say something else—something that won’t leave us trying to read between the lines. Whatever we read isn’t going to be good, after all. Not when LeBron shirked the opportunity to quell much of the drama, however unwarranted, emanating out of Cleveland.
In that sense, he’s failing the Cavaliers. One endorsement, true or feigned, is all the Cavaliers and Blatt needed to push forward. Whatever happened from there would happen.
LeBron, though, couldn’t—and, because we must now read between the lines, perhaps wouldn’t—give it to them.
Dan Favale is a firm believer in the three-pointer as well as the notion that defense doesn’t always win championships. His musings can be found at Bleacherreport.com in addition to TheHoopDoctors.com.
