The Cleveland Cavaliers are off to a slow start, a very slow star. The team is in the middle of a four-game losing streak after falling to the Washington Wizards on Friday night and then to the Toronto Raptors on Saturday. Things look bad for the Cavaliers at the moment in a season where the expectations are incredibly high after several offseason moves. LeBron James says the team is "fragile" at the moment and has more to work on than he can describe. Will this open up the Cavaliers to more trades?
"Well, we were a fragile team from the beginning. Any little adversity hits us, we just shell up. That's something that will come with experience," James said, via ESPN.com. "This is not even the lowest it's going to get for us. You guys know, the lowest it can get is up 17 in the fourth quarter of Game 2 of the Finals and losing. It can get that low. Or being up 2-1 and going to Game 4 and lose three straight in the Finals. That's very low. So, I'm very optimistic. I'm very positive. More positive than I thought I would be right now, so, we look at what we did wrong, things that we did well and get ready for Orlando coming in on Monday."
James is taking comfort in the fact that the Miami Heat got off to a 9-8 start in 2010 before eventually making it to the NBA Finals. The Cavaliers appear to be taking the same route as everyone is struggling on both ends of the court. The Cavaliers helped Toronto out by turning the ball over 20 times leading to 22 points. Against the Wizards, no one was shooting well. James is chalking it up to chemistry, but could Cleveland be toying with that even more as trades loom.
According to Bleacher Report's Ethan Skolnick, the Cavaliers have been linked to potential deals with Norris Cole and Chris Andersen of the Miami Heat. The potential trades certainly meet needs for the Cavaliers. Right now, the team is struggling heavily on defense, something both Cole and Andersen excel in. Cole could be an excellent backup to Kyrie Irving while Andersen would take up space under the rim.
General manager David Griffin said that no player on the Cavaliers' roster was safe from trades. Dion Waiters and Tristan Thompson has faced rumors regarding deals for the better part of a year now and would likely be the first players moved should Cleveland feel a deal is necessary.
