The Boss;766186 wrote:The Cavs lost 26 games in a row or something like that--I'd say it was a smart move for LeBron to GTFO.
This is pretty misleading and I'm surprised someone with your supposed lack of NBA knowledge would resort to this argument. I don't think there's much doubt that had LeBron stayed, guys like Christian Eyenga, Alonzo Gee, and Manny Harris wouldn't be on the Cavs bench let alone in the starting lineup. The Cavs went into rebuilding mode right after LeBron left which was the smart thing to do as they now have 2 lottery picks to build the future with. The Cavs weren't trying to be a contender this season as they now had a bunch of players specifically brought in because of their unique abilities which fit perfectly around the talents of LeBron (though losing their two best players for the season certainly didn't help). It's like buying a bunch of Xbox controllers, games, and A/V wires and then the Xbox is gone. Doesn't mean that those components don't still work, they just don't work as well without the Xbox to plug into. I don't think it's too far fetched to say that with LeBron back, a coaching upgrade in Byron Scott, a few more roster moves before the season (had a sign and trade ready to go for Bosh pending his approval, not to mention they consistently had shown they were willing to bring in talent) the result against this year's version of the Celtics wouldn't have been all that different if it were the Cavs instead of the Heat. Basically the whole "the 2011 Cavs were the same team just minus LeBron" argument is heavily flawed.
As for the sign and trade, I'm afraid you fell a little flat again. No LeBron didn't have to do a sign-and-trade but at that point it made sense for both teams. LeBron got more money thean he would've simply signing with Miami, and the Cavs got SOMETHING back in the form of a couple draft picks that shouldn't be too useful barring some season ending injuries to LBJ or Wade in the next few years. If LeBron really wanted to "help out Cleveland" he would've been honest like Carmelo and requested a trade before the last week of free agency. Many people criticize Melo, but fact is that the Nuggets were able to get some quality players in return to make their rebuild go much faster than the Cavs. All LeBron did was turn the Cavs into the blueprint of what not to do when you're a small market team and you have anything less than a guarantee that your franchise player is returning.