NBA Exclusive

With the Cleveland Cavaliers clunking aimlessly along and losing five of their last seven games, LeBron James has decided to grab the organization by the throat and give it a good shake.

“We’re not better than last year, from a personnel standpoint,” he said after Monday night’s painful 124-122 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, who (besides having a stupid name) did not have star Anthony Davis available.

It was LeBron’s complaints (first and foremost, but there were others) that got coach David Blatt fired last season. The Cavs went on under Tyronn Lue to beat the Golden State Warriors in seven games for their first NBA championship, but they did little in the offseason to offset losses or truly deepen their bench.

So far in the complaint department, OK. But speaking to a small group of Cavaliers beat writers, the real reason for unhappiness emerged. It’s not about me, James essentially said, it’s about ME. Big capital letters there.

“I just know me, personally. I don’t got no time to waste. I’ll be 33 in the winter, and I ain’t got time to waste,” the 14-year veteran said.

This belly-aching comes with Cleveland 30-13, best in the Eastern Conference, but only fourth in the NBA. The Cavs are a mediocre 11-9 on the road.

We’ll see if the Era of Good Feeling returns. Cleveland’s next two games are at home against the rotten Sacramento Kings and the miserable Brooklyn Nets. These should be walkovers if James ignited any passions.

Winning soothes a lot of jitters. And LeBron is dangerous (to his own team as well as others) when he’s not happy.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman