Twistity Sports Exclusive: SHORT HONEYMOON

 
The Cleveland Cavaliers’ hiring of David Blatt as coach always seemed odd.

Few of his experiences rang with the theoretical pedigree of NBA coaches. He played at Princeton, then played and coached in Israel and elsewhere overseas. (this is a shortened version of his resume).

What was the appeal for Cleveland? Perhaps out-of-the-box thinking. And now the box is sagging under the strain of Blatt’s failure to relate to the NBA player in general and THE NBA PLAYER in particular – LeBron James.

It’s not that the Cavs are flops. They’re 18-12 going into Tuesday night’s game against the Atlanta Hawks, but they’re 5-5 in their last 10 and King James has been issuing his own proclamations about what goes on on the court. Last week he mentioned in vague terms how he was taking over more of the ball-handling, but added he didn’t need to consult Blatt. And reports keep seeping out that Blatt has lost the locker room, to the extent he ever had it. A 103-80 home loss on Sunday against the Detroit Pistons, in which James scored seventeen points, may well be the flash point.

James played down any differences on Monday, saying: “I’m happy with who we have at our helm. He’s our coach. … To make a feud between me and Blatt or the team and Blatt is just to sell and get people to read it.”

With the Miami Heat, James played no particular position. He played basketball his way and the Heat shaped themselves around him. He cannot recreate that in Cleveland without other top players flexible enough to bend like sideshow acts. He also needs a coach who can coerce, cajole and keep the peace. In Miami, Erik Spoelstra was also a first-time head coach, but he had Pat Riley’s presence and strength behind him.

Blatt won’t win a war with James. No one going to a game cares who’s behind the bench. And given James’ track record – four NBA Finals and two championships with Miami – perhaps Blatt should get a little more in tune with Cleveland’s favorite son.

If he can.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman .