The Cleveland Cavaliers need to give Koby Altman at least two years

As long as LeBron James is in the picture, the Cleveland Cavaliers and general manager Koby Altman will always be at the forefront of the NBA rumor mill.

More or less, the Cleveland Cavaliers have had the wheels fall off since their Christmas loss to the Golden State Warriors.

Since James has come back, each January has generally resulted in L after L, and the internet (outside of Cavs Twitter) insists the sky is falling. Of course, this season feels different, as the Cavs don’t have Kyrie Irving to lick their wounds, and their 29th-ranked defensive rating (per nba.com) is anything but ideal.

Cleveland’s recent downfall has since glued them to trade rumor after trade rumor, and with LeBron, fans have come to expect that. Regardless of what happens by the impending NBA trade deadline, the Cavaliers must give their general manager at least two full seasons (and offseasons) to prove his worth in this league. Being an effective, let alone top-notch, GM in the NBA is anything but easy and not everyone can be David Griffin right away.

Fans of the Cavs, front office members, and other NBA pundits need to give Altman time to retool this Cleveland roster. With LeBron on the back nine of his career, it is more unclear than ever whether or not he will return to the Land, and potentially leave Altman and company high and dry. That brings me to my next point involving Cleveland’s trade assets.

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It’s clear that the Cavs miss Irving’s dazzling display of isolation talent and have not gotten what they wanted from Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder in terms of production. That being said, before the season began, the addition of those two pieces (along with Derrick Rose and Jeff Green), to go with the Brooklyn Nets’ first-round pick was more than a consolation prize.

With Irving’s trade request bomb dropping right as Altman was promoted from assistant GM, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, it was obvious that this year was anything but business as usual, even for the drama-filled Cavs. Altman was lucky with the Dwyane Wade experiment, but it’s not as if the best NBA GM’s have never gotten lucky before. For now, it’s about trying to reinvigorate this veteran Cavs roster with new additions via trade, and that always has its share of risk mid-season.

However, it doesn’t take the second coming of John Wooden to see Cleveland’s roster is lacking in key areas (such as rim protection and perimeter defenders), and Altman must address those concerns soon.

A rumbling from yesterday involves Cleveland trading Channing Frye and Iman Shumpert to the Sacramento Kings for guard George Hill, per ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, via Colin Ward-Henninger of CBS Sports.

"“Definite change happening. One trade for sure, maybe multiple,” Windhorst said on Tuesday’s episode of ESPN’s “The Jump.” “They’re way down the road on a deal with Sacramento for George Hill. That’s like on the 1-yard line.”"

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Iman Shumpert and Channing Frye are likely who the Cavs will include in the deal for Hill. In a joint article written by both Wojnarowski and Windhorst, a second-round pick was said to be involved as well.

With Shumpert and Frye essentially being non-factors for the last few months and not being worth their deals, bringing in a more defensive-minded point guard in Hill might help Cleveland’s awful perimeter defense. Although Hill has not produced the way some thought he could in Sacramento this year, he’s shown he can be a viable starting point guard in the NBA on both ends.

He might be a better fit as a less ball-dominant replacement for Thomas alongside James, Wade, and others as the season progresses. Even if Thomas can stay on the healthier side going forward, it’s unclear how much he really can provide against quality opponents in the playoffs with his defensive ineptitude.

With Windhorst (who knows more about the state of the Cavs than just about anybody) saying the Cavs could make multiple trades before the deadline, it’s difficult to forecast how Cleveland’s season will turn out. Quite frankly, with the Golden State Warriors still looking head and shoulders above the rest of the league when the game’s matter most, I’m not sure it really matters what Altman does to try to appease James.

Will the front office choose to fire Tyronn Lue mid-season?

That’s difficult to answer right now, and I’m not sure that really changes how Cleveland plays defense. If the Cavs were able to grab a DeAndre Jordan, Lou Williams or others headlined by trading pieces and the aforementioned Brooklyn pick, that could change things drastically.

On the other end of the spectrum, though, if Altman and his staff choose to hold onto the Brooklyn pick, nobody can fault him. It’s hard to see anybody in the East beating the heavily favored Golden State in a seven-game series, and if the Cavs don’t win a ring, it’s not unfathomable to forecast James leaving the Land for the second time.

In short, Altman should not be fired regardless of if James stays or goes, after one turbulent season with already so many ups and downs. The Cavs have turned into the Kardashian’s of the league, and that’s not Altman’s fault. With the King on your roster and potentially leaving, that’s no easy task to deal with as a rookie in the big chair.

Must Read: Will any trade keep LeBron in Cleveland?

Whether or not James leaves, Altman should have a full offseason to acquire more talent to bolster an aging roster or be able to shed salary and acquire picks in a potentially full-fledged rebuild.