The Cleveland Cavaliers went toe-to-toe with the Oklahoma City Thunder for the 'best team in the NBA' distinction last season. Fast forward to today, and with the Feb. 5 trade deadline just over a week away, the same team is 27-20 and in fifth place in the Eastern Conference.
The Cavs' lack of consistency has been an issue for most of the season. You never know what version of them you're going to get, especially when they have to face contending teams. That's why ESPN insider Brian Windhorst used their two-game series with the Philadelphia 76ers and their loss to the Thunder as a perfect way to sum up their disappointing season.
Brian Windhorst calls out the Cavaliers' consistency issues
"This is a classic one step forward, one step back team. It's been this way for months on end," Windhorst told ESPN Cleveland's Chris Oldach.
Windhorst characterized the recent win against the 76ers as 'extraordinarily impressive.' Then came the other side of the coin.
There should be no shame in losing to the defending NBA champions. Even so, Windhorst believes the Cavs should've been more competitive in the 136-104 home loss, considering that they entered the season as one of the teams to beat in the Eastern Conference.
"Then, they absolutely get boat-raced by Oklahoma City, which you know, isn't the worst thing in the world as they're the best team in the league, but that's the standard that you're measuring yourself to," Windhorst added.
Perhaps winning 64 games this season wasn't realistic, and last year's success was a bit fluky. But even though this team may have been due for some regression, their lack of competitiveness against winning teams is a major concern.
Through 47, they're 15-3 against teams below .500, and just 12-17 against teams with a winning record. They've also struggled in close-game situations, going 1-3 in three-point games and 0-2 in overtime.
The front office's decision to keep doubling down on this core may have come back to bite them. Breaking up a team that won over 60 games in the previous campaign may not be common, but they can't expect to have different results if they just continue to do the same over and over.
The trade deadline is creeping up close, and this team is in big need of a shakeup. The Lonzo Ball experiment hasn't worked, and it's become painfully evident that Jarrett Allen and Darius Garland aren't made for big moments.
There's still enough time to turn things around. Kenny Atkinson is a good coach, but it might not happen with the same personnel.