Cavs Rumors: Lineup, Love, Altman, Trades

Less than 24 hours after Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com once again made the case that Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue needs to change up his lineup, the club suffered its sixth loss in seven contests. After the game, Lue admitted that he had come around on the idea of a lineup shake-up, telling reporters, including Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com, that he intends to make a change.

Lue didn’t reveal on Tuesday night which positions or players he’ll target when he adjusts the Cavaliers’ lineup, but as McMenamin observes, LeBron James and Kevin Love are probably the only locks to remain starters. J.R. Smith told ESPN that he would accept a bench job if he’s demoted, but McMenamin notes that Jae Crowder and even Isaiah Thomas are also candidates to change roles.

In Pluto’s view, it would make sense for the Cavs to go back to starting Jose Calderon at point guard and Dwyane Wade at shooting guard, sending both Thomas and Smith to the bench. As Pluto argues, the Calderon/Wade combo would likely be more solid defensively, and would allow the Cavs to go to Thomas and Smith for instant offense off the bench.

Here’s more out of Cleveland, as the Cavs attempt to get their season back on track:

  • Monday’s team meeting highlighted a division in the Cavs’ locker room that has become apparent over the course of the season, McMenamin writes in his piece linked above. McMenamin suggests that the players who were with the Cavs prior to this year aren’t always on the same page with the team’s newcomers.
  • In a more detailed look at that Monday meeting, which was described as fiery and emotional, McMenamin passes along quotes from Lue and from Love, who suggests he wasn’t the only “target.” Jason Lloyd of The Athletic corroborates that account, indicating that the meeting “escalated into something more” after initially focusing on Love’s weekend sickness. Wade and Thomas were the instigators, Lloyd hears.
  • Recognizing that Cleveland is still one of the few spots in the NBA where he has a shot at a title, Love hasn’t asked to be traded and has no plans to do so, he tells Lloyd. “The NBA is so fragile,” Love said. “I don’t know if I’ll ever get this chance again in my career to win.”
  • Multiple Cavs sources told McMenamin that they hope communication will improve throughout the organization. Communication has reportedly been an issue both on the court – with players not talking enough on defense – and off the court, where first-year GM Koby Altman has yet to establish “protocol for open discourse.”
  • Speaking of Altman, he continues to work on potential trades for the Cavs, but Monday’s meeting didn’t affect his urgency on that front, sources tell McMenamin. We heard on Tuesday that Cleveland has made progress in trade talks involving Kings point guard George Hill.
View Comments (24)