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| "You be quiet now, boy. I'm trying to watch 'Quincy.'" |
When Byron Scott stands glowering on
the Cavaliers' sideline, he looks like that strict uncle you were always a
little bit afraid of. The kind of old-school disciplinarian not shy about
pulling out his belt to deliver a whoopin' on whoever was fixin' for one,
dagnabbit.
Scott needs to take the belt out
more on these Cavs, a collection of raw talent that treats defense like
a sullen teenager considering a messy room. Overall, the team simply plays too many
stretches of lackluster basketball, evidenced again yesterday in a 91-77 loss to the Philadelphia
Scott seems like the whip-cracking
type, so it's frustrating for fans when the energy and effort are not apparent.
Then there are the moments when this roster just chokes under the pressure,
i.e. four blown leads of 20 or more points where you could practically hear the
Cavs gagging on their own intestines once those big leads slipped away.
Coach Scott is an easy target of
fan discontent. He's got that taciturn demeanor on the sideline where people want
fire and brimstone and chair tossing, and then there's the in-game decisions
that sometimes lead to those disappointing losses. As much as it seemed Scott
would get at least one more year to nurture this roster, the poor and
undisciplined play of late has some fans calling for the third-year coach's
ouster.
While it would be tempting to
scotch the Byron experiment, now is not the time to do so. It's not Scott's
fault that his best defender went down with injury early on. Kyrie Irving has also missed significant
stretches, with second banana Dion Waiters spending more time as of late in a
fancy suit than on the floor. Tyler Zeller has had an up-and-down rookie
season, and the injuries have cooled off a bench that was on fire after the
trade that brought Marreese Speights and Wayne Ellington to town.
Right now, the Cavs have more of a
talent problem than a coaching problem. The small forward position is anchored
by role player Alonzo Gee. That is not the formula you need for consistent
winning in a star-driven league.
Firing Scott at the end of the
season would be short-sighted. For one, who would replace him? One of the Van
Gundys? Some retread like Nate McMillan? There's expected to be five to 10
coaching vacancies this off-season. The Cavs are not going to get anyone better
than what they have right now.
As depressing as it is
to watch the Cavs these days, they are on the cusp of, well, at least competing
for a low-seed playoff spot. A healthy roster very well could have made the
post-season this year. This franchise
cannot live on "what ifs," but it does have a million draft picks, a
Scrooge McDuck vault of cap space, an improved Tristan Thompson, and a
legitimate superstar, all which can be components of a potential playoff chase in 2013-14.
It remains to be seen if Scott can
be the coalescing force that jells this roster, but a half-season next year
surely will tell the tale. If the Cavs are still miserable on defense, still
blowing leads, and have fallen out of contention by January, by all means,
jettison Scott into early retirement. Firing the grim-faced sideline general now
would be a mistake, and worthy of a whipping that would make your belt-brandishing
tyrant of an uncle proud.