Wade on LeBron, Cavs struggling: 'I'm sure he'll figure it out'
The Cleveland Cavaliers will look to claw their way back to .500 when they take on Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday night.
If it sounds odd that they're fighting just to break even at 3-3, well, it kind of is. The expectation was that the Cavaliers offense would take some time to find a flow with so many new pieces and a new head coach, but that they'd still be quite good while figuring things out. That hasn't been the case.
While the Cavs rebounded some on Friday by winning in Denver, the Nuggets have been pretty terrible and don't exactly stand as an effective proving ground. Even with the win, the Cavaliers rank 17th in offense and 26th in defense when adjusting for the quality of opponents so far.
Of course, this shouldn't be all that surprising. When The Big Three came together in Miami for the 2010-11 season, they struggled to a 9-8 start before finishing 49-16 and making the NBA Finals. It's probably that experience that has LeBron James' former teammate Dwyane Wade confident that James and the Cavs will get it together sooner or later.
As Wade told the Miami Herald over the weekend:
He has all the tools he needs. We’ve been through it together where we ran into struggles as a team. You’re going to do that in the season whether it’s in the beginning of the season, or sometimes in the middle or sometimes at the end. He’s a four-time MVP. He’s a two-time champion. I’m sure he’ll figure it out as a leader.
The Pelicans aren't exactly a pushover, so the Cavaliers' struggles could persist for a while still. Boston and Atlanta are also waiting this week, with neither representing anything close to a cakewalk.
It's an 82-game season. Even if it's not this week, Wade is right that the Cavaliers will figure things out eventually.