ANALYSIS/OPINION:
A blowout, midseason loss in the NBA often means nothing.
But the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 132-98 loss this week at home to the Golden State Warriors, the defending NBA champion? LeBron James being embarrassed before his hometown people by Stephen Curry, who at times seemed to toy with his opponent?
That’s as meaningful as an NBA midseason loss as you will find.
It meant more before the two rivals, who met in last year’s NBA Finals, even took the court in Cleveland. It was one of those “statement” games — a chance for the Cavaliers, a team decimated by injuries when they faced the Warriors in last year’s finals, to show Golden State what it would be in for if they meet again in the championship series.
The statement that was made? James may not be able to deliver Cleveland the championship the city so desperately wants — a title it hasn’t experienced by one of its sports teams since the Cleveland Browns won the NFL championship in 1964.
A loss like that makes people wake up and realize that James might fail in Cleveland — a burden that will likely define his career.
James left Cleveland to get away from the burden of a title-less career, but he’s back with two championships on his resume from a stay with the Miami Heat — won with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh — that will diminish in stature if he fails to do the same with the Cavaliers.
It was as if James bought them at the NBA store.
When he announced his return to Cleveland in Sports Illustrated in July 2014, he acknowledged the differences in value in winning titles in Miami as opposed to delivering one to Cleveland.
“When I left Cleveland, I was on a mission,” James said in the story. “I was seeking championships, and we won two. But Miami already knew that feeling. Our city hasn’t had that feeling in a long, long, long time. My goal is still to win as many titles as possible, no question. But what’s most important for me is bringing one trophy back to Northeast Ohio.”
He may bring back multiple trophies to Northeast Ohio — but they may be Eastern Conference championships.
Curry is in the way of that LeBron legacy. Kawhi Leonard is in the way of that legacy. Kevin Durant is in the way of that legacy.
The clock is ticking on James’ quest to bring a championship to his homeland. At the age of 31, in the 13th year of his career, he is getting older while these young stars are emerging to stand in his way.
After the lopsided loss to Golden State, in which James had just 16 points, he spoke of what he might not be able to do instead of what he returned to Cleveland to accomplish.
“When I [talk about] us playing at a championship level, that doesn’t automatically guarantee us [playing] until June,” he told reporters. “It’s all about the habits; I preach the habits more than anything. For me to look and say that we’re going to represent the East in the Finals would be absurd. I don’t really talk like that. That’s not what I’m about.
But that was what he was about when the savior announced to the world in Sports Illustrated that he was heading back to Cleveland: “I’m ready to accept the challenge,” he said. “I’m coming home.”
James can opt out of his current contract with the Cavaliers at the end of this season. All indications are that he wants to finish his career there, but as the seasons of failed championships there pile up, so could the burden — and he has shown he is not particularly good at carrying the burden of failed expectations.
“I think we’re a good team,” he told reporters after the loss to the Warriors. “But, I don’t think we’re a great team right now. We’ve got to continue to get better. I really think it’s absurd to think about May and June. It’s not guaranteed, man. If we continue to win and put ourselves in position and we do make the playoffs, then we give ourselves a chance. … But that doesn’t guarantee you anything. One shot here, one shot there, a turnover here, a turnover there, can change a series. So, for me, to focus on down that road when tomorrow isn’t promised, I think, is absurd.”
Tomorrow isn’t promised. Uh oh.
⦁ Thom Loverro is co-host of “The Sports Fix,” noon to 2 p.m. daily on ESPN 980 and espn980.com.
• Thom Loverro can be reached at tloverro@washingtontimes.com.
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