The Cleveland Cavaliers are reportedly facing more pressing issues off the court than when they play together in the hardwood arena. While the LeBron James team is currently number one in the Eastern Conference, rumors are rife that the squad is falling apart and is about to break up soon. Although an official confirmation has yet to be issued by the basketball team and the concerned parties, speculations point to the tension brewing among James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love.
Reports disclosed that King James has become increasingly disappointed over the underwhelming performance of the Cleveland Cavaliers. In fact, the former Miami Heat star has been rumored to gearing for a comeback to the Dwyane Wade squad - that is, if his social media messages are to be believed. Meanwhile, Irving is said to be looking for a way out following the Twitter drama with James. In response to the messages from the Cleveland Cavaliers leader, the 23-year-old former Duke star posted a telling message of his own.
"Control what you can control. Sounds so cliche, but it's the bold truth," Irving wrote via Twitter.
The problems on and off the court have been noted by sports analysts as well. Chris Mannix of The Vertical quoted league scouts and sources as saying that "Irving remains a dynamic scorer, but the disconnect between Irving and James is real." He further noted that the "on-court chemistry" between James and Irving is "basically nonexistent." Mannix added, "Team sources insist the relationship is solid, that James is simply teaching, trying to raise Irving's basketball IQ. No one understands Irving's importance more than James, team sources told The Vertical, which is why no one is working harder than James to get the two All-Stars on the same page."
James, who was reeling from the 106-103 loss of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies, lamented his team's lack of preparation. He said via ESPN, "I can sit up here and say that we're a team that's ready to start the playoffs tomorrow, but we're not. We're still learning. We still have things that happen on the court that just, that shouldn't happen."
In another mysterious Twitter message, James appeared to have addressed the chemistry issue of the Cleveland Cavaliers. He wrote, "The ultimate level of chemistry is when you know what I'm thinking without saying a word and we execute it. Visa Versa."
Meanwhile, Love feels that his current team is failing at "respecting" basketball. The former Minnesota Timberwolves star, who has been repeatedly rumored to want out of the Cleveland Cavaliers, shared that their performance was "terrible" in the loss against the Matt Barnes squad.
"We just could have done a better job of respecting the game," shared Love. He added, "A team like that, they were going to come out and swing for the fences, and they did. That was a real bad loss for us. ... Turnovers were terrible. That was what I mean, respecting the game."
