What do you get the team that has pretty much everything it needs to repeat as NBA champs? According to LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavaliers, set to land sharpshooter Kyle Korver, still have one need that hasn’t yet been addressed.
“We still got a couple more things we need to do,” James said, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “We got to get a point guard.”
This isn’t the first time James has lamented his team’s situation at point guard. He was upset about it after Cleveland lost to Chicago on Wednesday, and he doubled down on Friday, saying, “Yeah, it’s my last time saying it. We need a point guard.”
Now, before jumping to conclusions about any potential shade being thrown at All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving, here’s some extra context provided by James about the team’s need. Comparing his team’s current situation to that of an NFL team at the quarterback position, he laid out a compelling argument.
“I think that’s the next step,” James said of a point guard addition, “… and, uh, you know, you look at our league, most teams have three point guards. We only have two, with [Kyrie Irving] and our rook in Kay [Felder]. I think just having that secure blanket [is important]. Every NFL team has three quarterbacks. Having that secure blanket in case of a [situation like the Oakland Raiders losing] Derek Carr. We’ll see what happens, but we’re happy with our team right now.”
Depth is key in the NBA Playoffs. As it is in so many other sports, the team that wins isn’t always the most talented on paper but the healthiest and hottest team down the stretch. Having more than two point guards would allow the Cavs to not only have that security blanket later down the road but would also act as a deterrent to Irving being overused during the regular season because the only other true point on the team is the rookie, Felder.
It remains to be seen what form this extra help will come in, but if James gets his way the Cavaliers will be absolutely stacked come playoff time. And if we’ve learned anything the past year it’s that James typically gets his way when it comes to what happens with Cleveland’s roster.