At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, we needed an event to draw in new tourists and locals since for the past four or so years we had become the least-visited theme park and arguably the least-liked of the parks. Frozen came out of nowhere last winter and scored Disney over 1.5 billion in the box office alone. If you don’t want to become absolutely furious with envy, I suggest you not look up how much they’ve made in merchandise. Either way, they decided to last-minute throw a Frozen event that occurs every day in the remaining days of summer and running through September.
It was last-minute because the parade is rather short, the fireworks are different every night, and also because very few outside of Florida knew it was even happening. Nonetheless, the park did pick up in attendance for the month of July and even early August. A cast member, an obvious Disney fan that doesn’t really question the decisions of the House of Mouse, gleefully pointed out that ever since the Frozen event began, the attendance of the park went up 30%.
This stat does make sense, and it does ring true as Hollywood Studios did indeed see a hike in numbers. But this stat my friends is what I call an empty statistic. An empty statistic is one that is used to prove a point but at the same time negates the other factors. In the case of the 30% increase, we can attribute it solely to Frozen, or we can attribute it to:
1) Disney in general getting a spike in attendance for the summer regardless
2) Magic Kingdom’s new Fantasyland is actually drawing everyone in
3) Universal’s Harry Potter expansion is occurring around the same time
4) Magic Kingdom’s increases in block-out dates to locals and cast members forcing this crowd to seek elsewhere for Disney enjoyment
Now, the previous three paragraphs have nothing to do with the point of the article, but it does connect to my argument that Kevin Love is not as big a deal as people make him out to be and that Cleveland traded far too much for the man without even giving the current team a chance to flourish, make history, and even potentially alter the game of basketball forever.
My friends, Kevin Love is an entourage of empty statistics.
Yes he can be a 20-15 guy every game. Yes, he has definitely acquired extremely good numbers for a forward, and is a good 3-point shooter for a man his stature and size. It reminded me personally of another person that didn’t play his body type: Penny Hardaway at his peak---a tall man approaching 7 feet that still managed to play, run, shoot, and defend like an all-star guard.
And yes, Kevin Love did set a nice record last season by becoming the first player e.v.e.r. to hit 2,000 points, 900 rebounds and 100 3-pointers in a single season. Did you read that? The first player ever. Big man that can nail the 3 and rebound better than anyone else out there? How can you say no to this? How can one possibly be against potentially nabbing this man?
Simple. Look at his playoff appearances. Wait, you can’t find them? Seriously? Well now, there is a simple explanation of this: HE HAS NO APPEARANCES!
How on earth are you giving up so much for a man that has actually delivered so little? Yes he has played for an organization that has been turbulent and disastrous for a while, but to be the leader and the best player of your team and still not manage to win more than 40 games is rather ridiculous, and it does say something about his character and ability (and inability) to lead a team to victory. Numbers don’t mean squat if you can’t even take your team to the chance to enter the promised land. Flip Saunders and Rick Adelman were coaches of this team under Love and despite their proven record (Have you see the Sacramento Kings post-Adelman?) could not help him reach the playoff plateau. His good stats hide the fact that he still hasn’t helped produce a winning team.
I wrote about this syndrome I made up a long time ago, and it’s called the Scottie Pippen Syndrome. I accused Carmelo Anthony of being the heaviest carrier of this disease, with players past and present like Dwight Howard, Russell Westbrook, and Tracy McGrady (My favorite example: one season he had a beautiful 28 PPG/6 RPG/5 APG/1.4 SPG---and helped deliver the Magic a wonderful 21-61 record.....) containing traces of it. Even Shaquille O’Neal, one of the most dominating centers in the history of the NBA has some Pippen in him. These are all obviously talented players with a lot to offer---but it will never be enough to actually propel a team to the championship without the major help of a second player or a partner. Kevin Love is definitely heading in that direction.
Of course, now you can debate that the solution to talented-yet-disgruntled Kevin Love is by pairing him up with LeBron James. But is this hazardous player with good numbers but questionable teammate skills enough leverage to take Cleveland to a championship? Are we risking too much and sacrificing too much and not seeing the bigger picture? Let’s say LeBron goes down this season. Let’s say he gets a season-ending injury. Is the Love/Irving combination going to keep Cleveland afloat? Kevin Love just might be the best scoring/rebounding presence in the power forward position since Shawn Kemp and early 90s Charles Barkley---but he definitely lacks that edge and intimidation required to compensate the lack of leadership ability.
Now consider what could have happened, and what can still happen if Cleveland develops cold feet on this trade for Kevin Love (by sending Minnesota Bennett and Wiggins):
Anthony Bennett: 6’9” 259 lbs, Age: 21 (Power Forward)
Andrew Wiggins: 6’8” 200 lbs, Age: 19 (Shooting Guard)
Kyrie Irving: 6’3” 193 lbs, Age: 22 (Point Guard)
LeBron James: 6’8” 250 (and slimming), Age: 29 (Forward)
Look at this potential starting lineup. You have Bennett and Wiggins, both players that not only have proven themselves to be amongst the better young players in all of basketball, but have even played together previously before even wearing the same team uniform (How about them Canadians, eh?). We have nearly every position filled with the exception of a center, and the average age is 22---which is being curved higher because of the top player in the NBA in LeBron James!
Now look at the height, age, and weight. LeBron is rumored to have been losing weight, and if he does succeed then the mighty four here will have roughly around the same weight class (with Irving just a bit outside) and the same height range (Once again Irving on the outer loop). These are players who grew up watching LeBron James play in the NBA, these are players that have modeled their playing skills after seeing players in the early LeBron era. Wiggins plays like a young McGrady, Irving has some Chris Paul characteristics (with just a bit more hostility), Bennett even has some Kevin Love numbers in college by producing high numbers in low minutes and with a good 3-point shooting ability to boot.
So now the question is: would you rather have the Irving/James/Love combination? Or would you rather see if you can keep the rookies and allow LeBron to morph them into Mini-LeBrons to help out their leader seek the first title in Cleveland since a time before television reruns? I mean does combining a bunch of great players from different teams into one team increase your chances? I mean, let’s look at the previous examples:
Los Angeles Lakers (Adding Malone/Payton Era): 0 Rings, 1 season
Boston Celtics (Pierce/Garnett/Allen Era): 1 Ring, 6 seasons
Miami Heat (Big Three Era): 2 Rings (one Lockout season, the other…1 3-pointer away from losing it altogether), 4 seasons
11 seasons. 3 rings. Hey want to know who earned 4 rings in that same timeframe? The San Antonio Spurs. Isn’t it time to start seeing what the Spurs are doing as opposed to the sexy technique of rounding up a bunch of popular players with excellent numbers together? Shouldn’t it be time to start rounding up an ishload of key role players to compliment the young talent you already possess? Isn’t it time to just allow for a team to grow and morph into a basketball family that runs like an exclusive club—forcing you to alter your game to their ways in order to be accepted and ultimately share in the victories?
The San Antonio Spurs did not just beat the Heat, they destroyed them. They did not just become the champs, they blasted the door down holding the blueprints as to how these superteams can be stopped. The Spurs allowed LeBron to go out of control while sniping at the weaker players and slowly killed them on the inside. They exposed their fatigue, they exposed their one-trick pony ways and spaced the floor to a size that could not be contained. The Spurs were firing from practically everywhere and no matter how good LeBron’s numbers were in the Finals---when the opponent has nearly every player in double-digit points you are doomed.
The concept of empty statistics once again plays heavy here. LeBron James on Game 5 had 31 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists. Amazing Finals numbers, right? Yea, except for the part that your team lost by 17 and could have been worse if the Spurs had not finally eased on the accelerator in the third quarter and started celebrating. Kevin Love is not the answer to this devastating Spurs team that is still intact come October. Kevin Love can score, so what? All the Spurs have to do is space the floor even more, force Love away from the perimeter and the rebounding zone by playing smaller ball, and the rest is history.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have a golden opportunity to take the 3 #1 draft picks recovered within the past half-decade and send them all under LeBron’s wing. Cleveland has the chance to take a slew of young stars given to them by a merciful Draft Lottery and become the fastest, most relentless, and most intense team in the NBA. They have a chance to have four players run, play, and maneuver at the LeBron pace. They have only a few inches and about 50 pounds range between them---can you really argue that it’s impossible to make these youngsters transform into LeBron-like figures? The Cleveland Clones would be able to manage themselves if they were to lose LeBron for the year. And what if instead one of the rookies went under? Well, the NBA would still have to deal with LeBron and two clones instead of three.
Under the Love Connection, the Cavaliers will become an effective yet predictable team that will use Irving/LeBron for all the scoring and pacing, while Love picks up the rebounding pieces with Anderson Varejao. Good team, good team. But Frontcourt Basketball has lost its effectiveness, as we are seeing taller and bigger players become better shooters from outside the paint. While some can argue that the ridiculous offensive explosions of recent seasons can be attributed to the more sensitive fouls; its players like Love, Durant, among others making the game more expansive with all the outside shooting. The 2014 San Antonio Spurs won handedly with Splitter as their center----who averages 8.2 points a game. Speed, cutthroat shooting, and momentum destruction is what wins the games, and under Love I don’t see this type of play occurring in Cleveland.
However under the LeBron and His Minions strategy I do see a chance. Love or hate LeBron James, the man does know how to play any NBA position besides the 90s-Center position (You know, the Hakeem/Shaq/Ewing style of play). Can you imagine Irving become Point Guard LeBron, Wiggins become Shooting Guard LeBron, and Bennett become Power Forward LeBron? Can you imagine the slew of young stars run and gun in the way LeBron does his business? The floor would be wide open, as there would be nowhere to hide from the onslaught. Each of these players have the stamina and the speed to go at LeBron’s kinetic pace. You need to form a team best-suited to take down the best team. With Love, the Spurs are still the best. However give it a season, and we will see a new era of dominance as long as everyone is on the same page. And boy can LeBron shut up all the haters if he not only wins a title with Cleveland but crafts the next generation of winners with Irving/Bennett/Wiggins.
While the bench would still need the San Antonio depth, I’ll be hard-pressed to find a better Starting Five than LeBron, three #1 NBA Draft picks still itching for an opportunity to prove themselves, and the severely energetic Varejao. It would be the Golden State Warriors on steroids and with added size and Finals experience. Can anyone in the East stop a team with a smoothie of Warriors speed and shooting, 2012 Miami Heat depth, and Spurs-quantity Finals experience? (Do remember we have also Mike Miller, Brendan Haywood, and potentially even Ray Allen in the lineup) I think not. And keeping those rookies would make the 2014-2015 Cleveland Cavaliers a very exciting team to watch, and one to absolutely fear as long as everyone knows their role and doesn’t attempt to overstep.
With Kevin Love and his empty statistics, it would just be the latest attempt to form another Big Three. But keeping the youngsters and allowing for LeBron and co. to train them, it would be a starting lineup potentially being even deeper than anything LeBron experienced in Miami. Seriously. The Cleveland Clique could not be stopped. Irving/LeBron/Wiggins has speed, and Varejao and Bennett can definitely catch up without issue.
Cavilers if you reading this, re-consider that trade. That’s a lot of potential being traded for a player that still couldn’t propel you past San Antonio----LeBron’s worst enemy (5-11 against them in the NBA Finals). You still don’t even know what Wiggins is capable of. You technically have no idea what Bennett is capable of either. They need a chance. Do recall that before the Pistons had that amazing team in the early 2000s, the Orlando Magic had Ben Wallace AND Chaunsey Billips on their roster at the same time giving them limited minutes, and traded them away for scraps.
With all those picks playing together under the leadership of LeBron however……….it would be very interesting to see the results.
The Cleveland Clique deserves a chance.
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