The Cleveland Cavaliers were in need of a change. The team has been linked to a number of trade deals with the deadline approaching in mid-February. Kevin Love and Timofey Mozgov have been the subject of trades. Instead, the Cavaliers opted to fire head coach David Blatt and move forward without him as they prepare to face off against the Chicago Bulls in a critical Eastern Conference matchup.
The Cavaliers announced Friday that Blatt has been fired after just over a year with the team. The Cavaliers currently rank first in the Eastern Conference with a 3-game lead. Blatt was currently 64-20 with the team which should not seem bad, but the Cavaliers are coming off back-to-back losses from the Golden State Warriors and the San Antonio Spurs which says the Cavaliers might be the best in the East, but not the best in the league. That is not good enough in the eyes of the Cavaliers' ownership and a change was made.
Now, Tyronn Lue will be taking over in Cleveland with the task of leading LeBron James, Love and Kyrie Irving to the NBA Finals for a second season. Lue has been an assistant for the Cavaliers and is now the youngest active head coach. The Cavaliers are coming off a nice win over the Los Angeles Clippers. JR Smith sparked the turnaround while Love put up his sixth double-double with 18 points and 16 rebounds. The roster is certainly set up for success and now Lue gets to be the next guy to try and make it work.
The Bulls have less drama to their name. Now playing without Joakim Noah, Nikola Mirotic, Bobby Portis and Pau Gasol along with Taj Gibson are taking care of frontcourt play. The team is fresh off a nice win over Boston. Derrick Rose had 27 points while Jimmy Butler added 28 points. The Bulls have the talent with or without Noah to make a nice run in the East and head into the playoffs. They appear to have better chemistry on the court than the Cavaliers roster which could be the difference maker in this game which is likely a preview of the playoffs.
