Cleveland Cavaliers Lose Game, My Sympathy in Los Angeles

When I originally heard that the Lakers beat the Cavaliers by 55 points, I will admit that my first thought was, "How did LeBron James let this happen?"

Then it hit my mind that LeBron was with the Miami Heat. So I guess I still haven't fully gotten over "The Decision."

Judging by how this game went down, neither have the Cavs.

In their 112-57 victory over Cleveland, the Lakers set a new franchise record for fewest points yielded to an opponent. The Cavaliers set a new franchise record for fewest points scored in a game.

The 55-point blowout was the Lakers' third-largest margin of victory in their history.

The Cavs shot 29.9 percent from the field.

I could go on and on about how badly Cleveland got annihilated Tuesday, but instead I'll just get to the point: the Cavs stink.

This loss was their 11th in a row, and their 17th consecutive defeat on the road. Their record is now 8-30, the worst record in the entire NBA.

Look, I know losing a once-in-a-lifetime talent like LeBron James to free agency can be devastating to any franchise. But at a certain point, the Cavaliers as a franchise are going to need to stop their mourning period.

At some point, they need to start doing the things they need to do to become relevant again before their fans start becoming impatient.

That hasn't happened yet. Cleveland, according to ESPN, is second in the NBA in home attendance.

But soon the Cavs will need to show these fans that a plan is in place to someday (maybe not now, but someday) be able to play at the level at which they played with King James in Cleveland.

It starts with the ownership. Dan Gilbert needs to get over losing LeBron and show that he's willing to spend the money to get that next superstar and the supporting cast to get Cleveland the championship he promised to get before LeBron achieved his.

Trickling down, the front office, coaching staff and players need to show the same commitment to excellence. Being a Bulls fan, I know how quickly the fans grew impatient with their rebuilding plan following the departure of Michael Jordan and company.

General manager Jerry Krause was gone in 2003.