Cleveland Cavaliers finger-pointing

The Cleveland Cavaliers are a team that truly seems rudderless. They play well over long stretches , only to get blown out by 44. They take big leads in games, only to give them up as though 25-point leads are close games.

When you stare at the Cavs for any length of time, you see a team that lacks leaders, consistency and direction.

Throughout the season, you can point to several different issues that have been or are at root with the struggles of this team. Dan Gilbert, Chris Grant, Mike Brown and nearly every member of the team has, at one point or another, been at the center of finger-pointing, and you can take that phrase at face value, because I’m not always pointing the same finger.

The frustration is that this isn’t a bad basketball team talent-wise. Kyrie Irving has talent. Dion Waiters has talent. Tristan Thompson has talent. Yeah, even Anthony Bennett has talent. The problem? Well, if there were one, things wouldn’t be where they are right now. The Cavs are 16-29. They were 13-32 last year, but were 17-28 two seasons ago. In other words, they aren’t any better…yet.

As the Cavaliers head to New York tonight after a 1-4 road trip, you can’t help but feel this is a make-or-break road trip. Can they be a good basketball team? Do we even want them to be?

Let’s point some fingers…and feel free to use whichever finger you see fit:

Cavs suspend Andrew Bynum

Bynum Suspended

The Cleveland Cavaliers have suspended center Andrew Bynum for conduct detrimental to the team, according to Cavs General Manager Chris Grant.

The Cavaliers traveled to Boston on Friday night for their Saturday afternoon matinee at the Garden. Bynum didn’t travel with the team, and has been excused from all team activities indefinitely.

It’s currently unknown with regards to specifics of what happened with Bynum, but there are any number of rumors circulation, from Bynum wanting to quit basketball, to his refusal to be benched, to just Bynum being Bynum.

Whatever the reason, the Cavaliers are reportedly trying to “aggressively…trade Bynum,” according to former Cavs beat writer and current ESPN NBA reporter Brian Windhorst.

According to Bill Simmons, Bynum is looking to be traded to the Heat or the Clippers, and would “consider Bynum.” Consider the Bynum news to be in full fledged rumor mode.

We all know Andrew Bynum’s enigmatic history, from his issues in Los Angeles, to not playing in Philadelphia, and now this. With all of that said, it’s completely unknown what the reasons are for the suspension, if he’s truly on the trading block, or what teams he actually wants to go to.

I’m not happy about this, but will gladly wait it out to see the true story as it unfolks through normal media patterns, and not the rampant idiocy that some of these “reporters” resort to with regards to Twitter.

Of course, I say this, while hitting refresh on my twitter account with the fervor of a five-year old ripping open Christmas presents.

What I refuse to do is act surprised that a pro sports athlete acts or does something odd. This is the norm, not the exception.

Tune in to Cleveland Sports Insiders for more on this as it develops, and look, we aren’t here to break a story…but we are here to talk about it. Leave your comments below, and get ready for a podcast on this very subject in the coming hours.