There is never a dull moment with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The latest cause for drama is head coach Ty Lue's decision to bench J.R. Smith and make Dwyane Wade the team's starting shooting guard. Even with Wade's age, the move wasn't all that surprising. Neither is Smith's reaction, as he said "absolutely" he's frustrated about the coach's decision. Via Cleveland.com:
J.R. Smith said "absolutely" he is frustrated that he lost his place in the Cavaliers' starting lineup to Dwyane Wade, though neither he nor Tristan Thompson aim to make trouble now that they're both coming off the bench.
"We talked about it," Smith told cleveland.com. "It wasn't the most positive conversation, but we talked about it and we'll get through it together."
Smith said he "kind of knew it" was coming with Wade. LeBron James told cleveland.com he had talked to Smith "way before" Lue made the decision, which was perhaps an indicator for Smith that a change was coming.
"Was pretty much bracing myself for it," said Smith, who compared what happened with Wade to a situation he experienced with the New York Knicks.
Despite the demotion to the bench, Smith will still get plenty of minutes, but he's completely justified in being ticked off by this move. Just look at it from his perspective. After being a sixth man for most of his career, Smith gets traded to Cleveland, jumps into the starting lineup, and becomes a key piece for a team that goes to three straight Finals. Now, LeBron James' buddy -- who at this point in his career is arguably not as good as Smith -- shows up and is just magically inserted into the starting lineup after like two preseason games.
No matter how many minutes or touches Smith will still get, that has to be annoying.
