LeBron James expressed concern recently that the Cavaliers — trying to repeat as NBA champions — were “top heavy.” By that he meant that the Cavs weren’t as deep as they’d been last year: their top players still matched up but as you went down the roster there was a falloff. A few commentators didn’t exactly weep for James, knowing how lucky most teams would feel to be top heavy like the Cavs — with All-Stars Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving and LeBron himself in the starting lineup.
Now an injury to Love, who will miss at least six weeks after knee surgery, may show just how perilous the top heavy problem is for the Cavaliers. Love is averaging 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Cavs and he will be sorely missed. The three-pronged top just got less heavy, which will either expose the middle of the Cavs lineup as not-ready-for-primetime or give them an opportunity to get more game experience and chemistry. Either way, James’ team is decidedly less top heavy now. It’ll be interesting to watch the results. The Cavs currently lead the Eastern Conference standings by two games over the Celtics.
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