The Golden State Warriors have not been affected by a championship hangover through the first several weeks of the season. In fact, they look like they could be even better this year than they were last year.
LeBron James wants his team to take notes.
After the Cleveland Cavaliers lost to the Detroit Pistons Tuesday night, LeBron questioned why his team seems so complacent.
“We haven’t done anything,” he said, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. “We didn’t win anything. We lost. We lost in the Finals. So that’s enough motivation for myself. I think we need to understand that. Like, we lost in the Finals. We didn’t win. And the team that beat us looks more hungry than we are. So it shouldn’t be that way.”
The Cavs have lost back-to-back games, though it’s not as if they’re off to a horrible start. They’re 8-3 on the season, but LeBron would no doubt prefer if they were 12-0 like the defending champs.
“We’re too relaxed and too nice,” he added. “We’re just too nice.”
Everyone seems to agree. Head coach David Blatt said the Cavs need to “toughen up.” Forward Tristan Thompson said Cleveland has been “playing soft” and making life too easy on its opponents.
LeBron stressed that toughness isn’t always a physical thing.
“It’s not always about being Iron Man,” James said. “It’s a mental toughness as well — going out and doing your job, doing it at a high level and preparing that way before the tip even happens. So we got some guys who’ll do it and some guys that don’t do it consistently enough.”
It’s hard to compare any team to Golden State at the moment. The Warriors seem intent on challenging the NBA record of 72 wins in a season, and that will likely keep them motivated throughout the year. If you want to understand more about their mentality, just look at the way Stephen Curry recently described his team.
There is certainly a long way to go, but the Cavs need to beat teams like the Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks if they want to earn a top playoff seed and play to their potential.
