Some players in the Cleveland Cavaliers locker room reportedly are unhappy with coach David Blatt's decision to use an exceptionally short rotation and believe he should lean more on the team's veterans. This follows Game 4 of the 2015 NBA Finals, where a number of the Cavaliers - LeBron James and Matthew Dellavedova, specifically - looked exhausted.
NBA coaches typically shorten their rotations in the postseason, but injuries have forced Blatt to cut his rotation to a number - seven players in Game 4, before clearing his bench during garbage time - even shorter than the norm. The fatigue showed Thursday night during Cleveland's 103-82 blowout loss to Golden state, and according to ESPN's Brian Windhorst, some players in the Cavaliers locker room want Blatt to expand his rotation.
"With several players, James and Dellavedova especially, looking worn down from the demands in the playoffs, players have begun to privately grumble that Blatt needs to use his whole roster," Windhorst wrote Friday.
Windhorst said the "feel" in the locker room is Blatt should lean more on some of the veterans, specifically Mike Miller and Shawn Marion, to better match up against the Warriors' depth on the perimeter.
After three strong performances with only a day of rest in between, fatigue appeared to catch up to James in Game 4. He looked worn down, and his tumble into a camera on the sideline certainly didn't do him any favors.
Dellavedova, one of the surprise stars of the series, also looked worn down. The 24-year-old, who's filling in for an injured Kyrie Irving, averaged 38 minutes in each of the last three games. That's a huge jump for a player that only averaged 20 minutes per game during the regular season, and his body - as evident by his hospitalization for dehydration and exhaustion after Game 3 - just isn't used to the playing time.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr made a number of changes for Thursday's game, and all eyes will be on Blatt this Sunday to see if he follows suit.
