David Blatt, Ty Lue
Thinking about time, 10 years is absolutely a large amount of it. The major social media trend of 2026 has been going back 10 years to look at how things were in 2016. Staying right on topic, a discussion of the 2015-16 Cleveland Cavaliers is an order.
January 22, 2016 was a day many fans of the team remember for one reason or another. Sitting pretty at 30-11, their chances of running the East for a second season in a row seemed pretty good. David Blatt had a mark of 83-42 in the regular season, while taking a short-handed bunch to within two games of a championship.
They decided that day to fire Blatt, despite that incredibly hot start. Promoted to take his spot was Ty Lue, his first time as Head Coach Lue. And it was that decision that set things in motion.
Fast forward five months, and Cleveland was on top of the basketball world.
Firing Blatt and Hiring Lue Pushed Cavs Over the Top
David Blatt was initially hired by the Cavs to coach a continued rebuild and help take them back to the postseason. Not too long after he got the job though, LeBron James publicly announced his return to Cleveland after leaving for Miami four years earlier.
It was one of the biggest stories in the history of the league when James announced he would be returning. They re-tooled pretty quickly, and found a group of players that fit together.
Ty Lue, from the time he took over, seemed to have things continuing to run smoothly. When push came to shove, they made all the moves they had to, and found themselves in the NBA Finals with the Warriors again.
The win-loss record had been worse post-Blatt, but all that mattered is where they landed. Down three games to 1, they went on to make history.
Kyrie Irving hit The Shot, and LeBron James had a famous block on Andre Iguodala on a fast break to keep the game tied.
The Block, as it’s famously known, happened after both teams had been scoreless for three minutes. It was easily the greatest defensive feat of LeBron’s incredible career.
Ty Lue had his team incredibly motivated, and a tale he re-told on The Old Man And The Three a few years back fully tells the story. See it linked below.
A motivator running the show can make all the difference in the world.
Cavs Decision Paid Off
Firing a coach who starts a season 30-11 is generally unheard of. This is what happened with the Cavs back in 2016, in letting David Blatt go. But Ty Lue came in and the fact that they wound up winning the championship says it all.
It’s never easy to make this kind of move, especially at the midpoint of what looks on the surface to be a very successful season. The previous team to make that midseason coaching change and win it all was the 2006 Miami Heat, letting go of Stan Van Gundy and allowing Pat Riley to step back in. The exact wording in this one though, was that SVG was resigning to spend more time with family.
LeBron James delivered on his promise. Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love became part of history. The team did what it set out to do. Shoutout to Ty Lue.