There is considerable drama — some might even say poetic justice — in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ run to the N.B.A. finals. The story began as a tight, neat narrative, constructed out of max contracts and free agency, at a time when professional basketball teams were not so much built as they were cast, like boy bands.
LeBron James’s return to play alongside Kyrie Irving, and the addition of Kevin Love, assured Cleveland of one the top spots in the playoffs, at least according to the pundits, at least on paper.
But the bobbleheads were barely out of their boxes when a sub-.