Search for Cavs' Identity, Chemistry Begins

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The energy. The emotion. The fanfare.

It was all in the building as the Cleveland Cavaliers opened their regular season schedule agianst the New York Knicks. But, as crazy as it sounds, it's those three things that could have been what kept LeBron James from truly being LeBron on Thursday night.

James' second coming as a Cavalier only yielded 17 points, five rebounds and eight turnovers. For most, that's a pretty good night in a NBA game. However, LeBron James isn't most.

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But the Cavs' loss isn't on him. Yeah, the Knicks played well...but they also have some wrinkles to iron out of this triangle scheme they're using. More specifically, they have to learn how to use it more efficiently. But the thing about the Knicks is they have some sort of identity. Cleveland, on the other hand, doesn't really have a defining trait.

Yeah, they have stars like Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love and a good supporting cast, but this isn't the second coming of the Miami Heat when Bron went down to South Beach and joined forced with Chris Bosh and D-Wade. There, they immediately knew they'd be all-out, full speed, petal to the metal on offense before developing a stinginess about themselves on defense. It was only then when they won those two titles.

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Now, James finds himself in a similar situation. The only difference is this team has to find who they are on both sides of the ball with a new coach in David Blatt. Some are already hitting the panic button. Some are already raising red flags with this team.

As Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers would say, "Relax."

This team has 81 more games to play and, between now and their final game, they'll find themselves. What you saw in their season opener is just a team still learning one another. Eventually, these guys will run like a well-oiled machine and the season opener will be nothing more than a footnote in this season.