DALLAS -- When the Cleveland Cavaliers left Dallas in the early hours of Tuesday morning, heading home to Cleveland, it was finally the last day of January -- an off day to regroup and put the miserable month behind them.
"Learning experience. That's it," Kyrie Irving said of the Cavs' 7-8 record, cemented with Monday's 104-97 loss to the Dallas Mavericks.
The it's-only-January mantra makes sense. The Cavs have approached this season just like every other since LeBron James returned in the summer of 2014, with a big-picture mentality.
After losing in the NBA Finals two years ago, general manager David Griffin felt the team peaked too soon.