Lue calls Cavaliers' recent play 'unacceptable'

In the 10 previous seasons in which they employed LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavaliers were below .500 after seven games just once, and that was during James' rookie season back in 2003-04. Fourteen years later, a ghastly loss to the lowly New York Knicks dropped them to 3-4, setting off the annual tradition of Cavs worry-mongering even earlier than usual.

Though it's still far too early to draw any meaningful conclusions, and though James justifiably isn't sweating October losses, it's worth noting that after playing nearly 10 percent of their season, the Cavs are 15th in the league in offense, 27th in defense, and 22nd in net rating, despite playing a cupcake schedule so far. They've lost three straight games, all against non-playoff teams from last season, by an average of 15.3 points.

The Cavs have made a habit of coasting through the regular season, but Sunday's 19-point home loss to the Knicks - who'd lost their first two road games by a combined 42 points - may have been a new nadir, and head coach Tyronn Lue isn't being quite as cavalier about it as James is.

"Tonight's loss and the last couple are unacceptable, and the only way we're going to be able to get out of it is to put the work in - as players, as coaches," Lue told reporters, according to ESPN's Dave McMenamin. "And we're going to do that. ... When you lose to teams the way we've been getting beat, it's unacceptable."

Lue specifically cited the Cavs' poor transition defense as an area of concern, something that may owe as much to the team's age (they're the NBA's oldest team) as it does to early-season apathy.

"Teams just look faster than we do at every position," Lue said. "They're running fast, they're spreading, they're pushing the ball up the floor. It's like we can't keep up."

Even James had to concede as much.

"Our transition defense is pretty bad," he said, according to McMenamin. "I mean, I think everything defensively."

After starting the season with back-to-back wins in which they held their opponents under 100 points, the Cavs have surrendered at least 112 in five straight, including to the Knicks and Chicago Bulls, who came into those games ranked 26th and 30th in offense, respectively.

Their transition defense will get a stiff test Wednesday when they host the surprising Indiana Pacers, who play at the league's sixth-fastest pace and have run-and-gunned their way to the league's fourth-best offensive rating to start the season.