The Cleveland Cavaliers have begun to struggle once again after they appeared to have righted the ship, and one of the reasons may be that they are tuning out head coach David Blatt. The team was expected to contend for a title, but they are in the middle of the Eastern Conference pack so far this season.

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According to ESPN, the organization is growing worried about whether the team is listening to the coach as they should, which is about the worst-case scenario for a team with title aspirations after a mere 30 games. Blatt acknowledged that the team "lost our energy and we lost our competitiveness" on Sunday night when the Detroit Pistons waxed the Cavaliers at home.

Blatt was hired despite not having any NBA coaching experience, although he did have a sterling list of accomplishments overseas. He is regarded as a great offensive mind, and he was brought in with the assumption that the Cavaliers would have the best offense in the league after adding Kevin Love and LeBron James this offseason.

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The Cavs have been good on offense, but they have been poor on defense, at times due to a lack of effort. The team figured to struggle somewhat without a true rim protector, and even more so after losing Anderson Varejao to a torn Achilles, but that does not excuse a lack of effort.

There are also rumors that the players are not listening to Blatt in the huddle during timeouts, with some going as far as saying that the players prefer to talk with assistant coach Tyronn Lue. Even James admitted that he did not clear it with Blatt before assuming the primary ballhandling duties. "No, I can do it on my own," James said. "I'm past those days where I have to ask."

The Cavaliers are 18-12 for the season and just 5-5 over their last 10 games. They currently sit in fifth place in the Eastern Conference. Below, you can see the highlights from Sunday night's loss to Detroit.