I like to consider myself an expert when it comes to recognizing futility and hopelessness in sports. Each season, every team I cheer for seems determined to find a way to be increasingly awful. But despite my familiarity with last place finishes and double digit losing streaks, I have never seen anything like this season’s Cleveland Cavaliers.  

The Cavaliers just set an NBA record with their 24th consecutive loss—almost a third of an entire season. But what is most impressive about this streak is how the Cavs are losing; they’re getting annihilated. Earlier this month the L.A. Lakers were a basket away from doubling Cleveland’s score, winning 112-57. In their next two games the Cavs lost by 22 and 28 points. If you add that up, Cleveland lost by 104 points over a three-game stretch—pretty embarrassing. The Washington Generals had a better chance of beating the Harlem Globetrotters.

But what really shows how bad the Cavs are is their 15-point loss to the Toronto Raptors on January 5. The Raptors suck; just a week after the victory, Toronto went on a 13-game losing streak of their own. Losing by 15 points to the Raptors is like losing to Adam Morrison in a beard-off—it just shouldn’t happen.

What’s remarkable about the Cavaliers’ downfall is how quickly it happened. Last season the Cavs led the league with a 61-21 record, but this year their incompetence is unrivaled. The only difference is LeBron James’s departure. Despite James winning two MVP awards, a scoring title and making the NBA Finals, the train wreck that is the Cavs season may be the best example of just how great (and I mean all-time great) a basketball player LeBron is.

The Cavs team is virtually the same as last season minus King James. Let’s say this Cavs team breaks their streak soon and improves. Right now they have an 8-43 record; it would be a stretch for them to win 13 games this year. That means LeBron, more or less, is the difference in Cleveland winning 48 games. Sure, there are other factors, but that is a ridiculous change in wins with only one star player being subtracted.

If you took Kobe Bryant off the Lakers or Tim Duncan off the Spurs do you think their teams would start losing at an unprecedented rate? Of course not. Even when Michael Jordan retired in 1993 the Bulls were able to win an impressive 55 games. James may not be better than Bryant, Duncan, or Jordan, but he’s always criticized for not winning a championship in Cleveland. However, with Cleveland’s struggles this year it seems as though James’s Cavs teams were winning at an amazing rate despite him being surrounded by a bunch of scrubs.

As the season progresses and the Cavs continue to look hopeless, sit back and enjoy. Enjoy how comically bad the season is becoming for Cleveland because it really is quite a show. But more importantly, you should appreciate LeBron for his talents.

This past Thursday LeBron put on one of the best basketball performances I’ve ever seen. He scored 51 points, shot 17-25, grabbed 11 rebounds and dished out eight assists. What was most impressive is how effortless it all looked. When a player has such an incredible game it often feels as if they are playing above themselves and getting somewhat lucky. With LeBron, it looked routine. He didn’t force shots (in fact he hit his first 11 attempts), played within the offence and was essentially unstoppable. This is what he is capable of when he plays his best. Moreover, it was not some fluky performance of a lifetime but the ninth 50-point performance of his career.

It’s an unfortunate reality that one’s character does not equate with one’s success in the sporting world. As fans we want those players who we can relate to and who we like to succeed. However, this often clouds our judgment and obscures reality. I’m not saying you should cheer for LeBron or even like him, but if you’re ignoring how amazing LeBron is because of his selfish and often arrogant actions during his career, you’re missing an opportunity to witness of one the most incredible athletes of all time play basketball at a phenomenal level. Don’t believe me? Ask the Cavs.