OAKLAND, Calif. — Before excuses are made for LeBron James, before the bulk of the blame for consecutive horror shows at Oracle Arena is heaped on a supporting cast of Cleveland Cavaliers that has turned to dust when removed from a comfy Eastern Conference refuge, it must be reiterated that this was the team the King himself courted.

This was the crew James left Miami for, the one he reconfigured with back-room leverage upon returning home and then stood by approvingly when a coach with an impeccable (albeit limited) N.B.A. record was dismissed for a replacement with no head-coaching record at all.

That is not to say that Tyronn Lue, who slid over into David Blatt’s big-boy seat midseason, is the primary reason — if a reason at all — that the Cavaliers are down, two games to none, against the Golden State Warriors in the N.B.A. finals and, thus far, are embarrassing themselves.

Losing in the finals to a Golden State team that won a record 73 regular-season games, if that is the inevitable result, would be no disgrace. But if the series continues this way, and so far it has not been remotely competitive, the epitaph for the Cavaliers’ season should be: This is the team James wanted, and assembled.