David Griffin, Acting General Manager of the Cleveland Cavaliers

New Cavs general manager David Griffin has to find a balance between his love of offense and ownership's craving for defense.

(Thomas Ondrey / The Plain Dealer)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- "We failed."

General Manager David Griffin said those two words when talking about the bottom line of the 33-49 season. Griffin was the assistant general manager a year ago when owner Dan Gilbert promised this would be the Cavs' last visit to the draft lottery "for a long time."

The goal for 2013-14 was the playoffs. Guess what? That must be the target on the wall once again.

Griffin opened his Tuesday press conference by saying it's his job to "deliver on the clear goals" set by ownership. I think Gilbert was wrong to skip Tuesday's press conference. He should have been there to formally introduce Griffin as the full-time general manager, along with explaining Mike Brown's firing (again!).

But the owner was right a year ago to say the Cavs should be a playoff team in 2013-14. The Hawks made it at 38-44, and the Cavs were five games behind Atlanta.

Coaching was a problem. Griffin twice mentioned how he must find a coach who is in "lock step" with the front office and ownership so that the franchise can "make the greatest strides as quickly as possible."

In the last four seasons, the Cavs are 99-213. They basically lose two of every three games and the fans have been remarkably patient.

Facing reality

That's why Griffin was wise to not spend a lot of time trying to explain away the disappointing season. He could have talked about the improvement of Dion Waiters. Or Kyrie Irving being the All-Star MVP. Or how Spencer Hawes fit. Or how they finished 17-16 (after Griffin took over as general manager).

But this was not a time for a "turn those frowns upside down" speech. Instead, the situation demands that Griffin grit his teeth and ruthlessly examine every member of the roster.

Thankfully, Griffin admitted the "lack of results" and the need to "take every opportunity to get better."

While the playoffs should not be the end game, it's the start of playing the real NBA game. Tune into any of the post-season matchups. It's far more intense, incredibly more interesting than most nights during the 82-game regular season.

If you're a Cavs fan, this has to be the most disappointing time of year. And please, don't bow down to the altar of lottery ping-pong balls. At the moment, the Cavs have the ninth worst record and about a three percent chance to have one of the top three picks.

Trades coming

I wouldn't be surprised if Griffin trades the first rounder in an attempt to find a shooter ... or how about a small forward who can make outside shots?

The Cavs' average age was 24.9 in 2013-14, the seventh-youngest in the league. All the playoff teams had an average age of at least 25.

This is not about dumping young and promising players. One of the keys to the coaching search is to find a man who can teach floor spacing and quicken the pace so that the Cavs can figure out how to maximize the talents of Irving and Waiters.

Several times, Griffin mentioned how the team has "enough assets to find the right players." There will be more than $20 million of room on the salary cap. They will be aggressive.

If things go poorly in contract talks with Irving, he could be traded. Or if they go well and Irving buys into the vision of the new coach, then the roster has to be constructed with outside shooters (and perhaps a low-post scorer) to help the two young guards.

For the Cavs, things must change.

"Ownership believes in defense and I believe in offense," said Griffin. "There's a truth in the middle. We're going to find that."