Are these the last days of Georges Niang as a Cavalier?

I started writing this blog post while watching the Celtics take the Cavs to the woodshed in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

The Cavaliers played hard, but it was clear from the outset that they had zero chance of winning the game. As the second half unfolded, it took on the feel of a Harlem Globetrotters game – with the Cavs on the wrong end of that equation.

Things went so far off the rails for the Cavaliers that Georges Niang graced the parquet floor for the final three minutes of the fourth quarter.

There was a time, not so long ago, that Georges (don’t be fooled by the spelling – he’s just one man) was one of the first subs in the queue for J.B. Bickerstaff. He was a key rotation piece, as they say – and a guy who looks like he’s no stranger to subs.

The Cavaliers signed Niang to a three-year, $26 million contract in the offseason. Reportedly, Koby Altman had been coveting the colorful 3-and-D forward for some time. It made sense on paper: When the Cavs signed Niang, he was coming off his fifth consecutive season shooting 40% or better from 3-point range. And he brought some much-needed attitude to a team that’s been branded as “too soft” on more than one occasion.

Niang’s orneriness was as advertised: The guy never stops talking, and doesn’t hesitate to get all up in your grill. But he had a hard time backing up all that tough talk. Niang shot 37.6% from 3-point range in the regular season – a couple points below his career average – and seemed to go cold when the Cavaliers needed him most.

In the Game 1 playoff win over Orlando, Niang chipped in five points in 24 minutes of action, although he was 0-for-4 from 3-point range. In Game 2, he went scoreless in 13 minutes, going 0-for-4 from deep.

After the series shifted south (and went south for the Cavs), Niang had tumbled out of Bickerstaff’s rotation. Niang was a healthy scratch in Game 5, and saw just three minutes of playing time in the decisive Game 7 in Cleveland. He was scoreless in that game.

In Tuesday night’s 120-95 bloodletting in Boston, Niang was relegated to garbage time.

The way things are going, I can’t imagine the Cavaliers keeping Niang around next season.

In the aftermath of the Cavaliers’ first-round loss to the Knicks last season, Altman made a concerted effort to shore up the 3-point shooting – and add some grit and toughness – with the signings of Niang and Max Strus. Niang, in particular, was supposed to be the kind of tough, scrappy, clutch-shooting role player who can make a real difference for a team with aspirations of a deep playoff run.

The fact that Niang has slid down the depth chart – at a time when the Cavs need him most – speaks volumes about his future in Cleveland.