Friday morning, Cavs’ basketball head honcho Koby Altman had his post-season press conference and essentially said there wouldn’t be a lot of changes in the off-season. Let’s hope this is just front office speak.
Yes, the Cavaliers won 51 games this past season, the most won in the post-LeBron James era for the franchise. However, a closer look at the team shows there are a lot of areas where the wine and gold need to improve if they want to make a deeper run in next season’s playoffs.
Altman went out and got a star last off-season, trading most of the Cavaliers’ assets for Donovan Mitchell, thus giving the team four all-star caliber players along with Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Evan Mobley.
It was a great move. Mitchell will likely be first or second team all-NBA. But now Altman and GM Mike Gansey need to focus on spots #4 through #10 on the roster.
We would guess there will be a priority to bring Caris LeVert back. LeVert is the only player besides Mitchell and Garland to be able to create his own shot, and he showed he can be a solid defender and good passer.
The Cavaliers need more “basketball players” on the second unit. What we mean by that is players who can do a little bit of everything, like LeVert.
Right now, after the five players already mentioned, it feels like the balance of the squad is made up of one-dimensional players.
Isaac Okoro and Lamar Stevens are defenders, providing little on the offense end. Ricky Rubio is a playmaker. Dean Wade? He’s supposed to be able to provide outside shooting, but frankly, we’ve said all year he’s probably better defensively than people think, and not as good of a shooter as purported.
Cedi Osman is the closest to having an all-around game, but it seems like the coaching staff has very little confidence in him.
And without a doubt, Cleveland needs some shooters. The playoff series vs. the Knicks begged for someone, anyone to be able to make an outside shot consistently. Danny Green was signed on the buyout market and contributed one made three-point shot.
They also need size, and need size that can play in April. The last two years, the front office offered Ed Davis and Robin Lopez as reserve big men. Neither contributed much on the court. Altman and Gansey must get at least one big who can spell Allen and Mobley, and we would get two.
Basketball is still a sport where size matters, and J.B. Bickerstaff, who loves size, shouldn’t have to play Osman or Green at power forward in a playoff game.
From a coaching standpoint, Bickerstaff needs to do something differently offensively. Mitchell came into criticism for the post-season performance and to his credit, he owned up to it, but what did the coaching staff do to get him open looks? Opposing teams don’t guard Okoro, but the Cavs keep putting him in the corner to shoot threes.
That’s exactly why they don’t guard him.
They also don’t really have a plan for Mobley and Allen on the offensive end.
The defensive mindset is great, no question about it, but the Cavs only scored 100 points once in the series, the game they won. And the trio of Mitchell, Garland, and LeVert took 63% of the shots Cleveland attempted.
FYI, the Knicks top three in shots taken (Jalen Brunson, Julius Randle, and R.J. Barrett) took 58% of their shots.
There is very little movement off the ball for Cleveland. It’s pick and roll or bust. And we know that’s what the league has become, but there has to be some alternatives.
If Altman went before the media and promised big changes, the speculation would be running rampant already. He has to know the Cavaliers have to get better in 2023-24, and that will be difficult with no changes on the roster.
Cleveland Sports Perspective 