It is amazing what a difference a year makes for the Cleveland Cavaliers. A year ago at the halfway mark of the season, the wine and gold were sitting at 36-6 and visions of a playoff run into the NBA Finals dancing in their heads.
Today, they are sitting at 23-19 and if the season ended today, they would be in the Play In Tournament. At the beginning of the year, we said it was pretty much a certainty that the Cavs would end up in the playoffs. We still would be shocked if they didn’t make it, but it is no longer the certainty it was.
Yes, injuries are a factor. But Kenny Atkinson’s squad was healthy on Monday night against Utah, and they Cavs laid a gigantic egg at home, losing to the 14-25 Jazz by 11 points, falling behind 23-4 in the first quarter.
There clearly is something missing.
The obvious problem is the defense. Last year, Cleveland ranked 8th in the NBA in defensive rating and this year they have dropped to 14th. Since they held Golden State to 99 points in a loss on December 6th, they have allowed more than 120 points eight times in the last 17 contests.
And in three of those other games, they’ve given up 119, 118, and 117.
In their most impressive win in that span, a victory over San Antonio on the road, they allowed the Spurs just 101 points. Let’s just say it’s a lot easier to win when you don’t need to put up 125 points to do it.
And last night, another impressive win, and again, they held the Sixers to 107.
They have forgotten to defend the three-point shot. Last season, they ranked 13th, allowing opponents to hit 35.9% of the long-range shot. Currently, they rank last, giving them up at a 38.6% rate.
Overall, they aren’t too bad, ranking 13th in defensive field goal percentage as a whole, but even that is a drop from last year’s #3 ranking. Isaac Okoro doesn’t make that much of a difference, folks.
Speaking of Okoro, the player he was dealt for, Lonzo Ball, seems to be out of Atkinson’s rotation. We liked the deal at the time because he added size and playmaking to the backcourt, but his shooting has fallen off a cliff.
He was a career 40% shooter overall and 36% from three, but with the Cavs is making just 31.2% from the floor and an abysmal 27.6% from beyond the arc.
And reports are that last year’s addition at the trade deadline, De’Andre Hunter, wants out. Hunter is still solid in the midrange and also provides the only real size Cleveland has on the wings, so hopefully that situation can be worked out.
However, a career 36.6% shooter from three, and last season, hit 42.6% for the Cavs, Hunter can’t find his long-range stroke, hitting just 31% this season.
And as a second apron team, team president Koby Altman’s options are limited. He will have to be very creative to make a significant move.
We will say it again; this team needs to add size. Long athletic teams give the Cavs trouble.
What Altman needs to do is add size, but if he works a trade involving Hunter, he is trading his tallest wing. So, that doesn’t do anything.
Sure, the Cavs could put it together and reel off six or seven wins in a row. But more and more it feels like this team is broken and the title window which appeared to be wide open last season, is only open very slightly.
Cleveland Sports Perspective 