Cavs Just A Huge Inconsistent Mess Right Now

For many years, the Cleveland Browns have held the title of the most crazily run organization of the three major professional sports teams in the area. From what we’ve seen over the first few weeks of the NBA season, that title may have transferred to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Since they were swept in the Eastern Conference finals by the New York Knicks last spring, it has been one weird circumstance after another for the wine and gold, and the players, coach, and front office are all culpable.

Over the past five or six games, it looks like the players are in open revolt against Kenny Atkinson, although we don’t know why outwardly. Atkinson doesn’t appear to have an “in your face” coaching demeanor and generally goes out of his way to not throw any individuals under the bus.

Yes, he had the comment about analytics during the series against New York, which we would guess he wished he hadn’t said out loud, but that’s been more on him.

Atkinson isn’t perfect. His continued use of the small lineups drives us crazy, but then when you analyze the situation, you have to realize that seven of the 15 players currently on the Cleveland roster are 6’6″ or shorter, and four of the players who aren’t are two way players in Riley Minix, Norchad Ornier, Khalifa Diop and Ernest Udoh.

Adding to the confusion about the team was last night’s 115-107 win in New York. The Cavaliers’ players might think they are good enough to coast in the regular season and then turn it on in the playoffs, and maybe they are. However, that kind of attitude leads to poor habits.

There aren’t a lot of options to play with size, and that is the fault of Koby Altman, the president of basketball operations.

Altman has either overrated some of the players he has brought in or those players simply haven’t been utilized properly. The organization has been waiting for Evan Mobley to turn into a superstar for five years. Mobley is a solid player; he’s been the Defensive Player of the Year. But it looks like he’s an 18 points, 8 rebound per game guy. And he plays in spurts.

Even last night, he had just 10 points and five boards and was bullied by Karl-Anthony Towns. Jarrett Allen was far better with 11 points and 14 caroms.

Maybe it’s because Mobley has always played with ball dominant guards, but if so, whose fault is that?

Altman also is responsible for the lack of height/size on the roster. Remember that Isaiah Hartenstein was with the Cavs? It wasn’t a priority for the Cavs to keep him even though he showed skills while wearing a Cavaliers’ uniform.

Then you have the James Harden issue. We understand why the deal was made at the deadline, but we also always wrote any deal for Darius Garland shouldn’t be made about getting equal talent, it would be about getting a better fit.

Is it shocking that a 37-year-old guard looks like they may have hit the wall? His shooting numbers are way down and so are his assists. The Cavs inked him to a three-year deal after the season. Hard to see Altman getting out of that, although we all thought Shawn Kemp’s contract was impossible to get out of, and then GM Jim Paxson did it.

It also isn’t a good look for Donovan Mitchell either. Mitchell probably was consulted and let it be known he wasn’t happy with J.B. Bickerstaff, and so now he’s not happy with Atkinson either? And if he doesn’t have a problem with the coach, shouldn’t he stand up in front of his teammates and say that?

It’s just hard to believe that just five months ago, the Cavaliers advanced further than they ever have since LeBron James departed after 2018. Because now they seem like an inconsistent mess.

The Cavs Play Very Well Friday. The Next Night? Uh, Not So Much

Usually, we write on Saturday morning but after the Cavaliers very good performance on Friday night against the then 8-1 Philadelphia 76ers, we figured we would wait to see how the wine and gold followed up that performance against the defending champion New York Knicks, who swept Kenny Atkinson’s crew out of the playoffs last season in the Eastern Conference finals.

By the way, both games were at Rocket Arena.

Did the Cavs build on perhaps their best game of the young season on Friday? They did not, They trailed by 10 at the half and by 18 at the end of three quarters, losing by a dozen and dropping to 5-5.

This edition of the Cavaliers is befuddling for sure.

Yes, we know the team is battling injuries. One starter, Jarrett Allen is currently out, and two of their primary reserves, Jaylon Tyson and Sam Merrill, also were not available.

Donovan Mitchell wound up with 37 points and had an incredible fourth quarter but seemed to be the only Cavalier playing with any urgency, at least on the offensive end.

Cleveland took 50 three-point shots, they attempted 82 field goals for the game. That number would be fine if they had made say, 30 of the long-range shots. They made 16. In one possession late in the third quarter, they garnered two offensive rebounds, so they had three opportunities to score.

They attempt three shots from behind the line. They missed them all.

In the third quarter, the home team made 1 of 13 from beyond the arc. Didn’t someone on the floor or on the bench think maybe we should stop taking threes? We know, we know, that’s today’s NBA,

The other primary starters for the Cavs, Evan Mobley and James Harden, didn’t do much. Mobley in 33 minutes scored 12 points and grabbed nine rebounds. He took 11 shots, five of them from three-point range,

As for Harden, he scored seven points on nine shots and only got to the free throw line twice. Meanwhile the two Knick stars, Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns combined for 60 points.

And as usual when the Cavaliers are defeated, they lost the battle of the boards, getting outrebounded 49-40.

We understand Atkinson has drawn fire recently, but we continue to question the decisions of president of basketball operations Koby Altman.

With Allen out, the lack of another big man has reared its ugly head. Among the first moves made this off-season were keeping both Thomas Bryant and Craig Porter Jr., and neither are in the rotation when everyone is healthy.

Bryant has taken 25 shots this season in the five games he has played and 15 of them have been threes.

We have questioned Porter’s ball handling especially when he is pressured, and he seems to have been passed in terms of playing time by second year player Tyrese Proctor and rookie Maleek Thomas.

Altman did trade for Peyton Watson, who starts, and signed Mario Hezonja as a free agent, but the coaching staff doesn’t seem to recognize the latter can play, despite last night’s 0 for 6 (5 threes!) from the floor. He did grab five rebounds, and is third on the team in boards, even though he gets only 20 minutes per game.

We have said the last two years, the Cavs’ success can’t be judged until they reach the playoffs, but it doesn’t mean inconsistency is fine during the regular season. And what is worse to us is the lack of any real plan. For example, we haven’t had an idea of what the team is trying to accomplish defensively for quite some time.

It’s frustrating to watch for sure, and really not a good viewing experience if you are a basketball fan. It’s more irritating than entertaining to watch this team right now.

It’s Still Early For Cavaliers, But…

The Cleveland Cavaliers are only eight games into their season, but from our point of view, we are seeing things we aren’t particularly fond of with the wine and gold. Granted, injuries to Peyton Watson and Jaylon Tyson haven’t helped the situation.

It looks as though the same things that plagued the squad in the playoffs a year ago haven’t been corrected. It’s still early, we keep telling ourselves.

In a league that is getting longer every year, coach Kenny Atkinson and his staff continue to use small ball lineups, frequently it is either Evan Mobley or Jarrett Allen with four other players who are 6’6″ and smaller. The usual result is the wine and gold getting hurt on the boards.

The last two losses for the Cavs, against Atlanta and Oklahoma City, they were outrebounded, particularly giving up second chance opportunities to both opponents. It’s fundamental basketball to say defense isn’t done until you rebound the ball. Sometimes it’s as simple as they don’t box out, other times, it’s just because they are too small.

What’s weird is the Cavaliers are 4th in the league in rebounds, but it seems when they need a key stop, they force a miss, but don’t get the ball.

It’s still early, we keep telling ourselves.

They don’t seem to have an identity, particularly offensively. They blew out the Bucks, who aren’t a good team, by feeding Mobley and Allen, getting them a combined 32 shots out of the 100 they took. The next game, a loss to the Thunder, the two big men took a total of 21 shots out of 90 in total.

We agree with analyst Brad Daugherty, who says many times that the Cavs would be better off playing insde out, meaning establishing the two big men inside and forcing the opposition to defend them, using with double teams, thus leaving shooters open on the perimeter.

It’s still early, we keep telling ourselves.

So far, the season has been about either having a big lead and blowing it or being down by a lot early and coming back. We believe this is because there is no “Cavalier way” of playing. To us, Atkinson’s crew seems to morph into whatever style their opponent plays. If they are shooting threes, so will Cleveland. Again, it would help to establish the inside game early.

It’s still early, we keep telling ourselves.

We liked bringing in size on the wings in Watson and Mario Hezonja this summer, but we wanted another big to play inside, and that wasn’t accomplished. Instead, the front office brought back Thomas Bryant, who has played in just two games thus far, and in his last appearance, fired up four shots in five minutes.

The Cavs need some bulk inside. Hezonja helps a bit, but he’s just 6’8″. A larger problem might be the bottom of the roster, particularly with Nae’Qwan Tomlin out. There isn’t much help there.

It’s still early, we keep telling ourselves

The roster construction is still sketchy though. The team brought back Craig Porter Jr. and it has only taken a few games for him to fall out of the rotation. We had doubts about his ballhandling and shooting after last season. And again, why did they rush to resign Bryant?

It’s still early, we keep telling ourselves.

We will give them credit for Maleek Thomas, who has earned minutes early, but as we said after the draft, it’s not that the rookie can’t play, it’s that he’s 6’5″, and the roster is filled with players of that profile.

It is early and perhaps this group is just trying to find it’s style of play. We repeat what we said prior to the season, the real measure of success is how they do in the playoffs.

It’s just frustrating to watch right now (if you can watch)

It’s Basketball Time For The Wine And Gold

The Cleveland Cavaliers open the 2026-27 NBA season tonight and the expectations on the team are much like the last two seasons. What they do in the regular season will doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things, how successful their season is will be determined by how far they go in the playoffs.

Last season, Kenny Atkinson’s squad got to the Eastern Conference finals, a step further than the year before. However, they blew a big fourth quarter lead in the first game and then were pretty much outclassed during the rest of the series.

It was the third straight season they were pretty much non-competitive in the series in which they were eliminated, and that means the good feeling about taking the next step are erased in the view of most basketball people.

Koby Altman did add some height to the roster, especially on the wings by trading for 6’8″ Peyton Watson, and he added 6’8″ Mario Hezonja, who will likely spend time at both forward spots. We also expect another 6’8″ player, Nae’Qwan Tomlin to have a bigger role this season once he returns to the court following a lower back injury.

We would have liked (and still would like) Altman to add another big man to back up Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. Currently the main back up is veteran Thomas Bryant, but more likely than not, Atkinson will probably go smaller when Allen or Mobley are not on the floor. (Ugh!)

Altman swung big at the trade deadline a year ago, bringing in James Harden for Darius Garland. Harden brings a lot, both good and bad. He averaged 20.5 points and 7.7 assists in 26 games after coming over from the Clippers. He shot 43.5% from three and 46.6% from the floor overall.

He’s great at finding big men in the pick and roll too. Jarrett Allen averaged almost 20 points per game from February until the end of the season.

However, the ball is in his hands a lot, so ball movement suffers. Also, Harden isn’t exactly quick, which presents a problem defensively. And the Cavs likely will not be getting a ton of transition baskets with Harden on the floor. That eliminates easy baskets.

The veteran averaged almost 35 minutes per game last season, and we know Harden takes pride in being on the floor. We wonder if he would play at a higher level getting fewer minutes, especially in the regular season. We will see how Atkinson divvies up the minutes.

With Harden and Donovan Mitchell or at least one of them on the court most of the time, there isn’t a huge need for a backup point guard, and we are curious about using Craig Porter Jr. there. In our opinion, his ball handling is questionable.

He’s a high energy player for us, but not really a lead guard. We wonder how long before second year player Tyrese Proctor gets minutes at that spot.

We will start getting answers in regard to how the Cavs will play and how the rotations work starting tonight. It’s probably not fair, but barring some bad injury luck, the Cavaliers are building toward starting their real season in April.

The goal should be winning the NBA title, especially this season. The “one step forward” nonsense is just that.

Time For A Little Hoops Talk.

With the Browns opening their season today and the Guardians in the midst of a race to play in the post-season, we thought we’d go against the grain a little bit and talk basketball. After all, the Cleveland Cavaliers did get to the Eastern Conference finals last season, and they open training camp in a few weeks under Kenny Atkinson.

Besides, both of those teams are very frustrating right now.

For years, we have said the wine and gold need to be bigger, and they have made some improvement along those lines. When they swung the big deal for James Harden in February was that if the Cavs were going to have a ball dominant guard who wasn’t a great defender, it is better for it to be the 6’5″ Harden, rather than 6’2″ Darius Garland.

Koby Altman has also acquired two 6’8″ wings in Mario Hezonja and Peyton Watson, who we would think will share time at the small forward spot with Jaylon Tyson. And don’t forget another 6’8″ player in Nae’Qwan Tomlin, who played in 64 games a year ago, getting most of his time before the trade deadline.

Remember that the deal for the 17-year veteran came late in the year. Harden only played in 26 games with the wine and gold, so the offensive became doing what Harden did best, using a lot of pick and roll. We are sure that will be the case again, with Harden getting the most out of Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley in that way.

Cleveland still has Tyson, Sam Merrill, and second-year player Tyrese Proctor to share time in the backcourt with Harden, and of course, Donovan Mitchell. With those players on the roster, we would love to see Harden’s and Mitchell’s regular season minutes controlled, especially Harden, who is now 37.

We would still love to see Altman add a better big man to back up Mobley and Allen than veteran Thomas Bryant, no disrespect to him, but Cleveland should consider itself a contender to win the title, and particularly in the playoffs, you need another big man who can make an impact. The Cavs saw that need in both their series against the Pistons with Paul Reid and the Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson.

Because the Cavs like to play “small ball’, our guess is they think they can easily slide either Watson, Hezonja, or Tomlin over to the four, but we don’t like that from a rebounding standpoint. Defense isn’t over until you grab the rebound. Thus, the need for someone to play center/power forward and can give the Cavaliers about 18 solid minutes.

As it has been for the last few years, the biggest question for the Cavs is Evan Mobley. Can he take the next step into being a perennial all-star. His points, rebounds, and shooting all took a drop last season, and we have doubts as to whether or not he can do it. We just don’t think it’s in his personality to assert himself.

We have seen questions about the depth on the team and we will go back to the old adage of “if you don’t play your bench, you won’t have one”. We said it last year and we will say it again, Atkinson has to use and trust his second unit early in the year. It will pay dividends in the second half of the season.

Last season, he went away from Tyson and Tomlin after the trade and probably could’ve used both in the post-season. Hopefully, that’s a lesson learned.

Cavs Make Some Deals And Get More Size

The Cleveland Cavaliers made a move last week, trading veteran guard Dennis Schroder to Charlotte for another guard, Tre Mann. We will spare you our usual comment when looking at a deal made by president of basketball operations Koby Altman, but Mann is 6’4″, which is Altman’s type.

While on merit, dealing a 6’1″ guard in Schroder for a 6’4″ point guard in Mann is a good thing, we are all about the Cavs getting bigger, particularly in the backcourt, but the move seemed likely a precursor to another move, probably for a bigger wing the wine and gold desperately need.

And it was. Last night, the Cavs sent Max Strus and Mann along with a 2031 first round pick away in a five-team deal in which the primary return for Cleveland was soon to be 24-year-old 6’8″ wing Peyton Watson. Watson had his best year with Denver last season, playing in 54 games, 40 of them starts, and averaged 14.6 points and 4.9 rebounds.

He shot 48% from the floor and 36% from beyond the arc and is regarded as a good defender. He was a restricted free agent and as part of the deal, he is signing a four-year deal with the wine and gold.

We hate to see Strus go, as in our opinion he added toughness to the Cavs as well as a decent shooter from outside. But at 6’5″, he was small to play the #3 and is really more like an off guard.

Mann was also part of the transaction and goes to Washington and Cleveland also gets 6’6″ Cam Whitmore in the deal, and he makes less than Mann, giving the Cavaliers’ additional salary relief. Whitmore was considered a sleeper when he was taken with the 20th pick in the ’23 Draft, and averaged 12.3 points in 47 games with the Rockets.

Last year, he played in just 21 games for the Wizards missing most of the season with a venous condition in his shoulder.

Obviously, the key is Watson. Cleveland needed more size on the wing, which they lost when Dean Wade signed with Philadelphia, and the newcomer is a much better offensive player than the departed Wade. And with 6’8″ Mario Hezonja and holdover Nae’Qwan Tomlin, it gives Kenny Atkinson three bigger options on the wing.

The coach could still use more depth at the big man spots, because if Evan Mobley and/or Jarrett Allen can’t play for whatever reason, they really only have Thomas Bryant, and that’s not good enough for a team trying to get to the Finals.

And they could also use another ball handler, although that may not be a huge need with Donovan Mitchell and James Harden probably being on the floor much of the time.

We have seen Craig Porter Jr. mentioned, but although he’s an energy guy and a terrific rebounder for his size, 6’1″, his handle needs work. A better option might be last year’s second round pick, Tyrese Proctor, who played point at Duke in college.

Proctor has a good outside shot and should be improved in his second NBA season.

We have wanted the Cavs to get longer for a few years and by getting Watson and Hezonja, they have accomplished that. The question is how they will fit in with the ball dominant backcourt of Mitchell and Harden.

Remember, in basketball, it’s not just accumulating talent, it’s how do the pieces fit together.

The Clock Is Ticking For The Cavaliers

LeBron James made his decision where to play in 2026-27 and it wasn’t Cleveland. We aren’t one of those Cavaliers’ fans who are upset with James, who is still a good NBA player at 41, turning 42 in late December.

He averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists and six rebounds per game last year, and would have been an improvement over analytics darling Dean Wade in the Cleveland starting lineup. But that’s here, nor there.

Our problem is with the Cavs’ front office, notably president of basketball operations Koby Altman, who hasn’t done anything to improve the team that did go to the Eastern Conference Finals last season.

That’s not entirely fair, he did resign journeyman big man Thomas Bryant, who couldn’t get on the floor in the playoffs, and let guard Keon Ellis and Wade depart via free agency. So, as it has most times since Altman has been in charge, the Cleveland bench has a collection of 6’3″ to 6’6″ players, making it impossible for coach Kenny Atkinson to get them all enough minutes.

There’s Max Strus, Sam Merrill, Dennis Schroder (who everyone believes will be dealt soon), Jaylon Tyson (who should be the starter at small forward in our opinion), Craig Porter Jr., Tyrese Proctor, and he drafted another one in Meleek Thomas.

There are still no bigger wings, although Atkinson has alluded that last year’s second round pick, Saliou Niang, who is 6’8″ will likely be on the team and of course, Nae’Qwan Tomlin also 6’8″ returns and hopefully will have a more meaningful role, as he was largely ignored after the moves around the trade deadline.

There are rumors about the Cavs being very interested in 6’7″ forward Jonathan Kuminga, the 7th overall pick in 2021 and a player in this third year averaged 16 points a game for Golden State. However, he was in Steve Kerr’s doghouse for the past two seasons, was traded to Atlanta, and the Hawks declined to bring him back.

He played in 36 games last season and averaged 12.2 points per game. We’ve liked him, and just because Kerr didn’t play him isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Coaches may not like something about a player’s game, but that doesn’t mean he can’t play.

There are also rumors Cleveland is interested in Mario Hezonja, a former first round pick of Orlando, who has played overseas the last six seasons. Now 31, he averaged 7 points per game in five NBA seasons with the Magic, Knicks, and Trailblazers. He’s 6’8″.

We will keep harping on this, but as currently constituted, the Cleveland Cavaliers don’t have enough size. They need bigger, athletic wings, the “3 and D” guys talked about frequently. They need more big men than just having Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley.

And preferably, they need someone inside who has some girth. Allen and Mobley are tall, but in NBA standards, slender. A “bruiser” would be very welcome in Cleveland.

So, Altman is on the clock. Several teams in the East look to have passed the Cavaliers. Certainly, James’ new team, the 76ers, but also the Raptors if they work out the Kawhi Leonard trade. Also, the Pacers get Tyrese Halliburton back, the Pistons had a better regular season record, and Atlanta keeps getting more experience.

From where we are sitting, maybe the Cavs should have promoted Mike Gansey. There is still time to improve the team, but we are worried the wine and gold are now in the rut where a chance for a title might be out of reach.

What Is The Cavs’ Plan For ’26-’27?

While we all wait for where LeBron James will play next season, as of right now, the Cleveland Cavaliers have spent the first week of the NBA off-season watching other teams in the Eastern Conference get better.

Right now, you have to put the NBA Champion Knicks ahead of the wine and gold, and you can make a solid case that Philadelphia (with Jaylen Brown deal), Indiana (getting Tyrese Halliburton back and trading for Ivica Zubac), and Toronto (getting Kawhi Leonard) are all better than the Cavs.

As for Cleveland, thus far Koby Altman has let Keon Ellis leave as a free agent to Brooklyn, Dean Wade go to the 76ers in the same manner, and quickly (for some reason) resigned Thomas Bryant.

Ellis didn’t play much in the playoffs but would seem to be more of an all-around player than Sam Merrill, who is a favorite of the organization. Ellis shot 36% from three last year and in his career knocks them down at a 40% clip. Still, it’s not a huge loss, but we would rather the Cavs embrace players who do more than one thing.

Wade is the darling of many, but not here. He was the team’s best perimeter defender over 6’6″, but as we have noted many time, seemed to refuse to participate on the offensive end of the floor, meaning smart teams didn’t need to guard him. He shoots. 36.7% for his career from the three-point line, but is inconsistent with the shot.

Bryant didn’t contribute much during the playoffs although Kenny Atkinson needed another reliable big man, so we are mystified as to why Altman brought him back. We would have looked around to see what else was out there.

The question is what Altman’s plan for is 2026-27? Does he believe if James returns to the organization, that’s all that is needed to win a title? If so, we do not agree.

Having James back would be great. He’s still a productive player, averaging 20.9 points, dishing out 7.2 assists and getting 6.1 rebounds a night, but remember, he will be 42 years old in December. He would give the Cavs some size on the wing and can be a legitimate “4” as well, but we still believe this roster needs more size, particularly on the wing and more players who are not “one dimensional”.

We also believe that James would change the attitude of this roster, which has been criticized for a lack of toughness.

And what exactly is the plan if James signs elsewhere?

We believe that after acquiring James Harden, who will likely be back, Atkinson and the organization went away from Jaylon Tyson and Nae’Qwan Tomlin, instead of getting them ready for a playoff run. Tyson has the size and toughness, and Tomlin is another wing defender with size.

And both players should be very much in the plans for the upcoming season. But, if the Cavs want to win the East and return to the Finals, Altman have to upgrade this roster. First, Ellis and Wade need to be replaced, and he still needs to address the starters, which are a weird fit right now.

As of right now, all the Cavaliers are doing is watching other teams in the East pass them by.

Like Thomas, But Once Again, Cavs Go Small

The Cleveland Cavaliers participated in this week’s NBA Draft, trading out of the first round, moving back five spots to select Arkansas guard Meleek Thomas. Thomas was projected by several draft gurus to be a first round pick, so Koby Altman got value it appears.

It is interesting that the Cavs list Thomas at 6’5″, but everyone else lists him at 6’3″ or 6’4″. We use NBADraft,net as our guide and they list him at 6’4″. We guess the Cavaliers are a little sensitive to drafting guards whenever they get a chance.

The scouting report on Thomas is good. His shooting is his highest grade, following by quickness, defense, athleticism, and ball handling. Sounds like a potential contributor in the league.

Following the draft, Altman said when they are picking in the 30’s, you really can’t draft for need, which is utter baloney. The next two players selected after Thomas were his Razorback teammate, Trevon Brazile, a 6’10” player with a 7’4″ wingspan (ode to Jay Bilas) who would have addressed the wine and gold’s glaring need for size.

After him was Baba Miller, a seven-footer out of Cincinnati, who also has extensive international experience.

Don’t forget Altman also traded down, and the player selected in their original spot was 6’8″ forward Alex Karaban from Connecticut, who would have provided the team with some “winning” attitude, seeing he played on two NCAA championship teams with the Huskies and reached the title game last season.

We think winning is learned, by the way.

It is certainly early in the off-season, so there is plenty of time for the Cavs to add the size they desperately need, but time and time again, when they have a chance to get bigger, Altman goes back to his comfort zone and adds another player in the 6’4″-6’6″ range.

In other words, Koby Altman has a type.

Look at the Cleveland roster, these players are all in that height range: Max Strus, Jaylon Tyson, Keon Ellis, Sam Merrill, Tyrese Proctor, and of course, James Harden. And we aren’t counting 6’2″ Donovan Mitchell, 6’1″ Dennis Schroder, and 6’1″ Craig Porter Jr.

That’s nine players shorter than 6’6″. In today’s NBA. People wonder why coach Kenny Atkinson likes to play four guards at the same time. Maybe, it’s because more than half of the players available to him are guards.

Free agency starts this week, so again, Cleveland has a lot of time before training camp to reshuffle its roster. Atkinson has already indicated the other of last year’s second rounders, 6’8″ Saliou Niang, will likely make the team next season.

And perhaps the Cavs will move two or three of the glut of small wings to get a bigger wing. One who will be able to combat the size other teams in the NBA already have.

Once Harden opts out of his player option and resigns at a lower number per year which would get Cleveland out of the second apron, Altman can start making moves. It will be interesting to see what direction the Cavs go in.

Despite getting to the conference finals, we don’t think this roster can win a title. What does Koby Altman think?

Time For A Big Swing For Altman

The NBA Draft is coming up this week and shortly after the free agency period starts, meaning this is the time to rebuild or retool your basketball team if you are an NBA executive. So, the question should be what is Cavaliers’ president of basketball operations Koby Altman going to do, if anything?

Most people don’t think Altman will do more than a tweak or two, which we feel would be a big problem. That’s because we think differently than him, or so it would seem.

Our guess is Altman thinks his squad is on the right path. They’ve advanced one round further than the past two seasons, and at least his coach thinks (and we’ll bet he was expressing the view of the front office) the wine and gold should have won the Eastern Conference Finals. At least that’s what the analytics showed.

For us, that’s a mistake. That’s believing what the numbers says instead of what your eyes are telling you. The reality is the Cavs had a chance to win the first game, and frankly if they had, it would have been a little different.

Kenny Atkinson’s crew blew a huge fourth quarter lead, and pretty much the series was decided then.

We believe Altman should do a deep dive on his roster and figure out who can play in the playoffs and who is a regular season performer, because in watching this team over these last four post-season runs, the games are vastly different.

Cleveland needs more size, and not just height, we are talking about bulk as well. That’s why we like Jaylon Tyson, who the coaching staff (or the front office) ran away from after trading for James Harden. Look at the Cavs’ big men, both Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen play with force. That doesn’t make them bad players,, they just don’t bring a lot of physicality to the game.

And again, we will bring up the wings Atkinson has at his disposal. They aren’t tall, they aren’t very quick, and offensively, they are streaky at best. And how many can create their own shot?

There is simply too much duplicate players on the roster, and that has to change. Another fear is Altman has grown too attached to the players he has brought in, a common mistake for a guy responsible for acquiring talent.

For example, the number crunchers love Dean Wade and are quick to provide all kinds of numbers to show how good of a player he is. We see a very good perimeter defender that pretty much refuses to participate on the offensive side of the floor, which is not what basketball is.

So, why not try to do better.

Probably the only way to do a reset on the roster is to move either Donovan Mitchell or Evan Mobley, and most likely the latter because of the contract situation. Does Altman have the stomach to do that? No doubt it’s a high-risk move.

Standing pat likely gets the Cavaliers back to the second round of the Eastern Conference, where they’ve been the last three seasons. But if you want to win the NBA title, you can’t be timid. And after four years where you have been blown out in the round the team is eliminated in, It’s no time for the status quo.

We will see in the next two weeks, where the organization’s mind set is.