Cavs Need To Start Playing Better…Now!

One can make a very good argument that the Cleveland Cavaliers are the most disappointing team in the NBA this season. As the season is closing in on the halfway point, Kenny Atkinson’s squad is around .500 at 22-18, currently the #6 seed in the East, but just a game and a half out of the 4th spot.

While no one was expecting the type of season the wine and gold had last year, starting off the campaign with 15 straight wins, and finishing at 64-18, we don’t think many had them being around the breakeven mark at this point in the year.

Yes, injuries have been a factor. Donovan Mitchell leads the Cavs in games played with 35, so every other player on the team has missed at least five contests. And it is difficult for a team to find a rhythm when there are different players on the court every night.

Still, in watching the 2025-26 Cavaliers, it is clear something is off. Can it turn around before the playoffs start? Of course, but again, the second half of the schedule is on the horizon.

ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said the other day that Atkinson sees a lack of intensity with his team. Against Minnesota on Thursday, he started Craig Porter Jr., a player who plays hard on a nightly basis, to have some intensity.

Minnesota took a 17-5 lead in the first quarter, and while Cleveland recovered and led at the half, they were obliterated in the third quarter.

Team president Koby Altman put together a roster of players with high character, stuck with them through three straight playoff disappointments, but no they don’t seem to be playing with intensity?

We aren’t putting the blame on all of them. Mitchell plays tough, second year player Jaylon Tyson plays hard, and we mentioned Porter does as well. Nae’Qwan Tomlin plays with his hair on fire. But the body language on most of the roster seems off.

And part of being playing with intensity is having a good basketball IQ, and recently we question the shot selection by the team. If the last two losses, to Detroit and Minnesota, late in the game, the Cavs took questionable three-point shots with the game in the balance.

Against Detroit, Lonzo Ball, shooting 26% from three was faced with a wide open 3 with the Cavs trying to comeback in the 4th quarter. He even hesitated before shooting. He knew it wasn’t a good shot. He took it anyway. He missed.

In the Minnesota game, with Cleveland down six with :35 seconds remaining, Evan Mobley got the ball beyond the arc. The big man has improved his three-point shooting, but he’s still at 34%. We are sure that’s not what the coach wanted at that juncture.

Anyway, Mobley shot and missed, and the Cavs couldn’t recover.

Yes, yes, we know, people will say they like the confidence there, but that’s where having a good hoops IQ comes into play. Mobley has to know either take the ball to the rim or find a better shooter.

And that’s part of intensity. Knowing when the team needs a basket or a stop to slow the opponent’s momentum.

The bigger problem is, because of the salary cap situation, there isn’t much Altman can do about it. The Cavs have hamstrung themselves, so either the players come together and play with more mental toughness and intensity, or it will be another disappointing post-season for the so-called “Core 4”.

Loss To Knicks Leaves Us With Questions.

The book on the Cleveland Cavaliers is they lack size and toughness and that was on full display on Christmas against the New York Knicks.

The Cavs had a 17-point lead in the 4th quarter and watched one of their playoff nemeses from a few years ago, Mitchell Robinson dominate on the offensive glass, which allowed the Knicks to get back in the game and ultimately win it.

The good news for Cleveland is they played well after winning the two games prior at home against Charlotte and New Orleans, two also-rans, so maybe the malaise which was surrounding the team has passed.

Also, Evan Mobley returned to the lineup after a two-week absence due to a calf injury and earlier in the week, Sam Merrill came back, and his long-range marksmanship (shooting 43% from three) helps with floor spacing.

On Friday, long time NBA player and coach Sam MItchell, now an analyst on NBA Radio, said the Cavs are still a contender, but they lack size in the backcourt, and while they have height up front in Jarrett Allen and Mobley, they lack bulk.

Thank you Sam!

We have said this is has been a problem for four years now, and the front office hasn’t really done anything to address the situation. Sure, this year they signed Thomas Bryant, but when or if Allen and/or Mobley is out of the lineup, he’s the only big man they have.

Nae’Qwan Tomlin has been a find, but he’s not an interior player. He’s more of a perimeter defender and also has a slight build.

We like Kenny Atkinson, but felt he should have went back to Jaylon Tyson, who had a marvelous third quarter, 11 points when the Cavs outscored New York 38-24. Tyson started the fourth but left after four minutes and didn’t return.

In the fourth, the offense turned into the Donovan Mitchell show, as he took 11 of the Cavs’ 26 shots. The only other Cleveland player who took more than two shots in the quarter was Darius Garland, who hit one of his five attempts.

His main lineup down the stretch included those two with Mobley, Merrill, and Dean Wade. Merrill took just one shot in the fourth, the same as Wade, who to us is notorious for being afraid of missing shots, so he passes them up.

By default, it puts the offensive burden on the two guards.

Sam Mitchell also wondered about the idea of having Mobley shoots threes, feeling the best place for him to operate offensively would be at the elbow where he can be a “triple threat” guys. Mobley has improved from beyond the arc, but defenses aren’t going to chase him out there.

And that five who received the bulk of the minutes is basically a three-guard set, with a defensive minded wing defender in Wade, and Mobley, who isn’t a bulky presence near the basket.

It was just a curious coaching decision, and that doesn’t mean we want Atkinson replaced, we will see if he goes to the same group in a similar situation going forward. Tyson provides toughness and aggressiveness to the Cavs, something they need.

It was also a little curious that Lonzo Ball got just 13 minutes for the game. Ball is a good defender, but guilty of some questionable shot selection.

We are now past Christmas and isn’t that when the pundits say the season really begins. If so, the Cavaliers need to ramp it up, and worry less about being entertaining, and a little more about winning.

It’s Early, But We Have Some Fears Regarding The Cavs

We believe the Cleveland Cavaliers are experimenting for sure. They’ve had all kinds of key players missing to start the season, with the only real constants being Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and De’Andre Hunter.

They have provided several young players like Nae’Qwan Tomlin, Jaylon Tyson, Craig Porter Jr., and rookie Tyrese Proctor good opportunities to show they can contribute as the season moves forward.

And with all of this happening, they are still 13-10 and at least in terms of the ratings, a top ten offensive and defensive team.

But we do have a nagging lingering fear for this group. Perhaps the window to win a title was open widest the past two seasons.

The defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder are sitting at 21-1. Two young, long teams in the East are off to great starts. The Pistons are 17-5 and the Raptors are 15-7. And long teams seem to bother the Cavs.

We have written about the lack of size on the Cavaliers’ roster over the past few seasons, and the move toward more size was never more evident than it this past NBA Draft.

Of the top ten picks in the draft, six of them were guards who were over 6’5″. This means the current duo of Mitchell and Darius Garland ranks even lower in terms of size among NBA backcourts.

We understand Garland is coming back from off-season surgery and he has missed time since re-aggravating the injury. He helps the offense greatly with his skill to penetrate and also shoot from distance.

On the other hand, one problem we have seen is his ability to take care of the basketball. It was an issue in his first playoff series against the Knicks, and it really hasn’t changed. He had two big turnovers down the stretch against Atlanta last week that cost the team a chance at a win.

Then we have the Mobley issue. The thought was always that the Cavs would be title contenders when he was the best player on the team. Can that happen? He’s a very good player, the Defensive Player of the Year last season. But does he have the temperament of an alpha?

We do think Kenny Atkinson is putting him in different situation to see where he fits best offensively. He’s bringing the ball up trying to initiate the offense, but his ball handling doesn’t seem to be strong enough.

Last year, he seemed to thrive with the ball at the foul line extended and set up his teammates from that spot on the floor or be able to take the ball to the basket. Again, our guess is Atkinson is trying some things out and may settle on what worked last season.

We know the Celtics won a title just a couple of years ago with heavy reliance on the three-point shot. However, they fell short a couple of years ago when they lost in the conference finals to Miami because of their shot selection.

Last year, 45.7% of Cleveland’s shots were from beyond the arc and they converted on 38% of them. This season, the number of long-range shots has increased to 48.8%, and even worse, they are making less at 34.8%. That 3% difference is huge.

Football people talk about “complimentary football”, but it can be used in basketball as well. The Cavs have two solid defenders inside in Mobley and Jarrett Allen, but when you miss threes, it generally results in a long rebound and a fast break by your opponent.

Fast breaks tend to make having interior defenders moot.

We know everyone loves to play with pace, but maybe it would be better to play a little slower, take better shots, and make better use of the two bigs you do have.

It is better to be playing their best basketball in March, April, and May (and hopefully June) than now. When the New Year hits, the Cavs need to tighten some things up.

Looking At Cavs, Looking For Toughness

Tomorrow night, the Cleveland Cavaliers will have hit the 20 game mark of the NBA schedule, about a quarter of the way through. Hard to believe right?

The team has had to deal with a lot of injuries. No Cavalier player has appeared in all 19 games to date. Evan Mobley has played in 18, Donovan Mitchell in 17, and next up is De’Andre Hunter with 15.

Max Strus has been out all season, while Darius Garland has seen action five times.

Pretty amazing considering they’ve only played 19 contests.

This has led to a lot of experimenting from Kenny Atkinson, so we really don’t have a true reading on what this team can be in 2025-26.

On the plus side, some players who probably wouldn’t have seen the court this season have emerged as possible rotation players for this team as the season progresses.

Most notably, we are talking about Nae’Qwan Tomlin, who Atkinson said the other night is a guy he has a hard time taking him off the floor. The 25-year-old is averaging 7.1 points and 2.8 rebounds, 1.5 on the offensive end and at 6’8″, has played at guard and both forward spots.

When everyone gets healthy, we would like to see Tomlin replace Dean Wade in the rotation to see if the rookie can continue to produce like this once word gets around the league. If he doesn’t, we think you can always go back to Wade and he will be, well Dean Wade.

Craig Porter Jr. has done well too, and although we would like to see a better handle from Porter, the one thing he can do is create his own short, which is in short supply with the Cavs.

Porter is scoring at 5.8 per game, getting 2.9 boards and 2.5 assists per contest with 44.8% shooting from the three-point line. He should also keep getting time when the roster is whole.

And second year player Jaylon Tyson has earned his spot, mostly by being a defensive force, and unlike Isaac Okoro, has to be respected by the opposition when it comes to his shot. He’s scoring 11.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per game and is in the top ten in the league in shooting from three.

Conversely, Atkinson and the staff have to figure out why Mobley seems to be in a funk. Right now, he seems very passive when on the court. It could be because of using him differently offensively. He seems to be on the perimeter more often this year, rather than be at the elbow where he can attack the basket easier and also be a distributor.

However, we have concerns about Mobley’s aggressive nature. One comparison for him when he came into the league was Kevin Garnett, but their personalities seem so different, and frankly the Cavs could use Mobley to have more of Garnett’s mindset.

But can someone develop having that? Mobley looks to be a pretty quiet guy, can he adopt an alpha mindset? It’s one thing to have size, something we have advocated for, and certainly the team is bigger.

It still seems to lack toughness, particularly from the bigger players. We have no qualms about Mitchell’s will to win, but it would be great if one of the bigs adopted a “take no crap” philosophy.

That’s a real concern, particularly as the playoffs get nearer. That’s still the biggest question from our perspective.

Tomlin And Tyson Are Summer Leaguers Who Might Help

The NBA Summer League is fun. You get to see the draftees from the most recent NBA Draft and many of the second-year players from the selections made in the prior year, most because those guys got most of their action in the G League during the 2024-25 season.

And it’s also good because unless your favorite team played in the NBA Finals, it has been a while since anyone wearing the uniform has seen time. For example, it was great to see players wearing the Cavaliers’ colors out there playing.

However, the brand of basketball being played more closely resembles a playground game than an NBA regular season contest, let alone a playoff game. The defensive intensity isn’t there and let’s face it, these players are looking to make a name for themselves, as most of them aren’t under contract.

On the other hand, we don’t get too excited about the players on floor during the Summer League because let’s face it, the Cavaliers are a real good team, we are sure no one has forgotten they did win 64 games this past year.

So, if came out of watching these games in Las Vegas thinking second round pick Tyrese Proctor is going to be an important piece for the 2025-26 edition of the Cavaliers, you are either extremely optimistic or a Cavs’ influencer.

Players taken 45th overall are probably not helping a team whose goal should be to win the NBA title.

We will say the performance of Nae’Qwan Tomlin was very promising and he should be given the opportunity to play early next season. Why? First, because he’s 6’10” and if you read this site regularly, you know we believe the wine and gold need to add players with some length.

Tomlin averaged 19.6 points and 8.2 rebounds in Las Vegas, and better yet, shot 33.3% from three. Kenny Atkinson can use a big man with some range from the perimeter, and at his height, the only players on the roster taller than him are Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley.

The Cavs have had better first halves the past three seasons than they’ve performed down the stretch, and we believe one reason is that other teams are looking at guys like Tomlin early in the year. Why not see in October and November if the big man can be a rotational player, rather than trying to see in March and April.

The other player in Vegas who could make an impact this season is second year wing Jaylon Tyson. He impressed us last year as an all-around talent, and in three games out west, he averaged 19.7 points, 6 rebounds and 6.7 assists. Again, does a bit of everything which we like.

With Ty Jerome and Isaac Okoro no longer on the roster and Lonzo Ball’s injury history, Tyson could be in Atkinson’s rotation at the beginning of the season. And if he can play some in the backcourt, that would be a plus because he’s 6’6″.

For a team in the Cavaliers’ position, players like Proctor and Cleveland State product Tristan Enaruma are right now organizational depth, and most of their playing time will come with the G League Cleveland Charge.

And that’s okay. Just don’t get crazy with expectations for them in ’25-’26.

Cavs Still Need To Get Longer

The NBA season does not start next week, so there is still time for the Cleveland Cavaliers to add to their roster. However, in the first frenzied week of NBA moves, Koby Altman and Mike Gansey really didn’t get involved.

We’ve already talked about the trade for Lonzo Ball, and getting a taller (6’6″) ball handler who can shoot a bit and defend was a solid move for Cleveland. Being able to pair Ball with either Donovan Mitchell or Darius Garland in the backcourt eases a bit having those two smaller guards.

Of course, the big caveat is Ball’s health. How many games will he be able to play in the regular season and will he be available in the playoffs?

We also like the addition of Larry Nance Jr., making his second visit to the franchise where his father’s jersey hangs in the rafters. Nance adds some size at 6’8″ and he’s a player we have always liked because he’s smart and versatile.

He’s also made himself a threat from the perimeter. He shot 34.6% from three with the Cavs from 2018-2021, but the last two seasons, he’s converted on over 40%.

Nance gives Kenny Atkinson another player with size who can play upfront with Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, something the franchise needed last season.

But more work needs to be done.

Cleveland is still small on the wings. They have De’Andre Hunter who is 6’8″ and we would like to think he moves into the starting lineup next season. He scored 14.3 points and grabbed 4.2 rebounds after coming over to the Cavaliers last season and shot 42.6% from three.

He’s still the only wing Atkinson has that is over 6’6″, and we would still like to see another big man who can play in the post.

Maybe the plan is to see what they have in Nae’Qwan Tomlin early in the season, and if it is, then Atkinson should use him early in the season to see if he can be an option once the regular season ramps up after Christmas.

But Houston let 6’11” Jock Landale go, and the Cavs should have been interested. He signed with Memphis. He averaged 4.8 points and 3.4 boards in 12 minutes per game last season. We believe he could’ve helped.

Perhaps, the Cavaliers will give Jaylon Tyson and maybe Craig Porter Jr. opportunities in the first 20-25 games next season to see what they can do. But they still need some longer wings. This is a league now where players in the 6’7″-6’8″ range are plentiful. Cleveland just doesn’t have nearly enough of them.

Look at the recent NBA draft. Of the top ten players taken, only two (V.J. Edgecombe and Jeremiah Fears) were 6’5″ or smaller. The shortest player taken in the top 20 was 6’3″ Walter Clayton. The league is looking for long, athletic wings.

Cleveland doesn’t have enough of them.

After all, the Cavs should be pretty confident they will make the playoffs next season. They won 64 games last season, so even if they win say, 10 less contests, they will still win over 50, and that surely gets you a top four seed.

There is still time for the front office to find some more size on the wing. Let’s hope the roster for 2025-26 is still taking shape.

For Cavs, Fit May Mean More Than Numbers

It has now been a couple of weeks since the Cleveland Cavaliers were eliminated in the second round of the NBA playoffs by the Indiana Pacers, who will start participating in the NBA Finals tonight.

We know president of basketball operations Koby Altman said he is willing to run it back next year with a roster that did finish with the best record in the Eastern Conference, but we also know that is talk at a post-season press conference.

What we mean is Altman isn’t going to tell anyone what he intends to do in the media.

We have listened to several people in the media who we feel know the game, and talked to people we have coached hoops with, and it is interesting to note they all agree with our thoughts on what to do with the Cavs.

All of these people say it is time to revamp the Cleveland backcourt of Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, and obviously Mitchell is not going anyway.

This is not to denigrate Garland, who is a two-time All-Star, and through six NBA seasons has averaged 18.9 points and 6.7 assists per contest on 45% shooting, 39% from three. No doubt he can play and score.

But many of the people we have heard and/or spoke to all talk about “fit”. And to us, we just don’t see this combination fits.

The famous example of this is the 1971-’72 Los Angeles Lakers, who replaced an aging, injured Elgin Baylor with a 6’5″ small forward in Jim McMillian and almost immediately embarked on a still record 33 game win streak and eventually an NBA title.

Obviously, McMillian wasn’t as good as Baylor, an all-time great, but he fit with the rest of that group.

So, while we usually error on the side of talent, in basketball, how the pieces fit matter greatly. We also would argue on the side of size, and we don’t mean getting a smaller player with a freakish wingspan that Jay Bilas would love, we mean actual height.

We have argued for a few years now the Cavaliers have to get bigger at guard and at the three. De’Andre Hunter can start at small forward and would take care of the latter. He’s listed at 6’8″.

The two teams in the Finals have size. Oklahoma City’s starters are 6’4″, 6’6″, 6’6″, 7’0″, and 7’1″. The smallest of their three primary reserves is 6’4″.

Indiana’s starters are 6’5″, 6’5″, 6’5″, 6’8″, and 6’11”. Their three main reserves are 6’9″, 6’1″, and 6’6″.

Notice only one player under 6’4″, and the Cavs start two guards who are under 6’3″. And it is tough to play against players who are bigger than you.

That’s part of the fit problem for Cleveland. And the front office of the Cavaliers, nor its fans should be looking strictly at numbers when looking at a change. Again, Garland is a very good player and put some very good numbers, but we just think putting a bigger player opposite Mitchell would help in the long run.

We would say Altman should add more size or at least open up playing time for some bigger players. They need a serviceable backup for Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen for sure, but we’d like to see someone like 6’8″ Luke Travers and 6’10” Nae’Qwan Tomlin get a good opportunity as well.

Looking At Cavs Remaining Schedule

The pre-All Star weekend of the NBA schedule couldn’t have gone better for the Cleveland Cavaliers. They got off to a 15-0 start, and since then went 29-10, which isn’t shabby either.

They are sitting at 44-10, but after tonight’s game against the Brooklyn Nets, they will have some tests coming up.

Keep in mind, this is the time in the schedule, the weeks before and after the All-Star break, where sometimes teams go through a bit of a lull. The wine and gold avoided the pre-break blues, winning eight of nine to roar into their week off.

After the game tonight, the Cavs have two home games against title contenders who both sport 36-18 records, the Knicks and Grizzlies. This is followed by a pair of road games, first against Orlando, who took Cleveland to seven games in a first round series last year, and then another measuring stick game vs. the defending champion Celtics.

The Boston game will be Kenny Atkinson’s first opportunity to see how the addition of De’Andre Hunter works for the Cavs. The Celts have had a size advantage, especially on the wings, and no doubt Hunter was acquired with that in mind.

After this group of games, the Cavaliers’ schedule does soften a bit. The Heat is always a challenge and they visit on March 5th and they travel to Milwaukee on the 9th, and of course, Giannis Antetokounmpo is always tough to defend.

There is also one more west coast swing remaining from March 18th through the 25th, and right now, the game leading off the trip against the Clippers might be the toughest one.

All in all, there are still three more against the Knicks left and that should be regarded as games to watch, two vs. the Clippers, and two vs. San Antonio and Victor Wembanyama.

Cleveland currently has a 5-1/2 game lead over Boston in the Eastern Conference with the Celtics having the tiebreaker right now as a result of winning two out of three this year. And as we said before, there is one more game next week.

The most important thing is obviously to be playing well and be healthy going into the post-season. But getting the #1 seed would be good in that the wine and gold would avoid the Celtics and/or Knicks until the conference finals.

And likely those two teams will have to face off in the second round as it stands right now. That is not to dismiss the Cavaliers’ opponent in the either of the first two rounds, but Cleveland would be heavily favored in both series.

The Cavs did another 6’5″ wing yesterday signing Javonte Green, who was bought out by New Orleans. They also added 6’10” Nae’Qwan Tomlin from the Charge yesterday, giving them another big man. No doubt though, Koby Altman and Mike Gansey are looking for a veteran big who can help down the stretch, and perhaps in the playoffs too.

The other thing to watch is how Hunter plays and how he fits with starting lineup or does he fit better coming off the bench.

It will be a long wait until the playoffs start in mid-April. That doesn’t mean there aren’t things to keep an eye on.