Cavs Front Court: Figuring Out the Minutes
The Cleveland Cavaliers have a great problem: They have a very talented front court that they have to find minutes for. For the sake of this article we will focus on just the power forward and center positions, the 4 and 5 if you will.
Last year the Cavs really only had three people in their front court that they could count on: Kevin Love, Tristan Thompson and Anderson Varejao. We found out quickly what the Cavs had found out for the last few years, that Varejao can be relied on for talent but not to stay healthy. Quickly the Cavs were down to Love and Thompson, with a little Shawn Marion mixed in.
The mid-season trade for Timofey Mozgov and the later addition of James Jones to the rotation helped solidify things going into the Playoffs. Varejao’s injury stung a lot less with Mozgov’s size, defense and ability to finish at the rim. Timo, Love and Tristan gobbled up the minutes while Jones took a few and the Cavs small ball lineup dominated the rest.
This season, the Cavs will get Andy back and could also sign Sasha Kaun at some point. With the top 4 big man minute guys returning, the Cavs will have to find a way to manage egos as well as put the best product on the floor. The team is also expected to go small often, which will eat into the 48 minutes from the big man rotation.
For now we are going to focus solely on averages. Between power forward and center, the Cavs will have 96 minutes a game to dole out. First lets look at how many minutes each of the players averaged last year with the Cavs, or overseas in case Kaun does sign:
Kevin Love: 33.8 minutes
Timofey Mozgov: 25 minutes
Tristan Thompson: 26.8 minutes
James Jones: 11.7 minutes
Anderson Varejao: 24.5 minutes (Before Injury)
Sasha Kaun: 20 minutes (Euroleague)
Add those all up and we have a whopping 141.8 minutes. Obviously that is far too many minutes, which makes sense since Andy was starting before his injury and Timo came over and took basically exactly his minutes.
So what do we predict for minutes next year, playing the 4 and 5 spots?
Love: 30 minutes
Mozgov: 23 minutes
Thompson: 28 minutes
Varejao: 8 minutes
Jones: 5-6 minutes
Kaun: 1-2 minutes
More from King James Gospel
- 3 possible starting lineups for Cleveland Cavaliers in 2023-24
- The Cavaliers may have snagged a hidden gem in Craig Porter Jr.
- 4 players the Cavaliers should pursue in 2024 free agency
- 6 players Cavaliers might replace Jarrett Allen with by the trade deadline
- This stat is one to keep an eye on for Cavaliers’ Max Strus in years ahead
Now those numbers are all based on all 96 minutes being used by these 6 players for those two positions. It also doesn’t include Jones filling in for a couple minutes at the small forward spot as well.
Love gets less minutes as the Cavs try to keep his back healthy and as he recovers from shoulder surgery. Timo’s minutes are about the same but he is used a little less throughout the season with Andy and Kaun around. Tristan continues to get just under 30 a night at both positions and continues to have high energy all game. Finally Jones gives the Cavs a backup 4 who can shoot, the others are far more limited in range, and Kaun gets the mop up minutes, barring injury.
How do you think the Cavs front court minutes go next year?