The Cleveland Cavaliers have lost four of their last five games, and both sides of the ball are to blame.
When looking back at the stats from each individual game, there seems to be one consistent. The other team took more shots. In each of the Cleveland Cavaliers seven games, they have been outshot by their opponent and that must change if they expect to improve their record and finally win games. That said, there’s a handful of reasons for being outshot.
For starters, the Cavaliers are nineteenth in total rebounds per game and average the league’s 26th most offensive rebounds per game. Following the Cavaliers last game, a loss to the Knicks, LeBron James answered just about every question relating to the team’s lack of success with how poor their defense has been. Although, he did add that the Cavs were doing an acceptable job on the defensive glass and, statistically, that seems to be true. The Cavaliers’ opponents grab just 21.8% of the rebounds following their misses, which is the ninth-lowest percentage in the league. If there is a positive to take away, it is that they have done well on the defensive glass.
However, crashing the defensive glass is much easier than crashing the offensive glass. Against the Knicks, Tristan Thompson, the Cavaliers starting center, played 22 minutes and did not record a single defensive or offensive rebound. When asked about that following the game, Tyronn Lue didn’t seem to phased by it. He said that defending Kristap Porzingis, a unique 7-footer that excels in outside shooting, was the main reason for the lack of the rebounding. Thompson has perennially been one of the most dynamic offensive rebounders in the league, averaging over three per game in his last six seasons, so this must change moving forward. Thompson must work the offensive glass more. For Thompson, if he continues to average just six rebounds per game, this could go down as his most inefficient year yet.
Another stat that will impact a number of shots a team gets up is their turnovers. Obviously, if a team turns the ball over, they won’t get a shot off for that possession. The Cavaliers, who are led by LeBron James, average 16.3 turnovers per game which is the 9th most in the NBA. James is responsible for 4.0 of them. Other culprits are Kevin Love, Derrick Rose and Dwyane Wade who average over two turnovers per game each.
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Overall, at 81.9 shots per game, the Cleveland Cavaliers hoist up the fourth least shots. Moving forward, as this team tries to find their groove, they will need to rebound more, turn the ball over less, and just be more active all over the court.