Cleveland Cavaliers: Three players that could start slow in 2019-20

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Cleveland Cavaliers Tristan Thompson (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

Entering a new season is an exciting time for all NBA teams and their players, but while every player strives to start the season on the right foot, that is not always the case. Here are three players from the Cleveland Cavaliers that could struggle out of the gate this upcoming 2019-20 season.

As discussed extensively throughout the summer, the Cleveland Cavaliers are in the midst of a full-blown rebuild.

Though the Wine and Gold have some exciting young players suiting up for them in 2019-20, expectations are limited for the team overall.

While I expect players such as Collin Sexton and Cedi Osman to build off the success they had toward the end of last season, other players may struggle early on. The first is a player who has struggled with injuries his last two seasons.

#1: Tristan Thompson

Tristan Thompson begins this season, his ninth in the NBA, at just 28 years old. The Cavaliers big man put up arguably his best career numbers (10.9 points per game and 10.2 rebounds per game) in 27.9 minutes per night in 2018-19, per Basketball Reference.

However, Thompson struggled to stay on the court last season consistently.

He missed 39 games during the year, and the Cavaliers’ rotation suffered without his presence on the floor, but when he was healthier at the earlier portion of last season, he was quite effective, as was especially the case in a game against the Washington Wizards in December (highlights via House of Highlights).

Tristan was once known as the NBA’s iron man, as he played in 447 straight games at one point (per Basketball Reference). But over the past two seasons, Thompson played in just 96 regular season games (obviously the Cavs weren’t participants in last year’s postseason) and missed 68 contests, again, per Basketball Reference.

This season is a contract year for Thompson, and he will be out to prove that he is worthy of another lucrative deal. But between the recent injury history and the logjam at the big positions, Thompson may not see the minutes he did last season when he was healthier, and begin to press.

With the Wine and Gold wanting to go younger, and cut salary, Thompson is likely going to be on the trade block for much of the season leading up to the trade deadline in early February. As we have seen before, constant trade rumors swirling around a players’ head can be detrimental and affect them negatively on the court.

Also, new head coach John Beilein will likely be wanting to experiment with several different lineups early on, to find out the best combinations. This could lead to inconsistent minutes for Thompson, which could also negatively affect his output.