This should improve for Cavs defense with better chemistry next season

This season, the Cleveland Cavaliers had plenty of success, and despite not making the postseason, them doubling their win total by 22 games was no small feat. The Cavaliers look to be a team on the rise in the Eastern Conference, and what they were able to do, even with a number of injuries throughout the season, can’t be discounted.

Admittedly, though, the club did not close how they wanted, as post-All-Star break, Cleveland was just 9-15, and they ultimately dropped to play-in range. The Cavaliers would then lose in both of their chances to make the postseason, with Ls to the Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks.

There were still positives to the closing stretch of the season, on the plus side, but the teams’ defense was not nearly what it was pre-All-Star break. Jarrett Allen missing most of post-All-Star break play because of a fractured finger didn’t help, and I don’t gloss over what that meant.

There were some off performances for the Wine and Gold even prior to the All-Star break, in fairness; that just made it tougher on that end. The club was 24th in defensive rating post-All-Star, as compared to fourth pre-All-Star.

Other injuries at times in that span to Evan Mobley a bit (ankle sprain), and Dean Wade‘s partially-torn meniscus then didn’t make things easier, but the team still had more miscommunications, either way. It’s nice to know that Markkanen is reportedly squared away health-wise and has since been back to on-floor work.

All of that said, one area on the defensive end was something I thought was a bit nagging throughout the season, and next year, that needs to be cleaned up more game-to-game. While we previously stressed it during the year and in other instances, defensive rebounding has to be a continual point of emphasis for next season.

Next season, the Cavs defensive rebounding has to improve, and that should play out with better chemistry for the group.

When they were healthy, the Cavaliers rolled with a tall-ball lineup to start games and played that out for extended stretches with Lauri Markkanen, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen at the 3-5 spots. Inherently, there were some growing pains for the team and for those three playing significant time together when they were healthy.

Granted, there were injuries for each of those guys at times in the season, but when they were available, it was a crucial part of the Cavs’ defensive success and turnaround. With that in mind, I do believe we should see Markkanen, Mobley and Allen a fair amount next season, but we’ll have to see on that front.

In any case, as we alluded to, the Cavaliers defensive rebounding was something that was a work in progress this now-past season, and Cleveland was 18th in that metric in 2021-22.

Now, only two clubs conceded less opponent second chance points per game, so I give the Cavs their props for that. However, while it wasn’t all on the bigs, necessarily, Cleveland’s defensive rebounding efforts need to be more consistent next season, and if the three aforementioned bigs are receiving their share of play together, even more so.

I’m aware that some of the reasoning for Cleveland’s defensive rebounding inconsistencies had to do with guys such as Mobley and Allen contesting a bunch of shots, and those two were very impactful for the team in that aspect. When both were healthy, it was often great for the Cavaliers defensive efforts, and I personally thought Markkanen did a decent job when called upon against opposing wings for stretches with Mobley and Allen involved, when that occurred.

Even still, Mobley and Markkanen’s defensive rebounding left a lot to be desired for much of the season when they weren’t in primary coverage of opposing scoring threats, and with those guys having likely better chemistry with others next season, I believe they’ll improve there. Mobley, for what it’s worth, should get stronger over the course of the offseason heading into his second year, anyhow.

And for the group overall, I’d imagine, with more experience for rotational guys such as seemingly Lamar Stevens, Dean Wade and others, they’ll be able to show growth in that realm.

So, hopefully next season, the Cavaliers with guys getting more time with the overall group, if they can remain healthier, with sound contests, the defensive rebounding for the team takes strides and is more consistent. Kevin Love, for his bench role, staying healthy would only help that, I’d think in his minutes, too.

This is an area that for younger players as they get comfortable playing with each other should be something the team can clean up next year, I’d think, and hopefully looking onward. There were still some key plays for opponents it seemed far too often in some crucial stretches where Cleveland’s defensive rebounding was spotty, so I’d hope that’s a point of emphasis from here to remedy that.