3 Cavs players who aren’t living up to expectations thus far

No. 2: Isaac Okoro

Isaac Okoro is the second Cav who hasn’t lived up to expectations. The expectations weren’t likely near that of others, per se, but Okoro having only 4.1 points per outing has been less than one probably would’ve assumed coming in, at this point.

There’s others involved, of course, even still, his minutes-share has been reduced to 18.7 per game, and Lamar Stevens being more viable offensively has feasibly played into Stevens starting over him, in the time since LeVert has moved to the bench. Now, Dean Wade being currently sidelined with an AC joint sprain is another layer to the wing situation; regardless, Okoro has had his struggles offensively, and is still very limited there, and that’s factored into his minutes reduction.

Okoro is a player that helps the Cavs often on the defensive end for stretches, and one has to acknowledge that, as he plays with such urgency there, intensity and he often does force opponents into tough shots. It’s been telling that in minutes Okoro is on the floor, opponents have had an effective field goal shooting clip of minus-1.5 percent, which has placed in the 68th percentile thus far this season, per Cleaning The Glass.

The key issue though is, while there were some signs of improvement in preseason, and he had reportedly been making progress with his shooting in the offseason, and his shot form does look more fluid, the work hasn’t materialized. The minutes reduction does matter for it, but Okoro has only shot 24.5 percent from three on the season, and though his finishing at the rim has been better, as a continued growth sign from last year, his on-ball play is still severely limited.

The fact of the matter is, while his defense is a plus, one is right to question if Okoro’s offense will ever really come along to be at a competent level, let alone for him to ever consistently play near that of starter’s minutes game-to-game again.