During the Cleveland Cavaliers 64-win season last year, there were no questions about whether the team would bring it every night. They made a habit of doing their work early and overwhelming opponents with their offensive prowess.
Their core four of Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Darius Garland, and Jarrett Allen were all relatively healthy, Cleveland had one of the best benches in the NBA, and they were far and away the NBA’s best when it came to shooting the basketball.
That has not carried over into this season. Cleveland has battled a litany of injuries, which has led them to having 24 different starting lineup combinations so far this season. They had 23 different starting units all of last year. This has led to what has been the Cavs’ biggest problem this season.
Cavaliers have a consistency problem, but they are showing signs of progress
Through the first half of the season, Cleveland has struggled to string together performances of high-level play. They have had a tendency of getting down early and trying to claw their way back late. It has led to some comeback wins, but it has also led to a handful of disappointing losses. This is something that ESPN's Brian Windhorst outlined.
The Cavs have also played down to their competition at times as well. Losses to the shorthanded Golden State Warriors, the tanking Utah Jazz, the young Charlotte Hornets, and the up-and-down Chicago Bulls come to mind.
In those games, Cleveland just came out with a glaring lack of intensity. That is hard to comprehend for a team that has a lot to prove still. Fortunately for the Cavaliers, they have started to turn things around lately.
Cleveland has won five of its last six games, and ten of their last 14. They have the third-most wins in the East since December 28th, and have the NBA’s seventh-best offensive rating and ninth-best net rating during that span as well.
It was foolish to think that this Cavs team could replicate last year’s success. Winning in the fashion that they did was historic and it is hard to do the same thing twice in the NBA. After their slow start, the fact that Cleveland is showing signs of life entering the second half of the season is encouraging.
This is a team that has never peaked during the last few months of the regular season. Given the way they are trending, maybe the Cavs can rid themselves of their inconsistencies, and continue to play like the contending team they are.