The Cleveland Cavaliers are chasing the NBA Finals and have consistently stuck to one philosophy: cohesion.
Cleveland has maintained the same core stars since acquiring Donovan Mitchell in 2022 following Evan Mobley's rookie season. The Cavaliers recognized the talented foundation built among young emerging stars and elevated the team from playoff hopefuls to playoff mainstays. Unfortunately, their playoff appearances have only led them to second-round exits thus far.
In response to postseason losses, the Cavs have maintained resolve in the core. Mitchell is the oldest member of the core four at just 29 years old as he enters his prime years. Darius Garland, Mobley and Jarrett Allen are still developing their talents and are cornerstones of the current Cavs identity.
Early this season, one of the Cavaliers' worst flaws has already come back to haunt them once again, calling to question how much internal development has happened in the last three seasons. Mobley's offense has expanded, and De'Andre Hunter is fitting into the Cavs' starting unit perfectly. Still, the Cavaliers find themselves dug into deep holes by halftime, forced into an all-out comeback battle throughout the third and fourth periods.
Some games, like against the Chicago Bulls, the Cavaliers prevail. After falling by 19 points to Chicago, Cleveland exited the locker room for the third quarter on fire and won the night 128-122 in front of an excited home crowd. In other matchups, such as Cleveland's game November 8 game against the Miami Heat, even a lesser double-digit lead was too steep for the Cavs to climb back.
Despite Miami being without Tyler Herro or Bam Adebayo, the Cavs could not stop the Heat's offense and too often settled for underwhelming jump shots in their own offensive sets. Andrew Wiggins' alley oop slam with 0.4 seconds left on the clock may have sealed the deal on the loss, but the Cavaliers had no excuses to fall behind the entire night.
Cleveland has to accept core problems are not solved by marginal upgrades
The Cavaliers' cohesion philosophy is becoming their Achilles heel. Keeping the same core players also means keeping the same core imperfections.
The team's effort is inconsistent, and many in Cleveland resort back to waiting for Mitchell to save the day. After a quiet first half with just three points against the Bulls by the break, Mitchell ignited for 26 points in the final two periods. Similarly against the Heat, Mitchell ended the first half with seven points and scored 21 in the second half and overtime.
Head coach Kenny Atkinson was ejected midway through the third quarter, but the Cavaliers had already shown their inabilities to come back by that point. Free throw disparities were certainly against the Cavs' chances. Still, Cleveland lost the game due to their own mistakes, not the referees.
One player cannot save the Cavaliers. Sam Merrill brought the Cavs back into the game against Miami with four three-pointers in a short span, but the rest of the squad could not be bothered to maintain the momentum.
The Cavaliers, at their core, are flawed.
Teams with higher energy, more grit and a deeper hunger to win consistently demonstrate what the rest of the NBA world knows but the Cavaliers ignore. Games cannot be only blowout wins or comeback thrillers. Winning a title cannot be one first-round sweep followed by a second-round gentleman's sweep to send you home.
In the 2024 playoffs, the Cavaliers needed a historic second-half comeback to beat the Orlando Magic in game seven of round one. This is not a new problem for Cleveland. It is just as old as the core that the Cavs built in 2022.
The season is young, and the Cleveland Cavaliers have plenty of time to address this lingering issue, but they have not done so in just over three years now. If not this past summer, then when? The team does not seem to have that answer presently.