Offense and Defense the Key for the Cavaliers

Offensively, the Cleveland Cavaliers have several weapons at their overall disposal. Kyrie Irving remains a focal point of the offense as well as new acquisition Jarrett Jack, Dion Waiters and Tristan Thompson. All three players must have strong games for the Cavaliers to remain competitive. Double figure scoring by the starting five will be a crucial part of whether or not they’ll be a playoff team this year.

Defensively, the Cavaliers will have the same problems as they did in the past. Their inability to rotate to opposing three point and perimeter players will be an issue, as will their opponent field goal percentage, Rotation needs to be emphasized a great deal, since there are teams in the league who can light it up from three point range. They’ll need some quick rotations in order to guard players on the Bulls for example. The Bulls have a number of weapons including Deng, Rose and Dunleavy who comes off the bench. Getting a hand in the face of all three shooters is a must, since they’re all able to spread the floor and knock down jumpers.

Since the season started, there has been a lapse at times at the defensive end of the floor. Guarding the perimeter as well as the paint will be a major challenge for the Cavs, if their front court can mesh well and create transition opportunities. The Cavs generally thrive in fast break situations, since they’re a running team, The Cavs will have to naturally push the ball up the floor to set up their offense and capitalize on missed shots in order to get their fast break game going. Fast break points off turnovers will definitely help the Cavs play catch up if they fall victim to double-digit leads.