Analyst Exposes Major Problem for Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been dominant thus far in the NBA season, but they do have one significant issue that needs to be addressed.

Nov 27, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen (31) passes in the first quarter against the Atlanta Hawks at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images / David Richard-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been the NBA's best team through the first two months of the season, but that does not mean they are completely bereft of issues.

As a matter of fact, Josh Cornelissen of King James Gospel feels that the Cavaliers actually have a "glaring" problem that they need to address: big man depth.

Cornelissen notes that Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley and Tristan Thompson are the only three centers on Cleveland's roster and that Thompson should no longer be getting regular minutes.

"Yet there is still one place where this Cavaliers roster falls short. They go three deep at every single position on the roster except for one: center. Tristan Thompson, their third center, is no longer an option for minutes in an NBA game for a contending team," Cornelissen wrote.

Thompson has played in 12 games this season and is averaging 2.5 points and 2.7 rebounds over 7.5 minutes a night on 48.1 percent shooting.

There was certainly a time when the 34-year-old was a crucial rotation player, and he helped Cleveland win a championship in 2016.

However, Thompson's inability to spread the floor—coupled with his decline on the defensive end—make him mostly unplayable in the vast majority of situations.

Fortunately, there is still plenty of time for the Cavs to address this hole, as they have until February to swing a trade for a more competent big man.

Thompson is unquestionably a great locker room presence, but Cornelissen is right: in a situation where there is an injury to either Allen or Mobley, Thompson would begin earning significant minutes, and that would not be advisable for the Cavaliers.