Cavaliers' Star Duo Earns Concerning Title For 2024-25 NBA Season

This Cleveland Cavaliers pairing isn't exactly ideal from a stylistic perspective, and its days could be coming to an end.

Jan 10, 2022; Sacramento, California, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen (31) smiles with forward-center Evan Mobley (4) after scoring a basket against the Sacramento Kings during the fourth quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports / Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

In spite of rampant speculation that the Cleveland Cavaliers could make a major move to shake up their roster this offseason, their core has remained intact.

The Cavaliers signed Donovan Mitchell to a contract extension. Darius Garland has stayed put. The frontcourt tandem of Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley is still a thing, for better or for worse.

After Cleveland was eliminated from the second round of the playoffs this past May, many felt that the Cavs should break up the Allen-Mobley duo in order to facilitate better floor spacing.

While Mobley did shoot 37.3 percent from three-point range this year, he did it on just 59 attempts, so the thinking was that moving Allen for a better shooting big would further open up Mobley's offensive game and make life easier for the backcourt.

Well, it looks like the Cavaliers plan on running it back, which has led to Bleacher Report's Dan Favale dubbing Cleveland's frontcourt pairing one of the four "most bizarre" star duos in the NBA.

Favale qualifies his statement by saying that this doesn't necessarily mean that the Allen-Mobley tandem is "doomed" but that it is certainly a huge question mark. He goes as far to say that the 2024-25 campaign could be a "make-or-break" campaign for the duo.

It's hard to argue with Favale's assessment. There is a reason why so many people have legitimate concerns about the Cavs' decision to stick with Allen and Mobley up front. They are both terrific players individually, but they may be better off apart rather than together.

This is why adding a floor-spacing big man was deemed such a necessity for the Cavaliers this offseason, but they have not done that.

If Mobley continues to develop his perimeter shot, maybe this could work. But the 1.2 triples he attempted per game in 2023-24 was actually the lowest mark of his career thus far.

Next season will probably tell us a whole lot about the staying power of the Allen-Mobley pairing moving forward.