The Cavs have a bench problem

It has been a strange summer for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

After waiting, and waiting, and then losing out on the LeBron James sweepstakes, the Cavs had to pivot. They already watched Keon Ellis and Dean Wade depart before James’ decision, and then had to offload Dennis Schroder and Max Strus to get a smidge of wiggle room to improve the top of the rotation. Acquiring Peyton Watson is a good gamble to make given his age, athleticism, and reasonable extension number, but the Cavs are undoubtedly more top-heavy than they already were. That is a problem.

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A short bench is nothing new for the Cavs, but there are even more legitimate concerns now. The wing rotation got an infusion of juice with Watson, yet there are plenty of questions after that. Jaylon Tyson has shown promise, but he fell out of the rotation in the playoffs and often got into head coach Kenny Atkinson’s doghouse. Mario Hezonja has not played in the NBA since before COVID, and there is a reason he is on a non-guaranteed contract. There really is no way of knowing what he will be able to provide, let alone in high-leverage playoff situations.

Thomas Bryant makes his return to the frontcourt, but the Cavs should have sought out a more athletic, non-traditional backup center. Nae’Qwan Tomlin is listed as the team’s backup power forward, a scary proposition considering he was a two-way player last year. There is nothing necessarily wrong with Tomlin, but a team that wants to compete for a championship should have a better option in tow. Craig Porter is serviceable, but the Cavs are putting a lot of faith in him being the full-time backup point guard.

Whether you want to believe it or not, Cleveland needed Wade out there. The Cavs were +5.9 with Wade on the floor last season, which is +3 better than they were without him. His true value does not show up in the box score. Wade’s ability to defend the arc, disrupt passing lanes, and stay in front of guards was all vital to the Cavs’ defense. When he hits a few shots and grabs a few rebounds, Wade was nearly invaluable. The Cavs will miss that two-way ability, even if he drew the ire of the…

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Publish date : 2026-09-10 11:00:00

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