3 reasons the Cleveland Cavaliers have hit a speed bump

1. Adaptability

The Cleveland Cavaliers took everyone by surprise to start the season. The shock of the starting lineups’ effectiveness was enough to throw off many opponents en route to their 4-5 start.

Tristan Thompson was perhaps the biggest surprise of all. The 28-year old made drastic improvements to his offensive game, averaging 17.4 points, 11.6 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game through the first two weeks of the season.

However, once opposing teams began to accumulate some film on Thompson and the Cavaliers tendencies, things changed. Never underestimate an NBA coach’s ability to formulate a gameplan.

Suddenly, the Cavaliers weren’t getting the same looks that made them so successful. Cleveland opened the season averaging 106.1 points per game across their first four games. This number has dropped to 101.4 over their last eight matchups.

This is a direct result of their inability to adapt. When an opposing team disrupts the Cavaliers’ first option offensively, things begin to fall apart. This young squad is still learning how to read and react to different looks the defense gives them.

Players such as Darius Garland, Kevin Porter Jr., Collin Sexton and Cedi Osman have suffered the most from this. Too often are these guys finding themselves trapped by the defense and forced into turnovers or bad shots.

Moving forward, coach John Beilein will have to keep his team ahead of the game. Adaptability is important in the NBA and these young players will soon learn the benefits of adjusting on the fly.