After success or failure! How can the Cavaliers break through in the new season?

Although they failed to reach the highest stage, it is no surprise that the Cavaliers are still the popular team in the Eastern Conference.

They won 64 wins last season, ranking second in the league and first in the Eastern Conference. They can be called the strongest offense in the league. They can score 7.3 points more than the league average per 100 possessions. This is also the top three offensive firepower in the NBA in the past 15 years.

Looking at the current game of the Cavaliers, it is completely the best example of a modern basketball team:

Fast pace, full space, and accurate outside.

Such a system is becoming more and more problematic. For Cleveland fans, they seem to see championship hope after James. But as we get closer to the end, the team's problems become clearer and clearer.

In the Eastern Conference semifinals last season, facing the Pacers, who had a faster pace and more accurate outside shots, the Cavaliers' defense suddenly collapsed. Throughout the series, the Cavaliers lost more than 120 points every 100 possessions. For this team, which ranked eighth in the league in defense during the regular season, it was repeatedly beaten and unable to fight back at critical moments.

For the Cavaliers, the starting point of the series against the Pacers seems to have been determined:

In the first defensive round of the first round of the series, after Mobley switched defenses twice in a row, he was forced to face Haliburton who completed a handoff with Turner; Allen went to cover Turner, and Struss hesitated and then chose to pursue Haliburton. As a result, Siakam was left in the corner, a completely open opportunity.

Although the Pacers missed the shot, the Cavaliers' problem was already obvious.

Just a few minutes later, the same tactics and the same mistakes happened twice more. Siakam got two wide-open shots, a layup and a three-pointer. Judging from the results, these are no accidents. The Cavaliers' disconnection in defense communication has been quite obvious.

Looking back at the entire series, 58% of the Pacers' three-point shots were wide open, which is basically the highest rate in the league. To some extent, this is not just a loss due to talent, but also a loss due to tacit understanding. Of course, compared to the above shortcomings, what is more troublesome is their defensive problem.

The foundation of the Cavaliers' defensive system mainly comes from the twin towers inside. This is their advantage, but it seems slow and stagnant when facing the Pacers' pick-and-roll screens. Combining the data, they chose to switch defenses in 25% of pick-and-roll and hand-off situations in the semifinals, which was 5% higher than in the regular season. This also caused the two big men to frequently switch defenses on the perimeter, and the Pacers unceremoniously punished such mismatch opportunities.

Looking at the data, when Haliburton singled out Allen, he made 12 of 20 shots and scored 29 points, which was almost twice as many as he faced any Cavaliers player. Once Allen was pulled out of the penalty area, the Cavaliers' basket naturally lost its barrier; when Mobley was forced to switch defenses on the outside, the Pacers began to grab rebounds and attack in the low post.

During the regular season, the Cavaliers gave up 92 points per 100 pick-and-rolls against their opponents. In the playoff semifinals, this number soared to 116 points. It's obvious that the Cavaliers can't defend the pick-and-roll, nor can they defend the basket.

In addition to the poor pick-and-roll defense, what's even worse is that the team's one-on-one defense completely collapsed.

Halliburton, McConnell and other main players hold the ball. Most of the time, they directly refuse to cover and dribble to break through the perimeter defense. Throughout the playoffs, the Cavaliers were driven to the basket 14.3 times per 100 possessions, ranking fifth in the league. Many times it's not that the Cavaliers don't work hard on defense, it's just that it's difficult to keep up with the Pacers' offensive rhythm. Facing such an offensive team, a hesitation will directly mean being shot through by the opponent.

Of course, the Cavaliers also had reasons for their elimination last season.

Garland was absent from the first two games of the series, and Mobley and Hunter were also absent from the second game. The team's outside defense was tight due to an unorganized lineup. But overall, it's not that they have poor defense, it's more that there are problems with the connection of the defensive system. Once the defense is disconnected, the direct result will be the collapse of the entire positional battle.

But what’s even more fatal is that the Cavaliers, who have obvious defensive shortcomings, seem to have become accustomed to relying on offense to make up for defense. But when the shooting rate was no longer stable, and when the opponent's three-point shooting rate gradually increased, the Cavaliers turned around and realized that they had no second way.

Entering the offseason, the Cavaliers have not drastically shuffled the lineup. They still believe in the core team of Mitchell, Garland, Mobley, and Allen. They are still a popular team in the Eastern Conference and can still play a top-five offense in the league. Only this time, if they want to make a qualitative change, they must first fix the gaps in their defense.

From the current point of view, Strus will miss the game at the beginning of the season, and Hunter is likely to become the new outside defender. The addition of Lonzo Ball and Nance Jr. may be able to support the core defense when Allen or Mobley are not on the court. But the real key is for this team to regain its defensive rhythm.

The previous 64 wins were enough to prove the team's talent. After being defeated by the Pacers, it was obvious that the road to the championship has never been based on touch, and defense is the basis for winning the championship.

At least before the defense becomes stronger, they still have a crucial step to go.