Most Glaring Roster Hole Cleveland Cavaliers Must Fill This Offseason

The Cleveland Cavaliers got embarrassed by the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals. There were a lot of reasons they got swept and dominated in every facet of the game. A lot can be placed on the star players, some can be placed on the coaching staff, but most of it can be placed on the construction of the roster.

There is one glaring hole that the Knicks exploited in the Conference Finals. It is not a superstar-sized hole, but it is a hole nonetheless.

Cavs Need A Reliable Three-And-D Player

The James Harden trade was supposed to bring an experienced scorer and ball handler to this team that desperately needed it, with an injured Darius Garland being largely unavailable. The team believed Harden could be the final piece of the puzzle to get this team back to the NBA Finals. While Harden is not fully to blame, the team is missing someone that Harden can turn to and rely upon.

Donovan Mitchell had to do everything himself in that Game Four loss, scoring more than 30 points. Unfortunately, the Cavs allowed the Knicks to drop 130 points on them at home, and the Cavs could only muster 93.

The Knicks had no trouble scoring the ball, and the Cavaliers had a tough time keeping up. One solution to this issue is signing a player who is known as a three-and-D guy. Someone who plays tough defense but then will run the floor in transition and nail down three-pointers. The Knicks had Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges as their three-and-D guys. OG Anonoby can be thrown in that conversation as well.

The Cavaliers had Max Strus and Sam Merrill. While they are good shooters, their defense leaves something to be desired. Evan Mobley found his three-point shot in the series, but that is not what you expect from Mobley. He is a great defender, but you want him more down low than on the perimeter as a primary three-point shooter.

Jaylon Tyson could shoot, but his defense is not great. Dean Wade is not a great shooter. Dennis Schroder can get hot, but he was largely out of the rotation. There was no defender on this team that you could stick on a Jalen Brunson or a Cade Cunningham to wear them down over the course of a game.

Not only that, but they did not have anyone they could rely upon to consistently shoot the three. James Harden had his stroke early in the postseason, but was nonexistent against New York. Sam Merrill can drain them with the best of them, but on defense, he fouled way too often. Donovan Mitchell can shoot, but he cannot do it alone. Max Strus did not shoot well, Jaylon Tyson did not capitalize on his opportunities, and that is practically the end of the list.

The Cavs need to sign someone to this team to refocus on defense. When they were the top team in the East, it was because their defense was among the best. This year, their defense was middling, meaning if their offense was even a little off in a game, winning was going to be tough.

The Cavaliers need a Josh Hart. They need an OG Anunoby. They need a Lugentz Dort, a Cason Wallace, a Derrick White, or a Herbert Jones. Without one of these energy players that plays tight defense against the opposition’s best, the Cavaliers are destined to be stuck in this good but not great category until they do.

It is a small hole, but any hole can cause a ship to sink if ignored long enough. It seems the Cavaliers have ignored this hole for too long, and it has cost them dearly. If the Cavaliers want to seriously contend next year, one of these three-and-D players with high energy needs to be signed or traded for. Without them, they will continue to get scorched by the league’s best in the playoffs, no matter how good their offense seems to be.

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