Cavs legend Brad Daugherty goes off on 2025-26 struggles

The Cleveland Cavaliers are 4-6 over the course of the last 10 games.

And the issues are becoming more apparent by the night.

Most recently, on Sunday, Dec. 14, the Cavaliers played host to the Charlotte Hornets from Rocket Arena, falling 119-111 in overtime. The team struggled to effectively shoot the basketball, finishing the night with an eFG% mark of 46.3.

But, for former Cavalier Brad Daugherty, he focused on another part of the game that Cleveland struggled with.

"It's about the cohesion and consistency on the defensive end," Daugherty said. "We've gotta communicate and help."

There were multiple scenarios during the loss to the Hornets where the Cavaliers needed to utilize help-side defense, or simply put pressure on an open shooter on the wing, but the hustle wasn't there. Members of the Hornets were wide open for shot attempts, directly contributing to such a high efficiency for the away side.

Charlotte ended the overtime win with an eFG% of 52.6%, nearly seven percent higher than the Cavaliers'.

When the three-pointer wasn't open, the Hornets then pushed their way inside towards the hoop and finished close up.

"People, our guys are just stopping and staying on the weakside and it's layup city," Daugherty said.

Daugherty played for the Cavaliers from the 1986-87 season through the 1993-94 campaign. He's widely regarded as one of the best bigs on both ends of the court in Cavaliers history.

Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, this isn't a new issue. Throughout the season, they've routinely fallen asleep on the defensive end, struggling to play with intensity.

And that's also led to the glass being left wide open.

The Cavaliers were also beaten out on the boards by the Hornets, 53-46, as center Jarrett Allen finished the game with a measly three rebounds, two defensive and one offensive, in nearly 23 minutes of action. The Cavaliers instead had to rely on a second-year pro, Jaylon Tyson, to lead the charge with an impressive 13 total rebounds.

He finished with a team-high 13 rebounds, showing that Cleveland's bigs were absent in the loss.

Tyson's slowly climbing up the team averages this season as well, marching up to a mark of 5.7 rebounds a night, while Allen's average has fallen to 7.3. Forward Evan Mobley, who was held out of the Hornets game, leads the team with a mark of 9.3.

Cleveland's struggling in a lot of different ways, but as Daugherty said, when guys are out of position and not hustling, it's not going to be a recipe for success.

The Cavaliers next look to take on the Chicago Bulls on the road on Wednesday, Dec. 17, with tip-off slated for 8:00 p.m.