Three Takeaways from the Cleveland Cavaliers 124-116 Loss to the Thunder

It looks like it was a close game. but it was not.

Oct 28, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson reacts in the fourth quarter against the Washington Wizards at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

An absolutely horrendous two showings against the Oklahoma City Thunder this week. The score is going to look close for those who missed the game, but for the people who watched it, they know the truth.

What led to this big loss, well a few different things.

No Big Bigs

Basketball these days, every team has somebody who is seven foot five and can hit a three or beast in the paint. Unfortunately the Cavaliers are not one of those teams, the tallest player on the team is Evan Mobley at 6’11.

Aday Mara of the Thunder is 7’4. He destroyed the Cavs tonight, Evan Mobley especially. Getting rebound after rebound and just getting the ball through the basket. This was more of the case after Jarrett Allen went down with an injury early in the first quarter.

After this injury, Cleveland played Thomas Bryant more minutes than he should ever have on the court. Bryant can provide a couple three pointers, but his defensive capabilities are some of the absolute worst on the team.

This offseason there were talks about the team getting a third big man that could provide some relief to Allen and Mobley but decided against it. If Allen is out long term, that is going to be regretful decision.

Donovan Mitchell

Whatever approach Mitchell is taking to games this season, he really needs to change it. All game he was playing with less intensity than his teammates. Mario Hezonja at one point was taking more shots than him. 

James Harden had to take over the game in the third quarter because of the lack of play that he was bringing. Harden did well, that was when the Cavs finally mounted a comeback after that 25 point deficit.

At the end of the game, with less than two minutes to go, he decided to be the player he should've been all game. He nailed three consecutive three pointers to bring the game within six points after 

What he did then, felt like a guy trying to actually help his team win a game and save them in a moment when a star was needed.

Kenny Atkinson

A change in gameplan to start the second half, but way too late. Through both games, the Cavs won six of eight quarters but went 0-2.

Atkinson’s decision making once again becomes a hot topic for how he runs the team in game. All of this praise he gets off the court is not correlating off of it.

Is it still too early to really judge this Cavs team and the poor performances? No it is not too early. One of the biggest advantages Cleveland had this offseason was keeping their core team together while everybody around them made major trades and changes.

Now going into the season, basketball IQ feels like it is at the floor and a few instances of poor chemistry between Harden and Kenny in this game.

Got any lip readers for this Harden exchange? pic.twitter.com/Bt5TnXBsoK

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After back-to-back losses, Cleveland now has a back-to-back against the 76ers and Knicks this weekend.