Cleveland’s Turnover Problem

On paper the Cavaliers improved their roster this off-season. They addressed their weaknesses from last season by bolstering both their starting lineup and bench players. Most of the new additions are playing really well, and yet the Cavaliers are still struggling. Though there are a lot of contributing factors, such as health and the reshaping of the Eastern Conference, what stands out the most is turnovers. While this wasn’t nonexistent last season, it’s become a frustrating element of Cleveland’s play this season. Here’s a closer look at Cleveland’s turnover problem. 

In comparison

Cleveland currently ranks seventh in team turnovers, having committed a total of 387 this season. That’s still 73 less than the Utah Jazz (league leaders) but it’s not where the Cavs want to be. 

This problem would be more manageable if Cleveland’s defense was still top of the league. While they’re defense is in the top third of the league at 10th, it’s a far cry from the first place mantle they held last season. A first place position they held while also placing 25th in total league turnovers. 

To recap, last season they finished with the best defensive rating while giving the ball up less than 24 other teams. This season they have the 10th best defensive rating while giving the ball up more than 23 other teams. 

Broken down by quarter 

They’re averaging 14.3 turnovers per game. Broken down by quarter, they committed a total of 100 turnovers in their first quarters, 92 in their second, 101 in their third, and 91 in their fourth. While this does indicate that they’re able to adjust throughout the game, it also shows that they struggle when coming out the gate. Whether that be the start of the game or coming out of halftime, these Cavaliers seem to be a little more reckless with the ball. 

Broken down by player 

Leading the team in turnovers with 78 is Darius Garland. This actually places him at 13th most by any player in the NBA this season. What’s especially concerning is that when looking at the starting lineup (the group who committed the most turnovers) he’s played the least amount of games at 20. Donovan Mitchell follows him with 58 turnovers having played in 22 games. Then comes Evan Mobley with 48 and Jarrett Allen with 41 having played 21 and 22 games respectively. Impressively Max Strus, having played in all 27 games so far, has committed the least amount of turnovers of the starting lineup with 39. 

Looking ahead

As the season progresses, and as both the players and their chemistry improve, so should their cohesion and ball security. While there are a lot of turnovers being committed across the board, Garland has hands down been the biggest contributor to the problem. He will unfortunately be missing multiple weeks along with Mobley due to injury, so it’ll be interesting to see how this affects Cleveland’s turnover problem specifically. 

The Cavs next play Wednesday night at 7:00 PM in Cleveland against the Utah Jazz.

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Featured photo courtesy of NBA.com
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