INDEPENDENCE, OHIO– When it comes to who the Cavaliers will start at center during the regular season, no decisions have been made yet.
One thing that is clear, however, is head coach Tyronn Lue is at least toying with the idea of starting Kevin Love at the 5 over Tristan Thompson, thanks to the addition of Jae Crowder.
Given Crowder’s defensive prowess, and the stellar shooting season he had last year, it’s really no surprise that Lue would want to figure out a way to work Crowder into the starting lineup, a feat that could be accomplished by putting him at the 4 spot and moving Kevin Love to center.
While Lue wouldn’t elaborate in detail about any lineup plans on Saturday after practice, he did confirm it is “fair” to say that he is deciding between Love and Thompson at the 5 spot, and that whoever starts in that position will likely do so all year long (meaning, it wouldn’t change based strictly on matchups).
Love, for what it’s worth, did confirm that he has been spending a decent amount of time learning the 5 position throughout the first five days of camp.
“We did a lot of that last training camp, but as far as how the sets are put together right now throughout training camp I am seeing a pretty significant amount of time there,” Love said. “It just depends on– now with so many guys on the team, and so many lineups that we can throw out there, it will probably change.”
Love also said that during practices so far, he and Thompson have spent a lot of time going against each other to have him better learn the position.
Both players have positives and negatives when it comes to starting at center. Love is more dynamic on offense, and last season averaged a double-double. He also went 37.3 percent from deep last season, while Thompson has not made a three-pointer in his six-year NBA career. While Lue said he was comfortable with Love’s defense, there’s no doubt that he would provide more offensive options than Thompson.
Regardless of how comfortable Lue is with Love’s defense, however, Thompson is without question a better defender. He averaged just over a block a game, while Love averaged 0.4 in 2016-17, and he is better at defending the roll man in a pick and roll and in isolation situations.
But even still, the new looks Love could provide on offense are nevertheless enticing.
“Spacing opportunities, spacing the floor,” Lue said. “Being able to play through the elbows with multiple guys. We’ll see.”
“Tristan is a very dynamic roller, guy that plays a lot as a dunker,” Love said. “Myself, I have to play inside-out, mix it up and really take what the defense gives you. But it gives us a different look. I mentioned different dynamics out there on the floor with different lineups and we’re so deep now that [Dwyane] Wade and a lot of guys similar in size at that 3-4-5 spot, we’re going to see guys playing interchangeable. It’s not just going to be on the defensive end in that regard.”
For now, this is a situation that likely will remain up in the air until the beginning of the regular season. Considering all the new pieces and parts that the Cavs have this year, Lue will likely spend the next few weeks trying to figure out which units best gel together.
One last note on the matter: fans shouldn’t read too much into the lineups during Monday night’s Wine and Gold scrimmage, especially considering the fact LeBron James won’t be playing as he is still day to day with a rolled ankle.
Don’t be surprised if there isn’t a clear answer on the center position until opening night of the regular season.
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