It’s no secret the Cavaliers have gotten off to a disappointing start. With Monday night’s loss to the Hornets, it could be time to consider some adjustments. 

Point Guard

Since Darius Garland’s departure last season, James Harden was expected to take over the full-time point guard role as he was averaging 8.1 assists per game for the Clippers before making his way to Cleveland.

However, since last season’s seven-game first-round matchup with the Toronto Raptors, Harden has struggled to perform as the team’s point guard. This season, he is averaging 5.7 assists per game compared to last season’s 7.7 assists per game. 

This is a major issue, as 5.7 assists per game is not nearly enough playmaking out of your starting point guard.

Unfortunately, Harden is still turning the ball over at a similar rate to last season (about 3 turnovers a game), making his assist-to-turnover rate an abysmal 1.9 compared to last season’s number of 2.4 assists per turnover.

If you still aren’t convinced that Harden is to blame for the Cavs point guard inconsistencies, Harden’s turnover percentage(an advanced stat for calculating turnovers) is the fourth highest it’s been in his 18 seasons in the NBA, while his assist percentage (an equivalent advanced stat for assists) is at its lowest since 2011.

Shooting Guard

If the Cavaliers continue to start Donovan Mitchell and James Harden without making adjustments, it will leave a logjam at shooting guard. While Harden might technically be playing point guard, he and Mitchell are both trying to play shooting guard roles.

Until either Harden or Mitchell steps into the lead distributor role, the Cavaliers' offense is going to continue to struggle. While Harden has recently struggled to find success in the point guard role, taking a break from those lead-distributor duties might benefit him.

In JB Bickerstaff’s final season as head coach of the Cavs, Darius Garland missed an extended period of time after breaking his jaw. During these months when the Cavaliers were without Garland, Donovan Mitchell played the point guard role stupendously.

Donovan Mitchell averaged 29.1 points, 7.1 assists, and 5.1 rebounds in 19 games without Darius Garland during the 2023-24 season. These numbers are absolutely stellar for a player who had never played point guard for an extended period of time before or since.

Making the adjustment

If Kenny Atkinson tries to swap Mitchell to point guard and Harden to the shooting guard role, I would anticipate slightly lower scoring numbers and higher assist totals from Mitchell compared to his 19 games without Garland.

Kenny Atkinson is the perfect coach to aid Mitchell in this transition as well, as he has a strong history of coaching all-star-caliber point guards. 

Coaching D’Angelo Russell to his best season, being lead assistant for Steph Curry’s second chapter (as well as developing Jordan Poole), and obviously aiding Darius Garland in spearheading a Cavaliers offense that won a record-breaking 64-win season are all accolades that lead me to believe Atkinson could potentially develop Mitchell into a more competent point guard option than James Harden.

Should Kenny make any major offensive adjustments, expect them to come during a homestand like the upcoming stretch of four games that starts on the second half of a back-to-back on Saturday with the Mavericks and runs through Friday with the Pacers.