The Cleveland Cavaliers are walking into a weekend that could change the conversation around them fast.
After dropping three of their last four, they’re staring at back-to-back games against two title contenders, the Sixers and Knicks. That’s a tough stretch under any circumstances, and it lands at a time when the early buzz around Cleveland has already started to fade. A 4-6 finish to the weekend would leave them in an ugly spot.
The good news for Cleveland is that this is still a chance to flip the script. Even with the rough start to 2025-26, the Cavs never slipped below .500. Now comes a 48-hour stretch that can either steady the season or send the noise around the team into a louder place.
Some of that noise has already picked up. Bleacher Report recently handed the starting lineup a D+ through the opening part of the season, and Peyton Watson was labeled the biggest disappointment because of his net rating and shooting numbers.
“It's early, obviously, but Cleveland's return on investment has been nonexistent”
Watson has struggled, no question. He’s also missed the last two games, and Cleveland’s defense has been in rough shape during that span. If he’s back tonight, the Cavs will get an immediate chance to see whether he can help stabilize things.
Still, the issues go beyond one player. Cleveland has had a hard time when the opponent is one of the league’s heavy hitters.
Philadelphia beat them badly in their last meeting. Atlanta took care of business.
Oklahoma City beat them twice.
The wins on the ledger haven’t done much to calm things down either. Brooklyn, Milwaukee, Washington, and Minnesota are the four teams Cleveland has beaten, and only the Minnesota result really qualifies as an eye-opener. That’s not much to hang your hat on eight games into the season.
There are also questions about the core production. Evan Mobley is once again putting up nearly the same stat line he has for the third straight season, even if his rise as a 3-point shooter has been one of the more encouraging developments. Donovan Mitchell, meanwhile, is taking a career-low number of shots, and the lack of aggression is showing.
The 11 assists the other night were a nice touch, but more volume may be the better path for #45. James Harden also needs to clean things up.
Analytics have pegged him as a major negative, and the numbers back up the concern: less than 40% shooting overall and just 36% from deep. Given how much he’s taking on, that’s a bad combination.
He hasn’t scored this poorly since his OKC days, which makes the stretch look especially rough.
There are more moving parts, too. Sam Merrill has been dealing with elbow discomfort, and it has affected his shooting accuracy. Cleveland needs available players to step in and produce, and Jarrett Allen’s status matters as well.
What the Cavs haven’t shown enough of is a full 48-minute performance. Too often, they’ve had to climb out of holes or live with blown leads. The kind of clean win they put together against the Bucks is what they need more often.
If they lose both games this weekend, the talk around the team is going to get uncomfortable. Kenny Atkinson is not likely to be fired early in 2026-27, but the conversation would still be there.
There is no Ty Lue or JB Bickerstaff on staff. Firing a coach during the year, and hiring a complete outsider, has only happened 12 times.
The earliest? Game 9.
The average record after the firing + outside hiring was .077 (or +5 wins over 82… pic.twitter.com/LkUdwgl1tz
That kind of “blow it up” chatter is exactly what tends to follow a bad stretch, even if it’s far too early in November for that sort of talk to mean much.
So the weekend boils down to one simple question: can Cleveland deliver? If the Cavs can beat the Sixers and Knicks with authority, they can change the tone around the season in a hurry.
In Other News...
Sam Merrills Slump May Be A Bigger Cavs Problem Than It Looks
Sam Merrills shooting slump is starting to look like more than a cold stretch, and for the Cavaliers it comes at a time when his value is tied so closely to spacing and quick-trigger offense. The elbow issue he has been dealing with since the preseason has reportedly gotten worse rather than better, and that kind of nagging problem can make a shooters margin for error disappear fast.
At the same time, Clevelands offense has changed since the James Harden acquisition, and Merrill has not been getting quite the same motion looks that once helped him find rhythm. For a player whose game leans on movement, timing and confidence, that combination is a tough one, and it leaves the Cavs with a broader question about how much production they can still expect from him in this system. [Read more 🡒]
Cavaliers Finally Face The Real Khalifa Diop Question
When Cleveland drafted Khalifa Diop in 2022, the plan was never to rush him across the ocean and throw him into the NBA right away. Jos Caldern, the Cavaliers assistant general manager, said the club wanted to let the big man keep developing in Spain, where he had already built momentum after winning the EuroCup Rising Star award before the draft. Diop later signed a four-year contract with Cleveland in September 2023, a sign the organization still sees him as part of its longer-term picture.
The next step, though, remains on hold. Diop has yet to make his NBA debut after a preseason knee injury interrupted his path, leaving the Cavaliers to wait on a prospect they have been patient with from the start. Caldern sounded encouraged by the progress Diop has made and by the chance he could still become a useful piece for the team, but for now the real question is when that promise finally turns into a first game in a Cavaliers uniform. [Read more 🡒]
Cavs Early Struggles Are Putting One Offseason Decision Under Fire
The Cavaliers uneven start has already put a bright spotlight on one of their biggest offseason moves. After re-signing James Harden to anchor the roster, Cleveland has stumbled to a 4-4 record and has watched multiple games slip away after building leads, including losses to the Knicks, 76ers and Hawks.
Hardens early numbers have not helped quiet the conversation, either, as his impact has been harder to feel than the contract suggested it would be. With a swing rating of minus-22.6, the fit is drawing scrutiny far sooner than the Cavaliers likely expected, and the next stretch should say a lot about whether this is just a rough opening or the start of a more uncomfortable conversation. [Read more 🡒]