Cleveland Cavaliers early-season consistency, Digi Mart USA News: The Cavaliers have had a split season so far, with one game up and one game down. They enter Monday’s road game against the injury-riddled and struggling Hornets at 5-5 (7 p.m., DAZN).
The question of which Cavs team will show up remains unanswered. There are 72 games left in the regular season, and the Cavs are expected to reach the playoffs, so the season is a long one.
The Cavs don’t want to keep facing this uncertainty from quarter to quarter. They have been brilliant and even dominant, as they were Friday against LeBron James and the 76ers, but they were also pretty bad in a loss to the Thunder the game before.
The source notes that it is too early for definitive judgments. Donovan Mitchell said after Saturday’s home loss to the Knicks, “Nothing’s won in the first 10 games.”
History offers examples of how early records can mislead. A couple of years ago, the Cavs started 15-0 before losing in the second round of the playoffs to a Pacers team that started 11-15 and eventually reached Game 7 of the Finals.
Last year, the Cavs were 15-14 in early December, then reached the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in eight years and the first without LeBron since 1992.
The Cavs have some issues and key injuries, and they could benefit from greater reliability. They open a stretch of three road games in five nights with Monday’s game in Charlotte, followed by visits to New York and Miami.
The team does not need to settle every question this week, but it could become more dependable.
There are 72 games left, which gives the team plenty of time to improve.
