The Cavs are struggling to find a rhythm in the post-LeBron James era. In fact, Cleveland has played their way to a 2-11 record through the early stages of this season, which is currently the worst mark is the NBA. And though he’s been playing well, Tristan Thompson is ready to take the blame.
Following Wednesday night’s 119-95 loss to the Washington Wizards, Thompson noted that he needs to bring more toughness and energy to his team.
“I’m going to take a lot of ownership on that,” Thompson told cleveland.com before leaving the arena. “In terms of tonight, getting in foul trouble early, it takes away the toughness and energy, that’s what I bring to the team as a veteran leader. I’m going to take responsibility for that.
“Getting in early foul trouble messed up rotations, but those things I bring were taken away from our starting unit, so I have to be smarter with those fouls and don’t put us in those holes,” Thompson added. “I’m going to put a lot of it on me for messing up the whole flow of the game.”
To be fair, the Cavs were playing the Wizards on the second night of a back-to-back set. And furthermore, Cleveland was without five rotational payers due to various injuries.
Cleveland committed 24 turnovers against the Wizards, which translated into 29 Wizards points. Making things worse, the Cavs finished Wednesday night’s game with a 4-of-21 mark from beyond the arc.
“This building is a tough place to play, a tough place to win, especially if you turn the ball over,” Cavs head coach Larry Drew told ESPN. “And bad shots are just as bad as a turnover.”
Washington pulled away with a 15-0 run in the early stages of the second quarter and led 73-52 at halftime. Cleveland had a 13-2 run to get to 82-69 in the third, but it wasn’t enough in the end.
In his 19 minutes of action against the Wizards, Thompson racked up nine points on 3-of-6 shooting from the field, eight rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block.
Thompson and the Cavs will be back in action on Monday night, when they’ll travel to Detroit for a match-up against the Pistons. Tip-off inside Little Caesars Arena is set for 7:00 p.m. EST with FOX Sports Ohio having live broadcast coverage.