Who will protect the rim in Cleveland?

With three stars aligning in Cleveland, the Cavaliers should have no problems with putting the ball in the basket.

Defense, however, is another matter altogether, especially in regards to rim protection. Operating mostly under the watch of a defense-first head coach in Mike Brown, the Cavaliers finished 19th in defensive rating last season, and conceded the 12th-highest opponent field-goal percentage at the rim. In short, for a supposed defense-first squad, they were pretty bad at preventing opponents from scoring.

With rim-protection as a problem, let's review Cleveland's frontline. There are many candidates, though none perfect. 

Anderson Varejao

The hyper-active, floppy-haired Varejao is likely Cleveland's best frontcourt defender. As detailed nicely by SB Nation's Fear the Sword, Varejao's biggest strength on defense is his mobility and activity. He hounds pick-and-rolls and is fearless in closing out on shooters.

But Varejao isn't much of a rim-defender, as evidenced by his career average of under one block per game. He allowed opponents to shoot 54.2 percent at the rim last season.

More than anything else, Varejao's biggest weakness is his inability to stay healthy. Varejao hasn't played more than 80 percent of his team's games since 2010. He has a tendency to break down over the course of the season, especially when tasked with the thankless duty of playing center.

Tristan Thompson

Over the first three seasons of his career, Thompson boasts respectable per-game averages of 10.8 points and 8.6 rebounds. The fourth overall pick in the 2011 draft has also managed to stay remarkably healthy, missing just six games in three years.

However, Thompson hasn't shown much by way of defensive abilities. He's a decent weakside defender and has a propensity for hunting for highlight-worthy weakside blocks. That being said, he managed just 0.4 blocks per game last season, an embarrassing mark for a frontcourt player.

His lack of shot blocking also factored into his overall impact on rim-protection. Thompson allowed opponents to shoot 59.1 percent at the rim, the second-worst mark in the entire league last season. At age-23, Thompson is still young so he has time to develop, but for now, he profiles as a terrible rim protector.

Kevin Love

No matter how overstated Love's defensive shortcomings are, he's still no one's idea of a rim-protector. He allowed opponents to shoot 57.4 percent at the rim last season, a mark rivalling Thompson's near league-worst percentage. 

Love is actually decent in guarding post-up situations, but he leaves much to be desired in help-defense scenarios. He ranked 43rd in points allowed per post up last season, mostly because he can hold his ground and slides his feet well. But in help defense scenarios, Love is woefully inattentive, often losing track of his man through screens or duck-ins. 

LeBron James

Although it's fun to peddle the narrative that LeBron can guard all five positions, James' season with the Miami Heat last year proved that he can no longer sustain elite two-way production over a full season. Without Dwyane Wade or Shane Battier to shoulder a portion of defensive responsibilities, James looked noticeably slowed on defense, which snapped his five-year run of being named to the All-Defensive first team. If anything, James' defensive prowess is needed on the perimeter.

Someone else?

Without a viable option on the roster, the Cavaliers' best bet at landing a true rim protector is by trade. Free-agency is also an option, but aside from one-dimensional players like Ekpe Udoh or reclamation projects like Emeka Ofakor, it's slim pickings in the bargain bin.

There's some question as to whether the Cavaliers have the assets to procure a rim protector by trade. Decent shot blockers don't just grow on trees, and teams aren't exactly jumping at the chance to bolster Cleveland's loaded roster. They do, however, have Memphis' 2015 first round pick and two second rounders to offer. 

One potential candidate is Denver Nuggets center Timofey Mozgov, who the Cavaliers have already tried to acquire. Mozgov is best known for playing the role of dunk fodder, but he held opponents to 46.8 percent shooting at the rim last season, a mark besting defensive stalwarts Tim Duncan (47.6 percent) and Dwight Howard (47.8 percent).