Thomas deflects responsibility for Cavs' porous defense
The Cleveland Cavaliers' defensive woes go well beyond the efforts of just one player; even if that player just so happens to be one of the worst defenders in the entire Association.
Isaiah Thomas, who currently ranks 87th among qualified point guards with a defensive RPM of -1.79, acknowledged Saturday that Cleveland had been struggling on the defensive end well before he returned from injury.
"We’ve been a lowest five defensive team in the NBA the whole time, so when I come back, it’s my fault now," Thomas said after practice, according to Cleveland.com's Joe Vardon. "Which, life isn’t fair, but that’s not fair, bro. At all."
Thomas has only been active for nine games after missing the start of the 2017-18 campaign recovering from a hip injury he re-aggravated during last year's Eastern Conference finals. The Cavaliers are allowing a staggering 117 points per 100 possessions when he's on the floor, though, eight more than they do when he's on the sidelines.
Related - Cavs' Thomas: 'No bad blood between me and Kevin Love'
With Thomas out of action from Oct. 17 to Dec. 30, Cleveland ranked 29th overall in defense (108.6), which is better than their 2018 mark (113.5, 30th), but still egregious.
When he eventually worked his way into the starting lineup, the team began getting outscored by an average of 23 points, which played a part in head coach Tyronn Lue inserting Tristan Thompson back into the five-spot.
The Cavaliers currently sit third in the East with a 28-19 record.