2018–19 Cleveland Cavaliers season
Season of National Basketball Association team the Cleveland Cavaliers
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The 2018–19 Cleveland Cavaliers season was the 49th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Cavaliers entered the season as the four-time defending Eastern Conference champion, and were coming off of an NBA Finals loss, in which they were swept by the Golden State Warriors in four games, the first Finals sweep since 2007, in which the Cavs were also swept, by the San Antonio Spurs.[1] The Cavaliers had the worst team defensive rating in the NBA.[2]
- Tyronn Lue (fired)
- Larry Drew (interim) (fired on April 11, 2019)
| 2018–19 Cleveland Cavaliers season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach |
|
| General manager | Koby Altman |
| Owner | Dan Gilbert |
| Arena | Quicken Loans Arena |
| Results | |
| Record | 19–63 (.232) |
| Place | Division: 5th (Central) Conference: 14th (Eastern) |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
Stats at Basketball Reference | |
| Local media | |
| Television | Fox Sports Ohio |
| Radio | |
LeBron James was not on the roster for the first time since 2013-14, as he signed with the Los Angeles Lakers in the offseason as a free agent, his second time leaving his hometown team after doing so in 2010 to join the Miami Heat.[3]
On October 28, 2018, the Cavaliers fired Tyronn Lue after a 0–6 start (the worst start for a team coming off the NBA Finals) and replaced him on the interim basis with his assistant Larry Drew, who would become permanent coach on November 5.[4]
Without LeBron James, as with the 2010–11 season (James' first departure from Cleveland), the Cavaliers struggled to find a solid identity, ranking in the bottom 10 in all of points per game, opponent points per game, pace, offensive rating, and defensive rating.[5] They finished at 19–63, the third worst record in the league, second worst in the Eastern Conference, and their worst season since 2010–11. This was also the Cavs' first losing season since the 2013–14 season.
Draft
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College / Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Collin Sexton | PG |  United States |
Alabama |
The Cavaliers entered the 2018 NBA draft with the rights to the eighth overall pick, which originally belonged to the Brooklyn Nets.[6] Cleveland acquired the pick from the Boston Celtics in the Kyrie Irving trade during the summer of 2017.[7] The Cavaliers used the pick to acquire point guard Collin Sexton, a freshman out of the University of Alabama.[8]
Preseason summary
On July 1, 2018, LeBron James confirmed that he would be leaving the Cavaliers and signing a four-year, $154 million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers.[3][9] This marked the second time in which James left the Cavaliers in free agency, with the first coming when James joined the Miami Heat in 2010.[3]
Roster
| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Head coach
Assistant(s)
Legend
Roster |
Standings
Division
| Central Division | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| z – Milwaukee Bucks | 60 | 22 | .732 | – | 33–8 | 27–14 | 14–2 | 82 |
| x – Indiana Pacers | 48 | 34 | .585 | 12.0 | 29–12 | 19–22 | 11–5 | 82 |
| x – Detroit Pistons | 41 | 41 | .500 | 19.0 | 26–15 | 15–26 | 8–8 | 82 |
| Chicago Bulls | 22 | 60 | .268 | 38.0 | 9–32 | 13–28 | 3–13 | 82 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | 19 | 63 | .232 | 41.0 | 13–28 | 6–35 | 4–12 | 82 |
Conference
| Eastern Conference | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
| 1 | z – Milwaukee Bucks * | 60 | 22 | .732 | – | 82 |
| 2 | y – Toronto Raptors * | 58 | 24 | .707 | 2.0 | 82 |
| 3 | x – Philadelphia 76ers | 51 | 31 | .622 | 9.0 | 82 |
| 4 | x – Boston Celtics | 49 | 33 | .598 | 11.0 | 82 |
| 5 | x – Indiana Pacers | 48 | 34 | .585 | 12.0 | 82 |
| 6 | x – Brooklyn Nets | 42 | 40 | .512 | 18.0 | 82 |
| 7 | y – Orlando Magic * | 42 | 40 | .512 | 18.0 | 82 |
| 8 | x – Detroit Pistons | 41 | 41 | .500 | 19.0 | 82 |
| 9 | Charlotte Hornets | 39 | 43 | .476 | 21.0 | 82 |
| 10 | Miami Heat | 39 | 43 | .476 | 21.0 | 82 |
| 11 | Washington Wizards | 32 | 50 | .390 | 28.0 | 82 |
| 12 | Atlanta Hawks | 29 | 53 | .354 | 31.0 | 82 |
| 13 | Chicago Bulls | 22 | 60 | .268 | 38.0 | 82 |
| 14 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 19 | 63 | .232 | 41.0 | 82 |
| 15 | New York Knicks | 17 | 65 | .207 | 43.0 | 82 |
Game log
Preseason
| 2018 preseason game log Total: 2–2 (Home: 1–2; Road: 1–0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Preseason: 2–2 (home: 1–2; road: 1–0)
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| 2018–19 season schedule | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Regular season
Player statistics
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| Player | Pos. | GP | GS | MP | Reb. | Ast. | Stl. | Blk. | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deng Adel≠ | SF | 19 | 3 | 194 | 19 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 32 |
| Jaron Blossomgame≠ | SF | 27 | 4 | 439 | 98 | 13 | 7 | 8 | 114 |
| Alec Burks† | SG | 34 | 24 | 979 | 186 | 98 | 25 | 16 | 396 |
| Marquese Chriss≠ | PF | 27 | 2 | 395 | 114 | 16 | 15 | 7 | 153 |
| Jordan Clarkson | SG | 81 | 0 | 2,214 | 270 | 196 | 57 | 13 | 1,364 |
| Sam Dekker† | PF | 9 | 5 | 169 | 33 | 9 | 11 | 0 | 57 |
| Matthew Dellavedova | PG | 36 | 0 | 715 | 67 | 152 | 12 | 2 | 262 |
| Channing Frye | C | 36 | 6 | 341 | 52 | 20 | 6 | 5 | 129 |
| Andrew Harrison‡ | PG | 10 | 0 | 144 | 15 | 17 | 4 | 2 | 43 |
| George Hill† | PG | 13 | 13 | 344 | 27 | 36 | 12 | 1 | 140 |
| John Holland‡ | SF | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rodney Hood† | SG | 45 | 45 | 1,234 | 112 | 92 | 38 | 5 | 547 |
| Jalen Jones‡ | SF | 16 | 0 | 214 | 34 | 7 | 9 | 2 | 81 |
| Brandon Knight≠ | PG | 27 | 26 | 618 | 50 | 62 | 19 | 2 | 230 |
| Kyle Korver† | PF | 16 | 0 | 251 | 29 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 108 |
| Kevin Love | PF | 22 | 21 | 598 | 239 | 48 | 6 | 5 | 374 |
| Patrick McCaw‡ | SG | 3 | 0 | 53 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| Larry Nance | PF | 67 | 30 | 1,795 | 552 | 214 | 100 | 40 | 627 |
| David Nwaba | SG | 51 | 14 | 984 | 163 | 54 | 36 | 17 | 334 |
| Cedi Osman | SF | 76 | 75 | 2,444 | 357 | 195 | 60 | 11 | 991 |
| Cameron Payne≠ | PG | 9 | 1 | 176 | 19 | 23 | 8 | 3 | 74 |
| Collin Sexton | PG | 82 | 72 | 13.0 | 236 | 243 | 44 | 6 | 1,371 |
| Kobi Simmons‡ | PG | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| J. R. Smith | SG | 11 | 4 | 222 | 18 | 21 | 11 | 3 | 74 |
| Nik Stauskas† | SG | 24 | 0 | 342 | 47 | 19 | 7 | 3 | 132 |
| Tristan Thompson | C | 43 | 40 | 1,198 | 438 | 86 | 28 | 16 | 470 |
| Ante Žižić | C | 59 | 25 | 1,082 | 320 | 53 | 13 | 22 | 459 |
After all games.[10]
‡Waived during the season
†Traded during the season
≠Acquired during the season
Transactions
Trades
| August 7, 2018[11] | To Cleveland Cavaliers Sam Dekker Cash considerations Draft rights to Renaldas Seibutis |
To Los Angeles Clippers Draft rights to Vladimir Veremeenko |
Free agency
Re-signed
| Player | Signed |
|---|---|
| Rodney Hood[12] | September 10, 2018 |
Additions
| Player | Signed | Former team |
|---|---|---|
| Billy Preston[13] | Two-way contract |  Igokea |
| Channing Frye[14] | UFA | Los Angeles Lakers |
| David Nwaba[15] | UFA | Chicago Bulls |
Subtractions
| Player | Reason left | New team |
|---|---|---|
| London Perrantes[16][17][18] | Waived |  Limoges CSP |
| LeBron James[3][19] | UFA | Los Angeles Lakers |
| Jeff Green[20][21] | UFA | Washington Wizards |
| José Calderón[22] | UFA | Detroit Pistons |
| Kendrick Perkins[23] | Waived | TBA |
| Okaro White[24] | Waived | Long Island Nets |