The Cleveland Cavaliers have been eliminated in the second round of the NBA Playoffs in back-to-back seasons.
To get the revenge tour rolling, Cleveland traveled to New York to face the Knicks in the regular season opener. It was a game where I felt like I could have predicted the outcome, as the Cavs were without starting star point guard Darius Garland’s services.
In that matchup, a weakness was exposed that has held them back in previous years, and it’s a weakness that could prevent them from taking down the Knicks in the postseason this year.
Previously, I have written about the Cavaliers’ lack of height being a chink in their armor, hence why President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman elected to bring in Lonzo Ball to add height to the backcourt after being torched by Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers’ backcourt in last year’s playoff run.
Another reason why I say the Knicks are a bad matchup for the Cavaliers is that center Jarrett Allen is undersized and does not match up well with Karl-Anthony Towns.
Allen does not have enough weight and girth to keep Towns from having his way in the three-second area. Allen gets bullied against teams with rugged front lines like the Knicks. What makes things worse is that Allen is a natural power forward who’s playing out of position.
Allen also lacks a solid post game and is more of a garbage guy, grabbing rebounds and putting them back up. Offensively, that does not put pressure on Towns to defend Allen in the paint, generating whistles to get Towns in foul trouble, which is a weakness of his against bigs who are more of an offensive threat.
If these issues persist, the Cavaliers will have issues taking down the Knicks in the postseason this year, should they meet at any point.
So, how do you change that and upgrade the Cavs’ roster?
More NBA Content From TWSN
Boston Celtics Will Survive Without Jayson Tatum
Toronto Raptors Are in Major Trouble
Can Luka Doncic, LeBron James Co-Exist on Lakers?
The Cavaliers Should Trade With The Philadelphia 76ers For Joel Embiid
We’ve seen the Cavaliers fail to meet expectations in the past three seasons since acquiring Donovan Mitchell in a trade with the Utah Jazz in 2022. Bigger teams give the Cavs trouble, as we’ve discussed.
This is why a trade of Allen and first- and second-round picks for Joel Embiid makes a ton of sense for both teams.
Sometimes, players need a fresh start. And Embiid, with a lengthy injury history to go along with the emergence of new stars in Philadelphia, could use a change of scenery. He could feel rejuvenated playing on a legitimate championship contender in Cleveland.
“Your rookie scored 34. Your other star scored 40. Do you think they [Sixers] give a sh*t about what Embiid looked like?!”
Gil thinks the 76ers will look to Maxey and Edgecombe for their future 👀 pic.twitter.com/lkFDr0JUEW
— Gil’s Arena (@GilsArenaShow) October 24, 2025
Giving the Cavaliers a true center, who can give Cleveland 20 points and 10 rebounds in his sleep, would create a formidable inside threat to complement Cleveland’s elite but undersized backcourt of Garland and Mitchell.
The spacing created for Mitchell and Garland to operate on the perimeter with Embiid on the block would be amazing.
For the 76ers, this is addition by subtraction. Allen is a more durable player than Embiid. With Tyrese Maxey being the focal point of the team moving forward, Allen can provide rim protection and availability.
This is a trade that’s good for both teams and allows them to get better and contend for Eastern Conference supremacy, a conference that has been decimated due to injuries.
Both the Cavaliers and the 76ers should see this as the opportunity to go all in to fulfill their championship aspirations.