CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cavs built their entire franchise strategy around a Core Four of Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen. On paper, it’s a perfect blend of scoring, playmaking, defense and rim protection. In theory, these complementary talents should form one of the NBA’s most formidable quartets.
But what happens when theory meets reality? What if the evidence increasingly suggests this foundation is fundamentally flawed?
On a recent Wine and Gold Talk podcast, this uncomfortable possibility took center stage as hosts dissected a startling statistic: “Thirteen games this season that the core four has played together. For the Cavs to be 7-6 in games that the core four is on the floor together, that should be telling to you of how this hasn’t worked,” explained Ethan Sands, Wine and Gold Talk podcast host.
That’s barely above .500 basketball from a group that’s supposed to represent Cleveland’s championship ceiling. Even more concerning is the stark contrast between advanced stats (which paint a positive picture) and actual results (which tell a much different story).
“They are still plus-10.6 \[net rating\] when they’ve been on the floor together, but they’re 7-6 in those contests,” Sands noted, highlighting the puzzling contradiction that has defined this Cavs season.
The podcast conversation took an even more candid turn when Jimmy Watkins, cleveland.com columnist, addressed what many in Cavaliers circles have been reluctant to admit: “I think we’re collectively coming to the realization, hey, the Core 4, isn’t it? Donovan Mitchell needs a point guard. The point guard that they have is very hard to upgrade on, but he has his own flaws. Evan Mobley, unicorn ... that horse horn is not quite as shiny as it used to be.”
This brutal assessment cuts to the heart of Cleveland’s dilemma. Each of the Core Four possesses individual talents that make them valuable NBA players, but together, something isn’t clicking consistently enough to translate into championship-caliber basketball.
The timing of this realization is particularly problematic given Donovan Mitchell’s contract situation and the team’s significant investment in this current configuration.
The front office has pushed their chips all-in, yet the results are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.
Perhaps most concerning was Watkins’ sobering conclusion about where this leaves the franchise: “Maybe the core is maxed out. Maybe the ceiling for this team isn’t as high as they showed last year.”
This suggestion that last season represented the peak – not a steppingstone – for this group would be devastating for a franchise that has staked its future on this exact quartet of players developing together.
The organizational commitment to this Core Four creates an additional complication. As Sands explained: “They still need each other to find the balance of where they’re going to go this season. And that contradiction explains why a breakup feels unrealistic as of right now.”
This creates a difficult catch-22: the core might not be good enough to reach championship heights, but their interdependence makes breaking them up equally problematic.
For Cavaliers fans, the frank discussion on the Wine and Gold Talk podcast represents an important reality check about the team’s foundation. While there’s still time for this group to prove the skeptics wrong, the evidence is mounting that the Core Four might ultimately be less than the sum of its parts.
For the complete breakdown of Cleveland’s Core Four conundrum and more candid analysis about the Cavs’ mid-season challenges, listen to the full episode of the Wine and Gold Talk podcast.
Here’s the podcast for this week: