The Cleveland Cavaliers have won their last three games and have extended their lead atop the Eastern Conference to 2.5 games over the second- place Chicago Bulls. Cleveland's modest three-game winning streak has coincided with a lineup change that head coach David Blatt made by starting Tristan Thompson over Timofey Mozgov. Despite the success with the new lineup, Blatt is unwilling to commit to it long-term and says that it could still change, according to Rotoworld.
Thompson is in his fifth season in the NBA (all with Cleveland) and has been relegated to a bench role for most of the past two seasons. Thompson did start all 82 games in his second and third seasons in the league, though, so he does have experience in the starting lineup. These past three games are the first that he has started when Mozgov has been available to play, and it is just another step in the Cavaliers fazing him out.
Thompson just signed a huge extension with Cleveland this offseason while Mozgov is set to become a free agent after this year, but that is only a small reason for the change. Thompson is a much better rebounder than Mozgov (especially on the offensive glass where he is one of the best in the NBA), and he is also able to guard smaller lineups better than the 7-footer, so his versatility is valuable. Thompson has been finishing games for the Cavs the past two seasons anyway, so this lineup change isn't really all that big of a change.
Even though the change to this starting lineup full-time would make plenty of sense, Blatt does not want to commit. "We may either situationally or philosophically go back to Timofey Mozgov. I wouldn't be surprised at all to see that happen," said Blatt. This may be a tactic to ensure that Mozgov stays engaged since they still need him off the bench, but taking Thompson out of the starting lineup doesn't seem like it would be a wise decision, especially if the team continues to win.
In the three games since moving into the starting lineup, Thompson has played nine minutes per game more than he was coming off the bench. Mozgov, on the other hand, has seen his minutes slip down to less than 15 per game in the last six and doesn't figure to be as big a part of the team this year. This could mean that the 29-year-old is losing himself some money as he is set to enter free agency.
