Report: Jae Crowder to start for Cavs, Tristan Thompson relegated to bench

With the recent additions to their roster, the Cleveland Cavaliers will make changes to their starting lineup as per Jason Lloyd of the athletic.

Jae Crowder will get the nod as the team’s starting forward in a move that displaces their center, Tristan Thompson. According to Lloyd, Tristan Thompson is said to be “accepting of” the new team development. This change would mean that Kevin love will slot into the center position.

Here's a short excerpt from the report in the Athletic:

Tristan Thompson is expected to come off the bench this year, and Jae Crowder will start at power forward, one source with knowledge of the team’s plans told The Athletic. Kevin Love will slide to center in the new-look lineup.

Thompson, himself a Swiss army knife defender, has been made aware of the plans and is accepting of returning to a reserve role.

With this shuffling change, it is still undetermined if new arrival Dwyane Wade will start at shooting guard, or be part of the second unit as he has been throughout the first few team practices. Whether the Cavs are looking to change their philosophy is yet to be seen but this current roster seems to be the deepest LeBron James has seen since he returned to the franchise for this second stint.