The Cleveland Cavaliers wrapped up the preseason with a 118-110 win over the Detroit Pistons. Now, nothing stands between them and the regular season. But before we get there, let’s see what we can glean
from this last dress rehearsal.
The drought is over, as was indicated by head coach Kenny Atkinson’s water-soaked quarter zip after his team’s victory on Tuesday. Despite seven previous attempts, this was Atkinson’s first preseason win with Cleveland.
“They’re mocking me,” Atkinson joked about his players who bombarded him with water when he entered the locker room post-game.
This was also the first time the Cavs won a preseason game against an NBA team since 2022. That stat doesn’t matter. It’s just odd that they haven’t ended up on the right side of more of these tune-up games.
Atkinson lamented pregame that his team needs to find a better balance between isolation basketball and the movement offense that fueled the league-leading attack last regular season.
“With DG (Darius Garland) and Max [Strus] out, it’s going to look different,” Atkinson said of the offense. “We’ve got to fit what’s best for our group. I have definitely been intentional about telling them, ‘Okay, we definitely got to get a bucket sometimes, but not in the first five seconds of the shot clock, right?’ I just felt like we really kind of settled (in previous preseason games). But there are times, and I think playoff time, you’ve got to go get those bukets when everybody stays home (in isolation).
“So we’re working on that, but we can’t lose our identity.”
The first quarter was a better blend of keeping their identity while incorporating different players and points of emphasis into the offense. The Cavs exploded for 42 first-quarter points, with 10 of their 13 field goals being assisted. That’s more of what Atkinson is looking for.
This didn’t necessarily carry over through the remainder of the game, but it was at least a step in the right direction.
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The starting lineup makes more sense with Sam Merrill filling in for the injured Garland. This was his first action of the preseason, and you could see how he could help a group missing its elite pass-first point guard.
Merrill’s off-ball movement is contagious and much needed in a current starting unit that is better at play finishing than they are at playmaking.
Lonzo Ball finding his rhythm also helps with the offensive flow. There aren’t many players who have a better understanding of what their team needs.
“He’s probably one of the few guys in the league that can make those passes he made tonight,” Atkinson said. “There’s just an extra level of feel for the game.”
Ball ended up with nine assists in 20 minutes. That elite playmaking, combined with defensive instincts and ability — he tallied three blocks as well — gives this second unit an identity they can hang their hat on.
Still, the offense is a “little bit clunky right now,” according to Atkinson. They haven’t exactly figured out what their identity is, despite the better showing on Tuesday. This is a work in progress and will likely remain that way at least while Garland is out of the lineup.
Jarrett Allen’s shot profile has looked different this preseason. He’s likely the one who will suffer most from Garland being out of the lineup. Garland is the one who finds Allen most consistently in his spots. As of now, the Cavs haven’t found someone else who can reliably get Allen the ball where he needs it. This has left him hunting for shots in places we don’t typically see him do so.
As a result, eight of Allen’s 12 attempts from the field were outside of the restricted area. That isn’t ideal.
Allen has taken two threes in the preseason. Atkinson says he’s fine with him attempting that shot if it’s wide open. It’s something Allen has been working on this summer. We’ll see if that sentiment continues into the regular season.
Craig Porter Jr.’s defense remains questionable. Atkinson has wanted Porter to be more active on that end. This includes picking up his defensive assignment full court and being a pest on that end. Every team could use a high-energy backup point guard. The problem is, Porter hasn’t consistently been effective doing so.
The play below is a good example of this.
Porter did a great job of grabbing an offensive rebound and putback offensively (he has a great nose for the ball). He then picked up Daniss Jenkins full court. Jenkins got past him, causing Evan Mobley to have to sink and cut off the path to the basket. This opened up Tobias Harris for an easy catch-and-shoot three that Mobley doesn’t provide a quality contest on.
You simply can’t give up clean threes that early in the shot clock off of one pass.
Unfortunately, this isn’t an isolated incident. Here, Porter lost his assignment on a dribble handoff, and the team got into rotation because of it. Eventually, the ball swung to Ronald Holland II, who then took Porter off the dribble on the closeout, which led to an open three-point attempt.
In the final example, Porter got caught in a situation he shouldn’t have been in. His assignment got past him off the dribble, which caused Allen to step up and help. Mobley correctly rotated to Isaiah Stewart and Merrill over to Harris.
Porter should’ve then switched on to Duncan Robinson — as Merrill points to. Instead, there’s confusion about who has who. This resulted in Mobley leaving Stewart and Porter being stuck in a mismatch. Mobley shouldn’t have left Stewart, but this wouldn’t have been an issue if Porter hadn’t been blown by as easily and missed the rotation out to Robinson.
You can cherry-pick poor defensive plays from every NBA player, and this is just preseason. There’s no need to overreact too much. At the same time, this is emblematic of a larger issue with Porter’s defensive shortcomings.
Porter flashes some of the skills you look for in a reserve guard. He’s a great rebounder, attacker in the open court, and has a high block and steal rate. However, if Porter is ever going to be a quality second-string point guard like he has the talent to be, plays like the ones above can’t happen as frequently.
Mobley showed encouraging offensive signs even though his shot wasn’t falling. He put up a team-high 13 attempts on a day he couldn’t find the range. This is a good thing!
The Cavs have talked this preseason about Mobley needing to be more assertive on offense. That includes nights when he doesn’t have it.
“It’s on purpose,” Atkinson said when asked about Mobley’s usage. “We need him to create. I think with DG out, it can’t just be Don creating everything.”
Donovan Mitchell is on board with this plan.
“You’ve got to want it,” Mitchell said. “We need [Mobley] to be aggressive now. … There was one time I told him he missed Sam right behind him on the pull behind, but then he hit him right back on the next play. So being able to adjust really fast on the fly, that’s what you’re starting to see out of him. Give him his credit, he’s doing all the work.”
At this point in Mobley’s development, the Cavs are likely okay to lose preseason and regular-season games because he’s shooting too much. This team isn’t going to reach its playoff ceiling if Mobley isn’t comfortable deciding games with his offensive ability.
“There’s going to be growing pains,” Atkinson said. “But I love that he was aggressive tonight.”
De’Andre Hunter’s impressive preseason continued as he poured in 14 points in as many minutes before leaving early with a knee contusion. He said postgame that he’s alright and will be ready for the season opener.
Most interestingly from this stat line was that he registered seven free-throw attempts. That’s a number he matched only 11 times in his 64 outings last season.
Hunter doesn’t have a great free-throw rate historically. If he’s going to take a jump as a scorer, it will be partially because he does a better job of getting to the charity stripe like he did against Detroit.
Dean Wade wasn’t afraid to shoot on Tuesday, much to the delight of his teammates and head coach, as he put up 10 shots in 22 minutes.
“I tell him he’s the best shooter in the world every day,” Mitchell said. “We’re going to need that out of him every night.”
“He’s obligated to do it to help our team,” Atkinson said of Wade. “He’s got to keep taking them, and he is. I think he’s made real progress.”
Wade has the skills to be one of the most valuable three-and-D players in the league. The shot volume is the only thing keeping that from happening.
Mitchell appears ready for the regular season.
Atkinson remarked before the game that Mitchell has been “more locked in than he normally is” throughout training camp. Koby Altman said before media day that Mitchell is already in “mid-season form.” Both appear to be right in their assessments.
Mitchell has looked like his All-NBA self throughout the preseason. Tuesday was no exception as he poured in 17 points on 6-11 shooting with three steals and three assists in just over 28 minutes. He seems ready for next Wednesday’s regular-season opener against the New York Knicks.
