Matthew Dellavedova Back to Doing What He Does Best
By Luke Sicari
Last season, the Cleveland Cavaliers decided to bring in Matthew Dellavedova to play in the Summer League and they invited him to training camp. The man they call Delly impressed former coach Mike Brown and his staff so much, that he left the team with no choice but to give him a roster spot.
Brett Brown, who coached Delly on the Australian national team summed up the play of Delly perfectly, per Mary Schmitt Boyer of The Plain Dealer, “Matt Dellavedova, when you start talking about the character and DNA of people, he ticks the right way. He’s a country Victorian, true Aussie that is a headbanger. He plays with reckless abandon. There’s a physicality to him and a toughness you fall in love with. He at times might not be pretty, he’s a little bit Neanderthal in how he goes about his business, but he’s for real. I loved coaching him and I’m so proud of the opportunity he’s taken advantage of with Jarrett Jack out. Matt Dellavedova is a winner.”
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Dellavedova became an instant fan favorite in Cleveland, as many felt that his style of play showed what being a Clevelander is all about- hard work, determination and grittiness. Delly never backed down from a defensive challenge, as he always got into the face of his opponent and made them feel uncomfortable. The Australian also knocked down the occasional three-pointer when the team needed him to.
While his rookie season was definitely a feel-good moment, Delly’s sophomore campaign hasn’t been as kind.
While Dellavedova has still been playing his heart out, he hasn’t had the same impact on the floor as he did in his rookie season. His defense suddenly wasn’t as impressive, his poor ball-handling skills were being exposed to the world and his shooting numbers were down. In fact, in the month of December, Dellavedova was only shooting 31.8% from the field and a respectable but definitely not great 36.2% from beyond the arc. He was averaging 1.4 turnovers a game and his net rating was a -3.4. Dellavedova suddenly began to frustrate Cavalier fans and it seemed that David Griffin would be searching the league for a back-up point guard.
There is a reason why Delly struggled so much before this recent 11-game winning streak. He hasn’t been playing his role.
Due to injuries and other unforeseen roster changes during this roller coaster of a season, Dellavedova has been asked to play as a primary back-up point guard for much of the season. Quite frankly, this isn’t his role on the team. Like I mentioned before, his ball-handling skills aren’t up to NBA standards and while he usually paces the pace when he has the ball, he cannot take control and run an offense.
In the month of December, Dellavedova was playing 21.2 minutes a night, which should be the maximum he plays in a game, not his average. He simply isn’t the type of player who can play extended minutes every night and that is what David Blatt was doing with him. In a stretch of 5 games from the 31st of December to the 7th of January, Dellavedova played in 30, 34, 32, 39 and 35 minutes, which are minutes that you would expect from an All-Star player, not a role player. These amounts of minutes denied Delly from being what he is- a spark plug off the bench, someone who can come in and bring unlimited energy to a game. Delly was simply burning out on the court and it seemed like he was going to be a one-hit wonder.
Now though, with his minutes back under control, Dellavedova is back to doing what he does best for the Cavaliers.
No longer is Dellavedova playing the high amounts of minutes that he was earlier in the season. In fact, let’s take a look at Dellavedova’s minute totals during this 11-game Wine and Gold winning streak: 11, 23, 13, 16, 20, 12, 13, 20, 16, 20 and 22- much more reasonable numbers for a player who brings the traits that Delly does. These minute totals have allowed Dellavedova to return to the player who Cleveland embraced last season, as he has shot 45.9% from the field and exactly 50% from downtown during the winning streak (all-of-a-sudden, Delly has the highest 3pt shooting percentage on the team, at 42.4%). His net rating has suddenly shot up to 8.4 and his effective field goal percentage is at a 56.8% clip.
As with everything that comes with Dellavedova though, the stat sheet doesn’t tell the full story. Dellavedova does the little things that don’t show up in the box score- hustle, gets in the face of defenders and plays a physical and gritty style of basketball. These little things seemed to not have the same type of effect during the early part of the season, as they do now during the streak. That of course, came back to the minute totals. Now though, with the decrease in minutes, Delly’s grittiness and toughness he brings to the court is back on full display and his coach and teammates have taken notice.
“I think that Delly (Matthew Dellavedova) does a great job for us at the end of games.” Blatt explained to cavs.com, after the Cavs 97-84 victory against the Philadelphia 76ers, in which Delly put up 12 points and hit 3 three’s. “That kid deserves nothing but love and support for what he does for the Cleveland Cavaliers. He’s just great: mental toughness, defensive capability, hustle, makes open shots at big moments, but first and foremost he plays for the team.”
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LeBron James always makes his teammates on the court better and that is no different in relation to Delly, as he explained to cavs.com after the win over the 76ers, “Delly’s primary thing is to come in, play as hard as he can, defend at a high level, get us into our offense and make the right plays. Everything (else) that we get from him is extra. If you’re on the floor with me and you’re open, I’m going to find you and I have the most confidence that you can make a shot. I try to give my guys the confidence that they can make a shot. I give it to them on time and on target and they just have to let it go.”
So while he had a rough go at it at the beginning of the season due to a number of things, Dellavedova is now back at his best with Cleveland. With a cut-back on his minutes, Delly is now enjoying life as a spark-plug off the bench on a contender, something a 6’4, 200 pounder would only dream about back in Maryborough.
How do you feel about Matthew Dellavedova today?