Cavaliers must pass to screeners better in 2019-20 and beyond

The Cleveland Cavaliers will need to hit screeners with passes more effectively in 2019-20 and beyond in order for their offense to get going on an upward trajectory.

We’ve often emphasized that the success of the Cleveland Cavaliers‘ offense in 2019-20 and beyond will be largely predicated on the progression of Darius Garland, Collin Sexton, and Cedi Osman as playmakers and them continuing to learn how to be more efficient as scorers.

I don’t have a crystal ball, so I can’t tell whether or not Sexton and Garland will end up being a successful starting backcourt pairing; I personally need to see the two probably get the lion’s share of backcourt minutes for two seasons to have that answer for you, as Cleveland won’t likely be a postseason team in the next two years, anyway, and both players are such important players in terms of the Cavs’ future, so I believe they’ll have to learn how to coexist.

Cleveland’s offense is said to be more focused on getting consistent ball and man movement in the coming years than in prior ones under new head coach John Beilein, though, so it can’t just be Sexton and Garland switching off matchup-hunting in isolation situations and high pick-and-roll situations.

That being said, pick-and-roll and taking advantage of switchouts is still a part of every NBA team’s offense to a degree in today’s league, and the Cavs still will likely do that at times, and with a healthier Kevin Love (hopefully) and improved spacing thanks to rotational pieces such as Dylan Windler and Kevin Porter Jr., the opportunities will be there for mismatches for perimeter players if they are patient enough.

Nonetheless, as our own Tyler Marling recently hit on, Sexton needs to make considerable strides as a passer next season and in the coming years to counter his already-impressive scoring ability (he had 16.7 points per game last season and shot 40.2% from three-point range, per Basketball Reference).

Part of that for Sexton, and other perimeter players on the Cleveland Cavaliers in general, such as Osman, Garland, and occasionally Porter and Windler, is making precise passes to screeners for them on occasion, which will keep defenses more off-balance in their coverage of those players when they get screeners coming to them, both when they are coming on the ball or when they’re coming around off-ball screens and defenses switch to them in reaction to a pass coming.

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Cleveland obviously does not the pick-and-roll mastery of LeBron James on the roster anymore, whose vision and passing versatility always hit rollers and off-ball shooters alike with the most on-point-as-possible passes in the shooting pocket or with the perfect pocket pass or lob leading to very high percentage opportunities.

Beilein and company do not have that luxury provided by James any longer, and the team will need to manufacture its playmaking in the coming years from quick movement and decision-making earlier in the shot clock, which should cause defenses to rotate if done correctly over time.

When opponents trap Sexton or Garland, they will likely look for the simple pass, which is understandable, and should open up a 4-on-3 from there, and players such as Windler, Porter, Matthew Dellavedova, Love or Larry Nance Jr. will need to take advantage of that by either shooting that open perimeter or open mid-range shot following receiving a pass, or making a quick read and finding the best option via ball-swing or hitting a cutter inside while defenses scramble.

The execution of this sort of thing for a team that will be playing a ton of young playmakers, though, is much easier said than done, and hopefully as the season goes on, Sexton, Garland and Porter can figure out how defenses are playing them with the ball easier and look to hit rollers when the split second pocket pass or pass over the top opens up to pieces such as Nance, Tristan Thompson, Ante Zizic or Love, and the Cavs can get easier scoring chances in settled offense.

In 2018-19, the Cavaliers only placed in the 31st percentile as rolling finishers (per Synergy Sports Technology), which isn’t a suprise, considering the team’s mostly inept (outside of Dellavedova consistently) passing out of the pick-and-roll.

Windler, Osman, Love, and occasionally Porter, to go with at times two-way player Dean Wade, should be options for quick pick-and-pops a few possessions per game to help as well, but it will be up to Cleveland’s backcourt players to hit them when those chances come, though.

More of those instances and off-screen triple chances will come if the Cavaliers make a concerted effort to hit screeners early and often, anyhow.

Considering the Cavs’ inability to do that sort of passing on a consistent basis last year, Cleveland placed second-worst in assists per game and in the bottom in both three-point makes and attempts per game (per NBA.com), and with the struggles they will have next year on the defensive end of the floor/coming years, being much more efficient on the offensive end is paramount.

The Cavs making more precise passes to rollers/cutters game-to-game will take time to implement, but under Beilein and the new coaching staff’s guidance, the effort at least to do so will be there, and in the beginning stages of a full-rebuild, that’s the realistic expectation in a number of areas.