2 things Cavs fans should want to see from Thon Maker in preseason

#2: Maker providing energy for the Cavs offensively

Secondly, Cavs fans should want to see Maker bringing energy to Cleveland on the offensive end. What kinds of things does that refer to?

Maker setting good, crisp screens for perhaps Garland, Windler and/or Kevin Love and then, if applicable, rolling hard after the fact if there’s space might come to mind.

Granted, Maker, who has flashed some stretch big qualities, and hit 34.4 percent, albeit on only 1.1 attempts per outing in 2019-20 with Detroit, could be a pick-and-pop big at times. Maybe we could see him hit from deep on those on occasion.

But in any case, we should want to see Maker cutting hard out of handoffs and most notably, getting after it on the offensive glass when he’s out there in preseason. Maker has shown the capability to snag offensive rebounds in rotational minutes fairly regularly, as evidenced by a career offensive rebounding rate of 6.7 percent.

That’s decent, and Maker, who hit 66.7 percent of his shot attempts in the restricted area in 2019-20, per NBA.com’s shooting data, has at times gotten putbacks from his timing/positioning.

And if he can generate some extra possessions in preseason action, in general, that could aid Cleveland’s offense from there. Perhaps he could create perimeter looks if the look isn’t there, also.

Maker, whose solid at running rim-to-rim, too, and has nice fluidity for a big, could give the Cavs some energy on the offensive end by cutting hard in secondary transition at times.

From there, him doing so with urgency could get some high percentage shots for him and/or free throw opportunities, of which he had 5.1 attempts per-36 minutes with Detroit in 2019-20.

Moreover, it should be intriguing to see how Maker does in upcoming preseason action. I believe he can definitely help the Cavs/provide depth for them next season, in the case that he were to make the 2020-21 roster.