Cleveland Cavaliers: 2 reasons Matthew Dellavedova shouldn’t be back

#2: The lack of scoring capabilities for the Cavs

Secondly, it’s glaringly apparent that Delly is not much of a scoring threat anymore. Last season, that reworked shooting motion didn’t pay off, as he hit by far a career-worst 23.1 percent of his three-point attempts, and had just a 41.8 percent effective field goal shooting clip.

This season, while the sample hasn’t been much at 13 games, that shot has been virtually nonexistent. He’s hit just four of 25 three-point attempts, and 14-of-56 shots overall, which has been an effective field goal shooting clip of 28.6 percent.

There are some push shots still, of which he can hit in the deep paint here and there, sure, albeit the catch-and-shoot viability is simply not there anymore for it to be considered a legitimate threat.

That said, we know that Dellavedova, when he’s available, is a great passer. He’s had an assist rate of 33.7 percent, compared to a turnover rate of just 4.9 percent, and had 9.3 assists per-36 minutes.

He has terrific feel, both in terms of hitting rollers such as Jarrett Allen and Isaiah Hartenstein for lobs, and he has outstanding chemistry with Kevin Love and seemingly with Collin Sexton, for example.

Point being, Delly’s passing abilities have never been in question, and that’s why I was a big fan of the Cavaliers bringing him back before this season.

Unfortunately, Cleveland shouldn’t be bringing him back again next season, when you factor in the constant injury concerns, and his shot having gone by the wayside. There’s just such a big question mark regarding his health from here it seems.

Perhaps Cleveland could utilize Cedi Osman as a de facto backup 1 for stretches next season in non-Darius Garland minutes as an alternative? He’s had his shooting struggles this year, but he has had success as a key playmaker, so maybe that could be his best role moving forward in spurts in games.

Or one would imagine the Cavaliers could look to target say, Patty Mills or T.J. McConnell in free agency? We’d have to see, or a point forward-type in Florida State’s Scottie Barnes could help the Cavs as a crucial playmaker for spurts/at times stretches.

In any case, it’s clear that Dellavedova shouldn’t be re-signed by the Cavs.

But I applaud him for his efforts for the Wine and Gold throughout the years though, as a bench primary playmaker when he’s been in there in recent seasons, as a mentor to Garland/Sexton and for his efforts for Cleveland in the glory days.

He’s carved out a nice career, was a member of that 2016 Cavs championship team, and he’s endeared himself to the fan base and the city of Cleveland. Thanks so much, Delly!