The Cleveland Cavaliers kicked off their Summer League festivities against the team that drafted one spot ahead of them, the Houston Rockets, in a highly anticipated matchup that featured the draft’s top two prospects.
While Jalen Green and Evan Mobley dominated most of the attention, there were other players to watch. Isaac Okoro, Lamar Stevens, and Jaylen Hands all performed well during their time on the court but the performance that caught my eye was from one Mfiondu Kabengele.
A former first-round pick of the LA Clippers in the 2019 NBA Draft, Kabengele was traded to the Sacramento Kings in March and subsequently waived. He caught on with the Cavs late in the season and appeared in 16 games for them. He is with Cleveland in Las Vegas hoping to earn a spot on next year’s roster, as his contract is currently non-guaranteed.
Kabengele’s stat-line doesn’t pop off the screen like Green’s (23 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists) or look as productive as Okoro’s (17 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists) but his performance was something that he can build upon. With that being said, here are three takeaways from Kabengele’s first summer-league game of 2021.
His rebounding was a welcome sight for a team that needs a true backup Center
Kabengele appeared to be in just the right place at the right time as he was snagging boards left and right. His presence on the glass gave Cleveland plenty of second chance looks as he battled his way to 13 rebounds total, with 5 coming on the offensive glass. It was a performance that was very reminiscent of what former Cavs’ big man Tristan Thompson used to bring to the table.
In fact, Kabengele and Thompson have very similar builds, both listed at 6-9 and the former listed at a playing weight of 250 pounds while the latter is listed at 254. Much like Thompson, Kabengele is a bit undersized at the center position but tends to play bigger than he actually is.
His positioning on more than a few of those rebounds showed that his awareness around the rim is something that you can’t teach. It’s a skill that he must continue to hone if he is to contend for playing time in a very crowded frontcourt. In a very limited sample size (16 games) with Cleveland, Kabengele averaged 8.9 rebounds per 36 minutes. Those are telling numbers for a player who rarely saw the court for more than 12 minutes a night.
If Kabengele is able to replicate his success on the glass in the team’s upcoming matchup with the Orlando Magic, it’s going to be hard to not include him within the rotation to begin the season.
His defensive presence could be key to smaller lineups for the Cavs next season.
The Florida State alum has the tools to become a rim deterrent and he very well could be if he continues to put in work on the less glamorous end of the court. He chipped in with 2 blocks against Houston and didn’t hesitate to meet the Rockets at the rim when the situation called for it.
There will be plays like a posterization attempt that Jalen Green nearly completed on him, but there are also sequences in which Kabengele can wow with his ability to slide his feet and be the second line of defense for the Cavs backcourt. He did just that when a few possessions later he picked Green up on a blow-by of Jaylen Hands and stifled a shot attempt at the rim.
His defensive chops were put on full display in this matchup which can, perhaps, best be highlighted by his willingness to challenge a Kenyon Martin Jr. dunk attempt around the 9:40 mark in the 2nd quarter which resulted in a block. His confidence to go up and do so could’ve landed him on a bad highlight but the mere fact that he did so without concern for that is encouraging.
His ability to get vertical could prove a valuable asset when the Cleveland-based squad decides to roll out smaller units with Kabengele manning the five.
Kabengele is still very raw offensively but could be a devastating rim-runner.
The third-year big still doesn’t look comfortable on the offensive end and appears very raw in general there. He ended the game with a grand total of three field goal attempts, all of which came from beyond the arc, and sank only one. His career percentage from long-range range is just 31.4% and while that could improve over time, it’s not a skill he will likely be able to improve in-game with such limited opportunity.
With that being the case, an area that Kabengele could possibly thrive in is as a rim-runner. While he didn’t get any opportunities to do so in this contest, the ability is there and was showcased a bit in-game. He could often be seen screen-setting and rolling to the rim, all the while appearing uncertain of whether or not he’d receive the ball.
During one particular possession, teammate Lamar Stevens was able to score the basket because of a very effective screen set by Kabengele. On said possession, the two closest defenders were keyed in on the big man, which in turn cleared a wide-open path to the rim for Stevens. That one play alone should be one the Cavs look back to on film as a reference point for what this young man can do.
Kabengele will not come close to averaging the number of minutes he got against Houston (28.4) but he should be factored into the discussions for the rotation moving forward if he continues to display these attributes.