The Cleveland Cavaliers jumped to the top of the NBA headlines list for the first time this month, trading Larry Nance Jr. for Chicago Bulls Lauri Markkanen in a sign and trade that will have the Finnish marksman under contract for the Cavs for the next four years.
Nance arrives in Portland, leaving a hole in the Cleveland defense. He is a talented and relentless defender, with the strength and rim protection chops to play smallball 5 and the foot speed and instincts to defend wings. He did whatever the Cavs asked him to do, and now the team has to replace that functionality.
Larry Nance Jr. is no longer on the Cavs, which means they will need to find someone to replace him on defense
Markkanen, the team’s new power forward, is an excellent shooter but not a plus defender. He also lacks the versatility to capably defend combo forwards, limiting him primarily to bigs. Isaac Okoro is the team’s presumed wing stopped, but at 6’5″ with a short wingspan he is not built to defend power forwards.
Cleveland isn’t necessarily trying to contend right away, but they do need to figure out their rotations and how they will accomplish certain goals. Their offensive plan is coming together, but on defense Nance played a crucial role that will have to be replaced. How do they fill in the Larry Nance-sized hole in their defense?
Cavs: 3 ways to replace Larry Nance’s role on defense – Toss Evan Mobley into the fire
Evan Mobley is an incredibly talented player, a deserving No. 3 overall pick and perhaps even a top pick in many years. The 7-footer can score, handle, pass, defend and rebound — the complete package in a modern big, a player with center size and wing skills.
The apparent plan for Mobley, given the team’s re-signing of center Jarrett Allen, was to play him most of his minutes at power forward and allow him to develop in an NBA strength-and-conditioning program. Long-term Mobley’s best fit would presumably be the 5, but if he is able to grow as a perimeter defender and shooter he could be a power forward.
Rather than take it slow, the Cavs could accelerate Mobley’s learning curve and use him as their top forward defender. He is a good bet to start, and he and Isaac Okoro project as good defenders who aren’t there yet. Having the two of them take on all comers, with Darius Garland and Collin Sexton taking the less dangerous threats, will give them both valuable reps on defense.
It will also mean a lot of losing, most likely, as the two players develop on that end. NBA defense is harder than ever to master, as Okoro learned last year when he was thrown into the fire. Assuming the Cavs are comfortable with the growing pains, the replacement for Larry Nance might be Mobley.
Cavs: 3 ways to replace Larry Nance’s role on defense – Increased minutes for Lamar Stevens
Coming out of the 2020 NBA Draft, Penn State forward Lamar Stevens found himself undrafted after a solid college career. He signed a two-way contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers to try and build his way onto an NBA roster full-time.
Stevens did just that, as the Cavs converted his two-way deal into a regular contract with about a month to go in the season this past spring. The 6’6″, 230 pound forward is a tough defender who earned his spot on the team. Even though his contract for next season is non-guaranteed, it’s unlikely he would be cut at this point in the offseason, especially given the loss of Larry Nance Jr.
Strength is, if you’ll excuse the pun, Stevens’ greatest strength, as he can hold up against larger players and finish through contact inside. Stevens averaged 1.2 steals and nearly a block per-36 minutes, called upon to take on difficult matchups when Nance was frequently out with injury.
The difficult part of fitting Stevens into a full-time rotational role is his poor shooting. He hit just four of his 25 3-pointers last season, dreadful accuracy (16 percent) and volume. Fortunately, the addition of Lauri Markkanen as a knockdown shooter allows the team to survive non-spacers at other positions, making it easier to find minutes for Stevens.
Given his strength and defensive acumen, and the lack of that across the rest of the forwards on the roster, this makes him an ideal candidate to earn more playing time next season and be at least a part of replacing Larry Nance on defense.
Cavs: 3 ways to replace Larry Nance’s role on defense – Use final roster spot on a defensive forward
The Cleveland Cavaliers currently have 14 players under contract: 10 fully-guaranteed deals, and four non-guaranteed ones. That means at a minimum they can sign one player still available in free agency to fill out the roster and give them another option defensively at the forward position.
The best veteran defender still on the market is probably Paul Millsap. The ontime Atlanta Hawks star and recent Denver Nuggets big is still unsigned, as the Nuggets replaced him with Jeff Green. The 36-year old veteran is an ace defender, with the strength to guard centers even at 6’7″. He is an excellent option to defend power forwards and burlier combo forwards, and could even pair with Evan Mobley and sometimes take on the 5 in those matchups.
Stanley Johnson is a younger option as more of a combo forward himself, filling a similar defensive role to Nance without the weakside rim protection. The 8th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons, Johnson has spent the last two seasons as a defensive spot player for the Toronto Raptors. Cleveland could add him to play a similar role, inserting him into the rotation when the matchup dictated it.
The Cavs have a number of options to replace Nance’s role on defense, but none of them are both as reliable and effective as Nance. That’s part of what happens in an NBA trade; you upgrade in one area but take a hit in another. Long-term the Cavs are counting on Evan Mobley to fill that void, but in the short-term they may rely on someone in-house or add a player to help fill the gap.