Last season, it was nice to see the continued progression of Collin Sexton for the Cleveland Cavaliers, and similarly, Darius Garland having a bounce-back campaign was satisfying.
Cleveland’s young starting backcourt has taken their lumps, and I’m not saying they haven’t.
There are things that both need to still clean up, and even with him mostly a 2 now, Sexton does still have some instances of tunnel vision; I’m not suggesting he doesn’t. That still occurs, but his scoring polish is undeniable, and despite trade rumors this offseason, it seems that that could very well lead to him sticking around long-term.
With Garland, there are still some silly turnovers, leading to run-outs for opponents, and to me, in the scoring sense, I do think he can be too willing to defer at times when he has it rolling.
Both have a ways to go on the defensive end, too, but Sexton has made strides on-ball some; he does need to show progression off-ball. With Garland, he did show some improvement as a team defender, although, on-ball, he’s going to have his problems, as many young point guards do.
Regardless, I do believe that the likes of Isaac Okoro, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen and players such as Ricky Rubio and Lamar Stevens (assuming he sticks around) in a bench sense can aid both Sexton and Garland on defense.
Anyway, on the plus side, last season was encouraging in a general sense for both Sexton and Garland, and I do firmly believe that both can take another step forward in 2021-22.
And to that point, it’s apparent from my perspective that either of the two can close for the Wine and Gold, which is good to know looking onward.
Cavs: Either of Sexton or Garland can close.
First, we’ll hit on that involving Sexton.
Cavs: Sexton is a go-to guy, and has done it before
Last season, Sexton again led Cleveland with 24.3 points per outing, and even with inconsistent spacing around him, did so on 57.3 percent true shooting. That clip was more than respectable for a young guard, particularly with the injuries Cleveland had last season, too.
In closing situations/down the stretch of games for the Cavaliers, getting down to it, depending on how games are playing out/which teammates are in a nice rhythm around him, I would still expect Sexton to get his share of looks in these scenarios.
Sexton is more than capable of creating for himself in closing opportunities, with his ability to change speeds off-the-bounce, get to the free throw line a healthy amount and with him getting more comfortable as a catch-and-shoot player last season. Even with a rough patch in March when he hit only 33.9 percent, he did still knock in 37.1 percent from deep last year, and throughout his career, has hit 38.5 percent from there.
Now, although Sexton does need to shoot more threes from here, he’s vastly improved since coming into the league from Alabama as a deep threat, and in his fourth season, I’d imagine that he’ll lean more into deep shooting. That’s reportedly being stressed for him and Garland by the Cavs, too.
But circling back, with Sexton’s abilities to create on-ball in a variety of ways, even with plenty of defensive attention, makes him a good closing option for Cleveland.
His quickness, pull-up feel and improved strength/finishing should pay off I believe more from here in crunch time. And in instances last season early on at the Atlanta Hawks, and against the Brooklyn Nets in an overtime thriller, for example, his closing work was huge.
He’s proven his worth for the Cavaliers in that realm in other occasions, too. In a W versus the Toronto Raptors in March in getting to the line that was on display, and in sealing a victory at the Houston Rockets in similar fashion and with his bucket-getting against the Boston Celtics also in March, that played out.
When the opportunity is knocking for him, Cleveland can assuredly go to Sexton in these situations to close.
But of course him looking to hit shooters such as Garland some, Lauri Markkanen and/or perhaps Kevin Love could help via kickouts as a counter; in Year 4, I’d think we’ll see those looks from Sexton to them, too, given his secondary playmaking growth in Year 3.
So from there, we’ll examine how Garland could be a viable closing option for the Cavaliers next season, too.
Cavs: The uber-skilled Garland can also close
Secondly, based on what he showed last season in that bounce-back campaign, Garland’s a legitimate closing option for Cleveland as well. Now between the two, Sexton has more of the mindset to create for himself in those situations, but I firmly believe that in Year 3, we could see more willingness in that regard from Garland.
Garland, who had 17.4 points per contest last season, has deep range, and although we didn’t see a ton of it, he is a dangerous off-movement shooter as well.
Sexton I’d think could have work in that realm from here, but Garland, in particular, I could see being used as a relocation player down the stretch of games. And that would make Cleveland more unpredictable, with Evan Mobley’s passing abilities for a big, and with Markkanen/perhaps Love being such dangerous off-ball shooters, too.
Nonetheless for Garland, as was shown throughout last season, in terms of the on-ball element, he can definitely create for himself in closing situations, and if he has things really going, could be a crucial pick-and-roll scoring option in these instances.
On-ball, his shiftiness, floater game, pull-up viability and step back game, combined with his quick release, could make him very dangerous and another key closing option for the Cavs from here, too.
However, I do acknowledge that in these situations, with those other shooters in the fold, Garland’s playmaking will be a big factor for the Cavs, and I know that if other guys have it going, that’ll especially be the case.
But even so, I do want Garland to take shots if they’re there and in-rhythm, as he’s one of the Cavs’ best scorers and knockdown shooters in his own right. He knocked down 39.5 percent from three, and on catch-and-shoot triple attempts, he converted on 43.2 percent of those, per NBA.com’s shot tracking data.
Tieing it together with both of the young backcourt in mind, though, when the opportunities are there, either of Sexton or Garland can close for the Cavaliers.