Dylan Windler didn’t have much meaningful playing time in the very early going of this 2021-22 season for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Windler, who appeared in only 31 games in his first two seasons for Cleveland, was seemingly all set to go leading into training camp initially, and reportedly made his presence felt then.
Windler stressed how he was in a good place mentally and physically early in camp, which was a positive before the season, too.
Unfortunately, the injury bug ended up biting him again, to some extent, early on before the season.
Windler was inactive in Cleveland’s first few games because of a hip injury that reportedly occurred from him diving for loose balls in practice. Needless to say, with this being a crucial season for him, that was less than ideal to start the year, in relation to him missing time due to injury.
All of that said, Windler did have some quality outings for the Cavs since he’s been back and available, and he’s again flashed his natural shooting abilities from the perimeter. It’s obviously with the small sample size in mind, but he’s started to get it rolling when the rotational chances have come; he’s begun the year shooting 9-of-20 from three-point range (45.0 percent).
Of course, Windler has played only 11.7 minutes per game in nine appearances, thanks to that start with him having only played in garbage time initially.
With Collin Sexton set to be out for an extended period, though, and with Windler still being impactful for some rotational stretches at the 3, I’d expect to see him regularly receiving playing time for Cleveland from here.
In the past five games, following a DNP, Windler has played in 16.8 minutes per outing, and that included a 13-point performance in 21 minutes versus the Portland Trail Blazers in a win. He had nine points in 17 minutes in a win at the New York Knicks as well, and in those outings, went 6-of-7 from three.
There were two outings where he went scoreless in 11 minutes in a win at the Toronto Raptors, and in a loss versus the Washington Wizards on Wednesday, had three points, going 1-of-3 from three in 13 minutes.
Regardless, it’s evident that at this juncture, Cleveland can definitely benefit from what Windler brings, generally. He also gave the team solid play in a win against the Detroit Pistons on Friday with eight points, seven rebounds and four assists (albeit with three turnovers) and a block in that one.
Cavs: Windler’s case is straightforward right now.
I’m not advocating for Windler to be starting at the 2 with Collin Sexton out; from a defensive perspective, it’s logical for Isaac Okoro, currently, to be doing so.
And when Lauri Markkanen comes back (COVID-19 health and safety protocols), after a bit of re-adjustment, he’ll likely be back to starter’s minutes as a de facto 3 offensively, after a brief period. Plus, Dean Wade has been getting the nod in the last handful of games at the 3, and could receive some minutes even when Kevin Love is back.
However, the case for Windler seems pretty clear for now, and it’s sensible for Cleveland to get him in there for stretches, provided he stays healthy. Windler is a great kickout target for drivers, a quality movement shooter and cutter, and could still get some playing time with both Darius Garland and Ricky Rubio in.
The way Windler has been shooting has been promising, and while of course it’s very early and the sample size is small, we’ve seen the range from him on display, and he could provide a shooting boost in non-Okoro minutes. He could play with Okoro at times, still, too, though.
In addition, Windler defensively has done a solid job with his shot contests, by and large, is positionally sound off-ball, usually, and helps out on the defensive glass. He had 7.5 rebounds per-36 minutes last season and has had 6.5 per-36 thus far this season, and that, combined with his feel on defense, particularly with Lamar Stevens suffering a right ankle sprain versus Detroit, only aids his case.
So, in my opinion, especially with Sexton out, it’d behoove Cleveland to find ways to get Windler, who can play with Cedi Osman as well, 14-18 minutes per game regularly in the time being. And from there, we’ll see, but he should be helping himself here.
But he’ll need to stay healthy, clearly. One can’t stress that enough.