The Cleveland Cavaliers started off the season at 9-5, and appeared to have been turning a corner this season, largely behind strong defensive play, ball movement and a balanced offensive attack.
Now, the club has been hit hard by injuries already this season, as Kevin Love and Lauri Markkanen missed a number of weeks because of COVID-19 health and safety protocols, and it was a crushing blow that Collin Sexton is out for the rest of the season. That was due to meniscus surgery.
Along with that, it was rough that Evan Mobley has been out the past week-and-a-half due to an elbow sprain, and Jarrett Allen missed three games because of illness last week. Others have been banged up here and there, too, such as Lamar Stevens (ankle sprain), Cedi Osman (back spasms) and Darius Garland sustained a neck strain in Cleveland’s loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Monday.
All of that being said, these Cavaliers have been realistically in almost every game, and while they’ve dropped five straight, this club has hung in there admirably, and they can still make a postseason/play-in run. That’s if they stay the course and can find ways to stay afloat amid injury, if that were to pop up more in the season’s second half.
This team’s efforts shouldn’t be discounted, though, especially despite considering injury, and officiating that has been inconsistent in some games.
So, anyway, with Thursday being Thanksgiving, a few things, to me, come to mind involving what fans should be thankful for, in particular.
To that point, we’ll highlight the three that first come to mind to me as a Cavs fan here.
The first has to do with what Cleveland seems to have in their impressive rookie big.
#1: Mobley looking to be a Cavs star in the making
The first thing for Cavaliers fans to be thankful for is how Mobley seems to be a home run draft selection. It wasn’t exactly rocket science for the Cavs to have selected the 7-footer out of USC with Cade Cunningham and Jalen Green going 1-2 before Mobley went #3, but his play so far has made that decision all the more reassuring.
Mobley has had 14.6 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game thus far in 15 appearances, and leading into him being sidelined, Mobley was showing the full array offensively, as KJG’s Amadou Sow demonstrated.
Plus, Mobley’s passing feel, feathery mid-range and floater touch, and his defensive versatility, awareness, team and shot blocking/altering instincts have been on display already time and time again.
For a 20-year-old, Mobley has been simply outstanding for the Wine and Gold, and although he does need to improve his catch-and-shoot play from three from here, he has shown flashes there, and has already affected games in a plethora of ways.
It is very, very early, and he’ll need to get and eventually remain fully healthy, but based on what we’ve seen, and how he’s fit alongside so many other Cavs, including fellow big Jarrett Allen, Mobley looks to be a star in the making. He looks to be playing beyond his years, and the kid’s only going to get better and better with more experience.
He can’t be back soon enough; on the plus side, he is reportedly making tangible progress.
#2: Darius Garland’s next step for the Cavs
The second key thing fans should be thankful for, from my perspective at least, is Darius Garland looking to take the next step.
I get that there’s some frustrating instances where Garland looks to be pressing it a bit too much with Sexton out, and his role needing to be more of a scorer, to some degree here, but that’s nitpicking I believe.
For the most part however, Garland looks to be taking the next step, and his playmaking has still improved, I think, as his chemistry with Jarrett Allen, along with others, has been better. And his two-man game with Mobley has been better than one would’ve even imagined. Thus far, he’s had 6.8 assists per outing, and between him and Ricky Rubio, Cleveland has gotten solid primary playmaking throughout games, mostly.
The on and off-ball scoring abilities from Garland have shown continued development as well, as he’s had 18.2 points per outing, and though there will be some streakiness with the injuries to Cleveland, he had been hitting 36.4 percent from three on 7.4 attempts per game. Following Cleveland’s close loss to the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday, when he was objectively 0-of-6 from deep, that clip is now 34.7 percent, but the shooting has popped from DG on many occasions.
The deep range from him, and a seemingly more aggressive mindset, has led to Garland looking to take the next step as a scorer, and his shooting in other areas has gotten better, too.
Hopefully Garland’s neck strain, as an aside, isn’t too nagging for him, but I don’t believe that should be too concerning for an extended period. He had an up-and-down game versus Phoenix, and fouled out in that one, but he didn’t seem too affected.
Anyhow, in a general sense, DG’s continued growth has been very encouraging thus far this season, and I’d only expect him to be more confident moving forward.
I’d hope the Cavaliers can find some ways to get him more off-ball opportunities, though, and I believe they can.
#3: Rubio’s steadying presence and production for the Cavs
A third reason for Cavs fans to be thankful this go-round has been Rubio’s steadying presence and production for the Wine and Gold.
Coming into the season, I thought Rubio as a trade acquisition would definitely make his presence felt, and would help ease the burden on Garland, and to some extent, Collin Sexton; the injury to Collin was again, crushing, unfortunately.
Regardless, while the shot will likely have its ups and downs, as Rubio has been much more effective as a passer throughout his career, he has exceeded expectations as a scorer so far for Cleveland.
Injuries aside, he’s averaged 15.1 points, knocked in 36.3 percent from three, and has had 6.2 assists and 1.3 steals per contest. Plus, his craftiness has aided the Cavs’ offense when he’s been out there, mostly as a supersub-type player.
In addition, Rubio’s team defensive impact has made a difference often for the Cavaliers, and to reiterate, the 31-year-old’s steadying presence and his leadership, seemingly both on and off the floor, has been invaluable for a Cavs team that is still largely young.
I’m not certain if he’ll end up sticking around, as Rubio is an expiring player, but if the Cavs can stick in the thick of things, I’d prefer that he sticks through the deadline, really. And perhaps next offseason, maybe he and the team could have mutual interest in a fairly reasonable deal; we’ll have to see there.
Okay, so, while there are other reasons for fans to be thankful, such as Allen’s very strong play so far, and Cleveland’s team-first style and toughness, these three things we highlighted here are the ones that clearly stood out to me.
Hopefully this team can continue to get healthier, though, to help get back on track.
Lastly, on behalf of all of us here at KJG, we hope all of you Cavs fans have a tremendous Thanksgiving! And thanks as always for your support, readers!