Cavs grades are up as they head into second quarter of season

Evan Mobley Grade: B

Another solid week for the rookie. Evan Mobley was even named NBA Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month for October/November for his outstanding play. In the five games in the last week, he continued playing well. His shooting was a bit off, but he was helping in other ways as usual. His defense and altering opponents’ shots continues to be impressive. Having Mobley on the court makes this Cavs team so much more dangerous.

For the week he averaged 12.2 points and 8.6 rebounds and just over two blocks. If he can get his shooting back up a bit and try to get to that double digits in rebounds a few more times, then his B this week will certainly go up again.

Lauri Markkanen Grade: C

The third wheel of the towering Cav trio of big men in the starting five had a pretty solid week. Lauri Markkanen’s numbers for the week were a bit up and down. He had a season’s best 24 points in the Mavericks game, however he followed that game up with a subpar six-point effort in Miami going 1-for-5 from beyond the three-point arc.

Isaac Okoro Grade: D

Isaac Okoro continues to struggle in his starting role. In the game against Milwaukee his minutes shrank as he was 0-for-6 from the field. He was a minus-20 when he was on the court in the game, and it just seems he’s the odd man out when it comes to this starting group. He hit 10 points twice this past week but single digits the rest of the way.

He’s not grabbing boards or dishing out more than two assists a game. His defense can be good, but it seems he’s having a difficult time overall in his second year. He’s not scored more than 15 points in a game all season, nor had a game where he’s dished out more than three assists.

He’ll have to contribute more, especially in other ways like assists or rebounds if his shot continues to struggle. I still don’t know if Okoro should continue in the starting group.

Should the veteran guard Ricky Rubio be the starter instead? With Darius Garland taking on more of the scoring duties, would Rubio in that point guard spot be more useful to the team right now from the outset of games?