1 stud and 1 dud for Cavs in their win over the Heat on Monday

Cavs dud: Cedi Osman

As the title suggests, there does need to be a dud, despite all the “feels” this team is giving its fans at the moment. While Osman only logged a small sample of game action (6 minutes), closer review of his play suggests this was intentional.

His first missed shot (0-of-3 in the game) was a left-handed air ball right at the rim. On the very next sequence, Osman was beaten by a Duncan Robinson drive and score, followed by another air ball, this time a rushed reverse layup in transition. His only 3-point attempt came around a minute later which was well short after a wide open look.

From there, Osman’s last game action came in the second quarter when he struggled to navigate a UCLA side double screen then cherry-picked a possible transition opportunity only to give up an open three in the same spot he had abandoned. It appeared Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff had seen enough.

This game is not a fair assessment of Cedi’s season, though. Far from it. Like Love, Osman has embraced a strictly-bench role for the first time in his career while bombing it from three, shooting a career-high in accuracy (41 percent)  and frequency (9.2 attempts per-36 minutes). He’s mostly removed the mid-range markers from his shot chart while improving defensively thanks to his size and agility.

Cedi’s previous game against the Kings (18 points on 4-of-10 from downtown) aligned closer with his season overall but also highlights an inconsistency which will be a goal of his to address moving forward. Osman will have an opportunity to do just that against a dangerous Houston Rockets team at home on Wednesday night. If you’re reading Cedi, we believe in you!