1 stud and 1 dud for Cavs from win over the Spurs

Cavs dud: Lauri Markkanen

Looking at the statistics from the Spurs game, there was admittedly not one player that jumped out to fit in the “dud” category. Jarrett Allen had a plus-minus of minus-7, but he scored 17 points and grabbed 16 rebounds.

The player to best fit the “dud” title for Friday night’s game would be Lauri Markkanen, as he played over 33 minutes and only took five shots and scored just eight points.

Markkanen has been inconsistent when it comes to scoring. He only scored nine points on 2-of-6 shooting against the Golden State Warriors, but then scored 15 and 20 points the next two games, respectively.

While Markkanen has only connected on 31.8 percent of his three-point shots over the last 10 games, the more advanced numbers tell a different story.

Markkanen has the best plus-minus mark of the whole team in that 10-game span at +3.3. In addition to that, Markkanen has an offensive rating of 115.0 and a defensive rating of 109.6 for a 5.4 net rating. That 5.4 net rating is best among regular rotation players.

So yes, while Markkanen isn’t contributing consistently in the scoring column, he is still a factor while out on the court.

If the Cavaliers can get past Oklahoma City, they will reach eight games over .500, with five of their next seven games coming at home.

Not to get too far ahead of ourselves, but the Cavaliers could be in a good playoff position when the All-Star break rolls around next month, as long as they can maintain their health and consistent play on both ends of the floor.