Cavs’ Isaac Okoro has excelled in the open floor in Year 2

One has to acknowledge that when it comes to Isaac Okoro, the priority has to be on the defensive end for the Cleveland Cavaliers second-year wing.

He’s gotten better over time on that end of the floor, and he’s still a guy that can hold his own, to a large degree, 1-3 on-ball, and with the likes of Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen behind him now, it enables Okoro, among others, to be more aggressive on the perimeter. We’ve seen that pay off this season, and even with some unfortunate fouls committed by Okoro, such as in pick-and-roll situations, those are plays that the Cavaliers should live with.

Along with him coming into his own on defense, Okoro has shown growth over the course of the season to this point offensively, and has had some really nice outings since his return from being out with an elbow sprain.

It will take a ton for me to be fully bought into Okoro taking over for Collin Sexton at the full-time 2 to start games, and I can’t say if I’ll ever come to that personally, if Sexton re-signs this upcoming offseason, as an aside. And Okoro at the 3 still is sensible for stretches, anyhow.

But I’ll acknowledge from a rim pressure standpoint, Okoro can be somewhat similar to Sexton, albeit without the pull-up presence, and Sexton’s minutes being lowered, as was the case earlier this season, is fine. We’d have to see down the stretch.

Circling back to him, Okoro has shown some progression as far as reading out and navigating his way through gaps to get to the basket and/or trips to the free throw line, and I don’t discount that. He’s made strides as a finisher this year as a result, to some extent, and on the year, has hit 66.1 percent of his restricted area shot attempts, per NBA.com’s shooting data. That’s up from his rookie year, when that clip was 58.4 percent.

One area where Okoro has definitely made marketed improvement, though, is his sense in early offense, and in the open floor, regarding his approach/assertiveness and his finishing. Even with just three points in Wednesday’s signature win over the Milwaukee Bucks, Okoro did have a number of times when he initiated in transition, and kicked, leading to quality shots and assists at times as a result, which showed further development.

Okoro has excelled in the open floor in Year 2 for the Cavs.

Last year, we saw some of it from Okoro, but maybe not as much as I would’ve preferred, but this season, he’s been far more aggressive in the transition game.

In his lone collegiate season at Auburn, Okoro was excellent in that area, and his cutting feel there and as we touched on, his finishing those situations has been much improved in Year 2. He was decent in that regard as a rookie; we just weren’t seeing Okoro as confident in attacking in transition/secondary transition situations.

This season, he’s seemed to be seeking those opportunities more, and it’s paid off for him as a finisher, where his physicality and success getting downhill at the rim has been a lift for the Wine and Gold in some sequences in early offense.

On the season, Isaac has placed in the 85th percentile in transition scoring situations, in which have been on a robust 27.5 percent frequency, per Synergy Sports. Okoro has helped Cleveland to some degree in that regard with the likes of Sexton out for most of the season to this point, and I’d look for him to keep progressing in that area the rest of the year and in coming seasons.

We’ve seen some of his impressive body control, finishes by initiating and playing through contact, and it’s been a key way for him to generate free throw looks, which are always a focal point for the just-turned 21-year-old.

Granted, it’s still apparent that for Okoro’s offensive outlook, I still believe part of the next step there is for him to develop a pull-up J in the mid-range, feasibly.

He has shown some flashes in the catch-and-shoot game, but he’s still connected on just 28.4 percent from three on the year, and if Okoro could generate some more his own on pull-ups here and there, that’d be huge for him as a driver.

In any case, as we previously alluded to, it’s been good to see Okoro look more assertive this season in the transition game, where his strength and burst make him very formidable for the Wine and Gold as a cutter and driver.

Keep this up, Ice!