Cavs starting lineup, rotation while Jarrett Allen is out

4 of 4

Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

Cavs rotation options while Jarrett Allen is out

From there the absence of Allen trickles down to the rest of the roster. Whether or not he starts there, Mobley will absolutely play a lot of minutes at the center position. He will struggle against some of the larger centers around, but in most matchups his rim protection and defensive versatility will shine through.

Again, the bet here is that both Kevin Love and Cedi Osman come off the bench. They have great chemistry together and spotty injury histories, so taking a little wear and tear off of them and preserving their 2-man game seems like the bet. That being said, Bickerstaff has not been afraid to both experiment and contradict himself this season, so anything is possible.

Will the Cavs play anyone other than Mobley and Love at center? The answer is likely yes, but not very much. If the team starts either Davis or a free agent center like Enes Freedom then they will probably get an early hook and a light load. If Mobley starts at the 5, Davis’ role is likely even more limited. Bickerstaff likes his tight ships.

On the wing, many of Allen’s minutes will likely be translated to a number of different players. With Mobley defending more centers, either Dean Wade or Lamar Stevens will need to take some minutes for defensive matchups. That will absolutely be the case until Caris LeVert comes back, but almost certainly beyond that as well.

Finally, will more minutes opening up lead Bickerstaff to truly downsize, playing lineups with three “guards” with Wade at the 4 and Mobley at the 5? This would be their low-key version of a “death lineup” with Darius Garland, LeVert and Osman, let’s say, all able to shoot, handle and pass. Mobley would be deadly as a roll man or lob threat, or even handling at the top. Wade would help defensively while still spacing the floor on offense. We can talk about that more in-depth later this week.

Next. 3 free agent bigs Cavs could sign as Jarrett Allen fill-in. dark

Replacing Allen’s production and impact is impossible, and we aren’t trying to do that here. This is merely a look at how the coaching staff might lay things out in the absence of their star center. Whether it’s Mobley at the 5 or more minutes for a center to-be-named, this team will feel the burden of replacing such a talented big man.